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Austria hut to hut 3. circuit of the Stubai Part 2

Austria hut to hut 3. circuit of the Stubai Part 2


Postby past my sell by date » Sun Dec 26, 2021 7:18 pm

Date walked: 24/07/2000

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;Continued from https://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=109952
Day 5
The 2308m Dresdner hut lies at the top of the Fernautal above Mutterberg. This is the only place we noticed any skilifts on our trek. The map suggests there are lots of them in the area now - so I guess it would be a little less "wild" today.
The route from here to the Neue Regensburg hutte in the Falbesontal is long - 12.8km with nearly 1000m of ascent. the standard time is 7 hours, so in the light of the snowy conditions, we agreed to join up with Steve and Tam on this leg
dres01.jpg
Part 1 of the route: we headed around NW behind the 2631m Egesengrat, descended into and crossed the Mutterbergtal and continued past the Mutterbergsee - at 2439m
A38.jpg
Setting off from the hut in the early morning: this sunny picture belies the truth - that the back of the Egesengrat and the remainder of the route was mostly quite snowy :(
A38a.jpg
Library photo: Looking back from beside the Mutterbergsee : the Dresdnerhutte is behind the Egesengrat (centre) with the Schaufelspitz on the R
dres02.jpg
Part 2 of the route: From here we climbed diagonally up to a cairn(arrowed) on a rocky ridge on the Southern flank of the Ruderhof Spitz at around 2700m:
{ Grube - which seems to crop up regularly - translates as "pit" in German - so presumably a hollow in the mountains}

A39.jpg
Crossing the slopes above the Wilde Grube: we halted for a rest before the track became snowcovered: Bill, Steve and Tam The Egensengrat is behind in the centre
A39a.jpeg
same place - Tam and Bill
At the cairn we stopped again and took several photos:
A44.jpg
Looking back to the Mutterbergsee ( bottom L) the route crossed snow-covered scree slopes between rock ridges
A43.jpg
From the cairn a wider view
A40.jpg
looking back to the Dresdner hut (centre) below the Schaufelspitz
A41.jpg
Looking further L - almost South - across the lower Mutterbergtal to the Wilde Freiger (L), Wilde Pfaff and the Zuckerhutl
A42.jpg
Further L still ; the 3267m Feuerstein - just SE of the Nurnbergerhutte is at the back in the centre
A45.jpg
From the rocky ridge the route traverses the slopes ahead then turns L and crosses the ridge at a 2881m col - The Grabagrubennieder ( bit of a mouthful :lol: :lol: ) - behind the snowy peak on the L
A46.jpg
The path turns North towards the col: looking back - our last view of the Wilde Pfaff and the Zuckerhutl
A47.jpg
The route continues below this impressive outcrop
A48.jpg
At the Grabagrubennieder - looking beyond - across the Hochmoos glacier
dres03.jpg
Part 3 of the route - descent to the hut into the Falbesontal
A49.jpg
Bill descending the steep snow-filled gully to the glacier: at the bottom we headed R down the valley: the deep snow was quite hard going, but gradually thinned as we descended
A50.jpg
On the moraines below the snowline - looking back to the col
A51.jpg
A marmot hiding in the rocks - just R of centre - difficult to spot :lol: :lol:
Marmot02.jpg
I have taken better pictures of them - though they don't hang around for very long :lol:
A52.jpg
Heading down the Falbesontal
A53.jpg
The hut in sight :D - it had been a long tiring day
A55.jpg
From the hut terrace: looking back up the valley to the 3474m Ruderhof Spitz (centre) and the 3308m Fraulspitz - far R
A54.jpg
A modern Library picture of the hut - unlike many others, it doesn't seem to have changed

Day 6
Unfortunately Steve and Tam had a plane to catch so we said goodbye and they headed down to the main road in the valley. Our route took us on a good track up the Schrimmental heading around ENE and then N to another snowy col - the 2714m Schrimmennieder
day6map01.jpg
Part 1 of the route
A57.jpg
Early morning - looking back at the Neue Regensburger hut and yesterday's descent from the Grabagrubennieder
A58.jpg
At the Schrimmennieder - The impressive 2978m Kerrach Spitz
A59.jpg
The descent from the Schrimmennieder crossed this steep snow-covered scree slope and then descnded to a flat area the Platzengrube
day6map02.jpg
Part 2 of the route
A60.jpg
In the Platzengrube - looking NW across the Oberbergtal
A61.jpg
On the descent route to the Oberbergtal - looking across to the Franz Senn hut in the upper valley: I don't remember coming very close to it, but the map doesn't show any alternative. Maybe we found a way down cutting off a loop in the track
Franz Senn.jpg
Franz Sennhutte - Library picture: I'm nor sure if we actualy passed it
We descended into the Oberbergtal I was completely blown away :D :D
This wonderful pastoral valley is just a few Km from Innsbuck. I thought of scenes from "Far from the Madding crowd": I thought of Beethoven writing his 6th symphony: it was completely different from anything else on the walk. The farmers were just in the process of cutting the grass (alpage) for hay - mostly by hand and not a square metre being wasted :D
I also learned the cost of the EU's Common Agricultural policy CAP. :lol: :lol: Every farmer had a (hugely expensive) hay wagon incorporating a mechanical lift that continuously carried the cut grass up to the to upper deck - Only a substantial grant could allow a farmer here to buy such a machine :lol: :lol:
A63.jpg
Walking down through the cow pastures to the road head
A62.jpg
Arriving at the roadhead in the Oberbergtal
A64.jpg
Walking back down the road to the car
I can't remember if we walked the whole way back to the car - though i don't recall catching a bus, but I dropped Bill at a station somewhere - to return home via his sister 's in France and then headed to Tasch to start my first alpine season :)
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Re: Austria hut to hut 3. circuit of the Stubai Part 2

Postby Sgurr » Tue Dec 28, 2021 10:59 pm

This is all very nostalgic. After I had posted my Austria trip, friend T got in touch and he had kept a list of all the huts we had visited. These are all familiar names. I think the Stubai is a wonderful area, but we had enjoyed it so much the 2 first times we went that we didn't want to "spoil" it by going back, so always went elsewhere. What a great time you had.
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Re: Austria hut to hut 3. circuit of the Stubai Part 2

Postby Stevekerr188 » Fri Dec 31, 2021 9:26 pm

Enjoyed the report. Did the same circuit back in 1988 I think in the month of August. We did an ascent of the Wilder Freiger with a 2 night stop in a hut which I think must be the Nurnberger. We set off at 11am, as was our usual mountain day, to do the mountain and were met with looks of astonishment by some Austrian climbers who had been up since 6am and were coming down. They gave us a cheer on our return to the hut!
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Re: Austria hut to hut 3. circuit of the Stubai Part 2

Postby Sgurr » Fri Dec 31, 2021 10:06 pm

We really should have copied the Austrians and Germans with their early starts when we went, as everything was nicely frozen up early, but some of the streams at the edges of glaciers were horrendous by the time we got back, moreover, they had bagged all the best beds.
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Re: Austria hut to hut 3. circuit of the Stubai Part 2

Postby past my sell by date » Sat Jan 01, 2022 6:08 pm

Sgurr wrote:This is all very nostalgic. After I had posted my Austria trip, friend T got in touch and he had kept a list of all the huts we had visited. These are all familiar names. I think the Stubai is a wonderful area, but we had enjoyed it so much the 2 first times we went that we didn't want to "spoil" it by going back, so always went elsewhere. What a great time you had.


We did have a good time and because it was so snowy, there were no "local" walkers around. Apart from Steve and Tam I don't remember coming across anyone else '
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Re: Austria hut to hut 3. circuit of the Stubai Part 2

Postby past my sell by date » Sat Jan 01, 2022 6:19 pm

Stevekerr188 wrote:Enjoyed the report. Did the same circuit back in 1988 I think in the month of August. We did an ascent of the Wilder Freiger with a 2 night stop in a hut which I think must be the Nurnberger. We set off at 11am, as was our usual mountain day, to do the mountain and were met with looks of astonishment by some Austrian climbers who had been up since 6am and were coming down. They gave us a cheer on our return to the hut!


Pretty good effort to do the Wilde Freiger :clap: , but I think it's generally accepted that the risk of something "nasty" falling down the mountain and wiping you out increases as the day goes on :( Also the views - particularly to the West are at their best in the early morning.

As I wrote in the report, these mountains looked really "alpine" - snowy: I wonder what they are like now. in the Valais - that I know far far better - Glaciers below the 3000m mark have now largely melted away - a trend that sadly will only get worse :(
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