Iron grips and alpine thrills: The Kronich Eisenweg via ferrata to the Törlkopf

As early as the beginning of the 20th century, the Rax mountain range was a popular alpine resort for nature-loving Viennese. Its development for tourism culminated in 1926 with the opening of Austria's first passenger cable car, which allowed passengers to ascend more than 1000 meters (3280 ft) in altitude in just 8 minutes. Numerous trails and via ferratas also lead to the expansive Rax plateau, and these have lost none of their appeal. On the contrary: today, it is not only city dwellers who flock to the Rax, especially on weekends and holidays, but also mountaineers from Austria's eastern neighboring countries.

A possible starting point for a hike to the Ottohaus, a mountain refuge built at the end of the 19th century and named after Archduke Otto, is the Hotel Knappenhof in Reichenau an der Rax. There are usually a few parking spaces along the access road to the hotel that are not reserved for hotel guests. Arriving early is definitely an advantage. From here, you first walk past the beautiful hotel to the so-called "Törlweg" trail, which starts behind the hotel and initially leads gently uphill along a forest road. The white-red-white marked trail eventually branches off into the forest and becomes increasingly steep. In the upper section, countless switchbacks over stony ground help to overcome the considerable incline. As the altitude increases, the forest becomes more open in places, revealing more and more panoramic views into the valley as well as stunning views of the steep cliffs of the high plateau.

Finally, the last bend is reached and the path leads along the rock face to a small notch. At this point, the "Törl," a hole through the rock face that gives the path its name, comes into view for the first time. Immediately after the notch is the entrance to the Kronich Eisenweg via ferrata (C), which was built in 1970 in honor of Camillo Cronich, the financier of the neighboring Haidsteig.

First, you need to climb a few meters to reach the start of the fixed steel cable (UIAA I). Then you can clip in your via ferrata set's carabiners; this is just as important on this short route as wearing a helmet. Initially, the via ferrata seems quite tame (A/B), but it quickly becomes more difficult, and the first iron rungs (B) serve as welcome aids. This is followed by a technically undemanding traverse leading to another steep ascent, again equipped with iron rungs.

The following sections are consistently B and B/C and considerably more challenging. A gully with extremely small footholds leads up to the "Schlusswandl," a short C section before the exit. The final meters to the small summit cross must then be climbed without protection.

After less than two hours, you reach the destination of the tour, the Törlkopf at 1607 m (5272 ft) altitude. The view of the Rax plateau, the Ottohaus, and the Jakobskogel (also see "The devilish climb to the Jakobskogel") rising behind it, bathed in the morning sun, is simply breathtaking. The view from the Törlkopf down is no less impressive. To the east, you can even make out the shimmering of Lake Neusiedl, one of the few European steppe lakes.