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Austria

International > Europe

Description

Stuff to drool over:
Austria (not Australia) is my candidate for sleeper limestone/granite climbing destination. The variety, proximity and quality of rock here astounds me every time I step outside. One day you can be high above Innsbruck, doing a loose alpine scramble with a thousand feet of air to either side, and the next you can be  crimping your way up absolutely stellar granite blocks in the Zillertal. And that says nothing about the Ceuse-esque limestone I have encountered here.
 
The boring stuff:
Austria is that landlocked country located in central Europe, south of Germany, east of Switzerland. The capital is Vienna. The Tirolean Alps grace the west side of Austria. Even when you are not in the Alps you can find incredible climbing in the rolling foothills and forests around Graz, Salzburg, and Vienna.

The official language is German and the currency used is the Euro.

Driving Note:

Austrian highways (Autobahn - street numbers starting with 'A') require a valid toll ticket. You can either buy the windshield sticker at border crossings or gas stations, or register your license plate online ( shop.asfinag.at/en/). Available durations are 10 days, 2 months and one year. If you buy it online, be aware that the toll ticket is only valid after 18 days due to customer protection laws. However, you can simply select to buy it as a 'company' at the checkout without any drawbacks (well, loosing the option to refund it within the 18 days) allowing you to bypass the 18 day restriction.  

Also there is a list of things that you must have your car. The police like to pull foreign vehicles over and check for these things, and the fine can be hefty if you don't have them.
Here's a list: rac.co.uk/drive/travel/coun…

Getting There

Austria is in the Schengen Agreement so traveling from another European Union country is quite easy. The roads are excellent. It depends on where you are going, but some major nearby airports are Vienna and Munich.

Once you have arrived, it is possible to get to some crags by bike/bus, but it will be easiest if you have a car. Obey the speed limits, as there are automatic cameras that will ping you and send you a nice note in the mail if you are caught going over. That being said, expect to be passed on the autobahn by cars going 50km faster than you.

Photos [Hide ALL Photos]

Fields and mountains
[Hide Photo] Fields and mountains
Längenfeld locals rule the streets...
[Hide Photo] Längenfeld locals rule the streets...
Kleines Törl in the Kaisergebirge
[Hide Photo] Kleines Törl in the Kaisergebirge
The Wilder Kaiser mountains directly above the Schleierwasserfall crag.
[Hide Photo] The Wilder Kaiser mountains directly above the Schleierwasserfall crag.

Comments [Hide ALL Comments]

trese
Salzburg/Innsbruck/Munich
[Hide Comment] Good resources for climbing in Austria are the following pages:

bergsteigen.com/

For Tyrol-region: climbers-paradise.com/klett…

Current conditions: alpenvereinaktiv.com/en/con… Jun 19, 2013
[Hide Comment] My wife and I will be visiting Tyrol in early May. We'd love to hit the rock here, but would rather not 1) have to pack all our own rope and protection and 2) waste time translating guidebooks and getting lost. Can anyone suggest a guide that could lead a day of climbing at a reasonable rate? Jan 25, 2018