This hike feels less like a route and more like a gentle unfolding of the Schladming Tauern — one alpine chapter at a time. Starting in Strick, the world still feels domestic and human-sized, but step by step, the trail lifts you into a landscape shaped by glaciers, shepherds, and centuries of mountain silence.

The trail climbs through the Giglach Valley, a classic U-shaped alpine valley carved by Ice Age glaciers that once ruled this region. Wide meadows soften the drama of the surrounding peaks, which rise calmly rather than aggressively.

As you gain altitude, the terrain opens into a patchwork of alpine pastures, rocky shelves, and shimmering water.

The final reward, Giglachsee, lies cradled beneath rugged peaks, reflecting the sky like it has nowhere else to be.

The Giglach lakes are among the highest mountain lakes in Styria and freeze solid for months — yet in summer they feel impossibly alive.

This route is popular — but never loud. It’s loved by families, photographers, and anyone who prefers depth over adrenaline. There are no via ferratas or vertigo moments here, just long views, ringing cowbells, and the quiet confidence of well-marked alpine paths.

It’s the kind of hike that recalibrates your sense of time, reminds you how good it feels to arrive somewhere under your own power, and makes you promise yourself you’ll walk more slowly back home.

Long before hiking boots and GPX tracks, these paths were working routes — used by shepherds, traders, and farmers moving animals and goods between valleys. The gentle gradients make sense when you realize they were designed for hooves, not Instagram.

Reaching Moarhofalm feels like stepping into a postcard that forgot to modernize — in the best possible way. These alpine huts aren’t decorative; they’re part of a living agricultural tradition known as Almwirtschaft, where livestock is moved uphill every summer to graze.

The hike can be combined with a one night stay in one of the villages nearby. Next day can be used for visiting Hallstatt, a village that learned early how to live with beauty — and never stopped. Hallstatt doesn’t reveal itself all at once. It appears gradually, like something you’re meant to approach carefully. Tucked between a sheer mountain wall and the glassy surface of Hallstätter See, this small Austrian village feels less built than negotiated — every house, path, and boat landing placed with intention because there was simply nowhere else to go.

Hallstatt sits in the Salzkammergut, a region shaped by water, salt, and restraint. The Dachstein limestone mountains rise almost vertically behind the village, leaving little room for expansion. Historically, this meant no roads — only boats. For centuries, the lake was Hallstatt’s highway, post office, and connection to the outside world.

Long before Hallstatt became a symbol of Alpine beauty, it was one of the most important places in prehistoric Europe. Salt was discovered here over 7,000 years ago, and with it came wealth, trade, and influence. So significant was this discovery that an entire era — the Hallstatt Period of the early Iron Age — carries the village’s name. 

Because land was always scarce, Hallstatt learned to think vertically. Houses stack along the slope, staircases replace streets, and the famous charnel house (Beinhaus) reflects a pragmatic, respectful relationship with death

Hallstatt’s beauty didn’t stay secret. Today, it’s one of Austria’s most photographed villages, sometimes visited faster than it can be understood. Yet early mornings and quiet evenings still belong to the locals — and to travelers willing to slow down.

The Road to the Panoramic Viewpoint – Hallstatt Skywalk

Whether you walk, take the funicular, or follow the old routes once used by miners, the ascent traces a line between human effort and geological patience. These mountains rose long before viewpoints had railings, and the road respects that — never rushed, never straight, always earning the view.

The Skywalk sits high above Hallstatt, anchored into the Dachstein limestone massif, a mountain range shaped by ancient seas and carved by time. As you rise, the lake stretches into a ribbon of blue below, revealing its glacial origins — long, narrow, and impossibly calm from above. The Skywalk is part of the UNESCO World Heritage area, protected not just for its beauty, but for what it teaches about early Alpine civilization.

This route echoes the daily climb of salt miners who once traveled between village and mountain. Long before tourists sought views, these paths carried labor, routine, and survival. The Salzberg wasn’t a destination — it was work.

Hallstatt isn’t impressive because it’s perfect. It’s compelling because it’s compressed — history layered tightly, beauty confined by geography, life lived carefully in a place that never allowed excess.