Hochleckenkogel

The Hochleckenkogel stands in the Höllengebirge range in Upper Austria, its summit reaching 1 691 metres above sea level. The wooded peak drops steeply on its north-east side into the Aurachkar valley, where the entrance to the Hochlecken-Großhöhle cave system can be found. A stone from the 19th-century Franziszeische Landesaufnahme survey marks the top, engraved with the names of Emperor Francis I and the year 1811. To the east the slightly higher Brunnkogel rises above the Hochleckenkogel, while the Hochleckenhaus alpine hut of the Austrian Alpine Club lies just over a kilometre to the west. Two marked routes lead to the summit. From the Hochleckenhaus a broad plateau trail takes about fifty minutes, and from the Taferlklause in the Aurachkar valley a longer climb of two to two and a half hours follows a rocky gully. The mountain’s prominence places it as the closest major Alpine summit to the Great Arber in Bavaria. The name Hochlecken also once belonged to two small motor vessels that once sailed the Attersee and Traunsee, carrying passengers between lakes before being retired or transferred. Visitors who reach the top find the old survey stone and wide views across the Höllengebirge. The Hochleckenhaus offers food and shelter on the western approach, while the cave entrance below shows the karst landscape of the range. The plateau route rewards walkers with gentler slopes and open meadows, contrasting with the steeper Aurachkar ascent. The surrounding peaks and the two lakes below complete a varied highland scene.