April Voldöpper Spitze and Ascherjöchl

Published on 2014-4-13 by Michael Stanton

I wanted some snow-free hiking, but I didn't know how high I'd be able to get before the snow got deep. Also it was going to rain. I decided to do two 1000 meter hikes in order to get plenty of exercise. I chose the Voldöpper Spitze above Kramsach, parking near a campground, and just hiking up and down without even a pack or water, just an iPod. Mostly it didn't rain, and the summit was nice, popping steeply out of the trees for decent local views. I returned the same way, for about 3 hours round trip.

For my next hike, I looked at OruxMaps in my phone to see where to go next. To the east there was a mountain called Heuberg. I didn't know if I could really do another 1000 meters, but I realized I could make the Ascherjöchl my goal, and that would be around 800 meters. The hike up to Ascherjöchl from Grub was hilariously steep on something like a wagon road for the first half. It started to rain heavily but luckily I came to a small meadow carved out of the dense forest with a few houses with covered porches. I rested a while and continued on steep and muddy trail that was tricky to get down without slipping. At the pass there were good views and occasional sun. I wandered around above the pass, settling for a rest on a 1500 meter hillside looking across to Heuberg.

These peaks were lonely mountains for the Einheimische of the Brandenburger Mountains.