Parkirišče pred Plangeroßom v Pitztalu - Hohe Geige (smer preko zahodnega grebena (I-II))

Access to the starting point:
From Ljubljana, take the motorway past Salzburg towards Munich. At the Dreieck Inntal multi-level junction, take the A93 towards Innsbruck/Kufstein/Brenner. On your return to Austria, continue on the A12 motorway past Innsbruck, Telfs and Ötztal Bahnhof to the roundabout near Imst, where you take the road through the Pitztal valley. The valley road, which is a bit narrow in places, is mostly uphill for a good 30 km before, a few hundred metres before the Plangeroß tourist centre, you see a large free parking lot with information boards with suggested climbs in the Kaunergrat and Geigenkamm mountain ranges.

Path description:
From the parking lot, turn east and follow the path leading to the Rüsselsheimer Hütte, crossing the road and starting a moderately steep climb on a winding track through sparse vegetation. The rather monotonous but scenic path goes over a grassy slope for a while, but a little higher up it crosses the lane of a steep mountain forest. Shortly after returning to the open slopes, where you can enjoy the magnificent views of the Kaunergrat, you cross a torrent with the help of a wooden bridge, and a little higher up, you can also take the help of individual endemic chains to cross the moderately steep slopes (easy). With the views getting better and better, after a good hour and a half of not too strenuous walking, the trail leads to the Rüsselsheimer Hütte on the edge of the high plateau of the Geiger Group.

From the hut, follow the relatively level path for some time in the direction of the Mainzer Hohenweg and the two marked approaches to Hohe Geige. Soon, the Mainzer Hohenweg branches off towards the Braunschweiger Hütte, and after 20-30 minutes' walk from the hut, the paths to Hohe Geige also diverge at the next signpost: at this crossroads, turn left towards the West Ridge ('Westgrat') and Gahwinden.
The path, which initially crosses to the north, rises steeply towards the exposed slope above Pitztal, over which, with the help of a few chains, a sufficiently wide track takes you safely. Crossing a steep ravine, we ascend over a grassy slope towards Gahwinden (2649 m) at the far edge of the west ridge of the Hohe Geige, where we are greeted by a lookout, a bench and a small cross high above the Pitztal valley.

From the lookout point, head towards the west ridge, which is initially wide and easily passable. Soon, the flatter grassy terrain gives way to steeper rocky terrain, characterised by the large boulders well known to regular visitors to the Austrian high mountains. As far as the (well) marked route is followed, these are quite reliable, despite the otherwise crumbly nature of the mountain, so climbing in this part is pleasant and not too strenuous.
We have a good hour of unprotected but decently marked climbing ahead of us on the lookout ridge, which remains mostly within grade I, with the grade possibly a shade higher in places. Despite the ridge character, the direction is not particularly exposed in this part. After a little less than an hour of climbing, we reach a large plain in the middle of a rocky ridge, from where we get a beautiful view towards Hohe Geige and the route to it. Here the steepness and difficulty eases a little for a short time, and the path leads us relatively gently to the upper part of the ridge, which soon becomes narrow, difficult and exposed, but protected. From here to the top the path is no longer marked.
With the help of fairly new ropes, which are not always completely reliable in the face of the crumbly terrain, we carefully cross the jagged part of the ridge and descend over slightly unstable rocks to the traverse, which runs a few tens of metres below the ridge and connects the normal approach and the ridge approach to Hohe Geige. Near the junction of the paths, a taut rope climbs very steeply back up to the ridge. From here, it is a few minutes of exposed walking over an airy ridge to the vast world below the Hohe Geige summit.

On the high plateau, hidden from view from the base of the Hohe Geige massif, the technical difficulties are over, and a well-trodden path along the edge of the glacial lake leads over the relatively low-lying remnant of the glacier; snow remains here even in high summer, but winter equipment is not needed to cross. Above the snowfield, bear left and, with the help of a few small men or a knack for finding the most favourable passages along the eastern edge of the Hohe Geige summit building, climb towards the vantage and expansive summit with its (less) traditional cross.

Hohe Geige does not match the difficulty of the approach to the champions of the parallel Kaunergrat, such as the Watzespitze, nor does it match the complexity of the ascent to, for example, the highest peak of the Ötztal Alps, Wildspitze, but the route is a serious high-altitude venture that requires adequate mountaineering experience, fitness and a reliable stride. Although they are well visited, the two classic approaches to Hohe Geige are both in a rather wild and remote high mountain environment, characterised by a high degree of ruggedness. The latter is particularly marked by the upper part of the Normalweg, which is technically slightly easier than the route over the West Ridge described above, but which has been increasingly discouraged in recent years due to the high risk of falling rocks and the long walk on the "broken" ground. For this reason, it is advisable to follow the ridge route, at least in the upper part, both ascending and descending - for this purpose there is also a chain-protected link between the two routes. This is because, although the western ridge retains the characteristics of an easier climbing route, even after the most sensitive points in the narrower part of the ridge have been secured, the ascent and descent are much safer and less strenuous than the equivalent of the normal route, which climbs steeply over the southern face of the mountain.

On the way: Rüsselsheimer Hütte (2323m), Gahwinden (2649m)

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