Parking Sulzenauhütte - Becherhaus (via Sulzenauhütte and Seescharte)

Access to starting point:
From Ljubljana, we drive on the highway past Salzburg in the direction towards Munich. At the multilevel junction Dreieck Inntal we go on the road A93 in the direction of Innsbruck/Kufstein/Brenner. When we return to Austria we continue to the junction with the exit Innsbruck-Mitte. Here we don't turn towards Innsbruck, but we continue on the highway A13 in the direction towards the Brenner Pass. We leave the highway at the exit 10-Schönberg and we follow a comfortable road through the Stubai valley to the places Neustift im Stubaital, center of the Stubai valley, and Volderau, where the still wide asphalt road starts to ascend a little more noticeably in the direction of Mutterbergalm and ski area Stubaier Gletscher. Soon on the left we notice the large Grawa waterfall and the parking lot at the eponymous mountain pasture; here is the first starting point for the ascent towards Sulzenauhütte. After a few minutes of additional driving, we park on a quite spacious dedicated parking lot, which offers the most comfortable approach to the hut, and where at the starting point we notice a large information board with emphasis on the ascent to Sulzenauhütte.

Alternatively, driving through northern Italy offers an alternative: in this case from central Slovenia on the highway A2 we drive to one of the border crossings with Austria and we continue the journey to Lienz. Here we continue on road 100 and past the passage Prato alla Drava we drive into Italy. In Italy we follow road SS49 all the way to the junction with highway A22 in the direction towards the Brenner Pass. After the pass we continue in the direction towards Innsbruck to the exit Schönberg. From there we continue in the direction described above.

Path description:
From the starting point, we walk over a small bridge and, following the signs for mountain hut Sulzenauhütte and mountain pasture Sulzenau, we continue on a narrow footpath which in zigzags leads across the forested slope towards the south. The moderately steep, quite undemanding path, from which occasionally beautiful views open up above the Stubai valley, after approximately 45 minutes is joined by a somewhat steeper variant of the path which through the forested terrain above Grawa Alm breaks through at the edge of the large Grawa waterfall. The footpath at this spot turns towards the east and after approximately 15 minutes brings us to large plains, where below the cliffs above which Sulzenauhütte stands, the mountain pasture Sulzenau reveals itself. Reliable signs lead us past the mountain pasture and direct us onto a narrow footpath which in zigzags crosses the steep slope and after about two hours of walking from the starting point brings us to the hut Sulzenauhütte.

At the hut, which stands in the middle of the attractive water-rich world of the High Stubai, we look towards the signs for Nürnberger Hütte and Wilder Freiger, which from the hut lead towards the east (in the direction of Route Seescharte and Leo Schöpf’s Route; the demanding and more direct Lübeckerweg soon branches off and turns steeply towards the south). Initially quite level footpath soon brings us to the western edge above the larger lake Grünausee, where a beautiful view reveals itself towards Wilder Freiger and nearby peaks; here a more demanding unmarked path branches off, which leads to the summit over the Freiger glacier. After a short crossing north above the lake we find ourselves at a junction: the wider footpath continues towards Nürnberger Hütte, but we head onto the somewhat less obvious path which leads us along the eastern edge above lake Grünausee. The still quite undemanding path leads us across the grassy slope into increasingly rocky terrain, where we proceed in the direction of the next goal, the saddle Seescharte between peaks Urfallspitze (2805 m) and Gamsspitzl (3051 m). After a short slightly steeper ascent on rocky terrain after about two hours of walking from the hut we approach the saddle, where an expansive view opens up towards the mountains and glaciers of the eastern part of the central group of the High Stubai.

From the saddle we continue on the footpath which on scree terrain towards the south crosses below the massif of Gamsspitzl. Soon we come to a junction at a large rock, from where it is possible to ascend relatively easily and quickly to Gamsspitzl, which offers a wonderful view of the summit area of Wilder Freiger; I warmly recommend the short side trip to this easily reachable three-thousander.
From the junction we continue on the footpath which crosses some snowfields that remain all year, and begins to ascend ever more steeply towards the ridge between two arms of the glacier that embraces the south facade of Wilder Freiger. In the continuation of the scree path it is necessary in places to scramble a little, and the terrain is sometimes somewhat unstable.
Soon we find ourselves on a wide side ridge which offers an unobstructed view towards the continuation of the path. The ridge is in places slightly exposed, and over the most awkward spots fixed protections (cables and steps) help us. In this section the signs disappear and from here appear only intermittently, but we continue to follow the ridge; at two spots we detour from the sharp edges towards the east and cross below them. On the descent to the upper part of the glacier a cable helps us.

After a short and in summer usually unproblematic crossing of the glacier, where poles guide us, with the help of an attached rope we ascend over the rocky slope below the summit ridge of Wilder Freiger, which we reach near the point on the pass Signalgipfel (3392 m). From here a short ascent along the ridge to the summit Wilder Freiger is possible (approx. 15 minutes; see description of ascent to Wilder Freiger).

Our path on the ridge heads towards the east and rises slightly to a small meteorological station on Signalgipfel. Here we look towards the south and follow the richly marked and secured ridge path, which with the help of numerous cables and an attached rope steeply descends from Signalgipfel towards the glacier Übeltalferner.
After about 20 minutes of descent we reach the edge of the glacier and continue along the in places somewhat more airy ridge towards the hut, which we can follow on the rise ahead of us. Before the final ascent a path joins us which ascends from the glacier Übeltalferner. In the last part of the path the ridge widens, and rock-carved steps lead us to the hut.

The hut, which lies on an alluring location resembling a high nest, is a comfortable starting point for ascents to some of the highest peaks in the Stubai Alps. Although for this approach in high summer and early autumn we usually do not necessarily need winter equipment, let it not be missing from the backpack due to the glacial landscape; this especially applies if we intend to ascend one of the nearby summits.

On the way: Sulzenauhütte (2191m), Seescharte (2762m), Signalgipfel (3392m)