Parkplatz Innerfragant - Schareck (via Fraganter Scharte)

Access to starting point:
From the Karawanks Tunnel, we follow the highway towards Salzburg to a highway junction where we turn left towards Spittal. From Spittal we drive towards Lienz. A little after the highway ends, at the settlement Möllbrücke, we turn right towards the settlement Mallnitz and the Alpine road Großglockner. We follow this road to the settlement Kleindorf (a little after the settlement Flattach) where signs „Mölltaler Gletscher“ point us to the right onto an ascending road towards the bottom station of the cable car. We follow this road all the way to the large parking lots at the bottom station of the cable car.

Path description:
From the parking lot, we continue on the asphalt road which is closed to traffic. After a short ascent on the road, signposts point us to the right onto the footpath „Richard Helfer Weg“. On the footpath we also avoid the tunnels on the road through which walking is forbidden.
From the junction, we start to ascend a little steeper through the forest on a relatively poorly beaten path. Higher up we join the road for a short time and then turn right again onto a footpath marked with Knafelc blazes. The path mostly ascends through the forest and crosses a few short clearings. Later, the path brings us to slightly steeper slopes from which we occasionally get a view of the waterfalls of the Astrombach stream on the other side of the steep valley. On a short traverse where the slope is very steep, a rope helps us. The path here is not overly demanding, but we must be careful because bushes and high grass might prevent us from noticing that the slope next to the narrow path is very steep. The path then turns left from the steep slopes and starts to ascend a little steeper. On such a path through the forest we soon reach the mountain road.
We continue right on the road, which gently descends and brings us to a marked junction near the lake Wurtenspeicher. We turn left onto a cart track and after a short ascent we reach the lake. Near the lake there are also benches and a table.
The cart track that runs along the lake soon ends, and we turn left onto a footpath. The path continues mostly with a gentle ascent across the slope above the lake towards the north, crossing a few smaller streams in the process. Later the path turns slightly left and ascends in zigzags for a short time. This is followed by a traverse of a slightly steeper slope, where we bypass a small rockfall. Some caution is needed here. Later the increasingly scenic path becomes less steep and proceeds northwards. We still need to watch where we step as there are quite a few deep holes beside the path. The path then descends slightly and brings us near the lake Mernigsee.
Here the path turns slightly right and crosses a stream, then starts ascending the slope above the lake. We walk north again and soon traverse the slope below the chairlift that leads to the hut Weißseehaus. The path then turns left, followed by a short ascent on the slope to the left of the ski slope. Later the path runs across the ski slope and brings us to a mountain road where there is a junction.
To the right slightly downhill it is just a few dozen meters to the intermediate cable car station (Mittelstation), straight ahead across the ski slope a footpath leads to the hut Duisburger Hütte, but we turn left onto the road to the hut Weißseehaus, which we can already see ahead. From the junction we ascend along a scenic asphalt road beside which livestock grazes in summer months. On this scenic road we soon reach the hut Weißseehaus.
From the hut we continue on the road, which descends slightly and then briefly runs along the lake Weißsee. The road then starts ascending again, turns slightly right and brings us to the large artificial lake Hochwurtenspeicher. The road along the dam edge takes us to the right side of the lake where the asphalt road ends.
Here a footpath branches off to the right to the hut Duisburger Hütte, but we continue on the gravel road along the lake. Soon we reach a junction where another road to the hut Duisburger Hütte branches off to the right. We continue on the left gentle road which runs along the lake the whole time. With fine views of the peaks above the lake, the road takes us to the northern side of the lake where there are several junctions.
We turn right (towards the northeast) following the signs „Fraganter Scharte“. From the junction the path runs for a while across the ski slope beside the stream then turns decisively left and starts ascending more steeply. When we approach the steeper slopes, the path turns right and then ascends diagonally all the way to the saddle Fraganter Scharte where there is a junction.
At the saddle, where a view opens towards the north and the summit Hoher Sonnblick, we turn right following the signs „Herzog-Ernst, Schareck“. From the junction the path heads northeast and mostly ascends in zigzags up the slope of the peak Herzog Ernst Spitze. Higher up the rocky slope becomes slightly steeper, but the ascent remains relatively easy. On such a path we soon reach the aforementioned peak Herzog Ernst Spitze.
From the summit, where there is a junction, we continue right along the ridge following the signs „Schareck“. The path along the ridge soon brings us to a rocky step. Here the path becomes significantly more demanding: it first ascends steeply beside the steel cable, followed by an even slightly steeper section aided by numerous pegs. Above the rocky step we continue along the ridge, soon the path turns left for a short traverse across a slightly crumbly slope. A bit more caution is needed here, after which the path becomes somewhat easier. The path then runs along the northern side of the ridge and from it we will soon spot the summit. In the final section the path follows a scenic ridge that is no longer particularly demanding. On such a path we soon reach the summit.
We can descend via the ascent route, or continue along the ridge towards the ski slope. From there we descend along the path beside the ski slope to the hut Eisseehaus and then to the starting point. We can shorten the route considerably using the cable cars.

On the way: Wurtenspeicher (1695m), Mernigsee (2040m), Mittelstation (Mölltaler Gletscher) (2234m), Weißseehaus (2381m), Weißsee (2365m), Hochwurtenspeicher (2417m), Fraganter Scharte (2753m), Herzog Ernst Spitze (2933m)