Stage 24 From Glacier to Wine North Route Am Straßegg - Almenland Brandlucken

From Straßegg we hike on this stage of the hiking route "From glacier to wine" first quite steeply uphill to the Pöllabauerkreuz at the foot of the Zechnerschlag, a small peak in the midst of this beautiful forest landscape, which is occasionally interrupted by clearings and small alpine pastures. The tour continues to a prominent pilgrims' cross, where there is a similar crossroads. Here we keep to the left in the direction of the Sommeralm, where we are greeted by a windmill that serves to generate electricity. It is one of the highest wind turbines in Europe, producing electricity for 350 households. Directly at the wind turbine we also find a resting place with a display board that gives us details about energy production.

We now continue to keep to the left and thus bypass the Plankogel. The path now leads us through a short section of forest before we reach the alpine pasture area again, where we come across one of the most beautiful huts in Eastern Styria, the Stoakoglhütte (Tel. +43 676 6834724). After a well-deserved rest, we tackle the last 4 km or so. Again across the beautiful alpine pasture area, we arrive at the end of the stage once again in an idyllic forest, which provides us with a welcome cooling, especially in the summer months. The destination today is called Brandlucken at the eastern end of the Almenland Nature Park. Directly at the pass you will find the beautiful Brandluckner Huab'n: the farmhouse dating from 1697 houses a Greißlerei with a craft market, and in front of the Huab'n open-air theaters are performed in summer. The next day: the tour takes us from the Almenland Nature Park to Apfelland.

Detailed information about arriving by ÖBB (Austrian Federal Railways) can be found at www.oebb.at or on the Verbundlinie Steiermark website www.busbahnbim.at

With Verbundlinie’s BusBahnBim route planner app, planning your journey has never been easier: simply enter towns and/or addresses, stop names or points of interest to check all bus, train and tram connections in Austria. The app is available free of charge for smartphones – on Google Play and in the App Store

Steiermark Tourismus

Tel. +43 316 4003

info@steiermark.com

www.steiermark.com/en

If you would like to hire a  tour operator, simply book with Steiermark Touristik, the official travel agency of Steiermark Tourismus:

Tel. +43 316 4003 450, 

www.steiermark-touristik.com

The Steiermark Touren app, available free of charge on Google Play and the App Store  (Android, iOS), offers detailed first-hand information: brief facts (length, duration, difficulty, ascent and descent/elevation gain, ratings), map, route descriptions, altimeter, compass, peak finder, navigation along the tour. You can also create your own personal lists of favourite tours and sites, store tours and destinations offline, use social media channels, and much more.