Dürrnbachhorn summit hike

Anyone who has always wanted to cross borders when hiking is just right with the tightrope walk on the Dürrnbachhorn, because this is where the Bavarian-Austrian border runs. Surefootedness, stamina and a head for heights are rewarded with a wonderful panoramic view.

Starting from the parking lot at the Dürrnbachhorn lift, hike, leaving the chairlift behind you, up the left along the paved road (path no. 12). The terrain of the Dürrnbachalmen lies at the end of the asphalt road. A bit in front of the barracks, a narrow mountain path branches off to the right from the paved road to Dürrnbachhorn. A look back opens up the view of the Steinplatte and the Kaiser Mountains.

The trail leads steeply under the chairlift up to the mountain station at Dürrnbacheck with a panoramic inn. From here it goes over very steep, sometimes very high steps to the summit, carved into the ground and reinforced with wooden planks. On the Dürrnbachhorn, a 360-degree view pays off for the arduous climb. In the valley you can see the Weitsee from here, behind it the mountains of the Chiemgau Prealps, in the east the limestone cliffs of the Berchtesgaden Alps with the Watzmann, in the west the Kaiser Mountains, in the south the Loferer Steinberge and the Hohe Tauern and, so to speak, the Winklmoosalm at your feet.

From here we continue along the ridge on a very narrow path. At the end of the ridge you reach the foothills of the Gimplingsattel and follow path no.17 towards Finsterbachalm / Wildalm / Heutal downhill to the right, this path leads past the Heutal lift station. At the fork here it goes right. The forest is getting thicker and it is shadier on a washed-out path downhill.

The forest opens soon, the hiker enters a large alpine pasture, at the end of which is the Finsterbachalm. After the pasture you take a very wide, paved forest path that leads directly to the starting point. Because under the chairlift you get back to the start.