Bleiberg Kreuth (Wurzach) - Dobratsch / Dobrač

Access to the starting point:
Cross the Korensko sedlo border crossing and descend into Austria, and when you reach the main road Trbiz / Tarvisio - Bialjak / Villach, continue left towards Trbiz. Follow the main road to Ziljica / Gailitz, and at the roundabout turn onto the road to Šmohor / Hermagor. From the roundabout, follow the road to Schmohor for about 11 km, then follow the signs for Plajberk near Bialek / Bad Bleiberg to the left. Continue through the underpass and the road leads to the centre of Cajna / Nötsch im Gailtal, from where you continue to Plajberk near Bialek. Continue along the ascending road, passing a quarry, and you will quickly reach Bleiberg Kreuth. According to the road signs, the place ends and then begins again after a few 100 m. When you enter Bleiberg Kreuth for the second time, just a few metres after the road sign, opposite the entrance to the mine and just before the bus stop, turn right towards the hamlet of Wurzach (895 m on the Wurzach sign and the signs for Dobratsch / Dobratch). Enter this village and turn right in front of the purple house, then left at the house with No 14. Continue past a few more houses and then continue straight ahead (slightly right) at the next junction. Just after the "last" house in the village, you will come to a ramp which prevents you from going any further. Park in a suitable space a few metres in front of the ramp.

Path description:
Just before the ramp, the signs for the Tor saddle and the Dobratsch peak direct you left onto a footpath that climbs through the lane of a forest. After a few minutes of climbing, we return to the road and continue climbing for some time. At first we get some views of the old mine valley and the Erzberg ridge, but then the road turns slightly to the right and leads us to a small spring along an undistinguished valley. Here we leave the road and continue our ascent along the mountain path, which climbs moderately alongside the small spring, and then crosses the road we have been climbing on for some time just before the Tor saddle.
Continue across the marshy clearing, where you will come across a beautifully landscaped water trough at its upper edge. Continue into the woods and then climb steeply for some time, most of the time crossing the slopes to the right. Higher up, we cross a torrential ravine and just a little higher up, a worse forest road, and we join the marked trail from Ruth / Hermsberg.
The path ahead starts to climb steeply, and we occasionally get beautiful views of the Zilj valley and the Zilj Alps. Higher up, the path lies down and crosses the slopes to the right. Next, we cross a pasture fence, and a few minutes later the path leads us to a small unmarked crossroads, where an unmarked path branches off to the right to a nearby hunting lodge, and we continue slightly to the left, along the path, which begins to climb more steeply in the bends. During the ascent, the forest begins to thin out, and the rather steep path leads us to lane of dwarf pines, where it turns right and gradually lays down. The ascent continues along an increasingly scenic route (views of Mangart, Jalovec, Kanin, Viš, Montaž, Ziljska dolina, Ziljske Alpe. . . ), which mostly crosses the slopes to the right. The way forward takes us over a few ravines, which may still be under snow in early summer, but again the steeper path leads to the side ridge Dobratsch, where a small cross stands.
When you reach the ridge, continue to the left and continue the ascent along the initially moderately steep, but higher up very steep path, which in the upper part also crosses some very steep slopes, where there is a risk of slipping, especially in the wet. As we cross the steep slope, we see the Slovenian church on Dobratsch just a few steps away.
From the church, you can walk a few steps to the nearby summit, and from there you can walk a few minutes to the German church and the Ludwig Walter-Haus hut.

On the way: Tor (1140m)

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