Etappe 10: Alpina Antica Trail | ET10: Hollersbach - Mittersill

The first section takes you along the same path as yesterday through the village of Hollersbach: from the village square, walk past the Ottacherhof vacation farm, then turn left and right again just after the Panoramabahn Alpine Residences. Continue through the village past the sports field to the parking lot of the bathing lake to the bridge over the Salzach. Immediately after the bridge, take the narrow path on the right again and walk first along the railroad tracks and then uphill to the asphalt road. Keep left here and this time take the turn-off to the right at the crossroads. Follow the road uphill, following the signs towards Thurnummerstall. Between Leitenbauernhof and Thurnummerstall, the road turns right into a hiking trail and continues in the same direction. Follow the path flat across a meadow and then slightly uphill through the forest until it meets a road again. Pass the Zimmeredthof farm and follow the signs for the bee nature trail straight ahead. From here, the route follows the signposted bee nature trail uphill to the Panoramabahn parking lot. At the beginning of the parking lot, keep right and take the underpass under the main road to reach another parking lot on the other side of the road. At the end of the parking lot, go left through the gate and keep left on trail no. 77 "Hochmoorrunde" (high moor circuit) on the small walking trail, which takes you through the idyllic Wasenmoos high moor.

 

At the end of Wasenmoos, take a gravel road to the left, past a large farm, until you reach a junction before a bridge. Follow the dirt road (Ww. "71d Mittersill") to the right until you reach a farm. Turn left through the gate onto a meadow path that takes you to a small road near another farm. Cross the road, down the meadow into the forest and follow the path to the Pass-Thurn main road.

Cross the busy road (be careful, it's a bit confusing!) and descend the stepped path on the left to a small asphalt road, which you follow downhill to the right through two hairpin bends and a barrier until a small road joins from the left. Turn sharp left onto this road and continue along the left-hand side of the two roads until you reach a farm. A hiking trail begins behind the farm and takes you through the Rettenbachgraben to a meadow. Now walk along the fence to a field path, which you follow straight ahead to another farm. Behind the farm, turn right, cross a meadow path and then descend along the edge of the field to a gate. Continue down the meadow path to houses. There you will find a gravel path on the right and after the first bend you immediately turn left again onto a meadow path that leads into the forest (Ww. "63 IVV-Weg Mittersill"). This path runs slightly downhill through the forest for quite a while until a signpost directs you to the right through a gate onto a meadow. Follow a meadow path down to a small asphalt road, which you follow slightly downhill to Mittersill (788 m).Pass the station and you will come to a large road. Turn right over the level crossing and then immediately right again onto the cycle and footpath, which you follow until you reach a small parking lot on the left-hand side. Cross the parking lot, turn right into Lendstraße and then immediately left into Hintere Lendstraße. You will now see a park with a pond. Walk through the park past the pond to the National Park Center, your destination.

Highlights of the mule trade: Felberturm Museum (Mittersill; 47.278369, 12.491911)
The Felberturm, built in the first half of the 12th century, now houses a museum. One part of the museum shows an exhibition on the topic of "mule trade". Here, the various mule routes across the Tauern and the fateful stories of the mule traders are presented in a lively manner and according to the most modern museum pedagogical aspects. You can find more here.

Meilinger Taverne (Mittersill; 47.280972, 12.482050)
In earlier times, the Meilingerhaus was the large trading house in Mittersill. At the Meilinger was the largest salt depot for trade across the Tauern. It used to be the most visited inn in the market, the farmers stopped here and there was trade of all kinds. Today the house is privately owned.

Bräurup (Mittersill; 47.280127, 12.483140)
Today's 4-star hotel was one of the most popular inns in the days of the mule trade, with a beer brewing tradition dating back to 1681.

Konditorei Pletzer (Mittersill; 47.280685, 12.483215)
In the Lebzelterhaus of the confectionery Pletzer in the alley of the same name, the craft of wax pullers and Lebzelter has been at home since 1751. From honey, they made those "Lebbezeideln", which are valued today as gingerbread, according to centuries-old, secret recipes. The Pletzer family stands for the long tradition of this guild in Mittersill and today produces the "Original Samer Zelten" in honor of it.

Leder Ritsch (Mittersill; 47.281347, 12.483196)
The last of his guild: There are only a handful of tanneries left in Austria. One of them is the Ritsch tannery in Mittersill, which has existed in the 4th generation for over 100 years. Originally, the tannery was already mentioned around 1430 as "Gerberei am Bach" and is one of the witnesses to the importance of Mittersill as a trading town.

Historical town tour (Mittersill; 47.282463, 12.482616)
From the town centre to the Samermuseum in the Felberturm, past the Felberkirche, the Ritsch tannery, the Lebzelter Pletzer, the former Jagglwirt as the 1st customs house, the Hoferhaus (now a bakery), the Meilinger Tavern as a muleteers' base with the largest salt depot, on to the Handwerkergasse and the St. Leonhard parish church with a culinary conclusion in the footsteps of the muleteers at the Braugasthof Bräurup.