Praktische Tipps für ein sicheres Naturerlebnis
“No other Alpine excursion destination is so close to its capital, so easy to reach and so versatile: people of all ages and all fitness levels will find something to suit them here.” Scharfegger should know.
Anyone who loves the Rax will, sooner or later, be his guest on the Rax Cable Car, at theRaxalpenhof, the Ottohaus or one of his other establishments. But the Rax Plateau is not just a 34-square-kilometre outdoor adventure playground. The karst mountain range in the south-west of Vienna is also steeped in history: in the second half of the 19th century, alpine tourism was (co-)invented here; in 1896, the world’s first mountain rescue service was established; and in 1926, Austria’s first passenger cable car was opened: It takes young and old, walkers and climbers, senior citizens and extreme sports enthusiasts from the valley station to the summit station on the high plateau in just eight minutes.
There is no other high plateau like the Rax anywhere in Europe
A rare physical phenomenon occurs on the Rax: the mountain sun, the green of the mountain pines and the sweeping views melt away the worries of everyday life without a trace – at least for the duration of the outing. The effect is particularly powerful when you put one foot in front of the other.
The start and end points of the hike do not have to be the same. For example, you can set off from the Rax cable car and take the regular bus or RUFbus from Preiner Gscheid back to the station in Payerbach-Reichenau. Many people also like to start or finish their hike directly in Prein, Hirschwang, Hinternaßwald or Kaiserbrunn, where the steep, partly secured path over the Brandschneide begins.
Whether you’re exploring the area for the first time or looking for a leisurely family walk: from the Rax cable car station, the route covers just under two kilometres with an elevation gain of only 90 metres. As a reward, hearty home-cooked meals and sweet treats await you at the mountain hut, which opened in 1893 and is situated at an altitude of 1,664 metres.
An unforgettable family tour: first take the regular bus or the RUFbus from Payerbach-Reichenau station to the starting point, then enjoy a leisurely one- to one-and-a-half-hour hike up to 1,361 metres to the historic Waxriegelhaus. Children up to the age of 12 just pay half the price for an overnight stay, whilst young hikers up to the age of 3 even stay for free.
In good shape? If so, then the popular Törlweg is the perfect choice: starting from Hirschwang, you’ll tackle a challenging 1,138 metres of elevation gain over 6.3 kilometres. If you don’t want to head straight back down to the valley, you can spend the night at the Ottohaus and enjoy the starry sky, unspoilt by light pollution, which once inspired regular guest Sigmund Freud – ideally from the viewing platform.
At the Ottohaus there is a 4,000-square-metre alpine garden featuring columbines, globeflowers and gentians. But actually, the whole of the Rax is one huge alpine garden,” says Bernd Scharfegger, head of the Raxalpen Resort. To really make the most of this garden, it’s best to set aside several days for ‘hut-hopping’ – hiking from hut to hut at an altitude of 1,500 to 2,000 metres above sea level, stopping off for a leisurely break or an overnight stay every now and then – for example, from the Raxalm Berggasthof via the Ottohaus to the Seehütte.
