Week 123: Snowshoeing at Feuerkogel
As we are quickly approaching the end of Austria’s winter season, we woke up and chose to spend our Sunday exploring the Feuerkogel. We have come back to this mountain time and time again, but this time was to try our snowshoe hiking or “schneeschuhwandern” in German. This mountain will forever be known as the mountain where Eric broke his finger in week 11, but it also offers amazing views of the Salzkammergut region.
After reviewing trail options on the mountain and watching several YouTube videos on the proper techniques and tips, we felt like snowshoeing was a must before the snow melts away.
Once we arrived at the mountain station, we stopped in the sports shop to pick up our poles and snow shoes. As the gear was being handed to us, the shop owner simultaneously gave a short and snappy debriefing, which was all in German. Using context clues and picking up on 25% of the words the guy was saying, we were able to get our shoes on and set out on the 3-mile round-trip trek to the Helmeskogel (1633 m) with an Austrian summit cross and one of 5 snowshoe trails on the mountain.
Snowshoes secured and ready to go
Views along the trail to the Helmeskogel
For 15 minutes we were following the yellow snowshoe signs, passing mountain cabins, and crossing paths with skiers and snowboarders until we veered left. From then on, it was just us and Mother Nature–literally, no one else was out on the trail except us. Utter silence except for the clicking of the camera shutter, the crunching of our crampons, and the frequent “this is so fun” and “we have to buy snowshoes” exchanges between Eric and me.
A snowshoe trail marker
Eric on the trail
Trail signage
Eric on the trail
Views from the trail
After 45 minutes, we reached the cross, signed the book, enjoyed the views, and ate a snack before retracing our steps back to the mountain station.
Made it to the summit cross
The summit sign
Looking out from the summit and realizing my coat matches the landscape
Eric at the summit
A hike through the wintery landscape on the Feuerkogel was a memorable adventure and a lot more fun than we had anticipated. A day on the mountain is not complete though until you stop inside a hut and fill up on delicious Austrian cuisine!
Left our poles and shoes outside while we ate
A sign inside the hut
A few other highlights from this week…
I have added another social channel for The Pack Mama–Pinterest! According to Pinterest–more than 63 million people engage with travel content globally on Pinterest, which makes it one of the biggest platforms for planning and searching for new travel ideas to take inspiration to action.
So, I started creating pins for our weekly recaps and Austrian travel tips. Here is the pin for this post! If you are a Pinterest user, make sure to go follow our page!
The softball/baseball club I am now a part of had a field cleanup day to prepare for the upcoming season. Hours of zip-tying fence banners, raking, and removing sticks from the field.
Lastly, I had the realization that I have lived in our Austria house longer than anywhere else since I was 18. For 12 years, I bounced around from a dorm room to an apartment, followed by 7 more apartments, then our house for 2 years before packing up and moving across the world. And now we have been here for nearly 2.5 years with 2.5 more to go.
