RAINY DAY, BACK IN AUSTRIA
VIA ALPINA DAY 35 – SUNDAY 26 JULY 2026
BORDER POST 156 –> BUCHBODEN
DISTANCE HIKED: 29.50 km
ELEVATION GAIN: 1,175 m
TOTAL DISTANCE HIKED: 885.95 km
TOTAL ELEVATION GAIN: 44 ,785m
A moody grey sky greeted us this morning. Rain fell through the night but we stayed dry and comfortable on our border-post campspot. The Big Agnes Hilton didn’t offer buffet breakfast this morning, so we broke camp and headed off around 6am.
Despite the grey skies and the low hanging fog it was really nice hiking. There was no wind and at first it was silent, then a slow building cowbell symphony accompanied us down into the valley.
We had thoughts of stopping at Widderstein Hut for breakfast but there was no sign of life there when we passed so we continued on.
Reaching the valley near Korbelift, apart from the parked cars in large carpark, there was no sign of life. A cold wind was scouring the valley and we were keen to keep moving.
There was a large lake above the carpark that was teeming with newly hatched froglets. They were so cute hopping around. They were all over the trail, we needed to step lightly to avoid squashing them.
I could see two hikers behind us and they caught up. It was a surprise to find it was Mike and Kirsty. We hiked and chatted as the the rain arrived and intensified. It wasn’t cold so the rain didn’t feel that bad. We consider that we’ve been lucky with the weather to date. It was nice to hike and chat which was a distraction from the rain.
We reached the small town Schröcken in a steady drizzle. Being Sunday I was so relieved to see a cafe that was open. Hammer and I stopped while Mike and Kirsty went on. The cafe was serving only coffee and cake, which was fine by me. Hammer settled for a Coke with apple strudel.
The cafe break was a great reset, the rain had eased and we followed the sulphur rich healing water of Breganzer Ach River as we headed out of town.
As it was wet and raining we again got to see the alpine salamander, our wet weather companions, out in huge numbers. Some even attempting a mating dance.
At one point we crossed the river and a sign in German and English announced that we were now on the sunny side of the valley. Not true today. Especially as we started the slow grind up a forest road with many switchbacks rising to Biberarcher Hut at 1,846m. It wasn’t cold and the fog gave everything an ethereal atmosphere.
Rain had eased and it was time to strip off the wet weather gear. A couple of hours going uphill with the fog lifting behind, we reached the hut. Such a cosy atmosphere inside. It was certainly tempting to stay but it was still early in the day. Hammer got lunch and I had cake and coffee, half an hour later we were on our way.
As we were getting organised outside, two local hikers arrived. They spoke English and we exchanged a few laughs over the comforts awaiting them inside the hut. They mentioned meeting two hikers on the way in, an Australian women and her Welsh partner who were also hiking the Via Alpina. We hope to meet them along the way.
The rain had eased by the time we left the hut. From the hut to Buchboden, the next village on the route, was a long descent. It was very technical, muddy and slippery with these amazing rock strata which looked like they were shaped by water in the early sections. The mud gave to slippery rocks which made for very slow progress. The low hanging fog closed out any possible views. The descent felt never-ending. By the time we emerged from the woods, the sky had brightened a little, with patches of blue sky.
We were happy to get to Buchboden and even happier to get a room at the lovely Hotel Kreuz. So nice to get our wet shoes off, get cleaned up and put our battered feet up.
Hammer watched a replay of the last stage of the Tour de France. With the tour over, it feels like summer is slowly slipping away.
