Munich Day Trip - hiking the Plumsjoch (Austria)

One of the "funnest" books I've found in Munich is called "Bergtouren für Langschläfer".  Translated, it means "Hiking Tours for those that sleep in"!  Müncheners take advantage of the near-by Alps year round - for hiking and skiing especially.  Since the mountains are so close, somebody wrote a book that tells people how to get good hikes in without having to wake up early on the weekend.  There is a similar book for skiing.

 
In this case, the hike is to the Plumsjoch.  The drive is about 1 hour and 45 minutes, so you reach the Tyrolean Alps but can get there, have fun, and get back in the same day.  Here is Plumsjoch in relation to Munich, courtesy Google Maps.  Almost directly south, just across the border into Austria.

A typical day-hike will take 1.5-3 hours to get to the destination, there will be at least one hut where you can get food and drink (proabaly stay an hour), and then last 1-2 hours back down.  That's a total of 3-6 hours.  Sometimes the hut is the destination, other times you go to the top of a small peak and visit the hut on the way up or down.  Add in a 1.5 hours each way, and you have a nice, full day (and will sleep well that evening!)

The Plumsjoch path starts at about 1000m of elevation.  Here's a photo about 20 minutes from the trailhead.  Starts out nice and green --  lots of groundwater available and below the timberline.

Now we're getting closer to the peaks.  You can seel the trail behind me - we've already covered much of the 600+ meter ascent to the hut.  The linear distance is probably 8 kilometeres, for a round trip of 16km or more.  It takes between 1.5 and 2 hours to get there, depending on the number and duration of stops along the way.  There is one stretch where thigs get a little steep, but it is mostly a nice, consistent slope.

Now we really get a view.  After rounding a corner of the trail we can see down into the valley below.  It's chilly, even in the summer at above 1800m, so I usually hike in a t-shirt and bring a fleece for when I stop moving.  Apfelschorle (apple juice mixed with sparkling water) and food at the hut is soooo close...

The trails in Austria are well marked - usually with a spray-painted Austrian flag!  They have a government service (as does Germany) that marks the trails, preserves/maintains them, and of course rescues people when needed!  At this point, I put a long sleeve shirt over the t-shirt.  Without the right combination of no-wind and sun, I wanted the extra layer.  It came off quickly again when the sun got brighter and I got moving.  The photo is not that great, but you can see some wildflowers popping out.  It's what makes the Alps so nice.

Finally, here we are.  The Plumsjochhütte.  It doesn't look like much, but it's pretty hard to build and keep a hut at 1630 meters!  Sun, snacks, and drinks, then ready to head back down.  (Or... you can stay overnight if you book ahead!  It is part of a longer hut-to-hut hiking trail that you can take for over a week.)  Notice that some people rode mountain bikes up.  Not all Alpine paths are bike accessible, but the Plumsjoch is wide and not-rocky enough to work well.  Very popular with that crowd.  Overall, it's a great hike for families, adventurous but not hard-core walkers, and of course late sleepers.