INTO SCHAMITZ
VIA ALPINA DAY 28 – SUNDAY 19 JULY 2026
NEAR SCHAMITZ – SCHAMITZ
DISTANCE HIKED: 12 km
ELEVATION GAIN: 38 m
TOTAL DISTANCE HIKED: 704.30km
TOTAL ELEVATION GAIN: 37,503m
It rained pretty much all night. I woke early to the sight of little snails crawling all over the tent. It was still raining. It gave me comfort that after the Appalachian Trail we have become experts in breaking camp in the rain.
By the time Hammer woke the rain had eased and without speaking a word we broke camp and were on our way by 6am. The sky was brightening a little and the birds were singing, promising a better weather ahead. We have a relatively short and an easy walk to the small village Shamitz where we planned to stay tonight. It is located just north of Innsbruck near the German border.
For most of the morning we followed a crystal clear creek which flows into the Isar River, with a couple of impressive waterfalls cascading from the surrounding mountains.
As we descended we passed quite a number of hikers and a few mountain bikes heading in the opposite direction. The weather was quite changeable, threatening rain a few times before we reached the outskirts of town.
We passed some very impressive houses before arriving in town, stopping at the beautiful Tourist office building to ask about accommodation options. It seems the village is mostly holiday apartments with longer term rentals. They suggested getting a bus to Seefeld, a bigger town down the valley. We didn’t want to go too far off the trail so we found a self check-in hotel in town. At first we were dissapointed that we couldn’t get the room key code till 3pm. By lunchtime the rain had really set in. But we didn’t mind waiting as we access to a comfortable lounge area and kitchen in the hotel while waiting for the room keys.
It was 12°C outside with mountain mist coming down into the valley at times. It looked miserable outside.
The hotel seems to be popular with snowboarders. Not sure where there is still snow nearly.
By the time we got our very basic room at 2pm, the sun appeared sporadically. After getting cleaned up we went for a walk. It feels like a town in transition with some modern buildings. And some buildings dating back to the 1400′. It’s know as a popular starting point for hikers and mountain bikers heading to the mountains.
