Gurgler Glacier

The Gurgler Ferner is a glacier in the Ötztal Alps, stretching across the Austrian–Italian border. Part of its ice lies in South Tyrol’s Texelgruppe nature park. The glacier flows north from the Gurgler Kamm for about eight kilometres into the Gurgler valley, flanked by the Ramolkamm and Schwärzenkamm ridges. Its past is marked by dangerous outburst floods. In 1717 and 1770 the sudden emptying of the Gurgler ice lake scoured the valley below. In 1931 the Swiss scientist Auguste Piccard and his assistant Paul Kipfer landed their balloon on the ice after setting a height record. Their damaged aluminium gondola became a local curiosity before being recovered in a series of dramatic operations. Today the glacier’s lower reaches have retreated, exposing bare rock where the Piccard bridge now spans the former ice. The Hochwildehaus hut stands on the right bank, offering a base for those who still walk the glacier’s flanks. The surrounding peaks and high paths give views of the Texelgruppe’s wild ridges.