Glocknergruppe

Glocknergruppe Mountains, Carinthia/Salzburg/East Tirol, massif of the Hohe Tauern mountain range, vast glaciers, situated between the Granatspitzgruppe mountains in the west (separated by the Kalser Tauern, alt. 2,515 m) and the Goldberggruppe mountains in the east (Hochtor, alt. 2,576 m). The Glocknergruppe mountains are the watershed between the rivers Drau/Drava and Salzach and are situated in the very south of the province of Salzburg, forming the border with Carinthia and East Tirol. The Glocknergruppe mountains are made of gneiss and crystalline slate that form the slate nappe of the Tauern mountain range (Tauern Window). The Glocknergruppe mountains comprise several mountain ranges in a star-like arrangement. Peaks: Großglockner (3,798 m), Großes Wiesbachhorn (3,564 m), Johannisberg (3,453 m), Eiskögele (3,426 m, at the border of Salzburg, Carinthia and East Tyrol), Fuscher-Kar-Kopf (3,331 m), Hocheiser (3,206 m). The largest glacier of the eastern Alps, the Pasterze Glacier, is situated at the northeastern foot of the Großglockner, as is the Gamsgrube Nature Reserve. The valleys of the Großglocknergruppe bear the imprint of glacial erosion during the Ice Age: U-shaped valleys with alternating flat sections and steep slopes with splendid waterfalls. In recent years artificial lakes have been constructed, many of which are maintained by electric power companies (Mooserboden, Wasserfallboden, Margaritze). The Großglockner region is also an important tourist attraction. By car tourists can enjoy the scenic routes, the Großglockner-Hochalpenstraße, the Kalser Glocknerstraße as well as the roads run and maintained by the electric power company of Kaprun. The Großglocknergruppe can be reached from the province of Salzburg via the villages of Bruck and Kaprun in the Pinzgau region, from Carinthia the town of Heiligenblut in the Mölltal valley, or from Tirol via Kals. Mountain refuges: Glocknerhaus (2,136 m), Hofmannshütte (2,444 m), Oberwalderhütte (2,972 m), Erzherzog-Johann-Hütte (Adlersruhe, 3,451 m, highest mountain refuge in Austria) in Carinthia; Heinrich-Schwaiger-Haus (2,802 m) und Alpinzentrum Rudolfshütte at lake Weißsee (2,311 m) in Salzburg, Stüdlhütte (2,802 m) in East Tirol.