The Weißeck () is the highest mountain in the

Radstadt Tauern The Radstadt Tauern (german: Radstädter Tauern) are a subrange of the Central Eastern Alps in Austria. Together with the Schladming Tauern, the Rottenmann and Wölz Tauern and the Seckau Tauern the Radstadt Tauern form the major range of mount ...

range in

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 ...

and is popular, both as a ski touring destination in winter and a climbing peak in summer. It gets its name (which means "white corner") from the mighty block of light-coloured Wetterstein dolomite of which the mountain is made. The summit of the Weißeck is located on the municipal boundary between

Muhr Muhr is a municipality of the Tamsweg District in the Austrian state of Salzburg. Geography It is located in a southwestern valley of the Salzburg Lungau region at the source of the river Mur River, between the Hohe Tauern and the Niedere Tauer ...

, in the national park, and Zederhaus, in the nature park. Bases for tours to the Weißeck are, on one side, the Riedingtal valley in Zederhaus, and, on the other, the Stickler Hut (1,752 m) in the upper Mur valley. 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 ...

from the Rieding gap along the western ridge to the top is signed and only requires a little

sure-footedness Sure-footedness is the ability, especially when hiking or mountain climbing, to negotiate difficult or rough terrain safely. Such situations place demands on a person's coordination and reserves of strength as well as requiring sufficient appreciat ...

, but is generally an easy

climbing 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 spo ...

. There are several legends about the Weißeck. The best-known is about the Weißeck dog. The Weißeck is also popular with mineral collectors; since time immemorial it has been a well-known site for finds of

fluorite Fluorite (also called fluorspar) is the mineral form of calcium fluoride, CaF2. It belongs to the halide minerals. It crystallizes in isometric cubic habit, although octahedral and more complex isometric forms are not uncommon. The Mohs sca ...

Routes

Summer

* ''Riedingtal:'' Königalm – Zauneralm – Rieding gap (''Riedingscharte'') – Weißeck (ca. 1,050 metre height difference) * ''Upper Mur valley:'' Stickler Hut – Rieding gap – Weißeck (ca. 950 metre height difference)

Winter

* ''Wald in Zederhaus:'' Gspandlalm – Höllgraben – in der Hölle – Weißeck (ca. 1,400 height difference)

Literature

* Peter Holl: ''Alpenvereinsführer Niedere Tauern'',

Bergverlag Rother Bergverlag Rother is a German publisher with its headquarters in Oberhaching, Upper Bavaria. Since 1950 the company, that formerly went under the name of ''Bergverlag Rudolf Rother'', has published the Alpine Club Guides in cooperation with the ...

, 7th ed., Munich, 2005.

External links

The Weißeck dog
Radstadt Tauern Mountains of the Alps Mountains of Salzburg (state) Two-thousanders of Austria {{Salzburg-geo-stub