№36 — Kleiner Schönberg
Another week, another hike, another first ascent (at least for me). While it was not the K2 or the Denali, it was a mountain I have always seen but never paid any attention. Kleiner Schönberg is right next to the Traunstein, in plain view and this week I finally made my way up there.
Elisabeth, Sebastian and I got up early, managed to get a parking space close to the end of the road — a precious good in Summer when many people try to climb the Traunstein — and started walking up the boring road towards Mairalm.
After some tunnels, we turned off the road and continued a steep path upwards. We made good progress and reached the saddle after only one hour. After another 15 minutes of walking on the ridge, we finally made it to the summit, which offered spectacular, almost uninterrupted views of the lake. The view was similar to Sonnstein and Erlakogel, just less exhausting to get to.
The way down took almost as long as to get up. On the way down we met a family with a dog. The dad was less than happy when I loudly commented the dog’s high energy with “Watch out, it’s still a long way to go”. Well, that was not very motivating.
In the end, we were back after two and a half hours. Another summit I can cross of my list. Nothing major but still something I have not done before. If you are ever considering it, bring some sturdy shoes. The floor is slippery but that’s about it.
