Reifhorn

The Reifhorn is a mountain in the Loferer Steinbergen range on the border between Salzburg and Tirol. Its main summit, the Großes Reifhorn, rises to 2488 m and is surrounded by three lower peaks: the western Reifhorn, the eastern Reifhorn and the Kreuzreifhorn. The Reifhörner stand at the centre of the Wehrgrube, dividing it into the large and small Wehrgrube. Seen from Lofer, the Kreuzreifhorn’s sharp northern ridge forms the central pyramid of the range, while its south-eastern faces drop in walls and pillars up to 600 m high. The mountain is reached most easily from the Schmidt-Zabierow-Hütte via the Michael-Steiner-Weg through the large Wehrgrube. This marked route takes about two hours from the hut to the Weinschartel and the Kreuzreifhorn, with short sections of easy climbing up to grade II UIAA and requiring sure-footedness. From the Weinschartel the unmarked climb to the Großes Reifhorn is short but harder, graded II. The south-eastern faces and the long northern ridge also offer climbing routes of varying difficulty. At the summit of the Kreuzreifhorn a broad viewing platform looks down over Lofer. The route from the Schmidt-Zabierow-Hütte passes through alpine meadows and rocky gullies, while the final sections follow narrow ridges and slabs. The contrast between the steep south-eastern walls and the gentler northern slopes gives the Reifhörner their striking shape.