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Petzeck

3,283 m

Austria

Elevation
3,283 m
Prominence
799 m
Difficulty
3/10
Mountain hike
Best Season
Jul–Aug
Routes
1

Routes

1
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Approximate line — not for navigation

An automated check found that parts of this line could not be matched to mapped trails, so it may stray far from the real route. Use it for planning only, with a map and a guidebook.

Why? 3 check notes
  • truncated: first waypoint unresolved, ~8.3 km missing
  • unresolved waypoints: Pirkachberg car park (Wangenitzalm), Kruckelkar, Petzeckscharte
  • waypoints at the same position: Wangenitzseehütte = Wangenitzsee
UIAAI-SACT3HikeNormal route

A long but technically easy route to the highest summit of the Schober group: up the Wangenitztal from the Pirkachberg car park above Mörtschach (about 1,300 m) to the Wangenitzseehütte (2,508 m), then east on a cabled traverse, north through the Kruckelkar and blocky terrain to a flat, crevasse-free firn field and the summit at 3,283 m. About 2,000 m of ascent.

Elevation Profile

approximate line
2,5002,7503,0003,2503,5000 km0.511.522.53WangenitzseehüttePetzeck
Distance
≈ 3.1 km
one way
Ascent
≈ +824 m
start → summit
High Point
3,283 m
Time Up
≈ 3h 13m
DIN 33466
Time Down
≈ 2h 11m
DIN 33466 · same way back

From Mörtschach in the Mölltal drive about 4 km up towards Pirkachberg to the road end (last section gravel) and park by the road. Trail 928 crosses the Mörtschach alpine pastures, climbs a steep step beside the Wangenitzbach to a plateau with two small lakes, then after a flatter section climbs again to the lake basin above 2,500 m with the Wangenitzsee, Carinthia's largest mountain lake, and the Kreuzsee. The Wangenitzseehütte (2,508 m) stands between them, about 3½ hours from the car park. From the hut the marked path heads east past the helicopter pad and rounds the ridge of the Kruckelkopf on a short section protected with cables. Soon after, before a stream, the Petzeck path branches left (north) and climbs, keeping right of the Kruckelkar, to a grassy knoll at about 2,800 m. Above a small snowfield is the steepest section, on good tracks, with a short rock step (at most I-) near the Petzeckscharte (3,034 m). Blocky ground leads onto a broad summit plateau with a small, flat, crevasse-free glacier remnant; cross it and climb the last scree to the summit cross. Allow 2½–2¾ hours from the hut. Descend the same way (about 1¾ hours to the hut and 2½–3 hours more to the car). The whole route is marked with paint and cairns, but the summit plateau is confusing in fog. A shorter approach to the hut comes from Seichenbrunn (1,668 m) in the Debanttal on the East Tyrol side (2¾ hours); the Lienzer Hütte is 2½ hours away.

Start

Wangenitzsee2,507 m

  • Bus between Lienz and Heiligenblut stops at Mörtschach; the Pirkachberg trailhead is about 4 km further up a minor road, with no bus. Nearest railway station Lienz.

Stages

DayStagekmm ascentm descentTime
1Wangenitzseehütte → Petzeck3.1824473h 13m

Waypoints

  1. Feature:
    Wangenitzsee2,507 m
  2. Hut:
    Wangenitzseehütte2,507 m

    not on route line

  3. Summit:
    Petzeck3,283 m

Key Passages

  • Steep step beside the Wangenitzbach
  • Cable-protected traverse around the Kruckelkopf ridge east of the hut
  • Steep section and short rock step (I-) below the Petzeckscharte
  • Flat firn field on the summit plateau

Equipment

0/6 packed
Technical
Footwear
Clothing
Navigation
Hut & Camping
Other

Downloads

Route confidence 80%

Overview

The highest summit of the Schober group in the Hohe Tauern (3,283 m), above Carinthia's largest mountain lake. A long but technically easy marked route (T3) from Mörtschach via the Wangenitzseehütte, crossing a small flat firn field below the top.

The Petzeck rises on a west–east side ridge of the Schober group between the Wangenitztal and the Gradental, in the Carinthian part of the Hohe Tauern National Park. Its north-east face drops about 850 m into the Gradental and is the biggest wall in the group, but the south side is a broad slope of scree, blocks and small cirques that carries the normal route. The summit looks across to the Großglockner.

The Wangenitzseehütte (2,508 m), set between the Wangenitzsee and the Kreuzsee, is the base. From there the summit is 2½–3 hours on a marked path with one short cabled traverse and a single easy rock step; the small glacier remnant on the summit plateau is flat and free of crevasses in normal summer conditions.

What makes the Petzeck serious is length: about 2,000 m of ascent from the Mörtschach side. Most people split it over two days with a night at the hut. It is the easiest of the five highest Schober peaks and a good first 3,000 m summit for fit walkers.

Climbing Notes

Requires stamina and sure-footedness rather than technical skill: T3, with short cables east of the hut and one easy rock step. Allow two days: about 3½ hours to the Wangenitzseehütte, then 2½–3 hours to the summit and the long descent. Fit parties can do it in one 10-hour day if they start by 07:00.

The usual season is from late June, when the hut opens and the snow has largely gone, to mid-September. In early summer or after fresh snow an ice axe is useful. The summit plateau is easy to lose in fog, so carry a map or GPS track. Thunderstorms are common on summer afternoons, and there is no shelter above the hut.

History

Chamois hunters and poachers reached the summit before any recorded ascent. The first documented ascent was in 1844 by a chaplain from Sagritz and a farmer from Mörtschach; surveyors climbed it in 1854 for the Austrian land survey, and Carl Gussenbauer made a well-documented tourist ascent in 1870 with the chamois hunter Johann Weichslederer. The first Wangenitzseehütte was built in 1927 by the Moravia section of the German and Austrian Alpine Club, burned down in 1947 and was rebuilt in 1966; the ÖAV Lienz section has owned it since 2009.

Season

Best Jul–Aug
  1. January: Not advisable
  2. February: Not advisable
  3. March: Not advisable
  4. April: Not advisable
  5. May: Not advisable
  6. June: Possible
  7. July: Best (best window)
  8. August: Best (best window)
  9. September: Good
  10. October: Possible
  11. November: Not advisable
  12. December: Not advisable
Jan
Winter; avalanche terrain, winter room only
Feb
Winter conditions
Mar
Winter conditions
Apr
Spring snow
May
Snow above the hut
Jun
Hut opens mid to late June depending on snow; snowfields on the upper route
Jul
Main season; afternoon thunderstorms
Aug
Main season
Sep
Hut closes mid to late September
Oct
Hut closed (winter room); early snow likely
Nov
Winter conditions
Dec
Winter conditions

Access & Permits

Hut Booking
Wangenitzseehütte (ÖAV Sektion Lienz): reservations only via hut-reservation.org; hut phone +43 4826 229 in summer.
Fees
  • Hut overnight fees, cash only at the Wangenitzseehütte
Rules
  • Hohe Tauern National Park rules apply
Getting There

Mörtschach (Mölltal); Lienz

Klagenfurt Airport (KLU)

  • Car via the B107 Mölltal road to Mörtschach, then about 4 km on a minor road (last part gravel) towards Pirkachberg to the road end; roadside parking
  • Bus Lienz – Heiligenblut stops at Mörtschach; nearest railway station Lienz
  • Alternative trailheads: Seichenbrunn in the Debanttal (from Nußdorf-Debant near Lienz), 2¾ hours to the hut; Iselsberg, 5 hours

Hazards

  • Weather
  • Glacier

Huts & Shelters

1