Zirl to Neue Magdeburger Hut

The Nightjet train arrived in Innsbruck on time after a smooth journey. It was very easy, I got in in Arnhem, joining Suzanne, who had boarded in Utrecht, and the next morning, there we were in Innsbruck. We were also lucky in that we had a compartment to ourselves. I did wake up when we stopped in Munich at five in the morning, and a couple of other times, but in general, I slept ok.
When we got out of the train, we took a look at the times of the local trains and saw that we just had time to grab some lunch from one of the two bakeries in the station before getting on the train to Zirl Hoch. Twenty minutes later, we got out, ready to go. The station, which was more like a bus stop, had a few giant, metre-long ants made out of wood and metal crawling over it. There was a sign pointing towards our first hut, so we ignored the route that we had planned in Komoot and followed that.
Within the first few metres, we saw our first orchid (Plantanthera bifolia), and then another only a few metres further (Cephalanthera rubra), so we could not have asked for a more auspicious start. The path was easy-going, winding through pretty woodland and with the occasional spectacular view south over the Inn valley. After a few minutes walking we came across a rock face with Dryas octopetala growing on a small ledge. This was a plant that I remember learning about as a student. It grows on top of cold mountains and has a flower like a dish antenna which tracks the position of the sun. That is so that its flower is a few degrees warmer than the surrounding air, enticing insects to come and pollinate it. I have seen it a handful of times in the mountains of England and Scotland, and here it was already. It was a reminder that we were already at over a thousand metres above sea level, comparable to the highest mountains in Britain.
The path then diverted off into some denser woodland, narrowed, and started to climb steeply upwards. There was what was probably a spectacular waterfall off to our left, but we could only catch glimpses of it through the trees. We had to stop from time to time because it was so steep.
Then we suddenly caught a glimpse of something moving in the trees. It was a goat-like animal. We had startled it and it ran away but soon stopped so that we could get a better look and even a couple of fuzzy photos. It had a dark tail, a bit like a deer, sticking-up ears and a pale stripe running down its nose and another one along the bottom of its face. Later we discovered that it was a chamois, something between a goat and an antelope, called 'Gämse' in German. We also saw another one shortly afterwards as well as a red squirrel and a small deer suckling a young one
After another kilometre or so through the forest, we came out onto a broader path and it was also less steep. A couple of mountain bikers passed us. They didn't have motors, and even though it was not so steep for walkers, it must still have been a struggle to cycle up, even with good gears. They looked warm, despite the cool weather.
We were heading for a small hut, Brunntal, as it was coffee time. The break was welcome, as the route had been much steeper than anywhere that I had walked when training for this trip. It was also welcome, as the coffee came with fresh apricot cake and cream. We sat under a shelter as it was just beginning to rain. A head of a chamois was mounted on the wall above in the entrance hall to the hut. When we told the owner that we had just seen them, he was singularly unimpressed, as they are apparently very common round here.
As we walked further, the clouds came down and the rain began to get heavier. That meant that we could not see so much in the way of views, but that was made up for by the flora. We passed alpine meadows, with little Austrian huts (probably for storing hay), filled with a huge diversity of plants, all in flower. I saw Corallorhiza (coralroot), a parasitic orchid growing by the side of the path. I pretty sure that is the first time I've ever seen it. There was also Primula farinosa, a gorgeous bright pink Primula, which I have only ever seen once in the wild before, in Upper Teesdale, and a Clematis montana clambering over a shrub, looking strangely out of place for not being in a garden.
As we climbed up, we came into the clouds and it began to get quite wet. Fortunately, we stopped to eat the ham and cheese croissants that we had bought at Innsbruck station in time, when the rain was still light.
We reached the hut at about two o'clock, though it felt like later. By then it was raining harder. I was pleased to discover that my new hiking trousers were indeed somewhat water-repellant, and the new rucksack's built-in coat worked well as well, keeping my things dry. We shed our wet gear in a room heated to a high temperature with a wood-burning stove and ordered a tea – with milk! I then lay down on a bench and fell asleep.Read more