Hoher Zahn

The Hoher Zahn is a 2,924-metre peak in the Stubai Alps on the border between Austria and Italy. It stands on the main Alpine ridge that separates the Gschnitztal valley in Tyrol from the Pflerschtal valley in South Tyrol. To the west the ridge rises to the 3,017-metre Weisswandspitze, while to the east it continues over the 2,767-metre Pflerscher Pinggl and the 2,599-metre Pflerscher Scharte. The mountain is chiefly composed of paragneiss, the typical rock of the Ötztal-Stubai crystalline zone, underlain by amphibole gneiss. The Italian Tribulaun hut at 2,369 metres on the Sandessee is the usual starting point for climbers. The Tyrolean High Route, a waymarked trail, passes just south of the summit, linking the Tribulaun hut with the Magdeburger hut. From the High Route a short spur path reaches the top in a few minutes, where a wooden summit cross was renewed in 2010. A gentler route begins at the Laponesalm at 1,472 metres in the Gschnitztal. It leads to the col between the Hoher Zahn and the Weisswandspitze and then ascends without difficulty to the summit. The contrast between the high Alpine ridge and the deep valleys below creates a striking landscape.