The Rax is a
mountain range in the
Northern Limestone Alps on the border of the
Austrian federal provinces of
Lower Austria and
Styria
Styria (german: Steiermark ; Serbo-Croatian and sl, ; hu, Stájerország) is a state (''Bundesland'') in the southeast of Austria. With an area of , Styria is the second largest state of Austria, after Lower Austria. Styria is bordered to ...
. Its highest peak is the ''Heukuppe'' (2,007 m). The Rax, together with the nearby
Schneeberg, are a traditional mountaineering and mountain walking area, and are called the ''
Wiener Hausberge'' (
Vienna's local mountains). They are separated by the deep ''Höllental'' ("Hell Valley").
![Reichenau - Raxseilbahn, Kabine und Stütze](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e2/Reichenau_-_Raxseilbahn%2C_Kabine_und_St%C3%BCtze.JPG)
A
cable car Cable car most commonly refers to the following cable transportation systems:
* Aerial lift, such as aerial tramways and gondola lifts, in which the vehicle is suspended in the air from a cable
** Aerial tramway
** Chairlift
** Gondola lift
*** Bi ...
, the ''Raxseilbahn'', starting at
Hirschwang at the north-eastern foot of the mountains and the first in Austria (construction began in 1925), takes visitors to the extensive, high plateau of the Rax at a height of about 1,500 m. This area is a particular favourite with hikers from Lower Austria and Vienna. The steep sides of the plateau offer climbing tours of various difficulty. These ''steige'' (mountain
trails) and the ''hütten'',
alpine hut
A mountain hut is a building located high in the mountains, generally accessible only by foot, intended to provide food and shelter to mountaineers, climbers and hikers. Mountain huts are usually operated by an Alpine Club or some organization d ...
s offering basic
accommodation, were built and are maintained kept by various Austrian
Alpine Clubs. They were erected in the late 19th and early 20th century.
Mountain huts
![Großes Höllental (2)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/49/Gro%C3%9Fes_H%C3%B6llental_%282%29.JPG)
* Raxseilbahn mountain station, 1,540 m
* Ottohaus, 1,640 m
*
Gloggnitzer Hut, 1,548 m
*
Habsburg
The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...
Haus, 1,785 m
*
Karl Ludwig Haus, 1,804 m
* See Hut, 1,643 m
* Waxriegelhaus 1,361 m
* Wolfgang Dirnbacher Hut, 1,477 m (shelter only)
Some Hikes and Rises
![Reichenau - Rax, Törl](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/Reichenau_-_Rax%2C_T%C3%B6rl.JPG)
*
Alpenvereins Steig: Großes Höllental – Ottohaus
* Amaliensteig: Preiner Gscheid – Heukuppe
* Bärenloch: Hinternasswald – Bärengraben
*
Bismarck Steig: Karl Ludwig Haus – Neue Seehütte
* Brandschneide: Kaiserbrunn – Bergstation Raxbahn
* Großes und kleines Fuchsloch: Preiner Gscheid – Heukuppe
* Gaislochsteig (former
Guido von List Steig): Großes Höllental – Dirnbacher Hütte
* Göbl-Kühn-Steig: Waxriegelhaus – Neue Seehütte
* Gamsecksteig: Nasskamm – Grasboden Alm
*
Gretchen
Gretchen (, ; literal translation: "Little Grete" or "Little Greta") is a female given name of German origin that is mainly prevalent in the United States.
Its popularity increased because a major character in Goethe's ''Faust'' (1808) has th ...
Steig: Preiner Gscheid – Karl Ludwig Haus
* Grosses Wolfstal (unmarkiert, Schiabfahrt!) Kaiserbrunn – Ottohaus
* Grosser Kesselgraben (Schiabfahrt!) Höllental – Gloggnitzer Hütte
* Gsolhirnsteig
* Gustav-Jahn-Steig: Verbindung Alpenvereinssteig – Ausstieg Gaislochsteig
* Hans-von-Haid-Steig: Prein an der Rax – Preiner Wand
* Hoyossteig: Großes Höllental – Rudolfsteig
*
Kaiser
''Kaiser'' is the German word for "emperor" (female Kaiserin). In general, the German title in principle applies to rulers anywhere in the world above the rank of king (''König''). In English, the (untranslated) word ''Kaiser'' is mainly ap ...
Steig: Rehboden – Scheibwald
* Karl-Kantner-Steig: Waxriegelhaus – Karl Ludwig Haus
* Kontrußsteig: Reißtalerhütte – Waxriegelhaus
* Peter Jokl Steig: Hinternasswald – Scheibwald
* Preinerwandsteig: Prein an der Rax – Preiner Wand
* Preintalersteig: Großes Höllental – Wachthüttelkamm
* Reißtalersteig: Preiner Gscheid – Heukuppe
* Rudolfssteig: Höllental – Klobentörl
* Schlangenweg: Waxriegelhaus – Karl Ludwig Haus
* Schüttersteig: Verbindungsstrasse Nasswald/Hinternasswald – Scheibwald
* Seeweg: Ottohaus – Neue Seehütte
* Teufelsbadstubensteig: Großes Höllental – Wachthüttelkamm
* Törlweg: Knappenhof – Ottohaus
* Wachthüttelkamm: Höllental – Ottohaus
* Waxriegelsteig: Predigtstuhl – Waxriegelhaus
* Wildes Gamseck: Nasskamm – Grasboden Alm
* Wildfährte: Hinternasswald – Grasboden Alm
* Zikafahnlsteig: Scheibwald – Habsburghaus
{{Authority control
Mountain ranges of the Alps
Northern Limestone Alps
Mountain ranges of Lower Austria
Rax-Schneeberg Group
Two-thousanders of Austria