Danube trail IV

Upon arrival in Grein, you will receive your documents at the hotel. Right at the beginning of the journey, the medieval town invites you to take a stroll. In Grein, the Strudengau is reached, once very notorious among Danube boatmen because of the whirlpools that form here. The quaint historic city theatre – it houses the oldest secular stage in Austria – clearly shows the nostalgic charm to be admired here. Also worth seeing is the Maritime Museum in Greinburg Castle.

(1 night in Grein)

Through the steep drop of the landscape towards the Danube, deeply cut streams flow towards the great river. The slope was and is often used by mills. This is what happened at the Gießenbachmill, which is passed at the beginning of today's tour. Before you reach it, there is a beautiful view of Werfenstein Castle. The mill at the entrance to the Stillenstein Gorge invites you to a small snack with local delicacies. The following section through the wildly romantic Stillenstein Gorge leads uphill. The Gießenbach, which sometimes overcomes splashing cascades and suddenly disappears completely, accompanies the hiker for a good part of the way. High above the Danube, you then roam through atmospheric mixed forests on historic paths, which are unfortunately becoming increasingly rare today. Down to the Danube again, St. Nikola is reached. In the church, the patron saint of sailors was thanked when the whirlpools were survived in one piece. A real hiking highlight awaits us on the last section to Sarmingstein with the historic Säbnich Castle.
(1 night in Sarmingstein)
Hiking: approx. 6 hours (16 km, ascent 567 m in height, descent 623 m in height)

From Sarmingstein, a hiking trail leads up the steep flanks of the Danube through primeval hillside forests. Finally, the easternmost of the Donausteig peaks is reached, the rock pulpit of the Predigtstuhl, located high above the river. We are now moving away from the Danube, because the trail leads deep into the Aist-Naarn-Kuppenland. Again, the route follows a narrow valley, through which the Sarmingbach stream splashes idyllically. At the Dobmill we leave the Sarmingbach valley and walk towards the pretty village of Waldhausen. The magnificent collegiate church of the former Augustinian monastery with its early baroque collegiate church on the Schlossberg is the centre of this harmonious landscape and at the same time a symbol of the development of a remote region. The route continues through a varied hilly landscape until the ascent to the edge of the Waldhausen basin begins. Once at the top, wide views of the Danube valley and the alpine scenery to the south open up. The following route over a ridge is full of views, then it runs down again - to the Gasthof Aumühle in the Gießenbachtal.
(1 night in the Aumühle)
Hiking: approx. 7 hours (18 km, ascent 749 m in height, descent 505 m in height)

Right at the beginning of today's stage, the summit ascent to another mountain of the Donausteig, the Wetzelstein, begins. At first, you follow the meandering Gießenbach, but quickly gain altitude along forest and meadow paths. Once at the top, the view sweeps far over the backward hills to the Alps. The wildly romantic Kasmüllerbach valley brings us closer to the spa town we are now heading for. Floodplains with their typical tree and bush species are still largely preserved on many waters. The location of Bad Kreuzen must have been very suitable for therapy according to the teachings of Dr. Sebastian Kneipp. How else can it be explained that Austria's largest Kneipp garden with numerous herbs, aromatic and medicinal plants, a swimming pond and much more was created here. The view from another vantage point on the hiking tour, Kreuzen Castle, one of the largest fortifications in Upper Austria, is fantastic. Now the hike goes down a nature and culture hiking trail into the so-called Wolf Gorge. Information boards along the way vividly describe the bathing facilities of the former cold water sanatorium Bad Kreuzen. Wonderful light moods accompany us in a special way during this spiritual-looking hiking trail. At the end of the gorge, the path leads past the Speckalm, via Lehen and Mühlberg back to Grein on the Danube.
(1 night in Grein)
Hiking: approx. 5 hours (16 km, ascent 379 m in height, descent 561 m in height)

For all those who would like to spend even more time in the Strudengau, additional overnight stays can be reserved. For the ones who want to conquer another of the seven peaks of the Donausteig, the ascent from Grein to the Gobelwarte is a good idea. Otherwise, the individual departure will take place.