Day Hike: Austrian Style

Mixnitz from above

Back in 2004 when Nick visited Graz for the first time, he and some of his colleagues went on a day hike in the nearby mountains... and he has been wanting to get back ever since.

Mixnitz train station

So on Saturday we took the tram to the Graz train station and then took a train 30 minutes north to the tiny village of Mixnitz. It was about a 30 minute walk from the station to the trailhead, and while there were LOTS of cars in the parking lot, the trail was thankfully not overly crowed.

Gone native with my fantastic new hiking poles!

Steep road, I swear!

The first part of the hike was up a STEEP road. I don't know if it's just me or not, but European trails seem insanely steep. I used to hate switchbacks on trails, forever zig and zagging up a mountainside. But NO LONGER! The switchback really is my friend. In Europe the trend seems to be to head straight up the mountain. The grade on most trails is just crazy.

Holding up the masses

The second part of the hike was really the main event. Only a hundred years ago people discovered this beautiful river gorge and built a long series of steps and ladders straight up the ravine. It was unlike anything I've ever seen before! I felt like I was inside the board game "Chutes and Ladders"... many times I wished for immortality so I could dive into the water chutes. Hiking in the US you might get a peak at such an amazing river and its waterfalls as you switchback up the neighboring mountainside, but here you hike right along with the falling water. It was visually spectacular... though 3 days later my body is still recovering.

Grosser Wasserfall (Big Waterfall) viewpoint

It was pretty warm that day, and I won't sugar coat this... I was absolutely miserable at points, especially when our water supply ran very low. However I knew waiting at the top of this climb was a home-cooked meal! Yes! Food and drink! At the top of many hikes here are guest houses that serve large dishes of traditional foods for hungry hikers. It is the best! We each enjoyed two hearty cuts of pork with a mound of sauerkraut and a softball sized bread dumpling while for dessert we devoured lemon cake with whipped cream filling and a raspberry topped cream cake. I stuck to mineral water while Nick enjoyed a few beers...  after all I still needed to hike down the mountain!

Hooray for mountaintop guest houses!

Traditional alpine horn band... they must have drove!

Playing in the mountains - always a lovely way to spend the day.