Parkirišče Muritzen - Schmalzscharte (Muritzen - Mur source - Schmalzscharte)

Access to starting point:
A) Through the Karawanks Tunnel, we drive to Austria, and then continue driving on the Tauern highway, on which we drive towards Salzburg. When we leave the Katschbergtunnel, we arrive in the Austrian province of Salzburg. At the first exit from the tunnel St. Michael im Lungau, we leave the highway, where we pay the toll and continue to the first intersection. We turn left towards the settlements Zederhaus and Muhr. Soon after that, there follows a larger intersection, where we again turn left towards the settlement Muhr. From here, we continue through the settlement Muhr all the way to the end of the main asphalt road, which is 23 km long and ends at the parking lot Muritzen; at the end of the parking lot there is a gate.
B) From Štajerska or Koroška, we first drive to Dravograd and then over the border crossing Vič into Austria, where we then follow the signs for Celovec / Klagenfurt and further to Beljak (Villach). We continue driving on the Tauern highway, on which we drive towards Salzburg. When we leave the Katschbergtunnel, we arrive in the Austrian province of Salzburg. At the first exit from the tunnel St. Michael im Lungau, we leave the highway, where we pay the toll and continue to the first intersection. We turn left towards the settlements Zederhaus and Muhr. Soon after that, there follows a larger intersection, where we again turn left towards the settlement Muhr. From here, we continue through the settlement Muhr all the way to the end of the main asphalt road, which is 23 km long and ends at the parking lot Muritzen; at the end of the parking lot there is a gate.

Route description:
The start is at the parking lot, which is located just by the river Mur. At the end of the parking lot, we cross the bridge and go on the macadam road. We soon get to the first crossing, where we stick to the right direction Sticklerhütte. A slightly ascending macadam road leads us past the chapel Muritzen and ahead past the mountain pasture Zalussenalm all the way to the mountain hut Sticklerhütte. Before the mountain hut there is a crossing where we turn left to the hut, and to the right leads the path to Weißeck. Ahead from the hut the path leads us through pastures to the beginning of the Upper valley of the river Mur, through which the Mur winds like a snake. The footpath, which slightly rises, runs by the river Mur and crosses quite a few streams, which originate from the western mountain range. Some streams at higher water levels need to be crossed very carefully, because at some spots there is almost nowhere to step. After approximately one hour of walking, we come to a crossing, where we go straight in the direction of the notch Schmalzscharte. On the sign it is written Schmalzscharte 1:30, which is a little misleading, because the normal walk to the top lasts almost 2 hours. After a little less than half an hour of walking, we get to the source of the river Mur, which is situated at an altitude of 1898 m.
From the source onwards, a well-marked path starts to ascend steeply. It runs on diverse terrain, full of large rocks and stones. From here we can already see the destination and the bivouac below it. A little below the top, snow usually persists all the way to summer, where crampons are sometimes needed, because under the snow there is often ice. When we come to the bivouac Albert-Biwak 2420 m, we are practically at the destination. Above it is the notch Schmalzscharte 2444 m, from which a view opens up on the northern slopes of Großer Hafner and the peak Kölnbreinspitze. Below us, Lake Unterer Schwarzsee enhances the view, which is often frozen until the beginning of summer.
Parking lot Muritzen – Sticklerhütte 50 min; Sticklerhütte – source of the Mur 1:15; source of the Mur – Schmalzscharte 1:40

Along the route: Sticklerhütte (1752m), Izvir reke Mure (1898m)

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