Hiking trails

The Goetheweg trail starts right next to the Hafelekar mountain lift station and leads east along the ridge. After a few short ascents and descents, hikers come to the Mühlkarscharte where they cross the ridge and continue along the northern face to the Mandlscharte. After a short descent, the landscape changes. Alpine meadows and mountain pines form the backdrop for the last section to the Pfeishütte mountain hut. The hut is located over 1,900 metres above sea level in a pristine alpine setting with the rugged peaks of the Rumer Spitz, the Stempeljoch and the Bachofen rising up all around it. The walking time from Hafelekar to the mountain hut is 2-2.5 hours (one way!). The walking time including the return journey to Hafelekar is approx. 4.5-5 hours. All other route options take considerably longer.   Return walk from the Pfeishütte mountain hut Route option 1: Via the Goetheweg trail back to the Hafelekar or a bit further down to the Seegrube. The Nordkettenbahnen lifts to Innsbruck can be accessed from Hafelekar and from the Seegrube.   Route option 2: Anyone who would like to return a different way can take the route down from the Pfeishütte mountain hut via Kreuzjöchl. The route goes via Kreuzjöchl, the Vintlalm mountain hut and the Rumer Alm mountain hut and ends in the holiday village of Rum. There are buses from Rum to Innsbruck.   Route option 3: From the Pfeishütte mountain hut, along scree fields, up to the Stempeljoch and then down from the ridge. Without losing altitude, a trail branches off to the right into a widely spaced larch stand. The trail meets the road by the highest house in the Hall Valley and follows it to the former "Herrenhäuser"manor houses. It is possible to take a shortcut via the former salt mine huts. From the "Herrenhäuser", the trail turns right and continues down to St. Magdalena, an alpine guesthouse and former monastery nestled in the mountains. For anyone who doesn't want to continue on foot: at the weekend during hiking season, a shuttle bus runs from here to Absam every hour (fees apply). From Absam, it is possible to take a public bus to Innsbruck. 

The start of the Nordkette Path of Perspectives (Perspektivenweg) designed by Snøhetta is located a short way from the mountain lift station of the Seegrubenbahn cable car, which was designed in the mid-twentieth century by architect Franz Baumann as the perfect interplay between nature and technology. The trail is beautifully integrated into the landscape and the individual elements combined with philosophical quotes create spaces where you can observe and admire the landscape from various different perspectives. Photos ©Lea Hajner https://escape-town.com/ 

This hike starts just above the bottom station of the Nordkettenbahn cable car. Head northeast through the village for a short distance before taking the first left onto a forest trail. Shortly afterwards, the trail crosses the Rosnerweg path and continues uphill. The route leads through areas of mixed forest and various glades to the Arzler Alm mountain hut (1,067 metres). From there, continue west along the forest road until you reach the first large intersection. Turn right and follow the signs to the Höttinger Alm mountain hut (1,487 metres). This section has fantastic views of the valley below.  Culinary tips: Both of the mountain huts offer typical local dishes and excellent Tyrolean cuisine.  Another route option is to start from Sadrach (bus stop for the A bus) and follow the trail past the Planötzenhof restaurant, past Höttinger Bild chapel and up through the forest to the Höttinger Alm mountain hut. It is well-worth making a short stop at the Höttinger Bild pilgrimage site. This small mountain chapel is hidden deep in the forest next to a picturesque fountain. 

From the Hallerangerhaus mountain hut, first turn onto the trail towards "Lafatscher Joch". This trail leads into a rocky corrie, which becomes increasingly steeper and narrower. Soon the route leads through the so-called "Durchschlag" (the point where the the old mule track broke through the rock) and a little later – past a cross – gently uphill to a pasture where there is a turnoff to Speckkarspitze peak. The route continues north along a pleasant stretch to "Lafatscher Joch" ridge. When you get to the ridge, follow the signs to the "Pfeishütte" mountain hut. Follow the trail gently downhill, following the signs to "Pfeishütte" and "Pfeishütte über Wilde-Bande-Steig". The ancient "Wilde-Bande-Steig" takes you through many areas of mountain pines and crosses several gullies as it makes its way slightly uphill to the entrance of the corrie below the Stempeljoch ridge. Follow the signs to "Stempeljoch" and "Pfeishütte". The trail through the corrie (constructed using wooden boards and numerous wire ropes) becomes increasingly steeper and the surface, which is initially stony and scree-lined, becomes more solid the further up you go. From the ridge, the route leads downhill to the right, passing through alpine meadows and pastures as it leisurely makes its way to the Pfeishütte mountain hut. The signposted "Goetheweg" trail (no. 219), which is excellently secured in many places, starts right from the hut. The route starts off as a footpath and later becomes an alpine trail as it climbs slowly uphill into the basin south of the hut. When you come to a fork in the path, follow the signs towards "Mandlscharte" and "Hafelekar Bergstation". At the next fork, take the right-hand path (the left-hand path goes to the "Arzler Scharte") and follow it as it makes a wide loop up through the scree corrie to the Mandlscharte col. The route then continues down through the scree fields on the other side. The route becomes a good, wide trail again and stays at a relatively steady altitude as it crosses below dramatic scree fields (great views of the rear side of the Nordkette mountain range). After a short ascent, the route takes you over to the Inn Valley side and zigzags downhill for a few metres, before following a gentle trail that leads slightly uphill to the west, crossing the upper area of the steep, partly grassy southern flank of the Nordkette to the Hafelekar mountain lift station. During this section, follow the signs for "Hafelekar Bergstation" or "Goetheweg". The last part of the hike alternates between the left-hand side and the right-hand side of the ridge. To get to Innsbruck, you can take the Nordkettenbahnen cable cars and the new Hungerburgbahn funicular straight down to the city centre. Alternatively, you can hike down.

From Innsbruck, take bus J to Igls to the stop "Talstation Patscherkofelbahn" and then take the Patscherkofelbahn gondola up to the Patscherkofelbahn mountain lift station. Follow the signs for the "Zirbenweg" (no. 350). The Zirbenweg trail starts above the "Schutzhaus Patscherkofel" mountain hut and leads east. This is also the start of the Alpine Club's "Patscherkofel Nature Trail". Follow the trail as it leads gently uphill to the Boscheben mountain hut. From Boscheben, the route continues in the same direction to the Tulfeinalm mountain hut and then up to the Halsmarter lift.  From there, you can take the lift down to Tulfes, the bus to Igls and then bus J back to Innsbruck. It is also possible to walk back to the bottom lift station of the Patscherkofelbahn gondola: from the bottom of the Glungezerbahn gondola, follow the Speckbacherweg trail via the villages of Rinn and Sistrans to Igls (walking time approx. 3 hours). You can also walk back to the main train station in Innsbruck from the bottom lift station of the Patscherkofelbahn in Igls: from Igls to Vill, through the forest to Poltenhütt, Tantegert tram stop, turn off towards Bretterkeller, cross the motorway bridge, continue approx. 200 metres west to Gasthof Bierstindl – Wilten Abbey – Leopoldstraße road – turn right through the Olympiabrücke pedestrian underpass – Südbahnstraße road to the train station (walking time approx. 1 ½ hours).

This stage starts by taking the Karwendel railway from Innsbruck to Hochzirl train station and then continuing on foot from there to the Solsteinhaus mountain hut.  From the train station, follow the signs to "Solsteinhaus". A good path takes you north of the tracks and straight into the dense forest. After a short distance, this path joins a cart track, which follows a very steep course straight uphill. This soon merges left to join the route from the Hochzirl hospital and continues steeply up through the forest, heading north-east.   After crossing the small stream that flows down from Brunnenschrofen, you come to a short stretch of almost level or only gently climbing terrain. The route now almost resembles a road, but soon leads steeply uphill again. At an altitude of around 1,350 metres above sea level, you come to a wide forest road, which takes you further uphill and passes above a small ravine. After passing a stream, you come to a trail that leads up through the thinning forest and mountain pines to the open alpine pastures around the lovely Solnalm mountain hut. From there, you get your first glimpse of your destination and the end of this stage, the Solsteinhaus mountain hut. The route continues to the right of the Solnalm and heads north along the valley towards Hollkar mountain, passing a few scree gullies along the way. The trail then crosses the foothills of the Hollkar and a stream before finally leading gently uphill through mountain pines to the Erlsattel saddle and the comfortable Solsteinhaus mountain hut (1,805 metres).

From the Solsteinhaus mountain hut, follow the signs towards "Eppzirler Scharte" and "Eppzirler Alm". The route first leads along a marked trail through the Erlalm alpine pastures and then across stony, rocky terrain to the scree corrie and up to the Eppzirler Scharte col. When walking up through the corrie, the path splits. Continue along the path signposted to the "Eppzirler Scharte" (route no. 212), which leads steeply up to the col between the Kuhljochspitze and Erlspitze peaks. The route then continues along an equally good trail, which zigzags at times as it leads down through the rocky, scree-lined corrie (Kuhljoch) on the other side. The corrie is steep at first and then opens up to become very wide. At an altitude of around 1,700 metres above sea level, the trail dips down into green alpine pastures. After that, there is one more short, steep scree slope before the route reaches alpine pastures again. It then leads gently downhill and finally runs parallel to a dried-up stream bed until it reaches the Eppzirler Alm mountain hut. When you reach the hut, you have definitely earnt a break. From the hut, the route leads leisurely downhill along a wide road through alpine pastures and then continues in the same direction, along the Eppzirler Tal valley, past the turnoff for the Oberbrunnalm mountain hut (turnoff at 1,200 metres above sea level) and further downhill towards the entrance of the valley. The road then leads along the Gießenbach stream (alternating left and right of the stream) and into the Gießenbachklamm gorge. The gorge is wooded at first but becomes increasingly rocky. The route finally leads to the car park for the Eppzirler Alm in the Gießenbach district of Scharnitz. From there, you cross the tracks and the main road and then, when you come to the residential area, take the first right towards "Scharnitz" and then turn left towards "Hoher Sattel". Later, follow the signs for "Bogenschießstand" and "Scharnitz", before turning left towards "Leutasch" and soon after turning right onto the forest road "Leutasch über Hohen Sattel". After this short level section in Gießenbach, the forest road leads quite steeply uphill and then gently up through mixed forest to the Sattelklamm gorge. At the end of the path, a trail leads off through the sparse forest, mostly cutting across the slope but also leading steeply uphill in the middle part. This trail merges into a path that continues in the same direction towards Hoher Sattel. Keep following the signs to "Leutasch/Ahrn". On the other side of the Hoher Sattel col, a wide forest path leads downhill through the sparse forest of the col valley (sometimes very steep). Follow the route through the valley all the way to Leutasch/Ahrn and the bridge over the Leutascher Ache river.

An easy hike from the Sonnenburgerhof or Mentlberg via Klosterberg to Eichhof in Natters. The route can also be extended to Natterer See lake. Return via Natters to the Sonnenburgerhof. Alternatively, you can take the Stubaitalbahn tram (STB tramline) from Natters to Innsbruck or if you started in Mentlberg you can take the bus back to the city.   

From the top of the Hungerburgbahn funicular, take the first narrow street on your right and follow it until you come to the edge of the forest. There, the route turns right and continues for a few minutes before joining the Rosnerweg trail. When you come to a fork in the path, turn left off the Rosnerweg trail and follow the route uphill through the forest to the Arzler Alm mountain hut. From the Arzler Alm, follow signs towards the Rumer Alm and Enzianhütte mountain huts. Return hike: from the Enzianhütte, either head towards the village of Rum or follow the Rosnerweg back to the starting point.

An easy hike that starts in the district of Mühlau in Innsbruck and follows a forest trail to the Rechenhof alpine guesthouse, where a wonderful sun terrace invites hikers to relax and enjoy. From there, there are two routes to Hungerburg, neither of which have any major climbs. The first option is to take the hiking trail, the second option is to follow the easier forest road. If you would rather not walk back, you can take the Hungerburgbahn funicular. It stops right in Innsbruck city centre.