The Zugspitze, (German pronunciation: [tsukʃpɪtsə])
at 2,962 m (9,718 ft) above sea level,
is the highest peak of the Wetterstein Mountains as well as the highest mountain in Germany. It lies south of the town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, and the Austria–Germany border runs over its western summit. South of the
mountain is the Zugspitzplatt, a high karst plateau with numerous caves. On the flanks of the
Zugspitze are three glaciers, including the two largest in Germany: the Northern Schneeferner with an area of 30.7 hectares and the Höllentalferner with an area of 24.7 hectares. The third is the Southern Schneeferner which covers 8.4 hectares.
The
Zugspitze was first climbed on 27 August 1820 by Josef Naus, his survey
assistant, Maier, and mountain guide, Johann
Georg Tauschl. Today there are three normal routes to the
summit: one from the Höllental valley
to the northeast; another out of the Reintal valley
to the southeast; and the third from the west over the Austrian Cirque (Österreichische Schneekar). One of the best
known ridge routes in the Eastern Alps runs
along the knife-edged Jubilee Ridge (Jubiläumsgrat) to the summit, linking the Zugspitze,
the Hochblassen and
the Alpspitze. For
mountaineers there is plenty of nearby accommodation. On the western summit of
the Zugspitze itself is the Münchner Haus and
on the western slopes is the Wiener-Neustädter
Hut.
Three cable cars run to the
top of the Zugspitze. The first, the Tyrolean
Zugspitze Cable Car, was built in 1926 by the German company Adolf Bleichert & Co [4] and terminated on an arête below the summit
at 2.805 m.a.s.l, the so colled Kammstation, before the terminus was moved to
the actual summit at 2.951 m.a.s.l. in 1991. A rack railway, the Bavarian
Zugspitze Railway, runs inside the northern flank of the mountain and ends
on the Zugspitzplatt, from where a
second cable car takes passengers to the top. The rack railway and the Eibsee Cable Car, the
third cableway, transport an average of 500,000 people to the summit each year.
In winter, nine ski lifts cover
the ski area on
the Zugspitzplatt. The weather
station, opened in 1900, and the research station in the Schneefernerhaus are
mainly used to conduct climate research.
Geography
The
Zugspitze belongs to the Wetterstein range of
the Northern
Limestone Alps. The Austria–Germany
border goes right over the mountain. There used to be a border
checkpoint at the summit but, since Germany and Austria are now both part of
the Schengen zone,
the border crossing is no longer manned.
The
exact height of the Zugspitze was a matter of debate for quite a while. Given
figures ranged from 2,690–2,970 metres (8,830–9,740 ft), but it is now
generally accepted that the peak is 2,962 m (9,718 ft) above sea level as a result
of a survey carried out by the Bavarian State Survey Office. The lounge at the
new café is named "2962" for this reason.
Location
At
2,962 metres (9,718 ft) (eastern peak) the Zugspitze is the highest
mountain of the Zugspitze massif. This height is referenced to the Amsterdam Gauge and
is given by the Bavarian
State Office for Survey and Geoinformation. The same height is
recorded against the Trieste Gauge used
in Austria, which is 27 cm lower. Originally the Zugspitze had three peaks: the east,
middle and west summits (Ost-, Mittel- and Westgipfel). The only one that has remained in
its original form is the east summit, which is also the only one that lies
entirely on German territory. The middle summit fell victim to one of the cable
car summit stations in 1930. In 1938 the west summit was blown up to create a
building site for a planned flight control room for the Wehrmacht.
This was never built however. Originally the height of the west summit was
given as 2,964 m (9,724 ft).
The
mountain rises eleven kilometres southwest of Garmisch-Partenkirchen and
just under six kilometres east of Ehrwald. The border between
Germany and Austria runs over the west summit; thus the Zugspitze massif
belongs to the German state of Bavaria and the Austrian
state of Tyrol.
The municipalities responsible for it are Grainau and Ehrwald. To the west the
Zugspitze massif drops into the valley of the River Loisach, which flows around
the massif towards the northeast in a curve whilst, in the east, the streams
of Hammersbach and Partnach have their
source. To the south the Gaistal valley
and its river, the Leutascher
Ache, separate the Wetterstein Mountains from the Mieming Chain. To the
north at the foot of the Zugspitze is the lake of Eibsee. The next highest
mountain in the area is the Acherkogel (3,008 m
or 9,869 ft) in the Stubai Alps, which gives
the Zugspitze a topographic
isolation value of 24.6 kilometres. The reference point for
the prominence is
the Parseierspitze (3,036 m
or 9,961 ft). In order to climb it from the Zugspitze, a descent to
the Fern Pass (1,216 m
or 3,990 ft) is required, so that the prominence is 1,746 m
(5,728 ft).
Zugspitze Massif
The massif of the Zugspitze
has several other peaks. To the south the Zugspitzplatt is
surrounded in an arc by the Zugspitzeck (2,820 m
or 9,250 ft) and Schneefernerkopf (2,874 m
or 9,429 ft), the Wetterspitzen (2,747 m
or 9,012 ft), the Wetterwandeck (2,698 m
or 8,852 ft), the Plattspitzen (2,679 m
or 8,789 ft) and the Gatterlköpfen (2,490 m
or 8,170 ft). The massif ends in the Gatterl (2,024 m
or 6,640 ft), a wind gapbetween
it and the Hochwanner.
Running eastwards away from the Zugspitze is the famous Jubilee Ridge or Jubiläumsgrat over the Höllentalspitzen towards
the Alpspitze and Hochblassen. The short
crest of the Riffelwandkamm runs
northeast over the summits of the Riffelwandspitzen (2,626 m
or 8,615 ft) and the Riffelköpfe (2,459 m
or 8,068 ft), to the Riffel wind gap (Riffelscharte,
2,161 m or 7,090 ft). From here the ridge of the Waxensteinkamm stretches away over
the Riffelspitzen to
the Waxenstein.
Zugspitzplatt
The Platt or Zugspitzplatt is a plateau below the summit
of the Zugspitze to the south and southeast which lies at a height of between
2,000 and 2,650 m (6,560 and 8,690 ft). It forms the head of
the Reintal valley
and has been shaped by a combination of weathering, karstificationand glaciation. The area
contains roches
moutonnées, dolines and limestone pavements as
a consequence of the ice
ages. In addition moraines have
been left behind by various glacial periods.
The Platt was completely
covered by a glacier for the last time at the beginning of the 19th century.
Today 52% of it consists of scree,
32% of bedrock and
16% of vegetation-covered soils, especially in the middle and lower areas.
Climate
From a
climatic perspective the Zugspitze lies in the temperate zone and
its prevailing winds are Westerlies.
As the first high orographicobstacle
to these Westerlies in the Alps, the Zugspitze is particularly exposed to the
weather. It is effectively the north barrier of the Alps (Nordstau der Alpen), against which moist air
masses pile up and release heavy precipitation. At the same time the Zugspitze
acts as a protective barrier for the Alpine ranges to the south. By
contrast, Föhn weather
conditions push in the other direction against the massif, affecting the region
for about 60 days per year. These warm, dry air masses stream from south
to north and can result in unusually high temperatures in winter. Nevertheless,
frost dominates the picture on the Zugspitze with an average of 310 days
per year.
For the
decades from 1961 to 1990 - designated by the World
Meteorological Organization as the "normal period" - the
average annual precipitation on the Zugspitze was 2,003.1 mm; the
wettest month being April with 199 mm, and the driest, October with
108.8 mm. By comparison the values for 2009 were 2,070.8 mm, the
wettest month being March with 326.2 mm and the driest, January, with
56.4 mm.The average temperature in the normal period was
-4.8 Celsius, with July and August being the warmest at 2.2 °C and
February, the coldest, with -11.4 °C. By comparison the average
temperature in 2009 was -4.2 °C, the warmest month was August at
5.3 °C and the coldest was February at -13.5 °C. The average
sunshine during the normal period was 1,846.3 hours per year, the sunniest
month being October with 188.8 hours and the darkest being December with
116.1 hours. In 2009 there were 1,836.3 hours of sunshine, the
least occurring in February with just 95.4 hours and the most in April
with 219 hours. In 2009, according to the weather survey by the German Met Office,
the Zugspitze was the coldest place in Germany with a mean annual temperature
of -4.2 °C.
The
lowest measured temperature on the Zugspitze was -35.6 °C on 14 February
1940. The highest temperature occurred on 5 July 1957 when the thermometer
reached 17.9 °C. A squall on
12 June 1985 registered 335 km/h, the highest measured wind speed on the
Zugspitze. In April 1944 meteorologists recorded a snow depth of
8.3 metres. Nowadays, snow completely melts during summer, but in the
past snow might resist the summer months, the last case when the snow failed to
melt during the whole summer season was in 2000.
Geology
All
mountain-building strata consists of sedimentary rocks of
the Mesozoic era,
that were originally laid down on the seabed. The base of the mountain
comprises muschelkalk beds;
its upper layers are made of Wetterstein
limestone. With steep rock walls up to 800 metres high, it is this
Wetterstein limestone from the Upper Triassic that is mainly
responsible for the rock faces, arêtes, pinnacles and the summit rocks of the
mountain. Due to the frequent occurrence of marine coralline algae in
the Wetterstein limestone it can be deduced that this rock was at one time
formed in a lagoon. The colour of the rock varies between grey-white and light
grey to speckled. In several places it contains lead and zinc ore. These minerals were mined
between 1827 and 1918 in the Höllental valley.
The dark grey, almost horizontal and partly grass-covered layers of muschelkalk
run from the foot of the Great Riffelwandspitze to the Ehrwalder Köpfe. From
the appearance of the north face of the Zugspitze it can be seen that this
massif originally consisted of two mountain ranges that were piled on top of
one another.
Flora
The
flora on the Zugspitze is not particularly diverse due to the soil conditions,
nevertheless the vegetation, especially in the meadows of Schachen, the Tieferen Wies near Ehrwald, and in the valleys of
Höllental, Gaistal and Leutaschtal is especially colourful.
The
shaded and moist northern slopes of the massif like, for example, the Wettersteinwald,
are some of the most species-rich environments on the Zugspitze. The mountain pine grows
at elevations of up to 1,800 metres. The woods lower down consist mainly
of spruce and fir, but honeysuckle, woodruff,
poisonous herb paris, meadow-rue and speedwell also
occur here. Dark
columbine, alpine
clematis, blue and yellow monkshood, stemless carline
thistle, false
aster, golden
cinquefoil, round-leaved
saxifrage, wall
hawkweed, alpine
calamint and alpine forget-me-not flower
in the less densely wooded places, whilst cinquefoil, sticky sage, butterbur, alpenrose, Turk's cap lily and fly orchid thrive on
the rocky soils of the mountain forests. Lily of the valley and daphne also occur,
especially in the Höllental, in Grainau and by the Eibsee.
To the
south the scene changes to larch (mainly
in the meadow of Ehrwalder Alm and
the valleys of Gaistal and Leutaschtal) and pine forests and into mixed
woods of beech and sycamore. Here
too, mountain pine grows at the higher elevations of over 2,000 metres.
Relatively
rare in the entire Zugspitze area are trees like the lime, birch, rowan, juniper and yew. The most varied
species of moss, that
often completely cover limestone rocks in the open, occur in great numbers.
Bilberry, cranberry and cowberry are restricted
to dry places and lady's slipper
orchid occurs in sheltered spots. Below the Waxenstein are fields
with raspberries and
occasionally wild
strawberries too. The alpine poppy and purple mountain
saxifrage both thrive up to a very great height. On the scree slopes
there are penny-cress and mouse-ear chickweed as
well as mountain
avens, alpine
toadflax, mint and Saxifraga
moschata (fr).
Following snowmelt dark
stonecrop and snow
gentian are the first to appear, their seeds beginning to germinate as
early as August. Other well-known alpine plants like edelweiss, gentians and, more
rarely, cyclamen also
flower on the Zugspitze.
Fauna
The
rocks around the Zugspitze are a habitat for chamois, whilst marmots are
widespread on the southern side of the massif. At the summit there are
frequently alpine
choughs, drawn there by people feeding them. Somewhat lower down the
mountain there are mountain
hare and the hazel dormouse. Alpine
birds occurring on the Zugspitze include the golden eagle, rock ptarmigan, snow finch, alpine accentor and brambling. The crag martin which
has given its name to the Schwalbenwand ("Swallows'
Wall") at Kreuzeck is frequently encountered. The basins of Mittenwald and
Seefeld, as well as the Fern Pass are on bird migration routes.
The viviparous lizard inhabits
rocky terrain, as does the black alpine salamander known
locally as the Bergmandl, which can
be seen after rain showers as one is climbing. Butterflies like Apollo, Thor's fritillary, gossamer-winged butterfly, geometer moth, ringlet and skipper may
be seen on the west and south sides of the Zugspitze massif, especially in July
and August.[17] The woods around the
Zugspitze are home to red
deer, red
squirrel, weasel, capercaillie, hazel grouse and black grouse. On the
glaciers live glacier
fleas (Desoria saltans)
and water bears.
Glaciers
Three
of Germany's five glaciers are found on the Zugspitze massif: the Höllentalferner the Southern and Northern
Schneeferner.
Höllentalferner
The
Höllentalferner lies northeast of the Zugspitze in a cirque below the Jubilee
Ridge (Jubiläumsgrat) to the south and the Riffelwandspitzenpeaks
to the west and north. It has a northeast aspect. Its
accumulation zone is formed by a depression, in
which large quantities of avalanche snow
collect. To the south the Jubiläumsgrat shields
the glacier from direct sunshine. These conditions meant that the glacier only
lost a relatively small area between 1981 and 2006. In recent times the
Höllentalferner reached its greatest around 1820 with an area of 47 hectares. Thereafter its area
reduced continually until the period between 1950 and 1981 when it grew again,
by 3.1 hectares to 30.2 hectares. Since then the glacier has lost (as at 2006)
an area of 5.5 hectares and now has an area of 24.7 hectares. In 2006 the glacier
head was at 2,569 m and its lowest point at 2,203 metres.
Schneeferner
Southwest
of the Zugspitze, between the Zugspitzeck and Schneefernerkopf, is
the Northern Schneeferner which has an eastern aspect. With an area of 30.7
hectares (2006) it is the largest German glacier. Around 1820 the entire Zugspitzplatt was glaciated, but of this
Platt Glacier (Plattgletscher) only the
Northern and Southern Schneeferner remain. The reason for the relatively
constant area of the Northern Schneeferner in recent years, despite the lack of
shade, is the favourable terrain that
results in the glacier tending to grow or shrink in depth rather than area. In
the recent past the glacier has also been artificially fed by the ski region
operators, using piste tractors to heap large quantities of snow onto the
glacier in order to extend the skiing season.
At the
beginning of the 1990s, ski slope operators began to cover the Northern
Schneeferner in summer with artificial sheets in order to protect it from
sunshine. The Northern Schneeferner reached its last high point in 1979,
when its area grew to 40.9 hectares. By 2006 it had shrunk to 30.7 hectares.
The glacier head then lay at 2,789 m and the foot at 2,558 metres.
The
Southern Schneeferner is surrounded by the peaks of the Wetterspitzen and
the Wetterwandeck.
It is also a remnant of the once great Platt
Glacier. Today, the Southern Schneeferner extends up as far as the arête and therefore
has no protection from direct sunshine. It has also been divided into two
basins by a ridge of rock that has appeared as the snow has receded. It is a
matter of debate whether the Southern Schneeferner should still be classified
as a glacier. The Southern Schneeferner also reached its last high point
in 1979, when it covered an area of 31.7 hectares. This had shrunk by 2006 to
just 8.4 hectares however. The highest point of the glacier lies at an
elevation of 2,665 metres and the lowest at 2,520 metres.
Caves
Below
the Zugspitzplatt chemical weathering processes
have created a large number of caves and abîmes in the
Wetterstein limestone. In the 1930s the number of caves was estimated at 300.
By 1955 62 caves were known to exist and by 1960 another 47 had been
discovered. The first cave explorations here took place in 1931. Other, largest
exploratory expeditions took place in 1935 and 1936 as well as between 1955 and
1968. During one expedition, in 1958, the Finch Shaft (Finkenschacht) was discovered. It is 131 metres deep,
260 metres long and has a watercourse. There is a theory that this
watercourse could be a link to the source of the
River Partnach.
Name
From
the early 14th century, geographic names from the Wetterstein Mountains began
to be recorded in treaties and on maps, and this trend intensified in the 15th
century. In 1536 a border treaty dating to 1500 was refined in that its course
was specified as running over a Schartten("wind
gap" or "col"). In the 17th century the reference to this
landmark in the treaty was further clarified as "now known as the Zugspüz"(jetzt Zugspüz genant). The landmark referred to was a wind
gap on the summit of the Zugspitze and is used time and again in other sources.
During the Middle Ages Scharte was a common name for the
Zugspitze.
The
Zugspitze was first mentioned by name in 1590. In a description of the border
between the County
of Werdenfels and Austria, it states that the same border runs "from the Zugspitz and over the Derle" (von dem Zugspitz und über den Derle") and
continues to a bridge over the River Loisach. Another border treaty
in 1656 states: "The highest
Wetterstein or Zugspitz" ("Der
höchste Wetterstain oder Zugspitz").There is also a map dating to
the second half of the 18th century that shows "the Reintal in
the County of Werdenfels". It covers the Reintal valley from the
Reintaler Hof to the Zugspitzplatt and
shows prominent points in the surrounding area, details of tracks and roads and
the use pasture use. This includes a track over the then much larger
Schneeferner glacier to the summit region of the Zugspitze. However the map
does not show any obvious route to the summit itself.
The
name of the Zugspitze is probably derived from its Zugbahnen or avalanche paths. In winter avalanches sweep
down from the upper slopes of the massif into the valley and leave behind
characteristic avalanche remnants in the shape of rocks and scree. Near
the Eibsee lake
there are several plots
of land with the same root: Zug, Zuggasse, Zugstick, Zugmösel or Zugwankel. Until the 19th century the name der Zugspitz (male gender) was
commonplace. It was described as die
Zugspitze (female gender) for
the first time on a map printed in 1836.
Summit cross
Since
1851 there has been a summit
cross on the top of Zugspitze. The driving force behind the erection
of a cross on the summit was the priest, Christoph Ott. He was a keen
meteorologist and whilst observing conditions from the Hoher Peißenberg mountain
he saw the Zugspitze in the distance and was exercised by the fact that "the greatest prince of the Bavarian mountains
raised its head into the blue air towards heaven, bare and unadorned, waiting
for the moment when patriotic fervour and courageous determination would see
that his head too was crowned with dignity." As a result, he
organised an expedition from 11 to 13 August 1851 with the goal of erecting a
summit cross on the Zugspitze. Twenty eight bearers were led through the gorge
of the Partnachklamm and
the Reintal valley
under the direction of forester, Karl Kiendl, up to the Zugspitze. The
undertaking, which cost 610 Gulden and
37 Kreuzer, was
a success. As a result, a 28-piece, 14 foot high, gilded iron cross now
stood on the West Summit. Ott himself did not climb the Zugspitze until 1854.
After
37 years the cross had to be taken down after suffering numerous lightning
strikes; its support brackets were also badly damaged. In the winter of
1881–1882 it was therefore brought down into the valley and repaired. On 25
August 1882 seven mountain guides and 15 bearers took the cross back to the
top. Because an accommodation shed had been built on the West Summit, the team
placed the cross on the East Summit. There it remained for about
111 years, until it was removed again on 18 August 1993. This time the
damage was not only caused by the weather, but also by American soldiers who
used the cross as target practice in 1945, at the end of the Second World War.
Because the summit cross could no longer be repaired, a replica was made that
was true to the original cross. After two months the rack railway carried the
new cross on 12 October to the Zugspitzplatt,
from where it was flown to the summit by helicopter. The new cross
has a height of 4.88 metres.It was renovated and regilded in 2009 for
15,000 euros and, since 22 April 2009, has stood once again on the East
Summit.
History
The
first recorded ascent to the summit was accomplished by a team of land
surveyors on 27 August 1820. The team was led by Lieutenant Josef Naus, who was
accompanied by two men named Maier and G. Deutschl. However, local people had
conquered the peak over 50 years earlier, according to a 1770 map discovered by
the Alpenverein.
In
1854, the northern part of the Zugspitze was given to Bavaria as a present by
Emperor of Austria and Apostolic King of Hungary Franz Joseph I as a marriage
present to his wife Princess Elisabeth ("Sissi"). Since then the
Zugspitze is the highest mountain of Bavaria and later of Germany.
On 7
January 1882 the first successful winter assault on the Zugspitze was
accomplished by F. Kilger, H. and J. Zametzer and H. Schwaiger.
Pilot,
Frank Hailer, caused a stir on 19 March 1922, when he landed a plane with skids
on the Schneeferner glacier. On 29 April 1927 Ernst Udet succeeded
in taking off from the Schneeferner with a glider; he landed
at Lermoos after
a 25-minute flight. The glider had been disassembled into individual parts and
transported up the Zugspitze by cable car. In the winter of 1931/32, a post
office was set up on the Zugspitze by the German Imperial Post Office or Reichspost.
It still exists today in the Sonnalpin restaurant
and has the postal address: 82475
Zugspitze. In 1931, four years after the first glider flight, the
first balloon took
off from the Zugspitze
In
April 1933, the mountain was occupied by of 24 storm troopers, who
hoisted a swastika flag
on top the tower on the weather station. A month later, SA and SS deployed on the
Schneeferner in the shape of a swastika. On 20 April 1945 the US Air Force dropped
bombs on the Zugspitze that destroyed the valley station of the Tyrolean
Zugspitze Railway and the hotel on the ridge. After the war the Allies seized
the railway and Schneefernerhaus.
Shortly
after World War II the US
military took over the Schneefernerhaus (as the hotel at the top was
then called) for the exclusive use of US military and civilian employees. Room
rates, including meals, were US $1 per day. Ski lessons were available, taught
by Austrians and Germans, at a cost of US $0.25 per hour.
In
1948, the German Federal Post Office (Deutsche Bundespost) began operating
a microwave
radio station at the summit. In September of that year, three artistes walked a steel
tightrope stretched between the East and West Summits. Two members of the
Traber family traversed the same route in 1953 on a tightrope on a motorcycle.
Since 1953, an annual Gatterl Mass (Gatterlmesse)
has been held on the Gatterl mountain
to commemorate the four members of the Bavarian Border
Police who died in an avalanche in 1952 as well as all those who have
died on the Zugspitze.
In 1962
a fire destroyed the ridge hotel by the mountain station of the Tyrolean
Zugspitze Railway. The 1976 Friuli
earthquakewas also felt particularly strongly on the Zugspitze: the duty
meteorologist feared that the observation tower might collapse.In 1981 a chapel was founded on the
Zugspitze, which was consecrated by the Archbishop of Munich and
Freising, Joseph
Ratzinger, in October on the feast of Visitation.
On 25 March, an automated teller
machine was installed at the summit station; it has since been
removed. In 1995, a 450 square metre exhibition area was opened at the summit,
in which artists present their work for six months, before the exhibition is
changed. In 1995, the border between Germany and Austria at the summit was
opened.
Since
2000, the Zugspitze extreme mountain run has been held annually. In July 2008
there were repercussions in the media when, as the
result of a sudden drop in temperature, two participants died of exhaustion and
hypothermia At the end of August 2009 the Swiss, Freddy Nock, walked along
a cable of the Zugspitze
Glacier Cable Car from the Zugspitzplatt to
the summit. He covered the 995 metre long, up to 56% steep route (which had a
height difference of 348 metres) unsecured in 50 minutes.
First ascent
There are several theories about the first ascent of the Zugspitze. The
chronological table on an 18th-century map describes the route "along the path to the Zugspitze" ("ybers blath uf Zugspitze") and
gives a realistic duration of 8.5 hours, so that it is reasonable to
deduce that the summit had been climbed before 1820. The historian, Thomas
Linder, believes that goatherds or hunters had at the very least penetrated to
the area of the summit. It is also conceivable that smugglers used routes
over the Zugspitze summit. As early as 1804 cartographic surveys had taken
place in the area for the County of Werdenfels. There is speculation that, in
the course of this work, the royal engineer and geographer, Alois von Coulon, had
reached the summit. Since Coulon worked for the Topographical Bureau, it is
unlikely that his ascent would not have been noted.
The
first recorded ascent of the Zugspitze was achieved on 27 August 1820 by Lieutenant Josef Naus and mountain guide, Johann
Georg Tauschl together with Naus' survey assistant and batman (servant),
Maier. As early as 21 July Naus, an officer in the Bavarian Army,had asked
about the route through the Reintal valley to the Northern Schneeferner. The
lieutenant was taking part in a survey exercise by the Royal Bavarian
Topographic Bureau (Königlich Bairischen
Topographischen Bureau) for the Atlas of Bavaria (Atlas von Bayern) in the Werdenfelser Land.
On 26 August, the three of them climbed in a group together with Captain Jetze and
Lieutenant Antlischek up to the shepherd's hut of Angerhütte.
On 27
August around 4 in the morning, Naus, Tauschl and Maier set off for the Zugspitzplatt and Zugspitze summit. From
the Schneeferner glacier they attempted to reach the West Summit along the west
ridge. Their first attempt failed, but a second was successful and they finally
reached the West Summit around 11:45 am, where they left behind a bergstock and
cloth to mark their success. A thunderstorm and snowfall forced them to climb
down again quickly. On 28 August they returned to the shepherd's hut at about 3
in the morning. The mountain guide, Tauschl, was given payment of two gulden
and 42 kreuzer.
Subsequent ascents
In
1823, Simon Resch and the sheep Toni became
the first to reach the East Summit. Simon Resch was also led the second ascent
of the East Summit on 18 September 1834 with his son, Johann, and the mountain
guide, Johann Barth. Because Resch's first ascent had been doubted, this time a
fire was lit on the summit. On the 27th the summit was climbed for a third time
by royal forester's assistants, Franz Oberst and Schwepfinger, along with
Johann Barth. Oberst erected a flagpole on the summit with a Bavarian flag that
was visible from the valley. The first ascent from Austria took place in August
1837. The surveyors, Joseph Feuerstein and Joseph Sonnweber, climbed to the
West Summit from Ehrwald and left behind a signal pole with their initials on
it. The West Summit was conquered for the third time on 10 September 1843 by
the shepherd Peter Pfeifer. He was asked about the route by a group of eight
climbers who later reached the summit at the behest of Bavaria's Crown Princess Marie.
She had the route checked in preparation for her own ascent of the Zugspitze.
On 22 September 1853, Karoline Pitzner became the first woman on the Zugspitze.
The
first crossing from the West to the East Summit was achieved in 1857 by
Dr. Härtringer from Munich and mountain guide, Joseph Ostler. The Irish
brother, Trench, and Englishman, Cluster, succeeded in climbing the West Summit
on 8 July 1871 through the Austrian Cirque (Österreichische
Schneekar) under the guidance of brothers, Joseph and Joseph Sonnweber.
The route through the Höllental valley to the Zugspitze was first used on 26
September 1876 by Franz Tillmetz and Franz Johannes with guides, Johann and
Joseph Dengg. The first winter ascent of the West Summit took place on 7 Januar
1882; the climbers being Ferdinand Kilger, Heinrich Schwaiger, Josef and
Heinrich Zametzer and Alois Zott. The Jubilee Arête (Jubiläumsgrat) was first crossed in its entirety on 2 September
1897 by Ferdinand Henning. The number of climbers on the Zugspitze rose sharply
year on year. If the summit had been climbed 22 times in 1854, by 1899 it had
received 1,600 ascents. Before the construction of a cable car in 1926 there
had already been over 10,000 ascents.
Normal routes
Zugspitzplatt via the Reintal or
Gatterl
The
easiest of the normal routes runs through the Reintal valley
and is that followed during the first ascent. At the same time it is also the
longest climb. Its start point is the ski stadium (730 m or 2,400 ft)
at Garmisch-Partenkirchen.
The route runs through the gorge of the Partnachklamm and
along the Partnach river to the Bock Hut (1,052 m or 3,451 ft), where
the Reintal begins. Above the Partnach, which has meanwhile sunk underground,
the route runs up to the Reintalanger Hut (1,370 m
or 4,490 ft). From there the climb is relatively gentle to start with, but
then becomes steeper. From the hut the track runs through the Brunntal up to the Knorr Hut (2,057 m
or 6,749 ft), which stands on the eastern rim of the Zugspitzplatt. Here it meets the alternative
route from Ehrwald via the Gaistal and the Gatterl at
the Reintal Way. The route now runs over the Zugspitzplatt towards
the Northern Schneeferner. The protected section of the climb to the Zugspitze
summit begins above the Sonn-Alpin restaurant
at Point 2815. The route climbs
through a height of 2,232 metres and the true duration is between eight
and ten hours.
Höllental
The
ascent starts in Hammersbach (758 m
or 2,487 ft) through the Höllental along
the Hammersbach stream. The
path runs through the Höllental Gorge (Höllentalklamm)
and was built from 1902 to 1905. Twelve tunnels were driven in the rock of the
1,026 metre long gorge with a total length of 288 metres. Another
569 metres of path was dynamited into the rock in the shape of a half
profile, whilst 120 metres was led over footbridges and
49 metres over scree. The construction costs came to a total of
57,000 gold marks.
Each year around 60,000 people pass through the gorge.[50] The gorge can also be
circumnavigated over the Stangensteig path.
After the gorge the route heads for the Höllentalanger Hut (1,381 m
or 4,531 ft), after which it crosses the Höllentalanger stream. Above that the Brett is crossed on steel pins fixed to a
rock face. Crossing the Grünen Buckel the
trail runs up to the Höllentalferner glacier. The glacier is mostly snow-free
in summer so that crampons are required to cross it. Even more difficult is
the randkluft because
the ice retreats further and further from the rock as it melts. After the
glacier there is a klettersteig to the summit of the
Zugspitze. This route climbs through a height of 2,204 m (7,231 ft),
for which between seven and eight hours are needed. There is also the option of
getting to the Höllental route on the Riffelsteig path
from Eibsee. This path crosses the Riffelscharte wind
gap and meets the route before the Brett.
Austrian Cirque
A third
ascent runs across the Austrian Cirque or Österreichische
Schneekar. Starting point for this are the lake of Eibsee (950 m or
3,120 ft) or the village of Ehrwald (1,000 m or 3,300 ft). The
two trails merge above the cirque of Gamskar.
Thereafter the routhe continues to the Wiener-Neustädter
Hut (2,209 m or 7,247 ft) and through the Österreichische Schneekar, at the end of which
a klettersteig begins. During
this section the route climbs through the Stopselzieher,
a natural drainage cave. The route then joins the secured sections of the
Reintal route. This ascent takes at least eight hours and climbs 2,012 m
(6,601 ft) in height.
Jubilee Ridge (Jubiläumsgrat)
One of
the best-known ridge routes in the Eastern Alps is the Jubilee Ridge, which
runs eastwards from the Zugspitze to the Hochblassen(2,707 m
or 8,881 ft) and crosses the Inner (2,737 m or 8,980 ft), Middle
(2,740 m or 8,990 ft) and Outer Höllentalspitze (2,716 m
or 8,911 ft) as well as the Vollkarspitze (2,630 m
or 8,630 ft). Along the way the route branches off towards Grießkarscharte (2,463 m or
8,081 ft) and to the Alpspitze (2,628 m or 8,622 ft). Between
1909 and 1915 the ridge was partially secured with wire cables by the German
Alpine Club section at Munich. Originally the route was called the Jubilee Way
(Jubiläumsweg), but after a tragic
rescue attempt in 1979 the rather erroneous and misleading term, which
suggested it was just a normal trail, was replaced by the name Jubiläumsgrat, a Grat being a sharp ridge.
During
the crossing, which is not a pure klettersteig,
several unprotected sections have to be negotiated that roughly correspond
to climbing grade III.
The most difficult climbing section is a smooth gully (III-). In the area of
the Vollkarspitze peak is a climbing section of difficulty (D). The difficulty of the
roughly eight kilometre long climbing route is around I and II as well as B.
Normally it can be crossed in one day during the summer. Between the Middle and
Outer Höllentalspitze is the Höllengrat
Hut (2,684 m or 8,806 ft), a bothy where climbers can
take refuge for the night. It is mainly used during winter crossing, when the
tour is split into two stages. The approach route to the tour is also possible
from the Knorr Hut via the Brunntalgrat ridge
and joins the route in the area of the Inner Höllentalspitze.
Accommodation
There
are numerous mountain
huts in the area of the Zugspitze. One base is the Höllentalanger Hut (1,381 m
or 4,531 ft) in the Höllental valley with 88 mattress spaces.
Accommodation in the Reintal is provided by the Reintalanger Hut (1,370 m
or 4,490 ft) with 90 bedspaces and on the edge of the Zugspitzplatt by the Knorr Hut (2,051 m
or 6,729 ft) with 108 bedspaces. The Knorr Hut was the first hut in the
entire Wetterstein Mountains when it was built in 1855. All the huts are open
from May to October depending on the weather. On the top of the Zugspitze are three
more huts: the Wiener-Neustädter
Hut, the Münchner
Haus and the Schneefernerhaus.
Wiener-Neustädter Hut
The
first hut on the Zugspitze was the Wiener-Neustädter
Hut (Wiener-Neustädter-Hütte,
2,209 m or 7,247 ft) built in 1884. It acts as a base for the klettersteig through the Österreichische Schneekar that was opened
as far back as 1879. The hut is located on the western rim of the cirque and
stand below the Tyrolean Zugspitze Cable Car. It is operated by the Austrian Tourist
Club and offers overnighting for up to 34 mountaineers in the period
from July to October. The winter room is
designed to take 14 people and has no cooking or heating facilities.
Münchner Haus
There
has been an accommodation hut just underneath the west summit since 1883. At
that time the Alpine
Club section at Munich built a wooden hut with places for twelve
people. Although further development of the summit for tourism was criticised,
more and more members supported the construction of a larger hut. This
eventually resulted in the building of the Münchner Haus (2,959 m
or 9,708 ft). First, in 1896, a 200 square metre site was dynamited
out of the rock. The new mountain hut was completed on 19 September 1897 at a
cost of 36,615 gold marks. It was equipped with a 21 kilometre long telephone
cable and a 5.5 kilometre long lightning conductor.
In the years 1911 to 1914 the hut was extended and given its present
appearance. It offer 30 beds for overnight stays and is open from May to
October. An average of 2,000 people stay there each year, in addition to day
visitors.[55]
Schneefernerhaus
The Schneefernerhaus (2,656 m
or 8,714 ft) was built in 1930 as the station of the Bavarian
Zugspitze Railway. In June 1931 the attached hotel was opened. After the
war, US Forces commandeered the house as a "recreation facility". It
was not released until 1952 and was then renovated, opening in December that
same year. On 15 May 1965 it was hit by a serious avalanche. The avalanche had
been triggered above the house and swept over the sun terrace. Ten people lost
their lives and 21 were seriously injured. At the end of the 1980s the station
was moved and, in January 1992, the hotel and restaurant closed. Between 1993
and 1997 it was extensively converted into a research station, that opened in
1996. During the building work there was a fire in 1994 that completely
destroyed the fifth floor and the roof space.
Tourism
Winter sports
For
those wishing to reach the summit under their own power, various hiking and ski
trails can be followed to the top. Hiking to the top from the base takes
between one and two days, or a few hours for the very fit. Food and
lodging is available on some trails. In winter the Zugspitze is a popular skiing and snowboarding destination,
with several slopes on both sides. The Zugspitzplatt is Germany's highest ski
resort, and thus normally has sufficient snow throughout the winter.
Climbing
At the
Zugspitze's summit is the Münchner Haus,
a mountain hut (Alpenhütte), a facility built by the German Alpine Club (Deutscher Alpenverein). For more than a
hundred years, the summit has also had a weather station, which nowadays also
gathers data for the Global Atmosphere
Watch.
Climbing
up the Zugspitze can involve several routes. The large difference in elevation
between Garmisch-Partenkirchen and the summit is 2,200 m (7,200 ft),
making the climb a challenge even for trained mountaineers.
On
the German side,
from Garmisch-Partenkirchen,
climbers go either through the Höllental ("Valley
of Hell") or the Reintal. The way through the Reintal is the easiest, but
also the longest and takes 8 to 10 hours. This path goes through the
Partnachklamm, a scenic gorge,
then through the Reintal up to the Zugspitzplatt, a barren plateau. from there
up to the summit. Climbers can stay for the night at two alpine huts, the
"Reintalangerhütte" or the "Knorrhütte".
The
more popular, but harder route is through the Höllental. It starts at
Hammersbach near Garmisch, goes through the Höllentalklamm, a similar gorge up
to the "Höllentalangerhütte", where one can take a meal or stay for
the night. It then crosses the Höllentalferner,
the remnants of a small glacier. After that it traverses a wall with the help
of iron ladders and steps. Klettersteig equipment
is recommended for that part. Over the Irmerscharte (a gap) it reaches the
summit. This path will take 7 to 8 hours.
From
the Austrian village of Ehrwald,
there are also two variants. One goes straight through the Western Flank, which
is the shortest route overall, but rather hard. It includes a via ferrata, and there is a hut called
"Wiener Neustädter Hütte" by the Austrian Alpine Club. An easier path
leads via the Ehrwalder Alm, across a small pass called "Gatterl",
joining the Reintal path at the Knorrhütte.