Hohe Tauern hiking

[GoJoel]

I want to do some hiking in Austria and figure the best place to go is Hohe Tauern Nat'l Park. I'm looking for a base city that is a worthwhile stop in itself but also close enough to some accessible day hikes in the park. Right now the top choice is Heiligenblut but I just want to make sure the park is close enough and that nearby hikes aren't just easy walks in the hills. Anyone been there? Any advice?

[herrbert]

I love this region, been there about 20 times with my parents (and solo). My guess is to get based in the area between Krimml and Mittersill. Here you have the main valley, that provides access to several other smaller valleys that lead up to the mountain peaks at 3000-3600 mtr. (to compare, Bramberg is at 800 mtrs). All these places are small, and the only one you could compare a little bit to a city would be Zell am See (a little bit further to the east).

The first few kilometers of these valleys are easy to walk, and all of them have cabins after 6-7 kilometers. So for the first day it's perfect. These cabins also offer the possibility for tourists to get a ride to these cabins, so you can start without the easy part, and head straight to the more difficult paths of this area. Most will have a cabin that offers shelter, and food between 2000-2350 meters. These are also used as base camp for more experienced climbers that want to climb the higher peaks.

You can make it as difficult as you want. There is one trip from Habachtal into Hollersbachtal, that is good is you have a little bit more experience. Usualy you do this a two-day trip. You could take a ride to the Enzianhütte or Alpenrosehütte (cabins), hike to the Thüringerhütte, get over to the Hollersbachtal by climbing the Lärmkogelscharte (it's only a small piece to the actual mountaintop with the same name), and decend to the Neue Fürtherhütte (spend the night), and continue the decend the next day until you are back at Hollersbach. (town)

Another possibility (although expensive) is to take a guided tour, up the highest mountain of this area, the Grossvenediger. This will also mean crossing the glacier, and actual mountainering. It's a step further than hiking, but I just want to show you the possibilities.

If you buy yourself a good map of this area, you will find plenty of possibilities.