Absetzwirt-round over the Reinischkogel

On this route you can not only enjoy the unique hilly landscape, you should also be sure to ring the little bell for world peace at the summit of the Reinschkogel.

Before you can ring the bell on the Reinischkogel, a wonderful hike awaits you, which also takes you to the source of the Stainzbach stream. Enjoy the beauty of this special landscape. A special highlight of the tour is the Wetterfichte, a true feature of nature that is considered a source of energy. Here you can sit down on the grass and lean against the old wood of the spruce to enjoy a relaxed snack, truly a special place for this.

On this hike you will cover 7.6 kilometres and enjoy shady forest paths, refreshing stretches along the water and the magnificent panoramic view at the top of the Reinischkogel in about two and a half hours. Its name is derived from the fact that lands north of it belonged to Rein Abbey in the Middle Ages and the mountain formed their southern border. Look forward to a photo at the summit cross, which is enthroned on a rock at 1463 metres above sea level. You will see that the ascent is worthwhile.

Signposting: A2

Characteristics

Skill

Fitness

Best season

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

The tour in numbers

easy

Level of difficulty

8,0 km

Route

2:30 h

Time

250 hm

Uphill

250 hm

Downhill

1463 m

Highest point

Map & downloads

Download GPX data

Download KML data

More information

Plan your journey via Google Maps to the starting point of the tour: www.google.at/maps

From the north: Motorway Munich - Salzburg - Eben - Schladming - Liezen onto the A9 towards Graz. Exit at Lieboch and follow the B76 towards Deutschlandsberg/Stainz. A9 is subject to toll - Gleinalmtunnel. Alternative: At St. Michael take the S6 towards Bruck and in Bruck take the S35 towards Graz. Take the B76 to Stainz at the tower oil filling station. At the crossroads turn left into the town centre, at the Hubmann department stores' and opposite the Hotel Stainzerhof turn right into Sauerbrunnstraße. Continue in the direction of Marhof until you reach the centre of the village, approx. 30m after the Schranger timber construction company turn left at the crossroads to Rachling. Continue uphill through the village of Rachling for about 4km until you reach the large gravel car park at the Absetzwirt. Here the road construction is finished.

From the west: In Villach take the A2 towards Klagenfurt. Take the Steinberg exit and head towards Stainz/Deutschlandsberg. In St. Stefan ob Stainz follow the L314 to Stainz. At the Spar-Markt Stainz turn right into the centre, at the Kaufhaus Hubmann and opposite the Hotel Stainzerhof turn right into Sauerbrunnstraße. Continue in the direction of Marhof until you reach the centre of the village, approx. 30m after the Schranger timber construction company turn left at the crossroads to Rachling. Continue uphill through the village of Rachling for about 4km until you reach the large gravel car park at the Absetzwirt. Here the road construction is finished.

From the east: A2: Vienna - Aspang - Hartberg - Fürstenfeld - Graz. From Graz continue on the A2 in the direction of Klagenfurt and take the Lieboch exit in the direction of Stainz/Deutschlandsberg/Eibiswald. Follow the B76 to Deutschlandsberg/Stainz. Take the B76 to Stainz and exit at the tower oil filling station. At the crossroads turn left into the town centre, at the Hubmann department stores' and opposite the Hotel Stainzerhof turn right into Sauerbrunnstraße. Continue in the direction of Marhof until you reach the centre of the village, approx. 30m after the Schranger timber construction company turn left at the crossroads to Rachling. Continue uphill through the village of Rachling for about 4km until you reach the large gravel car park at the Absetzwirt. Here the road construction is finished.

From the south: A1 from Marburg to Leibnitz. Exit in Leibnitz (Gralla) and continue on the B74 towards Deutschlandsberg, take the second exit at the roundabout in Preding, after approx. 2km turn right onto the L617 towards Stainz. In Stainz, drive through the town centre in the direction of Graz, at the intersection of Kaufhaus Hubmann and opposite Hotel Stainzerhof turn left into Sauerbrunnstraße. Continue in the direction of Marhof until you reach the centre of the village, approx. 30m after the Schranger timber construction company turn left at the crossroads to Rachling. Continue uphill through the village of Rachling for about 4km until you reach the large gravel car park at the Absetzwirt. The road construction is finished here.

This tour starts at the car park of the former "Absetzwirt". At an altitude of 1240 metres above sea level, you set off northwards, exhilarated and full of anticipation of what awaits you. After about 700 metres, turn left at the Scheerbründl, where you can refresh yourself and fill your water bottle, and follow the forest road.

This leads through the Stainz forest, which provides shade on hot days and is colourful in autumn, up to the Unger wayside shrine. At the fork in the road, trail A1 leads back down to the Absetzwirt. However, you take trail A2 and continue hiking uphill full of verve. After a while you will reach the blue Kaltenbrunner cross and in front of it, a little below, the Stainzbach spring. Here, where the Stainzbach springs, you have the opportunity to refresh your tired legs before the ascent up the Reinischkogel. This does you good and gives you new energy.

Then continue left and you will soon reach the access path to the Reinischkogel summit, at an altitude of 1463 metres. The wooden summit cross and a chapel await you at the top. The summit cross was erected in 1985. It is about 100 metres away from the geographical, actual Reinischkogel summit. This ascent is easy to do and well worth it. Because here you have the opportunity to ring the bell of the wooden chapel by hand. The attached sign explains that the sound is to serve world peace. Here in the arbour you can take a break and really enjoy yourself.

After a good rest, you return to trail A2 via the alpine pasture. The trail now descends steeply to a fork in the road. Turn left here and continue almost level. On the left side you can already marvel at the natural monument "Wetterfichte". It is an old spruce with several tops. Take the opportunity to linger a little at this magical place.

A little further on, trail A1 joins and you continue downhill across a flowering meadow and then through an idyllic forest back to the Absetzwirt. Here the circle closes on which you could experience what beauty the area around the Reinischkogel has to offer.

Reinischkogel summit: Here at the summit cross there is also a chapel lovingly decorated with flowers and a bell ringing that invites you to linger.

You can find timetables and travel information directly at

With the BusBahnBim app of the Verbundlinie, timetable information is easier than ever: all connections by bus, train and tram in Austria can be retrieved by entering places and/or addresses, stops or important points. The app is available as a free app for smartphones (Android, iOS) - on Google Play and in the App Store.

Car park at the Absetzwirt

Tourism Association Schilcherland Styria

Hauptplatz 40

A-8530 Deutschlandsberg

Tel +43 3462 7520

office@schilcherland.at

www.schilcherland.at

The hiking folder and the district-wide hiking map of Deutschlandsberg can be ordered free of charge online at www.schilcherland.at. ONLINE TOURS APP

All hiking tours can be found online at www.schilcherland.at/bewegung or via APP South & West Styria Tours in their app store.