From Sportgastein to Kreuzkogel
Sportgastein is rightly called a freeride paradise. Even so, it offers fitness ski touring too: from the mid-station of the gondola a groomed uphill track leads almost to the summit of Kreuzkogel. The tour described here is longer and starts at the car park by the information centre.
Route overview: car park by the information centre (1585 m) – winter path to the Nassfeldalm hut – bridge over the Nassfelder Ache – Naturschauweg up to 1690 m – summer supply road to the gondola mid-station – groomed uphill track along piste S1 to Kreuzkogel (2688 m) – descent of your choice.
From the information centre to the mid-station
Sportgastein offers two variants of "safe" ski touring on the pistes. The first is a ticket for 16.50 EUR (winter 2024/2025) covering one gondola ride to the mid-station and fitness ski touring on the groomed track. The second is to start right from the information centre – the longer variant described here.
From the information centre cross the footbridge over the Sieglitzbach and follow the groomed winter footpath on the flat, partly along the Nassfelder Ache, to the Nassfeldalm hut and restaurant, which is closed in winter. Before the hut turn from south to east and go back a little to cross the bridge to the other bank. The standard ascent from the valley follows the summer supply road to the mid-station: up the valley past the Maaralm hut to the cross at the first bend of the road. In winter there is usually a ski or snowshoe track, at worst the tracks of a piste basher.
More fun than the long gentle variant is to climb the summer Naturschauweg to the supply road at about 1690 m, or another interesting line depending on the snow. From there to the mid-station it is classic fitness ski touring on a road, just without pole markers. The mid-station has a restaurant – worth a short stop on a sunny day.
Fitness ski touring from the mid-station to the summit
From the mid-station cross above the edge of the black piste S5 to the start of the fitness route to Kreuzkogel. The groomed uphill track runs to the left of the blue and red piste S1. After a short climb to the north, a small detour leads to a viewpoint above the valley with a few rocks.
From there you can see most of the remaining route, slightly spoiled by the pylons of a 110 kV power line. Turn east and, with a few steeper steps in otherwise gentle terrain, reach the panoramic ball next to the top station of Goldbergbahn II. Less than 50 vertical metres remain to the summit. In sunny weather Kreuzkogel offers a superb all-round view, only partly blocked to the north-west by the slightly lower peaks of Radhausberg (2613 m) and Salesel-Kogel (2681 m).
Descent
There are many ways down from Kreuzkogel. In poor conditions – crust or heavy wet snow – the pistes are the better choice. In normal conditions there are plenty of off-piste variants between the groomed slopes; it depends on your preferences and on how tracked out each area is.