The Großer Krottenkopf is the highest
mountain
A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited Summit (topography), summit area, and ...
in the
Allgäu Alps
The Allgäu Alps (german: Allgäuer Alpen) are a mountain range in the Northern Limestone Alps, located in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg in Germany and Tyrol and Vorarlberg in Austria. The range lies directly east of Lake Constance.
Character ...
of
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
. It is
[ Bundesamt für Eich- und Vermessungswesen Austria: ]
Austrian Map online (Austrian 1:50,000 map series)
''. and is part of a side branch of the
Hornbach chain
The Hornbach chain (german: Hornbachkette) is a string of mountains, about 15 kilometres long, in the Allgäu Alps in the Austrian state of Tyrol (Bundesland), Tyrol.
Geography
The Hornbach chain branches at the Öfnerspitze from the main ...
, which branches off the main chain of the Allgäu Alps and runs for about 15 km eastwards.
Bases and ascent routes
*From
Oberstdorf
Oberstdorf ( Low Alemannic: ''Oberschdorf'') is a municipality and skiing and hiking town in Germany, located in the Allgäu region of the Bavarian Alps. It is the southernmost settlement in Germany and one of its highest towns.
At the&nb ...
(), the
Kemptner Hut at summit can be reached in four hours via the
Spielmannsau using the
E5 European long distance path
The E5 European long distance path or E5 path is one of the European long-distance paths from the French Atlantic coast in Brittany through Switzerland, Austria and Germany over the Alps to Venice in Italy. It is waymarked over the whole 3200 km ...
.
*The Kemptner Hut is the northern base for an ascent on the Krottenkopf using the
normal route
A normal route or normal way (french: voie normale; german: Normalweg) is the most frequently used route for ascending and descending a mountain peak. It is usually the simplest route.
Overview
In the Alps, routes are classed in the following way ...
(easiest ascent). The path runs from the hut initially southwards, then swings east to the''Oberer Mädelejoch'' () on the border between Germany and Austria. It then runs over scree eastwards to the col of ''Krottenkopfscharte'' () and, following the numerous red dots, requires an easy climb (
UIAA grade
In rock climbing, mountaineering, and other climbing disciplines, climbers give a grade to a climbing route or boulder problem, intended to describe concisely the difficulty and danger of climbing it. Different types of climbing (such as sport ...
I) over stone-covered slabs to the summit in just under three hours.
Sure-footedness and, in the summit region, a
head for heights are required.
*Another path leads from
Holzgau
Holzgau is a municipality in the district of Reutte in the Austrian state of Tyrol
Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was hist ...
() in the upper
Lech valley
The Lechtal is an alpine valley in Austria, the greater part of which belongs to the state of Tyrol and the smaller part to Vorarlberg. The Lech river flows through the valley.
Location
The valley is bounded geographically by the Lechtal Alps ...
to the Großer Krottenkopf. The E 5 path runs through the ''Höhenbachtal'' valley northwards and past the Simms Waterfall (with its snack bar or ''Jausenstation'') and on to the ''Untere Roßgumpenalpe''. Just below the lower ''Mädelejoch'' the path forks off to the ''Krottenkopfscharte''. This tour takes just under four hours.
* Alternatively there is an ascent from the Bernhardseck Hut (), past the ''Mutte'' and the
Strahlkopf (), or from
Elbigenalp
Elbigenalp is a municipality in the district of Reutte (district), Reutte in the Austrian state of state of Tyrol, Tyrol.
Geography
Elbigenalp lies about in the middle of the Lech (river), Lech valley.
References
External links
Citie ...
in the Lech valley up the Bernhardstal valley.
* There is a climbing route along the north
arête. This involves two short and one longer vertical passages at
UIAA grade
In rock climbing, mountaineering, and other climbing disciplines, climbers give a grade to a climbing route or boulder problem, intended to describe concisely the difficulty and danger of climbing it. Different types of climbing (such as sport ...
III. The starting point is the notch of ''Hermannskarscharte'', which is reached on a trackless route from the Kemptner Hut through the
cirque
A (; from the Latin word ') is an amphitheatre-like valley formed by glacial erosion. Alternative names for this landform are corrie (from Scottish Gaelic , meaning a pot or cauldron) and (; ). A cirque may also be a similarly shaped landform ...
of Öfner Kar.
See also
*
List of mountains of the Alps
This page tabulates only the most prominent mountains of the Alps, selected for having a topographic prominence of ''at least'' , and all of them exceeding in height. Although the list contains 537 summits, some significant alpine mountains ar ...
References
Literature and maps
* Dieter Seibert, ''Allgäuer Alpen'',
Alpine Club Guide
The ''Alpine Club Guides'' (german: Alpenvereinsführer, commonly shortened to ''AV Führer'' or ''AVF'') are the standard series of Alpine guides that cover all the important mountain groups in the Eastern Alps. They are produced jointly by the Ge ...
, Munich, 2004,
*
Alpine Club map 1:25,000 series, Sheet 2/1, ''Allgäuer- Lechtaler Alpen, West''
External links
The Große Krottenkopfat www.fuehrer.oberstdorf-online.de.
"Krottenkopf" at Summitpost
{{DEFAULTSORT:Krottenkopf
Two-thousanders of Austria
Mountains of the Alps
Mountains of Tyrol (state)
Allgäu Alps