Lavanttal

The Lavanttal lies in the Lavanttal Alps in southern Austria’s Carinthia. The valley follows the Lavant River for about sixty-four kilometres from its source on the Zirbitzkogel down to the Drau at Lavamünd. It is divided into an upper and a lower section by the Twimberger Graben. The lower valley spreads between the Koralpe and Saualpe ranges, while the upper valley sits between the Packalpe and Seetal Alps. The whole area covers just under one thousand square kilometres and is home to roughly sixty thousand people. The valley’s dry climate brings only about eight hundred millimetres of rain each year. Winter temperature inversions trap fog and pollution in the valley floor, so farms and orchards cluster on the sunnier slopes at eight hundred to one thousand metres. Maize, pigs and chickens are raised across the valley, while the lower Lavanttal and Granitz Valley grow orchards for cider and schnapps. Small vineyards of about twenty hectares produce Carinthia’s limited wine, and asparagus thrives in the sandy soils. Artists such as Christine Lavant, Switbert Lobisser and Gerhart Ellert shaped the valley’s cultural reputation. The Benedictine monastery of St Paul holds regular exhibitions that draw on its rich art collections. The river’s broad meadows and orchards contrast with the steep alpine flanks, offering quiet walks among blossoming fruit trees or vine-covered slopes.