Karwendel round on a mountain bike

"Karwendel" refers to an Austrian-German limestone mountain range. There are some good climbs (see MaMa-Kante which is the last entry) but for the largest part the rock is lose. Whilst there are only pockets of climbing, the mountain biking and walking is excellent. The Karwendel round on the mountain bike is arguably one of the best mountain bike tours in Germany. 

Here is the Suunto Moveslink map of my trip yesterday. At the Eastern End you can extend it into the Laliderertal which adds another 400 altimetres and 10 km of climbing. 

 Here is the height profile. The x-axis is in km. 

 It all starts in Mittenwald and I have downloaded the GPS track for the ride onto my Garmin GPS. There are some tricky bits of route finding from Mittenwald to the Karwendelbach, the main Glen that ascends to the Karwendelhaus, an Alpine hut. In the image below I follow another cyclist. The Karwendel house is on the right hand side of the bealach in the distance at 1771 metres of altitude.

 In the image below I am behind threee mountain bikers with the Karwendelhaus above. The climb to the Karwendelhaus is a pretty long climb on a mountain bike with roughly 500 m of ascent. After that a still tiring descent on a bumpy, rocky track to the Ahornboden. 

 Here some locals block the way at the Ahornboden.

 After that an easier and faster descent to the Rissbach and to Hinterriss. A good place for lunch but I was a bit too early. 

 After that look out for a forest track that branches off the main road. The second, bigger climb of the day but only 300 m up. After that an easy descent and you will soon see the Baernbachfurt. This is a stream that you will have to cross sans bridge. There are two cyclists in the picture below...

 ... and here is a biker following me. 

 The path then climbs to the Vereiner Alm followed by a large descent to the Isar and Mittenwald. 

Practicalities: If you visit from the UK then take the train to Mittenwald. In both Mittenwald and the nearby Garmisch-Partkenkirchen there are mountain bike rentals. You can buy food in the Karwendelhaus and Hinterriss. The summers are warm here but you are nearly reaching 2000 m so the temperatures will be almost 10 degrees less at altitude than in Mittenwald. So if it is below 20 degrees in Mittenwald then take warm clothes esp. if you want to have a beer (with or without alcohol) at the Karwendelhaus. 

HW

MaMa-Kante Karwendel

Arno wanted to do the 12 pitch  MaMa-Kante for some time. It is in the Dammkar, a corrie in the Karwendel mountain range and was first climbed by F. Mannes and H. Mayer in 1975. Drive to Mittenwald and park at the car park of the cable car (3 EUR) or nearby (some free parking). There is also a train from Munich to Mittenwald (a great base for mountaineering and mountain biking). The path to the Dammkar is signposted. Arno and I were in good shape and needed 1 h 15 min instead of the suggested 3 h to the Dammkarhütte (http://dammkarhuette.de/). From there go left (West) and the MaMa-Kante is on the right wall in the photo below. Today 3 teams were ahead of us but people here climb fast as Alpine climbs are long.

 Here is Arno approaching the MaMa-Kante...

 ... and here you can see the first team on it. It is holiday time and Arno only picked me up at 7.30 h so no complaints. 

 The Karwendel mountains have a reputation for poor rock but the MaMa-Kante is an exception. It offers great climbing ranging from UIAA 3 to 6+.Here is Arno starting a UIAA IV pitch with a team finishing it above. 

 Here a photo higher up.

 The protection is mixed. There are some high-quality bolts (Mittenwald have a mountain division of the army and they look after routes) but you should also bring your own protection. As a rule of thumb, expect bolt belays and bolts on crux moves. You need to protect all the rest and for this a set of nuts plus some cams will do. Take additionally 12-16 quickdraws plus slings. 

 The last hard bit was a 6+ move. It is a boulder problem with now three bolts. You can avoid it on the right. I was very glad that I managed it clean and Arno surprised us as he managed to climb it with a rucksack. After that easy scrambling to the top. Great views to the North...

and the Kreuzwand (2132 m) to the East where climbers are resting after the MaMa-Kante and the ridge. 

The descent is a scramble towards the West until you reach the bealach. From there try to scree surf to the hut and then down. From the hut you can carry on scree surfing which is easier on the knees but adds to the erosion. Here is Arno reaching the bottom of the descent from the hut. 

Could be worse!

HW

Zugspitze via the Höllental

The Zugspitze is with 2962 m the highest mountain in Germany. I had never been on top so when Simon visited me and when the weather forecast was too unpredictable for climbing we decided to ascend the Zugspitze via the Höllental (hell glen) from Hammersbach near Garmisch-Partenkirchen. 

It is a variable route with a long via ferrata that ascends 2200 m altimeter (we managed nearly 2700 m as we followed the wrong red dots at one stage!). For equipment, you normally need helmet, light boots, via ferrata kit, crampons. Most people do not seem to use a rope on the glacier but there are some crevasses. 

The Höllental is in between the two limestone ridges here seen from the carpark in Hammserbach. 

 First through a forest and then you enter the Höllentalklamm, a gorge. It costs an entry fee, either 4 EUR or 1 EUR if you are a member of the German Alpine Club or another club. 

 Plenty of water running down in some sections. 

 After the Klamm you reach the Höllentalangerhütte where many people stay as it reduces the ascent. After the hut aim for right side of the waterfall and look for the path that leads to the upper glen. I had tunnel vision so here is Simon during our additional 500 altimeters. 

 Also, Ivan followed us and he joined us scree surfing this bit. 

 The first via ferrata section starts with an exposed but solid ladder... 

 ... followed by an exposed traverse on iron rods...

 ... leading after some easy scrambling to the upper glen. 

 Follow paths to reach the small glacier at the end of the glen. The almost industrial summit with a large crane to build a new cable car is above. The via ferrata ascends on the right and usually there are people. You normally need crampons on the glacier. Ideally rope up but we did not see any party doing so.  

 Here is Simon approaching the start of the long second via ferrata. 

 The Bergschrund was small but the start is tricky for non-climbers as there are no good foot placements. So just pull on the three iron cables. 

 At the beginning there are a few exposed bits...

 ... but after that it is mostly easy scrambling. 

 Here is Simon high up... 

 ... and here is a view of almost the whole route that goes to the glen right of the ridge. 

 Simon happy at the summit after 2700 m of ascent and a tough stint in Chamonix before that!

 A last view of the summit. 

For the descent take a Gondola onto another glacier and then currently take the old Zahnradbahn (cog railway) to get to the end point. You just have to change track as there is another train that takes you to Hammersbach or Garmisch train station. 

Overall a good outing which you can do by public transport (train from Munich to Garmisch). Plenty of info in German including GPX tracks on websites like this one: http://www.auf-die-zugspitze-wandern.info/tour-3-der-weg-durchs-hoellental/ 

HW