Next to the Heidelberger Hütte high above Ischgl, there is a new climbing garden, ideal for midsummer. And incredibly idyllic too - we visited the hut block together with the developer. A spot that adds another great offer to sport climbing in Paznaun.
If you are interested in this region, then order our LIMIT#2 magazine, in which we also report from the climbing paradise of Paznaun!
Hansjörg Randl on one of his routes at the Hüttenblock. And yes, the spot is as idyllic as it looks in the picture! Photo: Simon Schöpf
The block at the hut
It took him a good 40 years to put his idea into practice. Well matured, you could say - Hansjörg Randl was in his early 20s when he first saw the steep boulder next to the Heidelberger Hütte on a ski tour. At the time, he was already amazed that there was no route to be found in this noble piece of rock. "Something should be drilled into it," he thought at the time, and it would take until his retirement for his dream to come true. Today, Hansjörg is 66 years old, but that doesn't stop him from still climbing the overhanging routes. "It's really steep, ha, what do you say?" he enthuses as he proudly presents his completed work. A good ten routes now lead through the rock, the easiest of which checks in at the lower eighth grade. He has put his heart and soul and passion into the climbing garden, even having a wooden statue of Jesus that he found here specially restored and now stuck to the wall as a patron saint for the climbers. In 2016, he started drilling up here at almost 2,300 meters, coming up here again and again over three summers with a heavy rucksack and drill.
The hut block can be found between the round, glacier-carved peaks of the plateau around the Heidelberger Hütte. Photo: Simon Schöpf
eBike & climb Heidelberger Hütte
"In the beginning without an e-bike, that might have been something," he recalls. You really work up a sweat on the 14-kilometre journey up from Ischgl. Times have changed since then, and today we've all cycled here with a motor-assisted bike - it goes right up to the foot of the wall, which is also a rarity. And it saves energy for the routes, which you can certainly use on this steepness. Hansjörg Randl is no stranger to the Tyrolean climbing scene - in the old, wild days he was right at the forefront, opening up new routes in the Schüsselkar, some so bold that he is still not known to have repeated them. With the advent of the bolts, he often repeated lines in the Martinswand and near his home in Telfs, where he was a route maintainer and climber for over 20 years.
Thanks to locals like Hansjörg Randl, there are always great new climbing gardens in Climbers Paradise Tirol. Photo: Simon Schöpf
The idea of converting the block next to the hut into a climbing garden immediately fell on fertile ground with the landlord of the Heidelberger Hütte. "I've been thinking for a long time, it's funny that no one is doing anything on that rock," recalls hut landlord Alois Eiter over coffee on the terrace, looking towards the rock. At that moment, two of his employees walk past, equipped with helmets, climbing harnesses and carabiners. "I'd like to have that much time", laughs the always cheerful landlord, and explains: "I only got four of my employees for the season because there's now an opportunity to climb up here". In just a few seconds, the two of them are up on the practice rock and hanging themselves on the routes, which is also a great way to spend a room lesson; Kathi's blue rope is still hanging in her project on the "Heidelberger Spitze" route (7b). Until the next room lesson, the next go in the project.
Steep, steeper, hut block. Author Simon Schöpf also feels the extreme steepness of the massif in his lower and upper arms: Photo: Maria Wagner
Ischgl with a difference
So far, however, the block is still little known and climbers rarely stray up here. The majority of guests are now bikers, with or without a motor, quite a few on a mission to cross the Alps, dragging their bikes up the path towards the Fimber Pass in droves. And you can't blame them, the landscape here is magnificent, even a touch Icelandic. The change from the not-so-quiet tourist hotspot of Ischgl, the starting point for the hut, to the area's haven of peace, the Heidelberger Hütte, is also fascinating. With every kilometer of the trail, it becomes even more idyllic, even more decelerated. You arrive in a state of complete relaxation when the hut host Lois serves you a beer or a coffee and says what he likes to say: "Hock di her, always stay cool, just don't stress!"
It's a leisurely one-hour ride by eBike through the idyllic Fimba Valley to the Heidelberger Hütte. Photo: Simon Schöpf
And that's exactly what makes the hut block so special: the location right next to the contentedly meandering Fimba stream, the grass-covered hills with cows and donkeys on them, the three-thousand-metre peaks in the background. Even if the thermometer in the valley climbs well above 30°C, up here you can climb in ideal conditions with a cool breeze. A climbing garden that couldn't be more ideal for midsummer. And you realize that you are climbing in the high mountains here at the latest when you identify the tuft of edelweiss next to the starting hold and listen to the whistles of the marmots in the background.
In the steep routes on the hut block, it's all about "tackling", as here in a 7a. Photo: Simon Schöpf
Top Tyrolean climber Angy Eiter has also been up here, calling the Platz'l "a jewel". The red snowcat parked under the rock, patiently waiting for the next snowfall, is only a distant reminder of the mass tourism down in the valley. "Ischgl" is written on it, and the slogan continues: "Relax. If you can ...". We certainly don't find that difficult up here. Relaxing is something you can do excellently here. Thanks to Lois' Kaiserschmarrn and Hansjörg's new routes. A jewel, we'll sign that.
Now it's time to "screw up" the ledges again. Maria Wagner in the tricky exit moves on the smaller block next to the hut, on which easier training routes have also been set up using tricks. Photo: Simon Schöpf
Facts: eBike & climb Heidelberger Hütte or hut block
Approach: Best by e-bike from Ischgl through the beautiful Fimba Valley to the block right next to the Heidelberger Hütte (approx. 1h, on foot approx. 4h)
Topo: Route names marked, from 6c+ click here for the TOPO HÜTTENBLOCK HEIDELBERGER HÜTTE
Rock: Highly overhanging, very rough high mountain limestone of the best quality
Base: It's best to stay longer, take in the idyllic scenery and book a campsite with Lois from the Heidelberger Hütte, great food included: WEBSITE HEIDELBERGHER HÜTTE
