Althofen-Pleschutzkogel-Guttaringberg loop

SHORT DESCRIPTION OF THE ROUTE:         

Althofen station - town hall - west of old town - Calvary Hill - Scheurer Cross - southeast Muraniberg - Pleschutzkogel - south Guttaringberg - Oberfercher - northwest Holzerbauer - northwest Höhwirt - wine village - Fercher - old town - northwest Lorberkogel - Althofen station

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE ROUTE:

1.  We hike from platform 2 (613 m) via Lastenstraße, Gartenstraße, Gschwindstraße, Kreuzstraße to the roundabout of L 82 and to the main road or to the NMS. Via Schulgasse, Dr. Georg Grabergasse, which we follow towards NW – at the fork we turn right and meet Unterburger Str. At a sharp angle, we walk on this street towards SE, then sharply turn into Kinskyweg heading N (church path no. 1).

2.  On the way to Calvary Hill, we meet Albertsteig at a fork – we go straight in direction N. After a slight right curve, we arrive at Dobritscher Str., then at the next fork shortly afterwards half-left – leaving the street – via the cross path to the Calvary Hill chapel (1st break, 1.5 km, 742 m).

3.  After the chapel, we keep left, NW, walk on a wide natural path to the street and shortly along Dobritscher Str., then turn left, NW at the intersection – after about 350 m we meet Dobritscher Str. again, then briefly follow path no. 2 NW – after a few meters at a fork we turn right, N.

4.  After about 600 m we cross a main agricultural path (HWW) and after about 400 m and another 200 m we cross another HWW again, finally reaching Scheurer Cross (2nd break, 3.3 km, 937 m). From the clearing, we look NW at Muraniberg and the Gurk valley.

5.  On a marked path, we steadily ascend towards NW to Pleschutzkogel (1225 m), at about 400 m at a fork half-left (here church path no. 1 briefly leaves us via an HWW) and cross four times HWW (3rd break, 5 km, 1225 m).  

6.  We leave the downward path and hike on a well-visible and beautiful hiking path with the help of GPS along the ridge heading N – after about 1 km the path turns east to church path no. 1 towards Dobritsch. We go shortly towards SE to a hiking crossing – we choose the half-left connecting path to Guttaring.

ALTERNATIVE 1: The same natural path takes us back down to the HWW, which we follow left towards NE – we are now on church path no. 1 leading to Dobritsch. After about 250 m, a path leads right (E) down – if difficult to walk, continue approximately 900 m more on the HWW until we reach the hiking crossing to path 1a, the connecting trail to Guttaring, which leads right towards SE.

7.  The markers take us to the asphalted Guttaringbergweg – it leads SE past the properties Oberfercher and Hubmann (at the clearing: 4th break, 8.7 km, 970 m). Only at Holzerbauer do we leave connecting path 1a, marked as no. 7 from the 4th pause on, and turn right (W) past the property (following path no. 5 – coming from Urtl).

ALTERNATIVE 2: At the fork between Oberlercher and Hubmann, continue along Guttaringbergweg/Dobritscher Str. – it leads to the old town of Althofen and to the station.

8.  Path no. 5 brings us just before Althofener Str. – ignoring 4 paths coming from right and 2 from left. We meet the northern section of scenic path no. 4 – it leads to Weindorf, crossing 2 paths – at the 3rd, asphalted path we turn right and pass southwest of the pond – nearby we take the 5th break, 13.3 km, 650 m. 

9.  Until Fercherweg, we ignore 4 paths on right and 2 on left – just before a small house, scenic path no. 4 bends in an S-shape right and upwards (passage at Fercherweg is closed) – it takes us SW back to Dobritscher Str. (thus closing the loop).

10.  We go either directly or via Kalvarienweg to the old town with the museum and church. Via Burgstraße, Salzburger Platz, Grobeckerplatz as well as Höpfnerstraße, Am Sand, Unterburger Straße, Kreuzstraße, Lorberkogelweg, Silberegger Straße and Gartenstraße, we go with Lastenstraße back to platform 1 (17.6 km, 613 m).