BergeSeen Trail 05: St. Gilgen - Mondsee

Description:
Stage 5 is also part of the www.4berge3seen.at tour, a four-day extension of the BergeSeen Trail which leads from Lake Wolfgang to Lake Mondsee. The forest summit that you climb might seem unremarkable, but it offers an interesting view. Before and after this peak, you hike through quiet forests and well-tended farmland.Directions:
From the parish church in the centre of St. Gilgen (545 m), the trail crosses Mozartplatz, follows Steinklüftstraße to the north and then crosses the B 154 highway. On the other side, you follow the Obenauweg path for approximately 40 metres and then turn left onto the marked hiking trail. This trail leads through the wooded Staffelgraben Ravine to the rock face of the Plombergstein. At the foot of the cliff, you fork to the right and at the Plomberg property, arrive back at the Obenauweg path, which you follow into the alpine valley of the same name. At the end of the valley, you turn left again onto the path towards the Almkogel. After a long climb through sometimes steep forest slopes, the route heads right along a forest road over a ridge and then continues north until the path to the Almkogel branches off to the right. This trail brings you to the junction with the access path to Lake Krotensee and shortly afterwards to another fork. Keeping right, you arrive at the rocky summit of the Almkogel (1030 m) after a few minutes. Your hiking efforts are rewarded with magnificent views of the Attersee, Mondsee and Irrsee lakes. 2:00 h.

 

From the summit, the trail heads back to the previously mentioned trail marker from where it steeply descends to the right through the forest to the Thekla Chapel. From there, it’s not much further to the inn Gasthaus Drachenwand (498 m). At this point, the mountains have been conquered, and it’s a flat trek to Mondsee. First, you walk along the street to the beautiful, double-towered baroque Church of St. Lorenz (483 m).

 

The route then continues along a narrow lane to cross the main highway. On the other side, the trail follows a road to the shore of Lake Mondsee and through the Schwarzindien community. The trail continues along an avenue, where you have to walk next to the main highway for a short distance until you are able to turn right to the lakeshore. From the beautiful lakeside promenade, the trail follows the Lindenallee until reaching the town centre of Mondsee (483 m). 2:35 h

Safety guidelines:

• In alpine terrain, be aware of the danger of falling rocks.


• Through early summer, you may encounter steep snowfields or firn gullies – especially during icy conditions, there is an acute risk of falling and thus fatal injury!


• Due to storm damage, forestry work or construction work, individual trail sections may be difficult or impassable at times.


• Cows in the alpine meadows are often curious. Because they are nursing mothers, they develop a strong tendency to protect their calves. Therefore, move through cow pastures quietly, keep at least 20 metres of distance to the animals and never pet calves! In the case of threatening behaviour (pawing, stamping) slowly back away (do not turn your back). Keep dogs on a leash. They must not bark at or chase cows. In the case of an attack, the dog must be released from the leash.

Equipment:

For all stages, you will need hiking or mountain boots with treaded rubber soles as well as wind- and rainproof clothing. A change of clothes and a small first-aid kit should also be included in your backpack. The amount of provisions you should pack depends on the number of available rest stops. In any case, you should always take along plenty to drink. Telescopic poles are helpful, especially when walking downhill.

Additional information:

Text kindly provided by the publisher KOMPASS-Verlag and Wolfgang Heitzmann.

Further information at trail.salzkammergut.at