Martin-Busch-Hütte

The Martin-Busch-Hütte is an Alpine Club mountain hut in the Ötztal Alps of Tyrol, Austria, owned and operated by the Berlin Section of the Deutscher Alpenverein (German Alpine Club). It sits at 2,501 metres above sea level southwest of the village of Vent, in the Kreuzkamm range, below the Kreuzspitze at the head of the Niedertal valley. The building stands on an artificially terraced site near the confluence of the Niederjochbach and Schalfbach streams, which form the Niedertaler Ache. It is reached on foot from Vent in about three hours via a mountain track. The hut is named after Martin Busch, a pedagogue and long-serving club official who, after the Second World War, worked to administer Austrian huts of the German Alpine Club. Its predecessor was the Samoar-Hütte, built in 1877 and destroyed by an avalanche in 1961. That earlier hut was acquired in 1911 by the former Mark Brandenburg Section of the DuOeAV, but soon proved too small. In 1938 the section began building a new house, initially named the Hermann-Göring-Haus, using the Organisation Todt; the Second World War prevented completion of the interior. After 1945 the unfinished hut, then called the Neue Samoar-Hütte, was used by the Austrian customs service. The Österreichischer Alpenverein, under its chairman Martin Busch, managed the hut and completed the interior by 1952. In 1958 it was handed over to the Berlin Section as successor to the dissolved Mark Brandenburg Section. Two years earlier the German Alpine Club had agreed to name the hut after Martin Busch. The present building, completed in 1953, is a massive exposed-stone structure with struck mortar joints and a saddle roof. A masonry stairway with a lean-to roof is attached on the east side, and a terrace runs the full length of the southeast facade. The facades are divided by regular window axes with segmental-arched openings. Inside, the upper ground floor contains three guest rooms, the kitchen and ancillary rooms, with sleeping quarters on the upper floors. Together with the remains of the old Samoarhütte, the Martin-Busch-Hütte has been under heritage protection since 2021. In 2022 it was awarded the environmental seal of approval for Alpine Club huts. The hut serves as a base for mountaineering in the Ötztal Alps. Popular objectives include the Kreuzspitze (about 3 hours), Similaun (about 4 hours via the upper Niedertal or the Marzellkamm), Mutmalspitze (about 4 hours), Hintere Schwärze (about 4½ hours), Fineilspitze (about 4 hours), Saykogel (about 3 hours) and Hauslabkogel. It is also a stage point on hut-to-hut routes, with the Similaunhütte about 1½ hours away, the Ramolhaus about 4 to 5 hours, the Hochjochhospiz 4 to 5 hours depending on route, and the Hochwildehaus about 6 hours. Each year in early June South Tyrolean sheep are driven over the Niederjoch to the pastures of the Niedertal, and the return drive takes place in mid-September from a sheep pen directly beside the hut. The area around the hut carries significant natural hazards. In 2012 the east side of the Marzellkamm was recognised as unstable due to deep-seated mass movement and at risk of rockfall; in the area of the lower Marzellferner south of the hut there is a danger of rockfall and stonefall. A marked alternative path leading from the hut north directly onto the Marzellkamm and bypassing its east and southeast flanks was built in 2015/16. The route from Vent to the hut runs largely through the steep slopes of the Talleit- and Kreuzspitze, which rise more than 1,000 m above the valley; because of the east- to southeast-facing slopes and their extent, enormous avalanches are to be expected in spring from the late morning onwards. In April 2013 a group of British soldiers was buried there, with relatively minor consequences and one injured person. In April 2024, however, a group of 21 people was caught in a slab avalanche, which proved fatal for three ski tourers.

The Martin-Busch-Hütte traces its origins to the Samoar-Hütte, built in 1877 in the hinteren Niedertal valley of the Ötztal Alps. In 1911 the hut was acquired by the former Mark Brandenburg Section of the DuOeAV (German and Austrian Alpine Club), but it soon proved too small for the section's needs. In 1938 the section began construction of a new house on a nearby site, initially named the Hermann-Göring-Haus, with work carried out by the Organisation Todt. The Second World War prevented completion of the interior. After 1945 the still-unfinished building, now called the Neue Samoar-Hütte, was used by the Austrian customs service. During this period the Österreichischer Alpenverein, under its chairman Martin Busch, administered the hut and completed the interior by 1952. The building itself was completed in 1953 as a massive exposed-stone structure with a saddle roof, regular window axes and segmental-arched openings, three guest rooms on the upper ground floor, and sleeping quarters above. In 1956 the German Alpine Club agreed to name the hut after Martin Busch, who had worked after the war to administer Austrian huts of the DAV. In 1958 the hut was handed over to the Berlin Section as the successor to the dissolved Mark Brandenburg Section. The old Samoar-Hütte was destroyed by an avalanche in 1961; its remains still stand near the present hut. In 2021 the Martin-Busch-Hütte, together with the remains of the old Samoarhütte, was placed under heritage protection. In 2022 it was awarded the environmental seal of approval for Alpine Club huts. The hut continues to serve mountaineers and hikers, and is a stage point on routes to the Similaunhütte, Ramolhaus, Hochjochhospiz and Hochwildehaus. Natural hazards in the surrounding area have required adaptation: after the instability of the Marzellkamm's east side was recognised in 2012, a marked alternative path bypassing its east and southeast flanks was built in 2015/16. Avalanche incidents on the approach from Vent include one in April 2013 involving British soldiers and a fatal slab avalanche in April 2024 that killed three ski tourers.

• 2024

  Fatal slab avalanche on the approach from Vent kills three ski tourers.

• 2022

  Awarded the environmental seal of approval for Alpine Club huts.

• 2021

  Hut and remains of the old Samoarhütte placed under heritage protection.

• 2015

  Marked alternative path bypassing the Marzellkamm's east and southeast flanks built (2015/16).

• 2013

  Avalanche buries a group of British soldiers on the approach from Vent; one injured.

• 2012

  Instability and rockfall risk recognised on the east side of the Marzellkamm.

• 1961

  Old Samoar-Hütte destroyed by an avalanche.

• 1958

  Hut handed over to the Berlin Section as successor to the dissolved Mark Brandenburg Section.

• 1956

  German Alpine Club agrees to name the hut after Martin Busch.

• 1953

  Hut building completed as a massive exposed-stone structure.

• 1952

  Interior completion finished under the Österreichischer Alpenverein and Martin Busch.

• 1945

  Unfinished hut used by Austrian customs as the Neue Samoar-Hütte.

• 1938

  Construction of a new house begins, initially named Hermann-Göring-Haus, by the Organisation Todt.

• 1911

  Samoar-Hütte acquired by the former Mark Brandenburg Section of the DuOeAV.

• 1877

  Predecessor Samoar-Hütte built in the hinteren Niedertal.

A traditional, heritage-protected Alpine Club hut serving mountaineers and hikers in the Ötztal Alps, valued for its historic stone architecture and location on classic hut-to-hut routes.

• Mountain hut accommodation

  Overnight stays in sleeping quarters on the upper floors.

• Guest rooms and food service

  Three guest rooms on the upper ground floor, kitchen and ancillary rooms.

• Terrace

  A terrace running the full length of the southeast facade.

1. 1Wikidata: Martin-Busch-Hüttewikidata.org
2. 2Wikipedia (de): Martin-Busch-Hüttede.wikipedia.org
3. 3Hotel Vent: Martin-Busch-Hüttehotel-vent.at