Trails / Karwendel

Loop over Montscheinspitze (2106m)

22 July 2024 · Lukas Toma

Length
14 km
Vertical
1300 m
Start & finish
Gernalm
Speed
Forest road up and down, with really technical ridge in the middle.
Elevation profile1086–2093 m · from the GPX

A mostly easy loop with a very technical summit ridge with scrambling up to grade II UIAA. Amazing views over Karwendel all around.

The route

We will start running from the parking lot at Gernalm, accessible via a toll road from Pertisau at Achensee (7Eur at the time of this writing).

From the parking lot, we start by following the road back downhill for a while. After a little over 1km, a forest road turns north and starts climbing steeply uphill towards the Schleimsattel. Shortly after reaching the saddle, a trail leaves the forest road westwards and winds gently uphill through alpine meadows towards the east ridge of Montscheinspitze.

Once approaching the ridge itself, the running gets a lot more interesting (and technical). Continue steeply uphill through short scrambling sections and a lot of loose rock. Eventually, we will reach the summit cross of the Montscheinspitze (2106m) itself.

The descent trail leads directly south of the summit. It is very technical, we a ton of exposure and loose sketchy gravel sections. There are also a few sections requiring down-climbing, including a ~30m chimney up to II UIAA grade.

After reaching the lowest point, we go up again for a little bit until the next summit cross at Plumsjoch. From here, the trail turns less technical and runs downhill through the alpine meadows towards Plumsjochhütte. This is a great spot to grab a drink. All that’s left afterwards is a very steep forest road leading for a few kilometers back to the parking lot.

Photos by@the.running.nomadand@bennibru