Englspitzen

Overview

Englspitzen seems to be a beautiful name for a mountain. Unfortunately for the more poetic mountaineers among us, this denomination does not derive from an angel, Engel in German, but means narrow, “eng” in German. There is a narrow valley coming down from Narrow Peaks (not Angels Peaks) and narrow are the summit regions of those peaks.

Englspitzen have three culmination points, two of them a bit higher and located at the junction point of two ridges, one coming from Rudiger, Rudigerkopf and Schlierekopf, situated to the south, the other coming from Kalter Stein to the northwest. The latter ridge shows another bump near the ridge junction, this one is the third summit, called Englspitzle (small Narrow Peak) and bearing the only summit cross. Funnily enough this summit cross is about 100 m lower than the highest peak of Englspitzen but it is the only Englspitze to be seen directly from the village of Namlos.

To the northeast the ridge continues to Seelakopf, another neighbour summit, to the north is situated the beautiful Kelmenkar cirque. All these neighbouring features have the effect that Englspitzen are visited a bit more often than other summits of the lonely and rather unknown Rudiger subgroup of easternmost Lechtal mountains.

An easy hiking summit in summer and autumn and a moderate ski tour outing in winter and spring, in combination with Kelmenkar cirque, Sandegg, Schlierekopf, Englspitzen offer great possibilities for a great day out in the mountains.

Getting There

Best trailheads for Englspitzen are Kelmen or Namlos.

By car:

From Reutte or Arlberg direction use road number 198 to Stanzach. Turn on the “Berwang-Namloser Landesstraße”, number L 27, (signs for Namlos, Berwang)

Alternatively use road number 179 from Reutte to Bichlbach and turn on the L 27 road.

From Innsbruck go on highway A 12 to the exit “Telfs”, proceed on road number 189 to Nassereith and on road number 179 to Fernpass, Lermoos and Bichlbach. Follow the signs to Berwang and Namlos on road number L 27.

Take highway A95 from Munich to its end and proceed on road number B2 and B23 / 187 to Lermoos. Turn on road number 179 to Bichlbach and go on road number L 27.

Pass through Berwang and Rinnen, take the right hand road at a road junction after Rinnen, descend into Rotlech valley and pass the river on the roads bridge. Proceed on the road to Namlospass col, about 1 km before the village of Kelmen. There is a small parking area about 500 m after the col on the right or left side of the road. This is the trailhead for Kelmer Kar cirque and Englspitzen.

Namlos trailhead: There is a small parking area immediately at a switchback of the L 27 at Namlos; or you enter the village and look for a possibility to park your car without disturbing the locals …

Public transportation:

Nearby railroad station is: Bichlbach

Bus number 151 goes to Rinnen. There is no public transportation to Kelmen or Namlos as far as I know.

Routes Overview

Routes of Rudiger subgroup

Kelmen trailhead:

Take the forest road from the parking area to the south. Take the trail at the end of the road, cross the Kelmen creek and ascend the trail southbound first west of the creek then crossing it and ascending east of the creek into Kelmenkar and a trail junction.

Take the right hand trail leading to Kelmen forest service hut where the trail fades out. Go off trail in southwest direction up to the col between Englspitzen and Kalter Stein. A bit below the col a trail restarts. It follows the steep northwest ridge up to Englspitzle and from there the west ridge to the two Englspitzen peaks.

Namlos trailhead:

Follow the road L21 in Kelmen direction, passing by the switchback, until a forest road branches off to the right. Follow this road to a clearing with an Alm hut (Amslboden). Leave the road at a switchback and follow a trail into Englbach valley, crossing Engl creek and advancing to the west ridge up to Englspitzle. Take the west ridge to Englspitzen peaks.

Alternavtively enter Namlos valley to the south on a forest road. Follow this road until it ends deep within the Namlos valley. Take the trail continuing shortly into the valley. At the first trail junction take the left hand trail going up the southwest and west ridge to Rudigerkopf and continue on the ridge to Schlierekopf. Descent shortly into Schlierejoch col between Schlierekopf and Englspitzen and ascend the two summits.

Both Namlos routes can be combined to a nice loop route.

Traverse route:

Southwest ridge to Seelakopf, easy, some scrambling near the summit.

Ski routes:

• via Kelmenkar, col between Kalter Stein and Englspitzen, northwest ridge
• alternatively from Namlos via Amslboden, Englbach valley and west ridge to Englspitzle and Englspitzen
• combination with Schlierekopf is possible

Red Tape & Accommodation

No red tape as far as I know

You find accommodation at:

Berwang

Rinnen

Kelmen

Namlos

There are no mountain huts around.

Gear & Mountain Condition

Engelspitzen can be summited nearly the whole year.

It is an easy hiking summit in late spring, summer and autumn and requires normal hiking gear.

In winter it is a moderate ski tour and needs full ski tour and avalanche gear.

See the Tirol avalanche bulletin here.

Weather condition:

Map

Alpenvereinskarte, scale 1 : 25000

number 3 / 4, Lechtaler Alpen, Heiterwand und Muttekopfgebiet

with trails and ski routes, UTM grid

edition 2020