Snowshoe tour from the Salzstiegelhaus to the Rappoldkogel

At the parking lot Salzstiegelhaus (1), 1543 m, we go to the other side of the road and see there the entrance to the hiking trail. We follow the yellow signs with the inscription "Altes Almhaus" No. 505. It goes slightly uphill through a piece of forest until we reach the open alpine pastures. From now on, we always orient ourselves along the forest road in the direction of the Altes Almhaus, whereby the path is easy to recognize even in winter. It goes continuously uphill and after about 2 km we come to the information boards (2), 1597 m, avalanche danger Rappoldrinne. From here we continue for about 1 km along the forest road or the cross-country ski trail until we come to a crossroads (3), 1615 m. The crossroads can be recognized by the fact that the road continues to the right to the Alte Almhaus and we now continue slightly uphill to the left. We stay on the road, which after a short time leads slightly downhill to a small depression. Here we keep to the right towards the forest and see the hiking trail and the red-white-red markings on the trees. From now on the path goes uphill through the forest, in between a little steeper, so that the ascending aid with the snowshoes comes into use. The path through the forest is very well marked and also easy to find due to mostly numerous tracks. At the forest border we then reach a small saddle (4), 1762 m. From here on we are in a protected landscape area (information board) and orient ourselves in the middle of the wide ridge in front of us, which leads to the summit cross (do not go too far to the right, as snowdrifts are possible). At the summit cross of the Rappoldkogel (5), 1928 m, a very beautiful view opens up into Upper Styria, with the Judenburg-Knittelfeld basin (Aichfeld) lying to the northwest. From here we can also see the snowshoe tour to the Speikkogel, which lies to the southwest. The way back is via the ascent route.

Variant: the descent via the summer trail to the west is partly steep and reserved for experienced snowshoe hikers only.

If you like the area around the Hirschegger Sattel, you can also hike from the Salzstiegelhaus to the Speikkogel (1993 m) in the west.

There is no public transport connection to the starting point of the tour.

General information about public transport in the region: www.verbundlinie.at

Murtal Taxi, Tel.: +43 660 1018101, 8740 Zeltweg, www.murtal-taxi.at

Cab Jäger, Tel.: +43 3512 44833, 8720 Knittelfeld

Cab Steiner, Tel.: +43 3512 71718, 8720 Knittelfeld

There are numerous parking spaces in the immediate vicinity of the Salzstiegelhaus.

Salzstiegelhaus, Tel.: +43 3141 2248, 8741 Weißkirchen, Kothgraben 3, www.salzstiegelhaus.at

Almwirtshaus Altes Almhaus, Tel.: +43 3147 212, 8591 Maria Lankowitz, Kemetberg 60, www.altesalmhaus.at

Gasthof Moasterhaus, Tel.: +43 3141 2160, 8584 Hirschegg, Hirschegg 241, www.salzstiegl.at

 Freytag & Berndt (2017): Seetaler Alpen, Seckauer Alpen, Judenburg, Knittelfeld. WK 212 Wander-, Rad-, Freizeitkarte; 1:50 000

You can also find this tour on the Snowshoehiking map:

Region Murtal – Snowshoe map- Tour 7

The Snowshoe map - you can get for free at the tourism association Murtal - info@murtal.at   - Tel.: +43 3577 26600

You can also find more information about the region on - www.murtal.at 

Sarcletti S., Zienitzer E., (2. Auflage 2018): Schneeschuhführer Steiermark – Vom Dachstein bis zum Steirischen Weinland. Bergverlag Rother GmbH, München, S. 176. Für weitere Infos hier klicken.

Schneeweiß C., (2012): Schneeschuhgehen – Praxiswissen vom Profi zu Ausrüstung, Technik und Sicherheit. Bruckmann Verlag GmbH, München, S.192