Places to stop for food and drinks along the route *:
Prettau Mining Museum

Toilets:
Prettau Mining Museum

Water refill options:
Prettau Mining Museum

Rest areas:
Various benches along the route

Best photo spots:
Rötwasserfall Waterfall
Rötkreuz Cross
Mining tunnels

Children:
The route is only partly suitable for families with small children

Seniors:
A relatively long hike with steep sections in the upper mining area and on the trail towards Brugger Hut

Dogs:
Please keep dogs on a leash at all times (attention: nature park area). Water refill options: streams along the forest trail – Attention! The streams in the area of the mining tunnels are not suitable as drinking water.

Waste disposal:
Please do not leave any waste in nature. Take all waste with you and dispose of it at your accommodation or with your household waste.

Cigarette butts must not be left in nature either. They pose a fire hazard and have a considerable impact on the environment. Even a single cigarette butt can contaminate up to 50 litres of water with pollutants. Never throw cigarette butts into nature, on trails or near watercourses. Please use our free pocket ashtrays, available at the tourist information offices.

Paper tissues should also not be left in nature, but disposed of with residual waste. They decompose very slowly and can remain in the environment for several years.


* List of open mountain huts: CLICK HERE
Restaurants: CLICK HERE
or at: www.ahrntal.com

Following the traces of historic mining, this hike takes you deep into the fascinating history of the Ahrntal Valley. From the Mining Museum, the trail follows the miners’ path (Knappensteig), passing old mine entrances and the partly ruined remains of former mining structures. As you climb higher, you gain an impression of the difficult conditions in which miners once searched for valuable ores and how mining shaped life in the valley for centuries.

As the altitude increases, the landscape opens up and, above the tree line, reveals an impressive alpine world with a remarkable variety of rock formations and mountain shapes. The extensive alpine pastures around the Röt Hut, Brugger Hut, Merbalm Hut and Innerbichl Hut also bear witness to another centuries-old tradition: the use and management of high-altitude pastures. Their open meadows and grazing areas are the result of centuries of human work and continue to shape the characteristic landscape of the high valley of Prettau/Predoi.

Particularly fascinating are the traces left behind by the Ice Age glaciers. Around the Röt Hut and Merbalm Hut, moraines and smooth, glacially polished rock surfaces can be seen – visible evidence of the powerful glaciers that shaped this landscape during the Ice Ages.

This hike therefore combines mining history, traditional alpine farming and natural history in a unique way, offering an insight into the close relationship between people and the mountain landscape of the Ahrntal Valley over the centuries.

• Sturdy, ankle-high hiking boots with good grip
• Weatherproof hiking clothing
• Rain jacket and, if necessary, rain trousers
• Warm clothing or an additional layer
• Backpack
• Sufficient drinking water
• Small snack
• Sun and rain protection: sunscreen, sunglasses, headwear
• Hiking map or smartphone with an offline map
• First-aid kit
• Mobile phone, preferably with sufficient battery charge

Parking area:
Prettau/Predoi, mining museum – free of charge

By car
Bruneck/Brunico - Prettau/Predoi - 38 km
Kasern/Casere - Prettau/Predoi - 3 km

Route:
Google Maps

From the Mine parking area, follow the road towards the Mining Museum. From there, continue along the Mining Trail no. 11A and 11 (with its own trail markers) up to Rötalm Hut (not serviced) at 2,116 m. Return along the same route to the junction leading to Bruggeralm hut. A narrow trail, no. 3, leads to Bruggeralm hut (not serviced). Continue along the Prettau/Predoi High Trail no. 3, passing Merbalm hut (not serviced), until you reach Innerbichlalm hut (not serviced). From there, follow trail no. 10A back to the starting point.