Page 186 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Austria

184  A USTRIA REGION B Y REGION

married Anna Plochl, daughter
of the local postmaster. The
archduke, who made many
important contri butions to the
life of Styria, was a grandson of
Maria Theresa and the 13th child
of future Emperor Leopold II.
The former seat of the Salt
Office, in Chlumeckyplatz, is a
lovely 14th-century building
which now houses the city’s
regional museum with an
exhibition on salt mining.
The 13th-century Romanesque
St Paul’s church has a notable
stone statue of the Madonna.
The resort of Ramsau, famed for cross-country skiing Environs: A scenic road
northwest of Bad Aussee will
s Ramsau the children’s via ferrata (climbing take you to Altausseer See and
path), the Kali-Kinderklettersteig. the Loser peak. On the road is
Road map D4. * 2,800. @
n Ramsauerstrasse 756, (03687) The old waterwheel creaks into an old salt mine, open to the
81 833. ∑ ramsau.com motion on Friday afternoons. public. During World War II it
was reputedly used to hide
At an altitude of 1,000 m E Alpinmuseum works of art.
(3,280 ft) lies the small town of Tel (03687) 70 63 836. Open May–Oct:
Ramsau am Dachstein, renowned 10am–4pm daily. 8 on request.
for its superb cross-country ski P Wassermühle Rössing f Admont
runs, extending over some Tel (03687) 81 874. Open mid-Jun–Sep. Road map E4. * 5,000. £ @
230 km (143 miles). Snow is n (03613) 21160-10. ∑ admont.at
almost guar anteed from
November until March and the d Bad Aussee At the centre of the village of
efficient inter connecting system Road map D4. * 4,800. @ £ Admont stands a Benedictine
of lifts, cable cars, trains and n Hauptstrasse 48, (03622) 54040-0. abbey whose importance once
buses also puts more difficult ∑ badaussee.at reached far beyond the region.
runs within easy reach. The peaks Built in the 11th century and
opposite the Dachstein massif Bad Aussee, the main town often rebuilt, it burned down
have slopes that are perfectly in the Styrian part of the in 1865, but the fire spared its
suited to moderately skilled Salzkammergut, lies at the fork priceless collection: with nearly
downhill skiers. In the sum mer of the Traun river, which cuts 160,000 volumes, it is said to
the Loipen, or cross-country ski a scenic gorge between the hold the world’s largest
runs, turn into excellent long- Dachstein massif and the Totes monastic library. The library’s
distance walking routes. Gebirge (Dead Mountains). The magnificent Rococo interior,
From the Ramsau side, visitors region’s wealth was founded on dating from 1773, was designed
can ascend the famous Dachstein its salt deposits. Later, Bad Aussee by the Viennese architect Josef
south face by cable car. Cable achieved renewed fame when, Hueber. The large hall holding
cars also travel up Hunerkogel in 1827, Archduke Johann two-storey cabinets is 72 m
(2,694 m/8,836 ft), from where a
lovely panoramic view of the
area unfolds. The descent takes
you to nearby Filzmoos, a resort
with views of the spectacular
Bischofsmütze (Bishop’s Mitre).
There are many attractions on
offer in Ramsau, such as feeding
alpine animals and night tobog-
gan runs. The Alpinmuseum
illustrates the history of
mountaineering in the region.
The Wassermühle Rössing is one
of several waterwheels that has
been built in the area since the
17th century. It lies at the foot
of Sattelberg, near the start of A picturesque street in Bad Aussee
For hotels and restaurants in this region see pp295–6 and pp318–20

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Eyewitness Travel LAYERS PRINTED:
Catalogue template “UK” LAYER
(Source v2.1)
Date 5th December 2012
Size 125mm x 217mm