Richterhütte

Richterhütte is a mountain refuge (Schutzhütte) in the Zillertal Alps, located at 2,374 metres above sea level at the end of the Rainbachtal valley, a side valley of the upper Krimmler Achental in the Salzburg region of Austria. It lies on the northern slope of the Rainbachspitze (3,129 m) within the Reichenspitzgruppe, inside the core zone of the Hohe Tauern National Park. The nearest valley settlement is Krimml in the Pinzgau. The hut is owned and maintained by the Sektion Bergfreunde Rheydt of the Deutscher Alpenverein (DAV), the German Alpine Club. The hut is a classic alpine self-service and serviced refuge, offering overnight accommodation and meals to hikers and mountaineers. It has 51 sleeping places spread over the first and second floors, including 12 in twin rooms, 4 in a shared room, and 35 in mattress camps. Facilities include two guest rooms, a kitchen, a heated drying room, washbasins with cold running water on each floor, and several WCs. A separate winter room with cooking and heating facilities is available. The hut is typically open from mid-June to mid-September, depending on weather and snow conditions. It is a popular destination for family hikes, reachable in about 2.5 hours from the Krimmler Tauernhaus via the Rainbachtal, and also serves as a base for more demanding alpine tours in the Reichenspitzgruppe. The current building is the third on the site. The first hut, built by textile manufacturer Anton Franz Richter, was destroyed by an avalanche in 1896 before completion. A second hut was opened on 12 August 1897 as the Richter-Hütte. After storm damage during World War I, Richard Richter rebuilt the hut, and the third building opened in 1928. In 1946 the Richter family handed the hut to the Bergfreunde Rheydt section. The hut was extended in 1970 and extensively renovated in 2019 with EU and Austrian government support, including a new 27 kW hydroelectric plant, modern sanitary facilities, a professional kitchen, and a renewed material cable car. The hut remains a beloved destination, though as of the official website it is currently closed for the season, with reservations for the 2027 season accepted from mid-October.

The Richterhütte is the third building on its site, with a history dating back to the late 19th century. In the course of opening up the Krimmler Hochalpen, which had been part of the working area of the Warnsdorf section of the Deutscher und Österreichischer Alpenverein (DuOeAV) since 1887, a connection from the Krimmler Achental to the Zillergrund and Wildgerlostal was planned, but financial constraints delayed the project. Anton Franz Richter (1848–1905), a textile manufacturer from Niedergrund near Warnsdorf and second chairman of the section, financed a fixed cart track from the Krimmler Tauernhaus to the end of the Rainbachtal at his own expense, where he planned a hut below the Reichenspitze (3,303 m) at about 2,700 m. In spring 1896 an avalanche destroyed the shell of the building completed the previous year. Richter immediately began building a new hut 300 metres down the valley on a more suitable site, which was ceremonially opened a year later, on 12 August 1897, as the Richter-Hütte with Bengal lighting of the mountains. The two huts of the Warnsdorf section brought wealthy Upper Lusatian and North Bohemian businessmen to Krimml. The shoemaker Johann Unterwurzbacher and his wife Maria looked after both the Richter-Hütte and the Warnsdorfer Hütte and 68 kilometres of section paths. The hut remained in the private ownership of the Richter family, but members of the DuOeAV were granted the same privileges as on alpine club huts. Richard Richter continued to manage the hut in the spirit of his father Anton. During World War I a hurricane-like storm caused great damage, destroying all outbuildings, but by 1928 Richard Richter had rebuilt his hut. His son Walter came to Krimml in 1946 as a displaced person with his family and moved into the Villa Maria, his grandfather's summer residence. He left the hut to the Bergfreunde Rheydt from the Lower Rhine. Just as construction had begun in 1895, the second building of 1897 was erected following the model of the Warnsdorfer Hütte. The stone ground floor and wooden upper structure were, however, more generously dimensioned and carefully executed. The interior was equally generous, including a bowling alley lined with velvet that Richter had added. 30 beds in 12 chambers and additional bunk beds were available in the main house after the utility rooms were moved to a separate building in 1903, which was later connected to the main house. A small power plant down at the Ache supplied electrical energy. The 1928 building was no longer quite so lavishly equipped. The Sektion Bergfreunde Rheydt of the Deutscher Alpenverein (DAV) extended the Richterhütte in 1970 to its present form. Around August 2015 the water intake—for drinking water and a small power plant—was destroyed by a debris flow during rain, along with its foundation. The cause is thought to be increased thawing of permafrost that summer. The small power plant was repaired and drinking water was captured (as of 11 September 2015). The tenant family Burgi (who had spent every summer at the hut since 1977) and Armin Bachmaier terminated their lease at the end of 2015; their successors from 2016 were Martin Falkner and Julia Stauder. In summer 2019, with support from the European Union and funding from the Republic of Austria, extensive renovation and modernisation measures were carried out, while the original character and exterior appearance of the main building were retained. Since then the hut has modern sanitary facilities on the ground floor, a professionally equipped kitchen, and a new hydroelectric plant with an output of up to 27 kW, which supplies sufficient electricity for hut operations including electric heating of the sanitary rooms, the new drying/shoe room, and the two guest rooms. The material cable car was also renewed. The mountain station was rebuilt and partly given new walls and a new roof. The separate winter room building was renovated, including a new entrance area. Finally, new windows were installed and the roof renewed, with dormers added.

• 2019

  Extensive renovation and modernisation with EU and Austrian government support, including a new 27 kW hydroelectric plant.

• 2016

  Martin Falkner and Julia Stauder become the new tenants.

• 2015

  A debris flow destroys the water intake; the tenant family Burgi and Armin Bachmaier terminate their lease.

• 1977

  The Burgi family begins managing the hut each summer.

• 1970

  The hut is extended by the Bergfreunde Rheydt section to its present form.

• 1946

  Walter Richter hands the hut to the Sektion Bergfreunde Rheydt of the DAV.

• 1928

  The third and current hut building is opened by Richard Richter after storm damage during World War I.

• 1903

  Utility rooms are moved to a separate building, later connected to the main house.

• 1897

  The second Richter-Hütte is ceremonially opened on 12 August.

• 1896

  An avalanche destroys the nearly completed first hut.

• 1895

  Construction of the first Richter hut begins below the Reichenspitze.

A traditional, remote alpine club hut in a national park setting, offering simple but renovated accommodation for hikers and mountaineers.

• Overnight accommodation (51 beds)

• Meals and drinks

• Winter room

• Drying room

1. 1Richterhütte official websiterichterhuette.com
2. 2Richterhütte - Wikipedia (German)de.wikipedia.org
3. 3Richterhütte - Wikidatawikidata.org