There was quite some heavy rain and even a thunderstorm in the night and during the morning so we woke a few times. But the bed was comfortable and it was so quiet!
Our host Karl Payr served us the breakfast already at 6.30 a.m. because we wanted to make an early start but it was still raining so we took our time and left for our next stage at 8 a.m. We can only recommend Karl and his Mühlenstüberl, it’s a great spot with an awesome view, and Karl is a perfect host!
First day with our backpacks for the whole day with 25km!
The first part down to Döllach was very nice; we passed some beautiful old farm houses and the famous old Apriach water mills and stopped for a little chat with some farmers.
Arriving in Döllach the next part started along the river Möll on a very nice path for bikers.
But too soon we were unfortunately walking for a few kilometres along the main street. Very uncharming!
At around midday we arrived in Mörtschach and the only restaurant open on a Monday was the Kirchenwirt opposite the pretty church of St. Leonhard. We were the only guests – Mörtschach is definitely not touristic. 😉 The food was good though expensive and the landlady was very nice and we chatted a while.
Too soon the hardest part began: around 1400m up to the Rangersdorfer Hütte. At first we had a series of long switchbacks slowly winding uphill. It wasn’t too bad but then we got onto the path of horror: a neverending steep path through the forest. Don’t get me wrong, the forest was great and it smelled wonderful, everything still wet from the night’s rain but nonetheless it seemed like we would never reach our destination! My hips hurt from carrying the backpack and we were thirsty all the time since it was really warm and no wind was blowing.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, we reached the Rangersdorfer Hütte! The landlady and her lovely daughter were very nice and served us food that we wolfed down like we haven’t eaten in days. 😂
And again, we were the only guests to stay for the night so now we’re having the whole place for ourselves. The view is wonderful, the only noises are the birds and the cows – it can’t get better. This spot at this pretty alpine pasture is really unique and definitely a place to stay!
Later in the evening we strolled to the Marterle, the highest situated pilgrimage church of Austria (right in the picture).
I even had some energy left: 😂
Some figures for today:
- 25,5km
- 1260m up
- 1000m down
- Hiking time: 4h 49m