Long-distance hike Eagle Walk Stage O6: Matrei in Osttirol - Sudetendeutsche Hütte

From the hamlet of Glanz near Matrei, the trail winds its way over 1,300 meters of altitude to the Sudetendeutschen Hütte in the heart of the Granatspitzgruppe. This is exactly to our taste; as long-distance hiking veterans, we love challenges like this. After all, we know that the exertions are always compensated for by the magnificent views.

Description

Route description: The best place to start this stage is at the parking lot in the hamlet of Glanz, which saves you two hours of walking. From Matrei in Osttirol you can get there by car (cab service on request) in 20 minutes. All those who also want to tackle this first section on foot can reach the parking lot via the little-used road from Matrei via Hinterburg. From the parking lot in Glanz, it takes 1 ½ to 2 hours to reach the Äußere Steiner Alm and another 2 to 2 ½ hours to reach the Sudetendeutsche Hütte. The trail leads mostly through a forest with ancient larch trees, past the Köfler-Almhütte (private alpine hut). In the area of the Ranzeralm, you cross the road twice.

Just above the Lackner-Almhütte, a cart path begins, which leads past a spring before crossing the Edelweiss meadow from east to west. If you don't want to hike through the forest, you can also walk from the Glanz parking lot along the forest road to the start of the Edelweiss meadow. After a rocky edge, the path, which is protected by a handrail, descends slightly into the sparse larch forest. Cross the Steinerbach stream to reach the alpine huts of the Äußere Steiner Alm (1,914 meters), from the Äußere Steiner Alm continue northeast along the flat trough valley floor towards the head of the valley. Small larch groves and huge blocks of green slate characterize this romantic section of the trail. At the end of the valley head, a material cableway leads to the Sudetendeutsche Hütte, a former iron ore mining site, which is why the corner of the valley is known as the "smelting works". The trail to the Sudetendeutsche Hütte first leads up close to the Steinerbach stream, then winds its way up the meadow slopes, with the Nussingkogel to the left and the Bretterwandspitze to the right. Finally, the terrain with its glacier-formed peaks becomes somewhat flatter and you are close to the spacious Sudetendeutsche Hütte (2,650 m) in the middle of the Granatspitz group. For route descriptions, see also: "Osttiroler Wanderbuch" by Walter Mair.