In September, Southampton University Officer Training Corps (SUOTC) departed on an adventurous training exercise in Tyrol, Austria. Our team conducted a hut-to-hut hiking expedition from the 8th to the 13th of September. We revisited the challenging Berlinner High Trail route. The expedition aimed to push us as officer cadets beyond our comfort zone and discover our capabilities. It introduced officer cadets to alpine hiking as a sport and provided us with a foundation for future development. The trip also helped individuals develop resilience teamwork and improve map reading, route planning skills and troop movement. The trip was designed to be enjoyable while challenging, create greater camaraderie and develop skills while enjoying the scenery and having a good time. Many attendees use the expedition to advance their Army MLT (mountain leadership training) qualifications to gain the correct hours and experience to become an instructor. In addition, the trip provided further development for our unit MLT instructors.
Expedition Route: We caught a train from Munich to Mayrhoffen; from Mayrhoffen, we got a bus to Finkenberg, where we started our ascent to our first hut, Gamshutte.
We chose the Hermann-Hecht-Weg way (trail number 533) that criss-crosses through the lavish woodland to Kraxentrager. Ultimately, we left the trees and entered the high, completely open universe of the Gamshütte cabin. The climb requires close to three hours to finish. We covered a distance of 6.6km, an elevation gain of 1057.
From the Gamshütte hut, situated at a height of 1,921 meters, we moved off early in the morning sun to the Vordere Grinbergspitze (2,687 meters), where the Berlin High Path branches off to the left side – climbing through the tussock slants and rough landscape with dispersed bantam pine fields – while heading to Feldalpe (1,885 meters). The smell of the pine fields and Alpine plants is heady and lingers with you long after you’ve headed on. The trail proceeds to Pitzenalm (1,874 meters) and moves to Milchanger in a progression of steep curves. At this altitude, the going is challenging, and the thin air asks much more of your body than at sea level.
From Milchanger, we walked through a rough upland level until we arrived at the south shore of the Wesendlekarsee. The weather remained fine. The latter hours of the hike was tough, but, knowing that we only had a few hours left, we pushed on following the path towards “Breitlahner – Friesenberghaus”, which took us to Friesenberghaus, stopping at an elevation of 2,477 meters. I think it’s fair to say that we were all happy to enter the warm hut and relax.
Bright and early, we moved off from the Friesenberghaus hut; the path ascends briefly towards the west before moving in steep bends to a height of 2,602 meters and onto the Friesenbergscharte ridge. From this point, we continued southwards through the rich green fields of Gamsleiten until we arrived at the stupendous Olpererhütte at a height of 2,389 meters. The views at this vantage point are breathtaking and make all the hard work worthwhile.
After a short stop, it was a precarious plummet from the cabin before the landscape straightens and crosses southwards high over the Riepenbach stream. To the end of the route, the path zigzags down to the Schlegeis reservoir. We lunched in the Dominikshutte, before we followed the path that progressively moves toward the Schlegeiskees glacial mass, and from here, we took the left fork toward the east – climbing up the precarious slant between the Wasserleklamm gorge and the Furtschaglbach stream in curves until we arrived at the Furtschaglhaus hut. By now, we felt like true ‘Mountain Goat Hunters’ after the name of our expedition ‘Bergziege Jäger’.
Leaving from the Furtschaglhaus stop, this day’s journey takes you at first towards the Schönbichler Scharte edge (3,060 meters). It progresses forward with the edge’s south side through a crevasse with permanently fixed cables for security. The altitude at this point was starting to take its toll on all of us. It’s a couple of metres’ climb from the east flank to the highest point of the 3,134 meters, the Schönbichlerhorn peak. From that point, the path follows the ridgeline up some stepping stones to a superb trig-point at 2,763 meters. We stopped here to take in the spectacular view of the Berlinerhütte hut.
We were following on down the southern side of the ridge, going through the Garberkar Cirque and the northern parallel moraine of Waxeggkees ice sheet. We eventually got to the first river crossing, where we had to improvise and get a few wet feet. From here, we moved forward to where, thankfully, the next river crossing had a bridge. The path climbed consistently over rocks polished and scratched by glacial masses while heading to the Berlinerhütte (2,044 meters). This was tough, but we were all prepared to push ourselves on.
Sadly, a minor injury meant an earlier finish to the exercise than hoped. Having experienced a challenging and worthwhile week, our Mountain Leader elected to extract to the safety of the valley, where we stayed in an apartment. With our transport arrangements made, we enjoyed a cultural morning in Mayrhoffen, before embarking on our journey. The journey was simple and all OCdts were able to reflect positively on the experiences we had shared.
