Week 155: The Luchs Trail

Friday, October 13

We ventured out on a short getaway to the Austrian state of Styria to hike a part of The Luchs Trail (The Lynx Trail). A long-distance hiking trail with eleven stages extending over 70 miles. But, before we could start hiking, we stayed the night in Admont. A town within the Gesäuse National Park most known for the Admont Abbey, a monastery founded in 1074.

The last time we were in Gesäuse was in Week 18. We remembered it being really pretty and have been wanting to make it back, so we’re happy we finally made it happen.

Our first stop in Admont was the Admont Abbey Library also known as the world’s largest monastic Library.

As you work your way through the museum portion of the monastery and step into the library's double-decker grand hall, you're immediately struck by the grandeur of the Baroque architecture, with ornate golden details, colorful frescoes, and towering bookshelves.

The library holds nearly 70,000 volumes in the library, while the Abbey in total owns nearly 200,000 books. The most valuable among these are the manuscripts (the oldest dating to the 8th century AD).

The seven ceilings across the library were decorated with seven unique fresco paintings. Each created by Bartolomeo Altomonte (1694–1783) and each one depicting a different stage of human knowledge with the central dome showing the divine revelation.

*A fresco on the Admont Abbey Library ceiling*

We checked into the Landgasthof Buchner, enjoyed a nice dinner, repacked our backpacks, and mentally prepared for our upcoming hike.

Saturday, October 14

By 9:30 AM, we had checked out and started the hike directly from the front door of our hotel–just one of the perks of staying at this location.

*The Haller Mauern mountain range over Admont*

A look back at Admont and the Haller Mauern mountain range as we began our ascent on Stage 4 of the Luchs Trail.

This trail, named after the lynx (luchs in German) that roam these forests, takes you through the heart of Austria's alpine wonderland. Stage 4 starts off along an asphalt road before winding up through a lush forest, picturesque meadows, and crystal-clear mountain streams.

The higher we hiked, the crisper the air became.

We chose stage 4 before since it appeared to have some of the best views and all the maps confirmed the hike was only 4 hours, but the trail is long and covers thousands of feet in altitude.

*Just a few hundred feet away from the Scheiblegger Hochalm*

We finally reached the highest point–The Scheiblegger Hochalm. This was by far the most beautiful part of the hike.

For the first time on the entire hike, we saw other people out on the trail as we sat to relax and eat some snacks before continuing on.

Just as we had reached the highest point, we had to descend again.

The four-hour hiking window came and went as we were meandering our way down 1,200 feet along the other side of the mountain.

We finally reached the forest road, but then had to ascend another 1,000 feet…

After 6 hours and 4,000+ feet of elevation gain, we made it to our final destination–Klinkehütte.

The Klinkehütte was built for the alpine training of the German armed forces of the 3rd Infantry Battalion. The U-shaped building was designed for 130 storage spaces. After the war, it was used as a base camp for climbing expeditions in the area and today, 121 sleeping spaces remain.

Towering over the Klinke-hütte is a popular peak for climbers called the “Admonter Kalbling”. People who wish to partake in an alpine climbing course to the Kalbling or hike up to the Sparafeld usually drive up and start their hike from the hut.

Yes, drive up.

While we took the hardest way possible to the hut, there is indeed a road leading from Admont to the hut. Meaning we could have driven to the hut in 20 minutes and saved ourselves 6 hours of hiking… but what’s the accomplishment in that? 🥴

*Cool plant in front of the Klinkehütte*

As we have described in our Sleeping in an Austrian Mountain Hut blog post, staying overnight in a mountain hut is an enchanting experience (with the exception of a few inconveniences).

As the sun dips below the peaks, the hut becomes a cozy refuge, surrounded by nature. The wooden chalets provide a rustic, yet inviting atmosphere. Since cell service is minimal, we finished the night playing cards. Another man played a harmonica. While other groups looked at maps planning their next move once morning came.

Nights are certainly the most difficult when you have to share a room with strangers. There are constant interruptions and rarely does anyone ever sleep soundly. Around midnight a big storm came through, making it a bit more peaceful to hear the rain hitting the window. However, waking up to the wet grass, a completely cloudy sky, and 20-degree colder temperatures, we decided to forgo day two of the Luchs trail (stage 5).

After breakfast, the hut owner helped us call a taxi. Thanks to the road leading to the hut, we were able to get out and get back to our car much quicker and drier than if we had to hike back down.

Getting to see more of this national park and following the footsteps of the supposed Lynx made our weekend getaway to Gesäuse a success! We would definitely recommend hikers make their way to the Luchs Trail. Just know the times listed on the official hiking maps are definitely not accurate…or maybe we are just really slow 😉

Week 155: The Luchs Trail

Week 156: Three Years Abroad

Week 152-154: A Trip Back to Kentucky