Feistritz River

The Feistritz is a river in the north-eastern and eastern parts of Styria. It begins south of the Feistritz saddle, west of the Hochwechsel, where it is also called the Wechselgraben or Sattelbach. After joining the Ambach, it flows south to Feistritzwald and west to Rettenegg, where it meets the Pfaffenbach. The river forms the western edge of the Wechsel area and later the border between the Fischbacher Alps and the Joglland. It passes through Birkfeld and then winds eastwards, marking the eastern edge of the Graz uplands. Below Oberfeistritz it turns south-east, becoming the southern boundary of the Joglland and the Alps themselves. The Feistritz carves several gorges, including the Freienbergklamm, Stubenbergklamm and the Feistritzklamm, a Natura 2000 site. Near the Feistritzklamm stands Schloss Herberstein on a cliff above the river. Below Stubenberg am See the river feeds the Stubenbergsee, a 40-hectare lake, before leaving the Alps. Near Ilz the river is joined by the Ilzbach, and at Fürstenfeld it forms the border with Burgenland until it meets the Lafnitz south-east of the town.