Strictly speaking, this single stage takes you across the entire Rofan range. From east to west, you’ll be hiking all day with the sun at your back—and with a solid seven and a half hours of pure Hiking Time, it’s almost exactly that long.
A challenging, alpine stage across the Rofan Mountains. The view of Lake Zireiner opens up as early as the Marchgatterl; this is followed by the first demanding section—the steep, narrow Schafsteig trail, secured with steel cables. The route continues across the grassy south face of the Rofanspitze into a barren, rocky mountain landscape, featuring a rope-secured south ridge up to the Spieljoch and then on to the Hochiss, where narrow trails beneath the southern cliffs and partially secured rock terrain demand your full attention. Overnight stay on the Dalfaz Alpine Pasture on the Enzianweg.
From the Bayreuther Mountain hut, the trail leads to the Marchgatterl, offering a view of Lake Zireiner, which can also be reached directly after a short descent. From the Marchgatterl, continue along the steep, narrow Schafsteig trail—secured with a wire rope—to the Schafsteigsattel. Then follow the grassy south face of the Rofanspitze to the Grubascharte and the Signposting for the Spieljoch. The ascent over the south ridge to the summit is secured with ropes. After the Spieljoch, the ascent continues to the Hochiss (2,299 meters). From the ridge, follow the yellow signposting and traverse westward on a narrow path beneath the southern cliffs of the Hochiss (passing the start of the Via Ferrata). Climb briefly uphill over rocky, partly secured terrain. On the grassy southwest slope, turn right (east) at the trail fork and ascend to the summit cross of the Hochiss. The descent leads over the Streichkopf (2,243 meters) and past the Steinernes Tor to the Dalfaz Alpine Pasture (1,693 meters, Enzianweg). Overnight stay at the Dalfaz Alpine Pasture.
