Alpl (Zisleranger Weg) - Teufelsteinalm (past Edelweißhütte)

Access to starting point:
Highway A2 Graz - Vienna we leave at the exit for Gleisdorf west, then follow the signs for Hartberg and Weiz, and later only Weiz. At the beginning of the town Weiz, we exit the roundabout in the direction of the settlement Birkfeld, then follow the road to the mentioned settlement and from there follow the signs for Alpl. On the mountain pass Alpl, we turn left in the direction of the inn Gasthof Schlagobersbauer and immediately turn left again onto a macadam parking lot, where we park.
From the border crossing Šentilj, we continue driving on the highway towards Graz and further towards Linz and Salzburg. We soon leave highway A9 and continue driving slightly right in the direction of Vienna, proceeding along the expressway S35. Near the settlement Bruck an der Mur, we reach highway S16 and follow it in the direction of Vienna. We leave the mentioned highway at the exit for Mitterdorf, and upon reaching the roundabout with the old road, we take the first exit in the direction of Vienna. After the settlement Krieglach, we turn right towards the settlements Birkfeld and Alpl. On the mountain pass Alpl, we turn right in the direction of the inn Gasthof Schlagobersbauer and then immediately left onto a macadam parking lot, where we park.

Path description:
From the parking lot, we continue on a macadam road that runs parallel to the main road and along which there are signs for the settlement St. Kathrein a. H. and the mountain hut Edelweißhütte auf der Waldtonialm. Soon, a path branches off slightly to the left towards the settlement St. Kathrein, but we walk easily on the macadam road for a few minutes, and at a smaller crossroad, a slightly longer path joins from the right, which passes by the inn Schlagobersbauer. We continue straight, following the macadam road, which we keep to at several crossroads in the direction of the blazes. On a smaller saddle at an altitude of 1126 meters, from a marked crossing, we continue straight (to the right, a holiday cottage and the cross Lendkreuz), and a minute later, we turn left onto a slightly narrower macadam road, which then splits. Just before the split, a path to Teufelstein branches off to the right, but we continue on the slightly right road, along which there are signs for the mountain hut Edelweißhütte. Next follows some traversing, and when we reach the gully of the stream Brennleitenbach, we turn right onto a rougher road, which begins to ascend noticeably. Next follows a diagonal ascent to the left, and at a smaller crossroad, we continue straight in the direction of signs for the aforementioned mountain hut. The path ahead leads us along a wider cart track, and when we leave the forest, we already notice the mountain hut Edelweißhütte on the left. From here, we continue for a short time along the cart track, which runs beside a fence, and when we reach the road, we turn left and, passing a chapel, arrive at the cottage on the mountain pasture Waldtonialm.
From the cottage, we return to the chapel and continue walking on the road to the southwestern part of the mountain pasture. Here the poorer road goes into a lane through initially sparse forest and in a few minutes brings us to a crossing by the Schneidhoferkreuz cross, where we join the usual, slightly shorter path.
We continue straight toward the Teufelstein summit and begin moderately ascending through the forest. From the road, we proceed slightly to the right onto a footpath that ascends through the forest and blueberry bushes. Higher up, it returns to the road, which we follow to a crossing by the cottage Untere Holdahütte, which we notice a few meters further on the right side.
From the crossing near the cottage, we continue straight in the direction of the mountain Teufelstein, where the path initially runs along the edge of the forest and then enters the forest. In a strip of younger forest, a view briefly opens up towards the eastern mountain groups of the Northern Limestone Alps. A few minutes later, the path leads us to a cart track, along which we continue to a macadam road. We follow the road to the left, and at the nearby crossroad, we go straight (to the right leads an unmarked path to Teufelstein). Further on, we descend gently, and the path leads us through a scenic area, from which a beautiful view opens up, extending far towards the south. A little lower, we reach a marked crossing, from which we continue right onto a cart track (left downwards Fischbach), along which we quickly ascend to the cottage Teufensteinhütte on the mountain pasture Teufensteinalm.
Alpl - Edelweißhütte 1:00 Edelweißhütte - Untere Holdahütte 0:45, Untere Holdahütte - Teufensteinalm 0:35.
The description and pictures refer to the condition in October 2023.

On the way: Edelweißhütte auf der Waldtonialm (1189m), Schneidhoferkreuz (1231m), Untere Holdahütte (1282m)