Hohes Brett

Overview

The Hohes Brett, 2338 meters (7671 feet) high, is one of the important mountains of the Berchtesgaden Alps that can be seen directly above the town of Berchtesgaden.It is usually climbed in context with the ascent of the Hoher Göll (2524) from the south, as it’s right on the trail leading to the Göll, but offers already great views to all sides; a magnificent view upon the world of scree and karst surrounding the Grosser Archenkopf and the Hoher Göll; to the south, the Tennengebirge, Hochkönig, Steinernes Meer and even the Grosses Wiesbachhorn and the Grossvenediger in the still strongly glaciated Hohe Tauern; to the west, a stunning view of the largest wall in the entire Eastern Alps, the east wall of the Watzmann, plus great views upon Hochkalter, Reiteralpe, the Chiemgau Alps, the Untersberg and below it, the city of Salzburg.
Best time to do this hike: End of June until October; the Hohes Brett is also well known as a mountain to be done in winter on skis, though.
Character: marked trail, very alpine in character, leading steeply through grass, limestone rock and rubble. Be sure of weather conditions before undertaking this hike; in fog it is very easy to get lost on the southern flank of the Hohes Brett, and this can be dangerous.

Getting There

How to get to Berchtesgaden:

Nearest airports: Munich, Salzburg

Coming by car from Munich: Take the Munich-Salzburg motorway. Shortly before Salzburg, already within Austria, switch to the A 10 in the direction of Villach-Klagenfurt. After 8 kilometers, exit in Neu-Anif, following the signs to Grödig-Berchtesgaden. Just after St. Leonhard, the road crosses back into Germany and continues as B 305 through Marktschellenberg to Berchtesgaden. Distance: 154,8 kilometers; duration: 1 hour 39 minutes.

Coming by car from Salzburg: Follow signs to Anif or Grödig (from the airport, follow first the motorway in the direction of Munich-Innsbruck for about 2 kilometers, then switch to the A 10 in the direction of Villach-Klagenfurt. Exit at Neu-Anif, following the signs to Grödig-Berchtesgaden) and continue as above. Distance: 24,6 kilometers; duration: 28 minutes.

From Salzburg to Golling by car: Follow the above mentioned road to Grödig. Here, take the motorway A 10 in the direction of Villach-Klagenfurt as far as the exit to Golling. From here, it is only one kilometer to Golling on the left or two kilometers to the parking lot at the Bärenhof at the entry to the Bluntau valley on the right. Distance: 31,8 kilometers,; duration: 30 minutes.

From Berchtesgaden to Hinterbrand by car: Follow the road in the direction of Königssee for about one kilometer, then turn left (sign to Faselsberg) and follow the road all the way straight up to Hinterbrand on 1100 meters. The road is a bit steep and narrow, though; an alternative would be to first drive to Oberau, then follow the road to Obersalzberg, then the road to Christophorusschule and continue following this road until Hinterbrand. Parking lot.

Coming by means of public transportation: There are regular trains both from Munich and from Salzburg to Berchtesgaden Bahnhof (from Salzburg, there are also the regular busses of the RVO line no. 840. This goes much quicker than taking the train via Freilassing and Bad Reichenhall.). From here, use the busses of the RVO (link to all the timetables added under “links”)
To Golling, there are regular fast and regional trains commuting between Salzburg and the Golling-Abtenau railway station.

Routes

If you exclude the fantastic though long and technically already quite taxing route from the Kehlsteinhaus or the Purtschellerhaus over the summit of the Hoher Göll, there are three direct routes of access to the Hohes Brett. One of these routes begins in Golling in the east, leading up the Bluntautal valley past Bärenhof and Bärenhütte, lower and upper Jochalm and the Carl-von-Stahl hut on the Torrener Joch saddle on the German-Austrian border on 1736 meters; the two other routes both start in the west, one leading from the top station of the Jennerbahn telepherique, the other from Hinterbrand.

via Bluntau valley – Carl-von-Stahl hut: This leads you through a mountain valley that is well known for it’s beauty. The only thing is, it’s the by far longest route to the Hohes Brett. Already to the Carl-von-Stahl hut you have to calculate with more or less 10 kilometers, a rise of nearly 1200 meters and a duration of 5,5 hours pure walking time. Planning to stay overnight at the Carl-von-Stahl hut is recommended. From there to the summit it is a rise of another 600 meters (about 1,5 hours to the summit).

Start at the Bärenhof parking lot. Follow trail no. 451a, first steeply, then moderately steeply through forest on the orographically right-hand side of the Fischbach river to Untere Jochalm. Here, the forest starts to recede and the alpine pastures begin. Follow the trail fairly steeply to the Obere Jochalm and continue through the basin of the top part of the Bluntau valley and a steep last bit to the Carl-von-Stahl hut. Here we are on the national frontier between Austria and Germany. The first view into the Berchtesgadener Land is already breathtakingly gorgeous; memories of “The Sound of Music” may arouse here…
From the Carl-von-Stahl hut, follow trail no. 451 straight up through a steep grassy slope to the Pfaffenkegel and continue along the path leading over a more flat section to the base of the steep southern slope of the Hohes Brett.
From this point, where trail 451 meets with the trail coming up from Hinterbrand-Jenner telepherique middle station, follow the trail first through an exposed rock passage and then follow the markings (the route is well marked, even if from time to time the trail is not clear) up the southern flank, partly through alpine grass, yet for the largest part through a lot of rock and scree. There are two scrambling passages; one through a sort of chimney, and the other very steeply to the Hörnlbrett, the base of the wide and far less steep western flank of the Hohes Brett. Both are secured by metal ropes, nevertheless one must have a secure step and not be afraid of heights. At the Hörnlbrett, turn right and follow the gently rising slope through alpine grass and limestone rock to the summit cross of the Hohes Brett.

From Hinterbrand:

Height gain: 1238 meters (4062 feet)
Overall mileage: about 4,5 kilometers

From the parking lot or the bus stop, follow the broad dirt road leading to the middle station of the Jennerbahn telepherique. Shortly before reaching the latter, there is a trail (no. 10) rising steeply up the slope to meet with trail no. 498 to Mitterkaseralm on 1534 meters. From here, follow the trail leading steeply up the slope with a height gain of 500 meters to the meeting point with the trail coming from the Carl-von-Stahl hut. From here, proceed as described above.

From the top station of the Jennerbahn telepherique:

Height gain (from the lowest point to the summit of Hohes Brett): 648 meters (2126 feet)
Overall mileage: about 2,5 kilometers

This is the shortest of the three routes to the summit of Hohes Brett. It can be accomplished in about 2,5 hours time. Beautiful mountain scenery all along the way!!

From the top station of the Jennerbahn telepherique, follow the broad path that leads to the Carl-von-Stahl hut, first by descending steeply to a saddle on 1690 meters height, then rising again gradually. At mid-distance between the Jenner and the Carl-von-Stahl hut, follow the trail that turns off to the left, rising up a broad and grassy slope, past the top station of a ski-lift and along a broad grassy ridge to the Pfaffenkegel, where the trail meets with the one coming from the Carl-von-Stahl hut. Turn left and follow the trail to the meeting point with the trail coming from Mitterkaseralm. From here, proceed as described above.

Red Tape

Note that in the Bluntautal valley, from May 1st to end of October as well as during weekends and holidays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. vehicles are not permitted access to the valley. Only driving out of the valley is permitted for hikers during the hours of closure. As a substitute, transportation with horse-carriages is provided during the hours of no-access for cars. On the entire length of the road between the parking lot at the valley entrance and the Bärenhof parking is strictly forbidden!

Camping

Germany: Mühlleiten in Schönau-Königssee

Austria: Camping Landgasthof Torrenerhof, Camping Martina

Maps

Kompass no. 794 Berchtesgadener Land 1:25000

External Links

Timetable of the Jennerbahn telepherique

List of timetables for all the RVO busses in general

Timetable for RVO 838 Berchtesgaden-Hinterbrand (download the pdf file)

Information about the Bluntautal valley

Images

View Hohes Brett Image Gallery - 105 Images