Bishopshofen to Zauchensee (Austria) – The last day..

26 June 2023 karl@bigmight.com 0 Comments

Having stayed in Altenmarkt im Pongau, Simone (my wife) drove us to Bishopshofen to set off at 8pm. The plan was to climb to Wagrain, then Flachau, Altenmarkt (for coffee and Cakes) and then attempt to climb to the Sattelbauer and cross over to the Zauchensee valley to climb to the top for the finish. We were unable to reach the Gamskogel as the paths were completely unsuitable.

Setting off with boots on bike for rough terrain the initial 480 metre climb to Wagrain was knocked off early.

Climb from St. Johan in Pongau to Wagrain
Climb from St. Johan im Pongau to Wagrain

We reached Altenmarkt by 10:30am. After a hefty cake and a few coffee’s we set off to climb tp the Sattelbauer, a nasty 400+ metre climb up steep gradients on a road with switchbacks, we attached boots to our biking attire before proceeding..

Simons recharging, boots ready for the rough path to Zauchensee
Ride from Altenmarkt to Falchau
Start of climb to Sattelbauer
Path climbing from Flachau to Sattelbauer
Here we go again…. winge… wheeze… groan…
Slowly up we go…
The Sattelbauer

On reaching the top we assessed the path down and decided it was possible to descend, but after a few hundred meters had to remove cycling shoes, put on the boots and carry the bikes…

Boot removal to descent from Sattelbauer to Zauchensee
Boots on chaps….
Simon ready for a downhill ride…
Path down to Zauchensee road from Sattelbauer
View from Sattelbauer of Dachstein mountains and Altenmarkt in valley below
The Dachstein mountains..

By 1:30pm we reached the road to Zauchesee, ready for the final 420m climb to Zauchensee

Time to remove boots and put cycling shoes back on to climb to Zauchensee
The final few yards….
By heck we’ve done it
Karl, wife Simone and Simon
Trying to grasp what we have done…
Reunited with my wife Simone
Done – time for a beer (or two)

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