Stubaier Höhenweg

The tour starts with a straight vertical request: 1,169 metres of climbing over 7.7 kilometres, out of the valley pastures of Neustift and up through dark spruce forest, switchback after switchback. About halfway the trees give up and the trail breaks into open alpine grassland with the first views down the Stubaital. By early afternoon you reach the Starkenburger Hütte, perched on its shoulder at 2,237 metres, and the week settles into its hut rhythm: boots off, coffee on the terrace, the day's clouds building across the ridge.

The long day, and the one that shows what this circuit really is. The trail crosses the Kalkkögel, a chain of jagged limestone towers, via the Seejöchl and Sendersjöchl passes, traversing beneath the Hohen Burgstall on paths pinned high above the Schlicker See. Steep scree, one rope-secured descent in serpentines and kilometres of airy high traverse bring you down past the Seducker Hochalm into the upper Oberbergtal, where the Franz-Senn-Hütte waits with a garden full of drying boots. 15.6 kilometres, 874 up, 957 down: the classic 'Eingewöhnung' stage of the Stubai.

Short but sharp: out of the Franz-Senn-Hütte the trail climbs through the Kuhgschwetz to the Schrimmennieder, a broad saddle at 2,762 metres under the broken walls of the Platzenturm. Those who want more can detour to the Basslerjoch, one of the finest viewpoints onto the Stubai main ridge. Then the descent, first into the obere Platzengrube, then in serpentines down to the crossroads path that leads nearly flat to the Neue Regensburger Hütte, the smallest and most atmospheric hut of the circuit. 9.2 kilometres, 573 up, 445 down.

The queen stage, and the highest point of the week. Past the Hohen Moos and the Falbesoner See the trail climbs in boulder fields to the Grawagrubennieder at 2,858 metres, crossing beneath the tongue of the Grawawandferner glacier, hands occasionally out of pockets. Early in the season, snowfields linger here. The reward is a glacier panorama that few hut circuits can match, then the long descent through the Wilde Grube and past the Mutterberger See into the ski-area bustle around the Dresdner Hütte, a small culture shock after days of silence. 12.5 kilometres, 906 up, 845 down.

The day of the wild water. The trail follows the roaring Fernaubach upstream to where it vanishes into the glacier gate of the Sulzenauferner at 2,400 metres, then climbs the moraine to the Peiljoch, with the Zuckerhütl, the 3,507-metre sugarloaf king of the Stubai, filling the horizon. Strong walkers take the secured summit of the Große Trögler instead; everyone else takes the cable-secured descent over the glacier moraine to the Sulzenauhütte, whose terrace above the Sulzenaualm is one of the best views of the week. Only 4.7 kilometres and 358 metres up: the perfect rest day in disguise.

A lake day, and it would be a shame to hurry it. The trail crosses several streams eastward to the Grünausee, the largest lake of the Stubai Alps, a rest spot straight out of a picture book. Above it the route passes further clear mountain lakes towards the Niederl; in safe conditions, the summit of the Mairspitze opens views over the entire Hohenweg circuit, or the Gamsspitzl variant tests your legs on a steep snowfield that often lasts into August. The cable-secured final descent lands at the Nürnberger Hütte, oldest hut of the route. 4.5 kilometres, 393 up, 259 down.

The geology day. The trail descends past the Fernández steep terrain into the Oberbergtal head, then climbs through blockfields polished by ancient glaciers, with the famous 'Paradies' plateau on the Habicht opposite, one of the most beautiful spots in the Stubai. After the Nürnberger Hütte's climbing garden the route keeps high above the Gschnitztal, traversing steep ridges with the valley falling away below, before the final secured stretch delivers you to the Bremer Hütte at the head of the valley. 5.8 kilometres, 494 up, 389 down.

The technical finale, and for many the most beautiful stage. Over the Trauljöchl, along the Wasenwand and across the Sendesgrat the trail crosses a chain of rocky bowls high above the Gschnitztal, mostly on black trails with fixed cables where it matters: the secured chimney by the Lauterer See is the memorable one. Attention never wanders, and neither does the panorama over the main ridge. The day closes at the Innsbrucker Hütte, the largest and liveliest hut of the circuit. 10.5 kilometres, 884 up, 915 down.

The way down, and it takes all morning. From the Innsbrucker Hütte the trail drops 1,735 metres in 14.2 kilometres, first through alpine pastures where the cows have already claimed the summer, then along the Wilde Wasser Weg past waterfalls and gorge platforms, and finally through forest to the valley floor at Neustift. Knees deserve poles today. At the bottom, the bus stop, the bakery and a valley guesthouse wait, and the week above the tree line suddenly feels like another world.