A very special hike starts here in front of the town hall in the centre of Stainz, where Archduke Johann once resided. In the three and a half hours in which you will cover eleven kilometres, you will experience the unique panorama of Western Styria. The area around Stainz is characterised by viticulture. Especially the Schilcher, a special rosé wine, thrives here. Don't forget to taste this special wine.
The path first takes you past the old weighbridge of Stainz. Believe it or not, there is a giraffe in the weighbridge. In summer 2009, a work by the artist Helmut Dick, who lives in the Netherlands, was realised here. The artist developed it after intensive work with a group of young people from Stainz who frequented the then youth centre jung.kultur.haus FRIDA. Here you will probably have to take your mobile phone or camera to prove your stories later.
You continue along the Engelweingarten, which shines in the most beautiful colours, especially in autumn. Then you hike uphill through a long forest and reach Max Gschiel Straße. In front of you is the Pletteri Chapel with a resting bench, where you are rewarded with a first beautiful view of Stainz.
The trail continues through a longer forest up to the Max Gschiel Straße. On hot days, the forest offers the opportunity to cool off in the shade and you can listen to the chirping of the birds. The path with the marking 1, which you follow, leads you up to the Engelweingärten. These are not very visible from the road. Therefore, make a detour so as not to miss these idyllic vineyards. Take off your walking shoes and lie down on the grass amidst the vines. The old vines give you energy and let you relax wonderfully.
Now the highlight of the tour awaits you. You hike up to the legendary Stainzer Warte, which was built in 1902. You have now been walking for an hour and have covered 270 metres in altitude. Now more metres in altitude follow. There are 93 steps leading up to the viewing platform at a height of 26 metres. You should be free from giddiness to enjoy the breathtaking view over the vineyards around Stainz. Tables and benches await you in front of the lookout, ideal for enjoying a snack or a glass of Schilcher. Interesting information about the excavations on the adjacent Lethkogel to the north awaits you at the information boards.
Once you have had your fill and taken enough photos, the path leads you downhill to the car park. Here you have the option of taking a shortcut via trail 12, the so-called Jägerstein, back to Stainz.
However, you should walk along the edge of the forest, where you can already see a fallen cult stone after 40 metres. Soon you will be climbing steeply up to the 680-metre-high Stainzer Kogel. Here you should definitely take the opportunity to immortalise yourself in the summit book. A little further on, you can see some excavated burial mounds on the left side.
Slightly uphill you continue to the Steinbauer Chapel, where you will find a hiking trail junction. On the right, a marked trail leads over Gamsgebirg down to Stainz, on the left, trail 571 leads up to Absetzwirt.
However, you continue hiking straight ahead and stay on trail 1 and walk on a flat road to Kraxnerannerl and further along a forest path to Angenofen, a well-kept settlement with beautiful old farmhouses, typical for this region. The floral decorations of these houses with their gable roofs are particularly special.
The reward for the efforts of the hike is once again a magnificent panoramic view. Here, at the latest, you understand where this tour got its name. Now the trail continues downhill to the Göri Chapel with the old yew tree in the immediate vicinity. Pass the newly built Strasserkapelle chapel and walk down the Sierlingbach stream to the next bridge. Why not sit down by the water for a few minutes and cool your feet and legs in the fresh, clear water and enjoy the sound of the water.
Refreshed, you cross the small stream, walk first along the gravel path, then across a flowering meadow and reach the Gamsgebirg road via an idyllic forest path. Walk downhill on this road to the plague column in Neurath.
From here you return to Stainz via wonderfully cultivated fields and flowering meadows. Now you have another chance to make sure whether it really is a giraffe hiding in the weighbridge.