Wurbauerkogel

The Wurbauerkogel rises above the Windischgarstner Becken in Upper Austria, its slopes shared between the towns of Windischgarsten and Rosenau am Hengstpaß. At 858 metres it is the local mountain of Windischgarsten, a small town at the edge of the Sengsengebirge range. A road and a single-seat chairlift both climb from the valley to the summit, where visitors find a restaurant, a snack bar and an observation tower. The chairlift, built in 1957, carries walkers up in about an hour along the walking routes that start in town. At the top the Panoramaturm offers a six-storey glass tower with a lift to a viewing deck. From here twenty-one peaks over two thousand metres are visible across the Becken. Inside the tower an exhibition called ‘Faszination Fels’ explains the geology of the area. Nearby the Alpine Coaster runs for 760 metres with two-person sledges, reaching speeds of 40 kilometres an hour through three loops and seven steep curves. A summer toboggan run once stretched 1,523 metres down the mountain, but after a landslip in 2021 it was removed in 2022. The summit also hosts a 3D archery range, a via ferrata park along the Bannholzmauer and a bike park with downhill trails of different grades. Walkers can follow paths that circle the peak or head into the surrounding forests. The mountain’s modest height and gentle slopes make it a popular half-day destination for families and cyclists alike.