Graz Center West - Fürstenstand (Plabutsch) (via Buchkogel)

Access to the starting point:
Exit the motorway Maribor - Graz (A9) at the Graz exit, then take the 1st exit at the roundabout in the route St. Peter / Puntigam / Center West. At the next traffic lights turn left and immediately afterwards left again. Drive to the last building of the shopping centre and park.

Path description:
Continue along the road, to the left of the parking lot, past the rear of the Center West shopping centre. After about 50 m, leave the road and turn left onto the footpath, which continues to the left along the tennis courts to the underpass. Go through the underpass, then right to the traffic lights. In the background you can see the Buchkogel hill. Cross the road. Continue straight ahead along the street in the direction of the hill. Go straight ahead at all junctions. In between, go over a protected level crossing. Cross a semaphore-controlled crossroads. On the other side, turn first left and then immediately right. At the end of the street, turn into the woods on a steep, marked forest path. In 10 minutes you will reach the parking lot. From the parking lot you can see the church, which can be reached either by stairs or by road. Turn right at the church and continue straight ahead on the road up the steep slope. Before the gate, mountain signs direct you to the left into the forest. At the next crossroads, keep to the right, following the marked mountain path. When you reach the wider forest logging trail, continue straight ahead in the direction of "Rudolfswarte". At the next two forks, keep left, leaving the marked mountain path (as it is quite overgrown in summer). Then cross the road twice more. Follow the eastern ridge to reach the top of Buchkogel. Continue on the right along the tower, slightly downhill. At the next two crossroads, continue straight ahead and descend steeply along the "Buchkogelsteig" to reach a wider dirt track. Continue straight ahead along the path by the fence marking the military area until you reach the inn below the church of St. John and Paul. Follow the dirt road slightly downhill and after 200 m turn right into the woods, where signs lead you steeply downhill to the main road. Turn left and after 200 m turn right at the crossroads in the direction "Thal". Follow the road straight ahead and after about 500 m turn right in the direction "Fürstenstand". The initially asphalted road turns into a dirt road, which you follow to a fork. Take the left fork. When you reach the asphalt road, turn left. After 4 km, the road leads to the summit.

On the way: Sv. Martin (Gradec) / St. Martin (Graz) (411m), Buchkogel (Rudolfswarte) (659m), Sv. Janez in Pavel / St. Johann und Paul (563m)

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