Crossing the Hochplatte (2,082 m)

Dusk has already set in as I head along the path by the Rogentalbach stream in the frosty, clear air from the Ammerwaldalm, guided by the beam of my headlamp, and shortly afterwards cross the bridge into the steep slope of the Blassenwald forest.

The narrow valley is soon illuminated by the glow of the rising sun lighting up the eastern faces of the Geierköpfe and the summit wall of the Hochplatte towering high above me. As the path climbs through the sparse, wildly romantic mountain forest, the stream gurgles deep below through gorge-like rock faces and rushes down numerous waterfalls.

At the Weitalpjoch, I stand directly in the morning sun for the first time and look out over the Graswang Valley and the ridge of the Ammergau Alps. Soon I turn onto the summit ridge and look north towards the plains, towards Füssen and the Forggensee. The summit itself then offers a magnificent panoramic view in the warm autumn sun.

The path then leads westwards over the narrowing ridge and a short, cable-secured section back down to the Fensterl, a hole in the rock, and finally down to the Rogentaljoch and back onto the ascent path.

Even though I’m now on the descent, I start sweating again because the autumn sun is really heating up the valley. Looking back on today’s tour, I enjoy the cold wheat beer at the Ammerwaldalm all the more to round things off.