Umhausen is a
municipality in the
Imst district of state of
Tyrol in western
Austria. It and is located 17 km southeast of
Imst at the
Ötztaler Ache in the
Ötztal. It has 3078 inhabitants.
Geography
The municipality consists of six villages:
*Umhausen
*Tumpen
*Köfels
*Farst
*Niederthai
*Östen
Umhausen is located at the intersection of the
Stubai Alps and the
Ötztal Alps. The lowest point is in Tumpen (920m), the highest peak of the municipality is the
Strahlkogel
The Strahlkogel, at , is the highest peak in the Larstiger Mountains (''Larstiger Berge''), a subgroup of the Stubai Alps in the Austrian state of Tyrol. The Strahlkogel is also the highest mountain in the municipality of Umhausen. Its name comes ...
, at . Its name comes from its great, white, light-reflecting,
quartz layers, which allegedly cause the mountain to "radiate" (''strahlen''). It has the shape of a well-proportioned, steep and pointed pyramid. Ascending the Strahlkogel is difficult and it is thus only rarely visited, unlike the neighbouring 3,287-metre-high
Breiter Grieskogel.
Climate
Economy
Umhausen was once a centre for cultivation of
flax
Flax, also known as common flax or linseed, is a flowering plant, ''Linum usitatissimum'', in the family Linaceae. It is cultivated as a food and fiber crop in regions of the world with temperate climates. Textiles made from flax are known in ...
.
Today the main source of income is tourism. In the area of the community lies the tallest
waterfall of Tyrol at 150 metres of height. The economy in Umhausen is a bit smaller than the economy in Längenfeld. It is supported by local craft enterprises. Moreover, the Vivea Gesundheitshotel Umhausen opened in 2011, which plays a large role in the local economy.
Landslide
The
Köfels landslide was a gigantic landslide, known as a
sturzstrom
A Sturzstrom (from the German '' Sturz'' (fall) and ''Strom'' (stream, flow)) or ''rock avalanche'' is a large landslide consisting of soil and rock (geology), rock which travels a great horizontal distance (as much as 20 or 30 times) compared to ...
, that occurred in the Ötz valley 9800±100 years ago according to radiocarbon dating of trees buried by the event.
[Ivy-Ochs S, Heuberger H, Kubik PW, Kerschner H, Bonani G, Frank M, and Schlüchter C. (1998). The age of the Köfels event — relative, 14C, and cosmogenic isotope dating of an early Holocene landslide in the central Alps (Tyrol, Austria). ''Zeitschrift für Gletscherkunde und Glazialgeologie'', (34):57–70.] It involved a 2.5 km horizontal displacement and 800 m vertical displacement of 3.2 km
3 of rock and mud along the Ötz valley floor, making it the third largest known sturzstrom.
[Sørensena, SA and Bauer, B (15 August 2003). On the dynamics of the Köfels sturzstrom. '']Geomorphology
Geomorphology (from Ancient Greek: , ', "earth"; , ', "form"; and , ', "study") is the scientific study of the origin and evolution of topographic and bathymetric features created by physical, chemical or biological processes operating at or n ...
'', 54(1–2):11–19.[Prager C, Zangerl C, Patzelt G, and Brandner R (2008). Age distribution of fossil landslides in the Tyrol (Austria) and its surrounding areas. '']Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences
The European Geosciences Union (EGU) is a non-profit international union in the fields of Earth, planetary, and space sciences whose vision is to "realise a sustainable and just future for humanity and for the planet." The organisation has headqu ...
'', 8:377–407.
Population
Hedwig von Trapp / The Sound of Music
Hedwig von Trapp, member of the Trapp family, lived and worked after the dissolution of the family choir in Farst, above Umhausen. This workplace, located at 1470 meter above sea level was designed to alleviate the asthma-related Hedwig von Trapp. Hedwig von Trapp was known from the film and musical
The Sound of Music, in this film the experiences of the Trapp family have been filmed. Hedwig von Trapp was portrayed by the character "Brigitta" in the film. The school, Hedwig von Trapp worked, is still in its original condition.
References
External links
Information on Umhausen
{{Authority control
Austria
Cities and towns in Imst District