View of the Great Ahornboden

After the climb from the Hagelhütten to the Plumsjochhütte and a long rest, my family and I didn’t head straight back down into the Risstal valley. Instead, we added the panoramic trail via the Hasentalm to make it a circular tour. Bit by bit, the last of the clouds cleared from the mountain peaks, revealing a fantastic view of the Karwendel summits. The path leads slightly uphill to the north-west through sunny mountain pine terrain below the Satteljoch, opening up a wide panorama from the Risstal in the west, across the Eng valley and the Grossen Ahornboden, to the Plumsjochhütte in the east. The harsh light and airy clouds created varied shadow patterns on the meadows and forests, making the colours shine rich and sharp – helped by the clean air following the rainy days.

After an hour of the usual complaining (“how much further uphill is it?” etc.), we reached the Hasentalam Hochleger, a saddle between Satteljoch and Kompar, where a view north into the Baumgartental opened up. Finally, we headed across the Mittelleger with its flower-filled alpine meadows, where we took another break, and then down many, almost endless switchbacks back into the Risstal to our starting point at Hagelhütten. As forecast, the sun stayed out all afternoon and we looked back on an eventful family hiking day in the Karwendel.