Grossglockner

Our next Alpine goal was the Grossglockner, Austria's big mountain, in the Hoch Tauern and the Tauern National Park there. We drove to Heiligenblut and stayed there in the same campground we stayed at with Rachel and Rebecca in 1989. Heiligenblut has not changed a lot. It was still raining, as in 1989, torrents, with very dim prospects of actually seeing the mountain the next day. We never really saw it in 1989. I do not know what micro-climatic feature makes this mountain and its weather so nasty.

Up on the Hohenalpenstrasse, the high alpine road, part of

which shoots over to the Grossglockner; looking back 
toward Heiligenblut

The Kaiser Franz Josef high place--visitor center,

restaurants, cafes, a 5-story parking garage

Us at the RV parking lot; the weather steadily improved for

a couple hours

The Grossglockner's major glacier, one of the largest in

the Alps

And, finally, a good look at the summit

I took one of the trails, the Gambrubeweg, I think, which

went through six tunnels before emerging on the side of

the adjacent mountain, the Fuchserl, I think; this is a water

chime...drops of water from above create a random sort of

melody

Complete view of the glacer and the summit, and also the

wand; although only 12,000 feet or so, it's a serious

mountain

After an hour's walk, I was rewarded with this display on

the birth of the Austrian National Park system, due to a 
man named Albert Wirth, who visited Yellowstone (the first

national park) in 1899 and came back to Austria with a

dream; he is pictured with John Muir; damn, I was proud...

Love the signage

Ditto

Click to enlarge and see people on the glacier below...

probably not very smart people

Anyhow, we finally got to see the Grossglockner. Did I mention that the temperatures were in the high 30s and it was snowing the whole time we were up there. What happened to summer?!

We drove on, through nearly the worst white-out I have seen, and then through more torrential rain, into the Salzkammergut, and stopped at an aire near Bad Aussee. G'day, mate!