Through the Bärenschützklamm to Breitenau

Closed

ATTENTION:

After the serious accident in 2020, the Bärenschützklamm will remain closed until further notice. Te reopening is planned for Autumn 2023. Entering the closed gorge is strictly prohibited and also life-threatening!

The trail leads through the Bärenschützklamm up to Schüsserlbrunn and then - with or without the Hochlantsch summit - down to St. Jakob.

This trail takes you "over the mountain" from Mixnitz to Breitenau. The ascent through the Bärenschützklamm gorge is impressive: the gorge is bordered by limestone walls up to 300 metres high, into which the Mixnitzbach stream has "eaten its way" over thousands of years and formed this unique gorge. 164 bridges and ladders with a total of 2500 wooden rungs were painstakingly installed and make this natural monument tangible for sure-footed mountain hikers.

The next highlight is the small pilgrimage church "Schüsserlbrunn", which has been a place of pilgrimage for centuries and is still visited by many pilgrims and hikers today. Then it is time to decide whether to climb to the Hochlantsch summit or to descend to Breitenau.

With the "Guten Hirten" (Good Shepherd) and the "Steirischer Jockl" (Styrian Jockl), two wonderful refreshment stops await hikers along the way.

Attention: A gorge maintenance fee must be paid at the entrance to the gorge!

Characteristics

Skill

Fitness

Experience

Scenery

Best season

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

The tour in numbers

medium

Level of difficulty

10,0 km

Route

4:30 h

Time

920 hm

Uphill

815 hm

Downhill

1403 m

Highest point

492 m

Lowest point

Map & downloads

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All info about the journey.

We start at the car park of the Bärenschützklamm and walk uphill on the long-distance trail no. 702/745 for approx. 1 hour.
We pass the cascade fall and continue in the gorge-like valley to the Hans-Kerl-Hütte.
At the Hans-Kerl-Hütte or "Kassierhütte" we enter the gorge. Now the trail goes steeply uphill via ladders and paths.
After the shelter hut we immediately reach the large waterfall with a drop of approx. 50 metres.
Cross a last stream and continue steeply uphill to the exit of the gorge and then along a forest path to the "Guten Hirten" inn.
Continue on trail no. 746 up to the "Steirischen Jokl" inn.
198 steps down, the well-known pilgrimage church "Schüsserlbrunn" awaits us.
From here we follow trail no. 740 down to Breitenau/St. Jakob.

Variants:

To the Hochlantsch summit

If you are still fit, you can start the ascent from the "Steirischer Jockl" inn:
330 metres of ascent
2.5 kilometres
Duration: approx. 1.5 hrs. additional-

We take trail no. 740 to the Hochlantsch summit cross and the same trail back down to Breitenau.

Priest Kelz pilgrimage trail

This trail connects the two pilgrimage churches of St. Erhard and Schüsserlbrunn, the trail is about 1.5 kilometres longer:

At the junction above the "Zirbisegger" we change to trail no. 5 and walk past the mining area to St. Erhard.

The food alone is worth a stop at the "Steirischer Jockl", but the view from the terrace is also incredible!

Timetables and travel information can be found at the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) or at www.busbahnbim.at.

Regular buses run between Breitenau and Mixnitz.

For local transport we recommend the SAM-SammelTaxi.

At the railway station in Mixnitz or at the Bärenschützklamm.

More information about the region, where to stop for a bite to eat, where to find rooms and descriptions of the excursion destinations and businesses:

Almenland Nature Park
Phone: +43 3179 23000
Email: almenland@oststeiermark.com