Groppenstein- und Rabisch-Schlucht

Sinnesschluchten


Useful Information

Location: Raufen 3, 9821 Obervellach.
(46.940190, 13.185120)
Open: Groppensteinschlucht:
MAY daily 10-16.
JUN to mid-SEP daily 9-17.
Mid-SEP to mid-OCT daily 10-16.
Mid-OCT to OCT Thu-Sun 10-16.
Rabischschlucht:
Mid-MAY to OCT daily.
Closed during storms and heavy rain.
[2022]
Fee: Groppensteinschlucht:
Adults EUR 7, Children (6-15) EUR 4.
Groups (15+): Adults EUR 6, Children (6-15) EUR 2 Rabischschlucht:
frei.
[2022]
Classification: GorgeGorge
Light: n/a
Dimension: L=5.5 km, VR=550 m.
Guided tours: self guided, L=13 km, VR=1100 m, D=4.5 h.
Photography: allowed
Accessibility: no
Bibliography:
Address: Groppenstein- und Rabisch-Schlucht, Raufen 3, 9821 Obervellach, Tel: +43-4782-32122. E-mail:
Tourismusbüro Obervellach, 9821 Obervellach, Tel: +43-4782-2510.
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then.
Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

188? trails in the lower part of the Groppensteinschlucht constructed by the Deutscher Alpenverein Sektion Hannover.
1926 Groppensteinschlucht managed by DAV Hagen section.
2011 elevated trail in the upper part of the Groppensteinschlucht built.

Description

The Groppenstein- und Rabisch-Schlucht, or better the Groppensteinschlucht and the Rabisch-Schlucht are two gorges which connect the two National Park municipalities of Mallnitz and Obervellach and together form the longest gorge trail in Carinthia. The gorges together are 5.5 km long with 550 m height difference with up to 30 m high waterfalls. You can take the bus back to the entrance at Obervellach. There is also a round trip which is 13 km long and has a total height difference of 1100 m, which equal about 4.5 hours walking time. The gorges are also called Sinnesschluchten (Sensory Gorges) and inspire with romantic landslide sceneries and fantastic waterfalls. The gorges are located below the picturesque Burg Groppenstein (Groppenstein Castle). As the walk is really easy, just long, it is also dubbed family friendly.

Right at the beginn, there is a series of Kolke (Geologypotholes) in the river, which are quite impressive. Nearby is a bridge where the trail crosses the river, then it ascends to the outlook on the Großen Groppensteiner Fall (Big Groppenstein Waterfall), which is 50 m high. The trail ascends further until its above the upper end of the waterfall, the in continues through the gore, which is rather narrow here. At the end of this section the trail was built along a cliff face, high above the river to ascend the next waterfall, the Zechnerfall (40 m high). Here it's possible to return to the starting point with a stop at the Burg Groppenstein. This is the shortest possibility for a gorge tour.

The trail along the river reaches the abandoned inn Zur Guten Quelle and after crossing the hamlet Lassach the Rabischschlucht is reached. It is cut deep into an ancient rockfall, after the collapse had blocked the valley the Mallnitzbach had to find a new bed by digging into the loose material of the rockfall. The second gorge ends at the Hotel Alpengarten in Mallnitz. It only a few minutes to the Rabisch stop of the Nationalpark Wanderbus (Natonal Park hiking-bus). It's also possible to hike back along the hillside on the other side of the road. The trail is almost horizontal, so with the deepening of the valley the trail offers increasingly spectacular outlooks. It ends at the Himmelbauer-Almgasthof. All in all there are numerous possibilities and combinations.

Like most gorges in the Alps this gorge was first developed for tourism in the late 19th century. In the late 1880s the Deutscher Alpenverein Sektion Hannover (DAV, German Alpine Club Hanover Section) built the first elevated trails in the lower part of the gorge. But they were destroyed several times by floods or rockfall. Later, the ÖAV Mallnitz section took over the upper part, the Rabischschlucht. The lower part, the Groppensteinschlucht was given to ÖAV Mölltal section, who ceded it to DAV Hagen section in 1926. It was quite common that the German alpinists built lodges, trails and sometimes even developed gorges in Austria, because Germany actually has no part of the Alps except from half a dozen peaks at the northern rim. The lodges were built on a voluntary basis by the members and offered cheap accommodation for the members, and do so until today. Both organisations, ÖAV and DAV, accept member cards from each other for discounts.