Krimml Falls

(Local Name: Krimmler Wasserfälle) To the south of the Gerlos pass, which links the Ziller valley in Tirol with the Salzach valley in Salzburg, the Krimmler Ache, flowing through a narrow wooded valley, plunges down 380m/1,250ft in three tremendous cascades. The excursion to see these falls, the grandest in the Eastern Alps, takes three hours. The nearby village of Krimml is a popular holiday resort, and in winter the Gerlosplatte offers excellent skiing.

The starting-point for a visit to the Krimml Falls is the village of Krimml (1,076m/3,530ft), magnificently situated high above the Salzachtal in the wooded valley of the Krimmler Ache, between the Hohe Tauern and the Kitzbühel Alps. From the parking lot at the southern end of the village it is half an hour's walk to the first viewpoint, overlooking the Lower Falls; from there it is 10minutes' walk to the second viewpoint, the Regenkanzel, and another five minutes to the third. All these viewpoints are always shrouded in spray. The path then leads up by way of the fourth and fifth viewpoints (the Riemannkanzel) to the Middle Falls (sixth and seventh viewpoints), and in another 20minutes, passing the Schönangerl (1,285m/4,216ft), comes to the Bergerblick, with the finest view of the falls; total time one and a half hours. From here it is another15minutes up to the Schettbrücke (1,463m/4,800ft), at the Upper Falls (140m/460ft high). Passing over the bridge we come to the Tauernweg, which takes us back down the right bank into the valley.