From hut to hut in the National park Gesäuse Stage 04 Ennstalerhütte - Haindlkarhütte

Haindlkarhütte

From the Ennstaler Hütte you walk a few meters to the northwest down to the crossroads "Landlereck". Here you choose left (to the southwest) the way no. 646/608 down over the "Butterbründl" and the Hörantalm up to the way junction "Krois`n". Now follow path no. 646/608 down to Gstatterboden. Here it is worth visiting the National Park Pavilion - a visitor center of the Gesäuse National Park with information center, café and exhibition.From the National Park Pavillon Gstatterboden you first hike a few hundred meters on a path next to the main road until you reach the entrance to the Rauchbodenweg. You follow this path with wonderful views of the Enns and the opposite Hochtorgruppe about 3km to the west where you will also pass some theme stations - finally crossing the Enns on a footbridge - to the Weidendom. At the Weidendom you should definitely allow yourself time for a break: it is a living building, just like the walkable ecological footprint, a labyrinth of hedges. Islands of tranquillity invite you to linger and the Lettmair Au you will cross by an eventful footbridge.Just before you reach the main road, turn left into a path that takes you parallel to the main road - crossing it once - and along the river Enns to the parking lot of the Haindlkarhütte in about 30 minutes. From here you follow the marked path to the Haindlkarhütte to the south. At first the wide path leads quite flat into the valley - but soon it gets lost and turns into a narrow hiking path. You cross gravelly brook beds again and again and the path becomes somewhat steeper in the meantime. The landscape becomes rougher and more primeval the closer you get to the breathtakingly steep rock faces of the Hochtorgruppe. Further coarse areas, which are only thinly interspersed with plants, take you first to the old Haindlkar hut and then in a few minutes to today's Haindlkar hut.This hut is perhaps the most rustic hut in the Gesäuse. Lovely is something else - she is crouching on the last green spots before the gigantic north walls of the Hochtorgruppe shoot up right above. You feel very small in the sight of these giants. Here climbing history was written, here every climber who is known in the eastern part of Austria stayed overnight to repeat routes which climbing legends like Raimund Schinko, Gustav Jahn, Franz Zimmer, Heinrich Pfannl, Hubert Peterka, Angelo Dibona and Klaus Hoi had established. As mentioned: The University of Climbing - amazing that this corner is so easy to reach. And if you are lucky enough to experience a sunset that bathes the walls in red gold light, then your mouth is guaranteed to stay open. A Bet?