The Bärenschützklamm gorge

Of rock faces, wooden ladders and voracious mice

Alpine Club chairman Gerhard Jantscher at the start of the Bärenschützklamm gorge(Bild: Hannes Wallner)

The Bärenschützklamm gorge in the Styrian Murtal valley is a natural jewel and is waiting to be reopened after an accident. The "Bergkrone" took a look at the work being carried out in the high alpine rocky terrain. 

Three people died in a tragic rockfall in the Bärenschützklamm gorge in July 2020 - since then, the well-known and popular natural beauty has been closed by the authorities. However, a lot has happened in Austria's longest water-bearing gorge - and it should soon be accessible again.

"The easiest thing would have been to close it, of course, but we see it as our responsibility to reopen the Bärenschützklamm to hikers," say Gerhard Jantscher and Sigi Wentner, the two chairmen of the Mixnitz section of the Alpine Club.

The planning phase alone took one and a half years before it was clear what was needed to make the 1.5 km long Styrian natural beauty, which has been a natural monument since 1978, accessible again.