Heinrich-Hüter-Hütte -> Lindauer Hütte – The tree is wrong

11. August 2025

 

 

12,1 km

590 m up

600 m down

4:45 hrs.

This is Mapy’s summary of our hiking day. It began in the morning. This time, I had brought my own muesli and Nescafé (with an Esbit stove) for each morning, and I was really glad to be able to sit outside and stay independent of the hut’s schedule. Breakfast time was always completely packed, and I so much prefer peace and being outdoors. Still, I always had to hurry a bit, because even the terraces quickly filled up.

 

 

Then we first set off downhill. What I found interesting about the area: the cattle herds seemed larger to me than in the Alpine regions I had seen before. Everywhere you could hear the clanging of bells and the moohing of cows.

 

 

 

 

 

One could also gaze nicely around the landscape.

 

 

We kept descending until we reached a pond with a hunting lodge and a small chapel, where St. Hubertus—the patron saint of hunters, dogs, nature, and the environment—was venerated.

 

 

 

After the chapel, the trail climbed steeply through the forest. I was so delighted about the woods—it was quite a hot day. Once we emerged from the trees, there were lovely views again and a pleasant high-altitude path to follow.

 

 

 

 

Then we reached the area of the Golm cable car and were hoping for a shady spot to have lunch. However, the reality was quite different—a huge construction site! Since we were already a bit worn out from the heat, we stopped at a nearby inn, and I downed a full liter of liquid. That felt so good! The sun and heat were definitely getting to me, but I was grateful that all I had to do was hike—and not toil away on the construction site. Fascinating, though, to see what they’re building there!

 

 

 

After that, there was a lovely high trail with some strange-looking tree trunks. I couldn’t figure out how they had done that.

 

 

 

A small shady spot was used for a little nap.

 

 

And then the Lindauer Hut came into view. A lot of building had been done there too, and it had grown very, very large. But in return, there was an exceptionally nice hut team. It seems to me that how one experiences a hut depends primarily on the hosts and the team. These came across as friendly, cheerful, and working well together.

 

 

By now, many huts have Buddhist prayer flags and Nepalese staff. They are often found working in the kitchen or cleaning, but there are said to be some who have even become hut hosts. Eastern European employees could also often be seen.

 

 

There was another cold shower here – and on such hot days I really loved it (though a simple washbasin would have done as well). All the sweat rinsed off, and I felt fresh and comfortable again. What wasn’t doing well, however, was Karla’s knee. It hurt. The plan for the next day had been to hike up to Tilisuna Hütte, but that would have meant a steep, shadeless ascent. And if her knee got worse afterwards, finding a suitable descent would have been tricky. So we bit into the sour apple of cancellation and decided to stay another night at Lindauer Hütte – fortunately, that was possible. But the “sour apple” turned out to be quite bitter: I tried to cancel the other booking by phone and ended up with a very rude man who brusquely told me to do it online instead. The cancellation fee was steep – more than the cost of a dormitory night with a drink, and as I later realized, higher than at other huts. Because of the unfriendly phone call, I was almost relieved not to be going there after all.

 

Overall, we found ourselves reflecting – also together with other mostly solo hikers we met – on how much things have changed. In the past, you could just set off and somehow find a place to stay, even if it was only in the common room (though I always got lucky and found a bed in the dorm). Today it’s different: hosts are allowed to turn people away if the hut is full and there’s still a way to reach the valley or another destination. That means you pretty much have to book ahead, which makes things inflexible – and if your plans change, you’re left hoping for luck or facing cancellation fees.

 

As I’ve noticed on my third Alpine tour this summer, I had to adjust the route at some point. That makes me rather grumpy and less motivated to plan more hut-to-hut tours in the Alps. On the other hand, I don’t really know what a good solution would be – given the sheer number of people in the mountains these days and the economic side of running huts. It just feels like everything is so much more crowded now. None of us, neither myself nor my conversation partners, had any bright ideas for how to deal with it. And from what I gather, even in public discussions there’s more controversy and helplessness than answers.

 

At least, once again, we could enjoy some tasty à-la-carte meals – and the company of friendly people and a plump, contented cat.

 

 

The big question now was: how would Karla’s knee hold up? That was the suspenseful issue awaiting us the next morning!