The Hoher Sonnblick (also ''Rauriser Sonnblick'') is a

glaciated 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 ...

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 ...

, high, on the main Alpine chain in the

Goldberg Group The Goldberg Group is a sub-group of the Hohe Tauern mountain range within the Central Eastern Alps. It is located in Austria, in the states of Salzburg and Carinthia. Its highest peak is the Hocharn, . Other well known summits are the Hoher Son ...

on the border between the

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 ...

n states of

Carinthia Carinthia (german: Kärnten ; sl, Koroška ) is the southernmost States of Austria, Austrian state, in the Eastern Alps, and is noted for its mountains and lakes. The main language is German language, German. Its regional dialects belong to t ...

and

Salzburg Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian) is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the ...

. At its summit is the Sonnblick Observatory and the Alpine refuge hut of Zittelhaus.

Location and area

The mountain rises at the head of the ''Hüttwinkltal'' valley, the upper part of the Raurisertal, on the Alpine divide. It is a mighty

massif In geology, a massif ( or ) is a section of a planet's crust that is demarcated by faults or flexures. In the movement of the crust, a massif tends to retain its internal structure while being displaced as a whole. The term also refers to a ...

with a characteristic rock pyramid on the summit block and a great North Face above Kolm-Saigurn. The highest summit of the Goldberg Group is not the Hoher Sonnblick, however, but the 3,254-metre-high Hocharn to the north. On the steep summit, at a height of 3,106 metres, is a

meteorological Meteorology is a branch of the atmospheric sciences (which include atmospheric chemistry and physics) with a major focus on weather forecasting. The study of meteorology dates back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not ...

observatory An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial, marine, or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geophysical, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed. His ...

, the '' Sonnblick Observatory'', and an Alpine

refuge hut Refuge is a place or state of safety. It may also refer to a more specific meaning: Safety * Area of refuge, a location in a building that may be used by occupants in the event of a fire * Bunker, a defensive fortification designed to protect pe ...

, the '' Zittelhaus'' (also written ''Zittlhaus''). At a height of 2,718 metres is the '' Rojacher Hut'' and at 2,175 metres is the '' Schutzhaus Neubau''. Both huts are managed during the summer months. On 1 January 1905, a temperature of was recorded at the summit, the lowest temperature recorded in Austria at that time. In the area of the Sonnblick there are historical

gold mine Gold Mine may refer to: *Gold Mine (board game) *Gold Mine (Long Beach), an arena *"Gold Mine", a song by Joyner Lucas from the 2020 album '' ADHD'' See also * ''Gold'' (1974 film), based on the novel ''Gold Mine'' by Wilbur Smith *Gold mining ...

s, which gave their name to the mountain range around the Sonnblick, the

. On the mountainsides still stand the ruins of the gold diggings, Kulm-Saigurn is an ancient mountain mining settlement. At the foot of the Sonnblick you can still successfully pan for gold – albeit less productively than the historical mines which played a key role in the wealth of the

Prince-Archbishopric of Salzburg The Prince-Archbishopric of Salzburg (german: Fürsterzbistum Salzburg; Erzstift Salzburg; Erzbistum Salzburg) was an ecclesiastical principality and state of the Holy Roman Empire. It comprised the secular territory ruled by the archbishops of ...

Routes

*Kolm-Saigurn –

Neubau Neubau (; Central Bavarian: ''Neibau'') is the seventh district of Vienna (german: 7. Bezirk). It is located near the center of Vienna and was established as a district in 1850, but borders changed later. Neubau is a heavily populated urban area, ...

– Rojacher Hütte – Hoher Sonnblick, 4–5 hrs, 1,500 metres climb * Heiligenblut () – ''Fleißkehre'' – Gasthof ''"Alter Pocher"'' (, end of the public road) – ''Zirmsee'' () – ''Kleinfleißkees'' – Hoher Sonnblick, 5–6 h (4–5 h ab ''„Alter Pocher“''), 1,800 metres climb. No refuge huts between ''"Alter Pocher"'' and the Sonnblick.

Literature and maps

* Liselotte Buchenauer, Peter Holl:

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 ...

''Ankogel- und Goldberggruppe''. Bergverlag Rudolf Rother, Munich, 1986. * Ingeborg Auer, Reinhard Böhm, Martin Leymüller, Wolfgang Schöner: ''Das Klima des Sonnblicks – Klimaatlas und Klimatographie der GAW-Station Sonnblick einschließlich der umgebenden Gebirgsregion'', ZAMG, Vienna, 2002, ISSN 1016-6254.Zentralanstalt für Meteorologie und Geodynamik Wien
''Bücher''
(retrieved 11 October 2012) *

Alpine Club Map Alpine Club maps (german: Alpenvereinskarten, often abbreviated to ''AV-Karten'' i.e. AV maps) are specially detailed maps for summer and winter mountain climbers (mountaineers, hikers and ski tourers). They are predominantly published at a scale o ...

Sheet 42, 1:25,000 series, ''Sonnblick''

Climate

References

External links

Glacier survey by the Central Office of Meteorology and Geodynamics and the BOKU Vienna, as well as ski tours on the SonnblickWebsite of the Sonnblick Observatory
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sonnblick, Hoher Alpine three-thousanders Mountains of the Alps Mountains of Salzburg (state) Goldberg Group