Gasteiner Ache

The Gasteiner Ache is a 40-kilometre river in the Gastein valley of Salzburg. It flows north through three main villages: Bad Gastein at 1002 metres, Bad Hofgastein at 858 metres and Dorfgastein at 830 metres. The name first appears in 885 as *rivolus Gastûna*, possibly linked to the Celtic word for willow or to an Indo-European root meaning movement. The river rises from the Schlapperebenkees glacier at 3008 metres and collects water from several high sources. Its upper course is called the Naßfelder Ache and passes through Sportgastein. Near Böckstein it forms the Kessel-, Bären- and Schleier waterfalls before reaching Bad Gastein’s own 85-metre and 63-metre cascades. In the 1560s the river briefly carried ships for mining. Land judge David Kölderer and master forester Christoff Schüttpacher won permission to dam a short stretch and create a turning basin. A towpath was built with raised bridges so horses could pull barges upstream. Gold ore was sent down to Lend for smelting, while lime and charcoal moved up for building and industry. By 1569 the trade had ended when the smelters closed and the big Lend company took over. The remains of the old towpath and bridges can still be traced along the valley sides. Visitors today walk or cycle the riverside paths through Bad Gastein’s centre, where the waterfalls thunder beside hotels and cafés. The gorge section between Palfnerbach and Badbruck offers dramatic cliffs and rushing water. Beyond the villages the river cuts the Klammpass, a narrow gorge that drops into the Salzachtal. The valley sides are wooded and the peaks above carry ski runs in winter and hiking trails in summer. At Bad Hofgastein a gauge records an average flow of 10.3 cubic metres per second, feeding the Salzburg AG power stations. After heavy rain the falls swell and the promenade may be closed, but the landscape stays wild and impressive.