The precinct
The Holiday Region Hohe Salve, the Brixental Valley, the St. Johann in Tirol region and the Pillerseetal Valley together form the Kitzbühel Alps umbrella brand. What they all have in common: countless mountain bike opportunities with over 1000 kilometres of designated cycle paths and bike trails. The region was one of the very first to fully embrace mountain biking. The infrastructure between Hopfgarten and Hochfilzen, between the Wilder Kaiser and the Hahnenkamm, which has grown healthily over two decades, is correspondingly professional. The absolute highlights and favourite destinations for ambitious bikers are the elaborately built trails, all of which can be reached by lift, such as the legendary Fleckalm Trail, the Lisi-Osl and Gaisberg Trail in Kirchberg - and brand new: the trails in the bike park called OD-Trails in Oberndorf. Info: kitzbueheler-alpen.com
Tour 1: Limestone circuit
- Length: 47.9 kilometres
- Uphill: 1094 metres in altitude
- Duration: 4.5 hours
- Difficulty: medium
Tour description
The tour to the magnificent Kalkstein Alm plateau is almost 50 kilometres long, but not boring for a minute. Starting in St. Johann, you follow the course of the Kitzbüheler Ache to the north and reach Kirchdorf in Tirol on the cycle path and shortly afterwards Erpfendorf. This is where the five-kilometre-long forest road ascent with 400 metres of altitude difference to the Huberalm begins. After the mandatory pit stop, you soon come to a triangle of paths. A forest road from Kirchdorf leads up from the right (this ascent is worthwhile for a shorter loop), but you keep left and cycle across the wide plateau of the Kalkstein Alm. Passing the panoramic Adlerspoint Alm, you reach the highest point of the tour shortly before the Gersberg Alm. Here you have to push from time to time, sometimes even carry for a short time. From the Winterstelleralm, you cycle steeply downhill past the Lindtalalm and down into the Pillerseetal valley. The rest is a leisurely roll home on low-traffic side roads and cycle paths to St. Johann.
Starting point: At Bomba Coffee in the centre of St. Johann or at the Hochfeld and Harschbichl valley stations.
Highlights: The long crossing of the Kalkstein Alm plateau, the refreshment stop at the Huberalm and Winterstelleralm and the view of the Pillersee during the descent to St. Ulrich.
Key points: At the top of the Kalkstein Alm, or more precisely below the Gerstberg, you have to push or carry your bike for a while.
Retreat: The Huberalm is like a little oasis during the long ascent to the Kalkstein. At the Winterstelleralm, before the final descent, it's easy to sink in. With a great view from the terrace.
Tour 2: Harschbichl tour
- Length: 20 kilometres
- Uphill: 946 metres in altitude
- Duration: 3 hours
- Difficulty: medium
Tour description
On this half-day tour, the motto is: first the work, then the pleasure! If you want to treat yourself to the north-facing descent down to St. Johann, you first have to crank up a good 900 metres in altitude to the Harschbichl summit station. You start by warming up along the Fieberbrunner Ache river. But the long, crisp ascent on the best forest trails begins at the airfield. Always in view: the Kitzbüheler Horn with its striking antenna. Once you reach the top of Harschbichl, you can see the other side again - the Wilder Kaiser. A forest road leads down to the middle station, past the Angerer Alm to the start of the Harschbichl Trail. Built in 2017, this single trail offers 4.2 kilometres of downhill fun. 145 hairpin bends were cut here in 420 metres of depth. Berms, eleven Northshore elements and a few bridges provide the best entertainment. At the end, the trail runs past the Skill Area and the valley station of the Hochfeld I lift. You then roll back to St. Johann on easy tarmac.
Starting point: Start off at Bomba Coffee in the old town of St. Johann with a Hallo-wach espresso of the finest quality. Alternatively at the car parks of the Hochfeld I or Harschbichl I valley stations.
Highlights: The scenic curves up to Harschbichl, the new flow trail with its 145 bends and eleven Northshore elements, the finale in the small skill area.
Key points: The jumps along the trail are easy to ride over, but the Northshore elements on the flow trail between the middle and valley stations require a little courage.
Retreat: During the tour you pass several refreshment stops: the Harschbichl summit station, the Gasthof Angereralm just above the middle station and various shops and restaurants in St. Johann.
Tour 3: KitzAlps Enduro
- Length: 74.9 kilometres
- Uphill: 794 metres in altitude
- Downhill: 3972 metres in depth
- Difficulty: difficult
Tour description
Six cable cars are used on this giant tour through the Kitzbühel Alps, and yet you still fall into bed dead tired in the evening. That's why it's best to start early in the morning so that you don't have to rush along the way and can enjoy the many metres of downhill. After a pleasant roll-in phase, you head straight for the Hahnenkamm. The legendary Fleckalm trail from the Ehrenbachhöhe down to Kirchberg is already waiting here. A valley scooter takes you over to the Gaisberg lift, which you use twice to ride down the Lisi-Osl and Gaisberg trails. The only serious counter-climb lurks after the next cable car ride to Hochbrixen. 200 metres in altitude, which is worth it because you climb up to the start of the new Sun Trail. Afterwards, the cable car in Klausen zips up to the Ehrenbachhöhe, where the descent on the Hahnenkamm Trail is of course still to come. Theoretically, you could just let the day wind down on the way from Kitzbühel back to Oberndorf. But the real final highlight is when you take the drag lift in Oberndorf to the four newly built OD trails.
Starting point: Car park at the OD trails at the Tauwiesen lift in Oberndorf in Tirol. Intersport Patrick also has a bike shop and hire shop here.
Highlights: Fleckalm Trail, Lisi-Osl Trail, Gaisberg Trail, Sun Trail, Hahnenkamm Trail, OD Trails - bundled into this enduro marathon, yet another completely new experience
Key points: There are a few challenges built into every trail. But not without warnings and chickenways around them.
Retreat: The Berggasthof Nieding before the ascent to the Sun Trail; delicious cake: Café Burgstall in the centre of Kirchberg.
GPS data Kitzbühel MTB area
As a BIKE subscriber, you can download the GPS data for the 3 tours free of charge at bike-magazin.de, "My area".
Journey
The Kitzbühel Alps are conveniently located for bikers from the south of Germany. From Munich, you can speed along the A8 and A12 motorways to Kufstein and past the Wilder Kaiser to St. Johann in Tirol (125 km / 1:37 h from Munich).
A more environmentally friendly option is to take the train: from Munich by EC to Wörgl and continue by IC to St. Johann in Tirol (journey time approx. 2 hours, price 25.90 euros one way).
Overnight stay
In St. Johann and Oberndorf there are all kinds of accommodation options. From the family-run campsite at Michelnhof (camping-michelnhof.at), via the modern Cubo Sport & Art Hotel in St. Johann (www.hotelcubo.at), to the four-star Hotel Penzinghof with bathing lake (penzinghof.at)
Bike shops
Intersport Patrick is the triple competence in mountain biking in St. Johann - right in the centre, in Eichenhof in the east of the market town and directly on the new OD trails in Oberndorf. intersport-patrick.at
Bike time in St. Johann: Stephan Mattersberger is another professional mechanic at work. bikezeit.at
Bike Garage Plus: very stylish, cool shop in Erpfendorf offers bikes, bike fitting, repairs and the best coffee. bikegarageplus.at
Guided tours / camps
The Bike Academy Kitzbühel Alps (bikeacademy.com) was the first mountain bike school in the Alps in 1999. Its boss, Kurt Exenberger, is still passionate about what he does even after 25 years. As a bike guide and qualified cycling coach, he offers riding technique courses as well as camps and events - for kids as well as (re)beginners and pros who want to get the last bit out of themselves. Together with the Bike Academy's professional team, he leads daily tours in the Kitzbühel Alps throughout the summer.
The BIKE Report: Summer on the Streif
Hahnenkamm. This mountain is such a bore. No north face like the Eiger. Not a weather kitchen like the Cerro Torre in Patagonia. At 1712 metres, it's also more of a molehill. And yet everyone knows it. Thanks to the Streif. The Hahnenkamm race made Kitzbühel the most legendary sports town in the Alps. Legends were born on the Streif. And "buried". Everyone was scared stiff of it. Even Olympic champion Markus Wasmeier. "You set off and immediately accelerate to 100 kilometres per hour in the first 20 to 30 metres," says the man from Schliersee, describing the steepest start in the Ski World Cup.
And this is exactly where I stand. And looking into the abyss. But it's the height of summer. Instead of bare ice, it's a meadow of flowers. Instead of 40,000 swaying board fans, there are only two of us here at the start house: guide Kurt and me. And he starts thinking a little: "In 2002, 'Wasi' had it in his head to ride down the Streif on his bike. I was there." And how did it end? Kurt doesn't let that slip. Just this much: "He sat well on his bike!" That's how they are, the Tyroleans. "When we built the Hahnenkamm Trail in 2018 and 2019, it was important to us that it had easier key sections and playful elements. It should be suitable for families," says Kurt and laughs a Tyrolean smile that comes from the bottom of his heart. Family-friendly, I'm reassured at first. But just a few metres down after the mountain station, it becomes clear: as boring as the Hahnenkamm may be as a mountain, its trails are just as much fun. Built narrow trails with steep bends, wooden bridges, camel humps and nice natural sections in between - great! After 850 vertical metres, the Hahnenkamm downhill dream ends far too quickly, almost directly in the pedestrian zone of Kitzbühel.
Between Prada, Rolex and Hansi Hinterseer CDs. Streif, private helicopter, high society: Kitzbühel floats in a cosmos of its own. Even in summer, the village of 8,000 souls cooks up its own little tourist soup. Without the neighbours. So are they left out in the cold? On the contrary! The area around St. Johann, Brixental Valley, Hohe Salve and Pillerseetal benefit from Kitzbühel's PR bow wave - but are left to their own devices in terms of tourism under the umbrella brand "Kitzbühel Alps". And they are extremely successful. Thanks to the bike boom. It was 1999: Clinton almost tripped over Lewinsky, Putin became president - and a 23-year-old from Oberndorf called Kurt Exenberger started the Kitzbühel Alps Bike Academy. The first mountain bike school in the Alps. 25 years later, Kurt is more bike-crazy than ever. He may be one of the oldest hands in the bike business, but he is still bursting with passion for anything with two wide knobbly tyres. The qualified cycling coach and bike guide offers riding technique courses for U10 kids as well as for divas (the ladies' courses used to be called Divas Bike Camps here) and over-50s best-agers. He is particularly fond of enduro. And kids.
Biking is a great sport for children. You can perfectly combine riding technique and endurance with playful forms of training. - Kurt Exenberger, Bike Academy Kitzbühel Alps
He himself has two boys. Lukas is thirteen and Lenny is ten. "They each have an enduro bike. The big one in 29 inches, the little one in 26 inches." The boys and their old man use them to plough down the trails in the local Kitzbühel Alps. "The only thing they're not so keen on is going uphill." For the Exenberger Juniors - and more and more out-of-town bikers who have recognised the advantages of the Kitzbühel Alps - there is a lot to experience: no fewer than 14 mountains with 29 summer mountain railways and several kilometres of legal trails. I get to know the best ones on my Kitz weekend. The Kitzbühel Alps Trail Card makes it possible. Once purchased, it's a free ticket for eight lifts and eight great trails in the region. The best thing here? The perfectly developed bike infrastructure. Fans of motorised cycling will be delighted to be out and about in the world's largest e-bike region. "Organic bikers are also allowed to ride everywhere," says Kurt and laughs. There is a lift that takes bikers and bikes almost everywhere. "My home base is absolutely brilliant for enduro riders." He says, and heads straight for the next lift: the Fleckalm lift.
Fleckalm, what was that? Exactly, the Fleckalm trail, the living legend among the Kitz trails. At over seven kilometres long, this enduro monster is one of the longest single trails in Austria. In 2015, these 1100 metres in depth were the centrepiece of the first European Mountain Bike Enduro Championships. However, blood, sweat and tears have not been on the trail for a long time. Today, the Fleckalm Trail belongs to the illustrious club of "Great Trails", as the Tyrolean top trails like to call them. Roots, jumps, the finest berms, high speed, even a short counter-climb to loosen up the battered holding muscles - this seemingly endless descent is the quintessence of enduro sport. "The length of the trail is what makes it so exciting. It takes a lot of concentration and fitness to ride it cleanly and quickly to the end," says Lisi Osl, the 2009 overall World Cup winner in cross country. Lisi comes from Kirchberg - and has her own signature trail right on her doorstep. And that's what we're going to look at next. What Wasi is to skiing fans and Hansi Hinterseer is to Schlager fans, Lisi Osl is to Tyrolean cross-country fans: a living legend. The Kirchbergers were so proud of their CC rocket in 2009 that they had the Lisi Osl Trail built for her by Kurt & Co.
The trail starts at the mountain station of the Gaisberg cable car. The trail is mostly natural, quite steep and, thanks to the many tight hairpin bends, stones, roots and steps, doesn't leave you a quiet second to take a deep breath and watch TV. Endurists will find the LOT fresh, beginners (over)challenging. Only in the lower part of the 450 metres downhill does the trail flow smoothly towards the valley station. Up again? Sure! Lisi again? Or would you prefer to check out the parallel meandering Gaisberg trail? All right. This is particularly suitable for the full-face faction. The Austrian downhill champions were crowned here in 2014. At just 2.3 kilometres in length, this line swallows up 450 metres in depth. Roots, kickers, drops, edges, rocks, Northshores - the obstacles are built up every metre. Downhillers love the Gaisberg trail, while occasional trail fans are better off concentrating on the chickenway bypasses down to Kirchberg.
And the wild ride through the Kitzbühel Alps continues: now to Oberndorf, the home town of Kurt Exenberger and the brand new Sun Trail, which its builder is particularly proud of. The Oberndorf trails are a small bike park with a drag lift and also go by the name of OD trails. Four trails wind their way down into the valley and a black uphill trail up the mountain. Kurt's riding technique courses and the Kitz camps also take place here. At the Future Bike Festival in September, the Kurts choose their Austrian youth downhill champions here. Some of them are sure to have their trousers full at the start. Just like the downhill racers on the Streif. Speaking of the Streif. And speaking of Hansi Hinterseer CDs: Kitzbühel and Hansi Hinterseer belong together like Boney and M. Every Austria-affine swaying fan knows the Schlager beau with the blond lion's mane and the snow-white ski suit. His Tyrolean songs are called "Hörst du die Berge" and "Beim Alpenglühn und Edelweiß". "I'm not a fan of his music," admits Kurt. "But he's a really likeable guy." The two know each other from skiing. They are practically neighbours. Hansi is from Kitzbühel, Kurt from Oberndorf. "I met him once up on the Hahnenkamm. He was on a hike with an incredible number of fans. As a joke, I said: 'Why don't you do that with mountain bikes? Hansi replied: 'Sure, if you organise 10,000 rental bikes for me.
