Habsburghaus

Habsburghaus (also styled Habsburg-Haus) is a mountain refuge (Schutzhütte) owned by the Österreichischer Gebirgsverein, a section of the Österreichischer Alpenverein (ÖAV), and located on the Grieskogel on the Hochplateau of the Rax at 1,785 m above sea level, on the border between Lower Austria and Styria. It is a Category I hut in the Rax-Schneeberg group and serves hikers traversing the Rax plateau, with 36 beds in rooms and 65 mattress places, plus an 18-place winter room and an unheated shelter. The hut is family- and dog-friendly but not barrier-free. It is operated by tenants Richard Preyer and Corina Berger, with the hut address Graben 97, A-2661 Naßwald, and a separate internet presence at das-habsburghaus.at. The house is open in summer from mid-May to early November, with a winter room available in the cold season. It is a classic alpine hospitality brand: a serviced mountain hut offering food, lodging and information to mountaineers, marketed under the Habsburghaus name and the Austrian Alpine Club umbrella. Its history reaches back to the late 19th century, when the Niederösterreichischer Gebirgsverein built a jubilee shelter on the Grieskogel, inaugurated on 24 September 1899. Expansion in the 1960s and 1970s created the present structure, and a material cableway from the Reißtal (Hinternaßwald) was built in 1963 to supply the hut. The hut is a base for numerous ascents and traverses, including routes from Hinternaßwald via the Reißtalklamm and Kaisersteig, from Preiner Gscheid via the Karl-Ludwig-Haus, and from the Raxseilbahn mountain station across the plateau. Nearby is the Jahnkreuz, a small iron cross commemorating hut keeper Karl Jahn, who died in a snowstorm in February 1919 while bringing provisions from the Karl-Ludwig-Haus. The Habsburghaus remains an active, staffed alpine hut and a recognized waypoint in the Rax-Schneeberg hiking network.

The Habsburghaus was built by the Niederösterreichischer Gebirgsverein (Lower Austrian Mountain Club) as a jubilee shelter on the Grieskogel, intended to replace the Pehoferalmhütte, which had existed since 1876 and lay off the main route. The inauguration (Schlusssteinlegung) of the 'Jubiläums-Schutzhaus' took place on Sunday, 24 September 1899. In 1925 a truncated-pyramid monument was erected immediately south of the house in memory of Daniel Innthaler, the developer of the Kahlmäuer. In the 1960s work began to expand the house to its present size, though a lack of funds stretched the project into the 1970s. To improve supply, a material cableway was built in 1963 from the Reißtal (Hinternaßwald). A small iron cross a few minutes' walk from the hut, the Jahnkreuz, commemorates hut keeper Karl Jahn, who on 8 February 1919 was caught in a snowstorm while fetching provisions from the Karl-Ludwig-Haus; at minus 22 degrees Celsius with limited visibility and carrying 25 kg of food, he lost his bearings and froze to death only a few hundred metres from the Habsburghaus. His body was found on 11 February, with the provisions still strapped to his back. Today the hut is owned by the Österreichischer Gebirgsverein (ÖGV), a section of the Österreichischer Alpenverein, and is operated by tenants. It remains a serviced refuge in summer and offers a winter room in the cold season.

• 1963

  A material cableway was built from the Reißtal (Hinternaßwald) to supply the hut.

• 1960

  Expansion of the house to its present size began in the 1960s and continued into the 1970s due to lack of funds.

• 1925

  A truncated-pyramid monument to Daniel Innthaler was erected immediately south of the house.

• 1919

  Hut keeper Karl Jahn died in a snowstorm on 8 February 1919 while fetching provisions; the Jahnkreuz cross commemorates him.

• 1899

  Inauguration (Schlusssteinlegung) of the jubilee shelter on the Grieskogel on 24 September 1899.

• 1876

  The Pehoferalmhütte, which the Habsburghaus was intended to replace, had existed since 1876.

A traditional, family-friendly Category I alpine club hut on the Rax plateau, offering simple mountain accommodation and food to hikers and mountaineers under the Austrian Alpine Club umbrella.

• Room beds

  36 places in rooms.

• Mattress dormitory

  65 places.

• Winter room

  Unlocked winter room with 18 places; emergency telephone currently out of service for technical reasons.

• Shelter

  Unlocked, unheated shelter.

• Hut catering

  Food and drink for hut guests.

• Mitglied werden (Become a member)

1. 1Habsburg-Haus official websitealpenverein.at
2. 2Habsburghaus – Wikidatawikidata.org
3. 3Habsburghaus – Wikipedia (German)de.wikipedia.org