The Ãœbergossene Alm is the name of the summit region of the
Hochkönig
The Hochkönig is a mountain group containing the highest mountain (Mount Hochkönig) in the Berchtesgaden Alps, Salzburgerland, Austria. The Berchtesgaden Alps form part of the Northern Limestone Alps.
Location
It lies to the west of the town ...
(2,941 m) in the
Berchtesgaden Alps. It contains the remains of a
glacier
A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such as ...
that used to cover almost the entire summit plateau; in 1888 around 5.5 km² of the plateau was covered by an ice sheet. Since then the glacial surface has melted until it now covers just 1.5 km² and the glacier has split into three, small
crevasse
A crevasse is a deep crack, that forms in a glacier or ice sheet that can be a few inches across to over 40 feet. Crevasses form as a result of the movement and resulting stress associated with the shear stress generated when two semi-rigid pie ...
-free areas. The name of the glacier goes back to a local
legend
A legend is a genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived, both by teller and listeners, to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human values, and possess ...
.
High plateau and its perimeter mountains
The ''Hochkönig'' is the southernmost and highest mountain block in the Berchtesgaden Alps. Unlike the
Watzmann
The Watzmann ( bar, Watzmo) is a mountain in the Berchtesgaden Alps south of the village of Berchtesgaden. It is the third highest in Germany, and the highest located entirely on German territory.
Three main peaks array on a N-S axis along a r ...
massif about 20 kilometres to the north, it has a plateau that tilts gently towards the north and covers about 15 km². Only in the south does it fall steeply away in
rock face
In geography and geology, a cliff is an area of rock which has a general angle defined by the vertical, or nearly vertical. Cliffs are formed by the processes of weathering and erosion, with the effect of gravity. Cliffs are common on coa ...
s up to 1,000 metres high (the ''Mandlwände'').
The edge of the plateau is formed by several high
two-thousander
Two-thousanders are mountains that have a height of at least 2,000 metres above sea level, but less than 3,000 metres. The term is used in Alpine circles, especially in Europe (e.g. German: ''Zweitausender'').
The two photographs show two t ...
s in the shape of a giant oval. Apart from the main summit, the most prominent of the remaining peaks (in clockwise order) are the:
Großer and Kleiner Bratschenkopf, Kummetstein,
Lamkopf and
Hochseiler
The Hochseiler (also ''Hochsailer'') is a mountain, , in the Hochkönig massif within the Berchtesgaden Alps. It lies on the boundary between the districts of Zell am See and St. Johann im Pongau in the Austrian state of Salzburg.
The summit ca ...
(all over 2,850 m) and to the north/east to Tenneck, Floßkogel and the
Schoberköpfe (2,435 to 2,710 m). To the east of the last-named is the imposing
Torsäule
The Torsäule () is a very steep, about 500-metre-high limestone formation on the eastern flank of the Hochkönig massif in the Berchtesgaden Alps.
The imposing column (''Torsäule'' means "gateway column"), which bears a summit cross, lies im ...
, which the climb from the
Arthurhaus hut runs past; the Torsäule marks the end of the plateau above the side valleys of the River
Salzach
The Salzach (Austrian: ˆsaltsax ) is a river in Austria and Germany. It is in length and is a right tributary of the Inn, which eventually joins the Danube. Its drainage basin of comprises large parts of the Northern Limestone and Central ...
.
Sources
External links
Legend of the Ãœbergossene Alm
Glaciers of Austria
Glaciers of the Alps
Berchtesgaden Alps
GUbergossene Alm
{{austria-glacier-stub