During this tour you won’t climb any summits but you will visit a cabin that belongs to my all time favorites offering great food and spectacular views. Since you will mostly walk parallel to the mountain you can make the 3600 feet in elevation without too much strain. This tour will reward you again with great panoramic views over the Millstätter See and the mountains surrounding it.

Tangern: village with a view

The small hamlet of Tangern belongs to the municipality of Seeboden and lies on a balcony high above the lake. From here you already have great views of the Goldeck on the opposite side of the lake. This is the third day of my stay here and I have chosen another great tour for today. Since I am staying in Tangern I can leave my car parked where it is and start the tour right away.

To reach the trail that’ll bring me up the mountain I do have to make a quick tour of the village.

 

In the distance I can see the Goldeck, the mountain I climbed 2 days ago and the Mirnock, the summit from the day before. It is a bit cooler as on the previous days but still no cloud to see on the sky. I am really looking forward to this tour since with the Milstätter Hütte I will be revisiting a highlight that I have seen before and liked a lot. The trail that leads to the first stop the Pichlhütte is a forest road and easy to walk. But it does lead through dense forest and is therefore very shady. Right after leaving the village I come across a meadow where still some cows are grazing.

 

Walking to the Pichlhütte

Alongside the road there are every once in a while openings that give way to great scenery and the mountains around. The road rises slowly and leads into a valley uphill. Only after quite a long and straight stretch the road starts winding itself up the moutain in long serpentines. Despite walking in the shade it feels hotter today then on my 2 previous tours. I guess the tours from the 2 days before are taking their toll.

 

After a while I reach this pasture you can see above and the trail runs now evenly for quite a while. To my left I can see a cabin in the distance. Could his already be the Pichlhütte? No it’s not. What a shame, cause at the moment I would love to have a goal in view to boost my motivation. Allthough this tour is more like a stroll so far I am considering not to make the complete round I wanted to do today. On the other hand this is my last day here and I don’t know when I will be able to go on the next hike.

 

When I finally reach the sign to the cabin my motivation starts to rise again. And the view of the Gmeineck urges me on too. There are some great views waiting for me further up the mountain. So I continue and hope that I will reach the Pichlhütte soon.

 

When I am reaching this second sign my motivation mounts again and I feel a bit like the stein on this plate. With every foot I gain in elevation the panaorama is getting more and more spectacular. Plus I see those beautiful colored larches again and the trail is getting sunnier.

 

The Pichlhütte, a destination cherished by locals too

It’s nice up here around this cabin. My friends have told me that they do serve great food too at the Pichlhütte . But since it is still early in the morning I only take a short break and move on rather quickly. I still have quite a distance to walk.

From the Pichlhütte I do follow the signs to the Tangerner Alm. The path is very smooth and leads through a light forest.

 

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The stretch that follows is the steepest of this tour. I am crossing a meadow and with every step the view is getting more and mor spectacular. To the south I can see the lake with the Julian Alps and the Karawanken as a backdrop. To the east I can see the summit of the Gmeineck and the snow covered Reißeck behind it. And right above me a bit to the left I can see the Tschiernock mounting above the colored forest. There is actually an alternate route to the one I am walking. You can drive to the Hansbauer Hütte and climb the summit of the Tschiernock from there. You can then walk along a ridge to the Hochpalfennock and crossing the Milstätter Thörl to the Milstätter Hütte. I hiked this tour a couple of years ago and will write about it in a later post.

 

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The Tangerner Alm

With that panorama in sight I need to take a break. This is a very beautiful place. The cirrostratus to the south are giving a great contrast to the blue of the sky. I could stay here for hours. Just like on my Mirnock tour the day before I hardly meet any other hikers. Despite the weather being perfect for a hike. Well, the season is over and the locals probably do have jobs to attend. How lucky I am.

 

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The path leads again a bit more even across a meadow and through a small forest. The signs are all showing the direction of the Tschiernock but I won’t follow them today. Finally I find a sign giving directions to the Alexanderhütte. I know that this is the right direction since I have to pass this cabin on my way. The view is not as clear today as during the last 2 days but this milky fall light adds to the atmosphere.

 

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Once again I come across a deforested hillside and there is a small stretch without a trail. Shortly afterwards I do reach another forest road that brings me to the Laubendorfer Alm. Despite my map I am not quite sure if I still am on the right track, so I do appreciate the old man that is struggling uphill on his bike ( and I am not talking e-bike here) 🙂 . I ask him for directions and he assures me that I am still following the good trail.

 

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I do follow this forest road for quite some while before I do reach another sign leading me on a small path leading through the woods. Up here I see again those larches with their beautifully colored needles. Even on day three of my stay here I am still impressed. Just like the small larch growing out of the stump of this cut down and derooted tree. It always amazes me to see how mother nature creates new life out of dead things.

 

Alexanderhütte, breathtaking panorama

And so I soon reach the Alexanderhütte. It sits like on a balcony high above the lake. The outstanding fact of this cabin is it’s dairy that makes great cheese and is very popular  with locals and hikers alike. But since the Millstätter Hütte is not far anymore I pass this one and continue my hike. And the dairy looks closed. Summer is over and the cattle is back in the valley. So there is no more fresh milk for cheese.

 

Around the lake the visitors bureau has created themed hiking trails. Here at the Alexanderhütte start’s the Sentiero dell´Amore, the trail of love. Along this trail the hikers are being asked to reflect about the meaning of love. I like his idea. Creates attention. I will keep this trail in mind for my next stay. But now I am hungry and thursty and look forward to reach the cabin soon.

 

The Millstätter Hütte cabin with outstanding hospitality

During the last stretch leading to the Milstätter Hütte I pass this spouting dragon. They really did think about adding more attractions to the breathtaking scenery. I personally don’t think that’s necessary but it’s nice to see anyway. Passing through a vale I finally reach my destination.

 

At the end of this vale sits the Millstätter Hütte just a few steps below the Milstätter Thörl. There are several reasons why I do love this cabin so much. First of all the breathtaking scenery, second: the delicious food and last but not least the friendly staff up here. This is a place to just feel well. Considering that I haven’t met many people so far today, this place is packed. My guess is that most of them came from the parking lot at the Schwaigerhütte a bit further down the mountain. You can drive up to this cabin via a toll road. This shortens the ascent and gives you the chance to take a few tours around this cabin.

I order a Jausenplatte, which is a mixture of cold cuts, and enjoy the scenery.

 

Actually this would be enough food for 2 but I already had a good workout on my way up here and I will burn more calories on my way back. 🙂

So I do enjoy every little bit of those delicacies without having a guilty conscience.

 

Right next to the cabin there is this enclosure with those cute little goats. They know that they have to entertain and so they chase each other like crazy in their enclosure. I could spend a few more hours up here but I still have a long way to go back. When I am telling the owner that I came up here all the way from Tangern she gives me a look of deep respect.

Most of my way back I will follow the same trail as on my way up.

 

Descent with some small obstacles

Soon I am back at the Alexanderhütte and for a last time today I do enjoy this spectacular scenery. Too bad that my vacation ends tomorrow. I could have spent a couple more days here. On the other hand I was so spoiled with great weather and was able to collect a lot of wonderful memories and pictures. This certainly wasn’t my last visit to the area.

 

Back at the Laubendorfer Alm I decide to take another trail that bypasses the Tangerner Alm and seems to be a short-cut. The forest road winds downhill in long serpentines. As per my map there must be a turn-off somewhere bringing me back to Tangern.

 

Unfortunately I can’t find the path I am looking for but since the direction is the right one I keep following the road. Soon I do reach more dense forest and am walking in the shade more often. In between the trees there still are gaps that allow me to relish the scenery.

 

Behind this hut there should have been the short-cut path I was looking for. Al least my map told me so.  Since I couldn’t find it I just followed the signs  to the Burgstaller where there will be another turn-off to Tangern.

 

Just behind the Burgstallerhof it is again a bit difficult to find the right path. I should have followed the signs leading me back to the Pichlhütte. After searching for a while I find at least a path bringing me to Gössering that I decide to follow. My map does show me a path through the forest going from Gössering to Tangern. Just above Gössering I come across another slope with freshly cut trees and my path is blocked. It’s getting late and I am tyring so I decide to walk down to Gössering and walk the short distance between the 2 villages along the main road.

 

Next to this farm I do finally reach the village and come across these sheep. There are quite a few black ones I just hope that this doesn’t lead to conclusions about their owner. Next to the main road there is a broad band of gras and so I can walk the rest without much danger and catch a last glimpse of the Gmeineck in the distance. This has been a rather long but also very beautiful tour.

I hope you do like this post and am looking forward to reading your coments.