Category: alpine

It sounds great:

… This 50-mile, nine-day loop has it all: glaciated 11,000-foot mountains, high alpine passes, deep valleys, waterfalls, gemsbok mountain antelopes, alpine roses, and martigon lilies. The well-marked route requires no technical expertise, but expect long, strenuous days (despite the relatively short mileage) and adrenaline-fueled climbing with fixed ropes and ladders. …

Life-list moment: Catch your breath–and savor it all–on the small terrace at the Olperer Hut, perched hundreds of feet above the Schlegeisspeicher reservoir, with a view of the serrated ridge of Grosser Moseler in front and a cold Austrian lager in hand.

Hike the loop clockwise, starting in Mayrhofen–the views get better every day, and this way you’ll start with an easy two-mile hike to Edel Hut, so you can sleep in the mountains the same day you arrive in Austria. From Edel, get your bearings by hiking the three-hour round-trip to 9,754-foot Ahornspitze, a rocky summit high above the Zillertal Valley. You’ll know you’re in the heart of the Alps on day 4, en route from Greizer Hut to Berliner Hut, when in one short section you cross a picturesque–if rickety–footbridge over a glacial stream, scramble through a field of avalanche debris, and climb fixed ropes and a 16-foot ladder bolted to sheer rock. Be sure to stop on Lake Schwarzsee’s north shore and snap a photo of the reflected peaks–visual proof of your epic trek. …

Backpacker – World’s Best (Unknown) Treks

The best guidebook is Trekking in the Zillertal Alps: Hut-To-Hut Walks (Cicerone) by Allan Hartley.

Here’s one of the useful maps from the guidebook.

The only guidebook when I hiked up and above the north side of Everest Base Camp was Trekking in Tibet by Gary McCue. (In fact, I lost the guidebook while on that trek.)

Hiking Everest from the Tibet side has been getting increasingly problematic.

We recommend you hike the Nepal side, instead. Here’s the newest guidebook:

Amazon – Trekking in the Everest Region, 5th: includes Kathmandu City Guide