INTO OBERSTDORF, GERMANY

VIA ALPINA DAY 33 –  FRIDAY 24 JULY 2026
PRINZ-LUITPOLD-HAUSE – OBERSTDORF

DISTANCE HIKED: 20.30 km
ELEVATION GAIN:  560 m

TOTAL DISTANCE HIKED: 832.70 km
TOTAL ELEVATION GAIN: 41,720m

The hut was remarkably noisy till about 10pm last night. There was no hiker midnight here, more like a karaoke party.   I did not sleep well at all despite sharing the room with only 8 people.  Hammer reported no problems sleeping. We were both awake this morning at about the same time and quietly packed our bedding and left the room. This hut had a very strict bedbugs policy, requiring backpacks to be stored in big zip lock bags and  our sleeping bag liner needed to be microwaved before use. The manager was so very nice explaining the procedure last night on  check-in. She also said that Sophie Grant, the FKT runner stayed at the hut and was ever so gracious.

We had breakfast with Mike and Kristy who also arrived at the hut yesterday afternoon. Again so nice to chat with them while having breakfast.

We left the hut around 7.30 for a short decent before a climb to Himmeleck saddle. We had a big school group behind us on the descent, we let them pass while taking our jackets off in preparation for going into the sun and the  ascent to the saddle. We then passed them as they stopped to take their warm layers off. I was relieved to pass them and get a clear run to hike the uphill at my own pace. Hammer on the other hand was keen to wait and let them pass.  They took a while  to get organised so we kept going.

The hike up was not so bad, knowing that it always comes to an end, if you just keep up the grind. Looking back to check on Hammer, who was making his way up at his own pace, I noticed that the big school group had stopped.  In the distance I could see a big helicopter, hovering possibly over the hut. It then swept low over the valley coming over the school group and then passing over us.  It then turned back and did the same sweep but this time it came really low down. I thought maybe a rescue. The helicopter was huge as it came lower and its blades were creating a downdraft as it lowered and started to land right on the saddle in front of us.  The blades were not turned off and they hovered and then after a few minutes of blowing dirt and dust into our eyes, it took off again.

With the helicopter gone,  we reached the saddle and the sight of  the Himmeleck mountain  peak and the surrounding mountains  on this bluebird day was simply breathtaking.

There was a couple hiking behind us, they caught up on the downhill after the helicopter left the pass. We asked if they knew what the helicopter was doing. He replied ‘Oh the Bundeswehr (German Armed Forces), doing exercises on a beautiful day. They should be here in bad weather.’  The helicopter was truly scary as it hovered over us and tried to land on the pass only about a hundred metres from us.

That was a bit of a surprising heart starter,  as if the climb up to the  saddle was not enough.

From the saddle it was a long downhill to the town of Oberstdorf. We had a cowbell symphony for our descent to KaserAlpe, a farmhouse in a meadow serving food and drinks. From the Alpe we had a beautiful descent on  a path being passed  by hundreds of bike riders, mostly E-bikes heading up.
The descent was fairly uneventful, except when we turned to look back at these extraordinary mountains, the beauty of which was really unexpected. It was sad to be leaving, although we did not wish to be in the shoes of the hikers we met who were heading up.

We arrived into Oberstdorf after passing by a ski jump reported to be Germanys largest. The town felt really, really busy. Lots of outdoor stores, and none of the ones we tried had the Salomon Speedcross trail shoes in my size. My shoes are beginning to crack and need replacing soon.  Hammer has decided to try and keep his Keen Targhi favourites till the end of the hike, fingers crossed.

We tried to find a place to stay in town but quite a bit of rental  accomodation in town is for guesthouses with minimum 3 night stay or very expensive hotels.  We had a late lunch and thought about our options, none of which were appealing.  On the way out of town we stopped at the Tourist office and they found us a lovely hotel at the edge of town and at a reasonable price. After our morning helicopter hover, we are absolutely not going to attempt to camp in Germany.  

Hammer was very happy to put his feet up and watch the Tour de France and Pogacars’ win on Alpe d’Huez.