Hiking route Pöllau circuit via Gschaider Kögerl, Pöllau - Touren-Impression #1 | © Oststeiermark Tourismus Hiking route Pöllau circuit via Gschaider Kögerl, Pöllau - Touren-Impression #1 | © Oststeiermark Tourismus

Pöllau circuit via Gschaider Kögerl, Pöllau

This hike in Eastern Styria is a special experience in the warm season due to the colorful variety of landscapes in the Pöllau Valley Nature Park.
We start this circular hike in Pöllau Castle Park and leave the village heading north along Ortenhofenstraße. Via the NaturKRAFTpark in Hinterbrühl, past the Hotel Restaurant Gruber, Toni auf der Wiesn, Grottenstüberl we reach the Gschaid saddle. Here we have a wonderful view of the Pöllauer Tal Nature Park and the region around Birkfeld (Joglland) as well as the Almenland Nature Park behind it (to the northwest). From here we hike back via the Derler inn and the Grottenstüberl to Toni auf der Wiesn, where we then turn off in the direction of the former Hörting inn and continue past Hörting via the Heschl inseltown back to Pöllau.

Characteristics

Skill
Fitness

Best season

The tour in numbers

easy
Level of difficulty
24,7 km
Route
7:00 h
Time
670 hm
Uphill
670 hm
Downhill
1017 m
Highest point

Map & downloads

More information

Pöllau, castle park 
 
By car from Vienna:
If you are driving from Vienna to Pöllau near Hartberg, take the A2 towards Graz and drive about 110 kilometers until you reach the Hartberg exit. From there, follow the B54 in the direction of Pöllau.
 
By car from Graz:
To get from Graz to Pöllau bei Hartberg, take the A2 in the direction of Vienna. After about 30 kilometers, take the Gleisdorf West exit and then take the B54 towards Hartberg/Pöllau. Follow the B54 for about 25 kilometers until you reach Pöllau.
 
By car from Salzburg:
To get to Pöllau near Hartberg from Salzburg, take the A1 towards Vienna. Drive about 110 kilometers to exit 109 (Salzburg junction). There change to the A9 towards Graz. At St. Michael, follow the S6 towards Kapfenberg. Continue on the S6 until the Krieglach exit. From there, take the B72 and then the L405 to Pöllau.
Pöllau - Grottenstüberl - Gschaid-Sattel
  • We start this circular walk in the castle park at the signposts to the east of the Parkcafe.
  • The signpost "Richtung Gschaid" leads us north along Ortenhofenstraße to a wayside shrine and the blue house of the Almbauermühle, where we follow the yellow/blue markings and the "Naturpark-Erlebnisrundweg" to the Hotel Restaurant Gruber.
  • At the bridge by the hotel, we head in a north-westerly direction and follow the white-blue-white and white-yellow-white markings with the numbers 2 and 3.
  • At the fork in the path at the farm "Almer" vulgo Toni on the Wiesn, we now choose marking no. 2.
  • After the Grottenstüberl, the trail initially leads along the country road, then turns left into the forest and leads us to the junction in the direction of GH Derler, where we keep right and reach the Gschaid saddle (SAM stop: HF 5996).

Gschaid - GH Derler - Inseltown Heschl - Pöllau

  • From the Gschaid saddle, our hike continues on the other side of the road in the direction of Pöllau, following the red-white-red no. 921 markings until the junction, where the white-blue-white no. 2 markings appear, which we follow to the left in the direction of GH Derler (SAM stop HF 5974).
  • We stay on this trail until we reach the property of the Almer family, vulgo Toni auf der Wiesen.
  • Here we change to hiking trail no. 3 with the white-yellow-white color and pass the former GH Hörting.
  • Shortly after the Gasthaus/Inseltown Heschl, we come to a fork in this hiking trail, where we meet the "Roseggerweg" with the number 5.
  • This leads us back to Pöllau to our starting point (SAM bus stop "Pöllau, Zwinger": HF 5943).

SAM - the shared cab service in Eastern Styria - can be reached on +43 50 363738 (waiting time approx. 1 hour).

A visit to the Pöllau parish church - the Styrian St. Peter's Cathedral - is definitely worthwhile!
Timetables and travel information can be found at Österreichische Bundesbahnen (ÖBB) or at Verkehrsauskunft Verbundlinie.
For local transport we recommend the SAM-Sammeltaxi Oststeiermark.
Pöllau, castle park
P&R at the Pöllau bypass
Information about the region, places to stop for refreshments and overnight accommodation, excursion destinations etc. can be found here:

Tourism region Eastern Styria
Nature Park Pöllauer Valley office

Schloss 1, 8225 Pöllau,
Austria Phone: +43 3335 4210
www.naturpark-poellauertal.at
www.oststeiermark.com

Current weather
Mobility Eastern Styria with shared taxi SAM

Kompass Map, Hiking Map Nature Park Pöllauer Valley 1:30,000

Find out about maps, hiking brochures and other tour tips at the tourist office.
You can also order information material on our website from the comfort of your own home.
Rother hiking guide "Oststeiermark - Von den Fischbacher Alpen bis in die Thermenregion", 50 tours, Elisabeth Zienitzer & Silvia Sarcletti paperback, ISBN-10, 376334577 available in bookshops

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