Winnebachseehütte

The Winnebachseehütte is a mountain hut (Schutzhütte) of the Sektion Hof of the Deutscher Alpenverein (German Alpine Club), situated at 2,362 metres above sea level beside the Winnebachsee, north above Gries im Sulztal in the Stubaier Alpen (Stubai Alps) of Tyrol, Austria. It serves as a base for hikers and mountaineers traversing the Stubai Alps, offering accommodation and food in a high-alpine setting. The hut is reached on foot from Gries im Sulztal (1,572 m) in about two hours, or from Winnebach (1,691 m) in roughly one and three-quarter hours; a hiking bus runs to Gries im Sulztal. A material cable car from the Winnebachhof allows luggage transport. The hut was built in 1901 by the Sektion Frankfurt/Oder of the Deutscher und Österreichischer Alpenverein. After the Second World War, when the German Alpine Club was banned in the Soviet occupation zone, the hut stood empty and fell into disrepair. It was handed over by the occupying powers to the Österreichischer Alpenverein (Austrian Alpine Club), which on 1 January 1955 transferred it to the Sektion Hof of the DAV, which at the time had no hut of its own. Extensions followed in 1960, 1983 and 1986, and a further conversion with an enlargement on the south side was carried out in 2015. Although the Sektion Frankfurt/Oder of the DAV was re-founded in April 1992, a return of the Winnebachsee hut to that section is not planned. As a Schutzhütte, the Winnebachseehütte is part of the network of alpine club huts that provide shelter, meals and overnight accommodation for visitors in the mountains. It is a starting point for numerous summit tours in the surrounding Stubai Alps, including the Ernst-Riml-Spitz (2,507 m, about half an hour), the Gänsekragen (2,914 m, about one and a half hours), the Winnebacher Weißkogel (3,182 m, about three and a half hours), the Breiter Grießkogel (3,287 m, three and a half to four hours, usually requiring ice axe and crampons), the Hoher Seeblaskogel (3,225 m), the Bachfallenkopf (3,176 m), the Vordere Winnebachspitze (3,006 m) via the Putzenkarscharte and Säuischbachferner, and the Strahlkogel (3,288 m, about five hours, requiring alpine experience and very difficult climbing). It also serves as a stage point on multi-day traverses to neighbouring huts such as the Schweinfurter Hütte, Westfalenhaus, Amberger Hütte and Pforzheimer Hütte via various passes and cols. The hut is operated by the Sektion Hof of the Deutscher Alpenverein, a non-profit mountaineering association section, and is therefore not a commercial hotel but a club-run alpine refuge. Its official information is published through the DAV Hof section website. The Winnebachseehütte remains an active and well-known refuge in the Stubai Alps, documented in alpine guidebooks such as Walter Klier's Alpenvereinsführer Stubaier Alpen and on the Alpenvereinskarte sheet 31/2.

The Winnebachseehütte was built in 1901 by the Sektion Frankfurt/Oder of the Deutscher und Österreichischer Alpenverein (German and Austrian Alpine Club). It stands at 2,362 metres above sea level by the Winnebachsee, north above Gries im Sulztal in the Stubaier Alpen. After the Second World War, the German Alpine Club was banned in the Soviet occupation zone, and the hut stood empty and fell into disrepair. The occupying powers handed it over to the Österreichischer Alpenverein (Austrian Alpine Club). On 1 January 1955, the Austrian Alpine Club transferred the hut to the Sektion Hof of the Deutscher Alpenverein (DAV), which at that time had no hut of its own. Extensions were carried out in 1960, 1983 and 1986. A material cable car with the possibility of luggage transport from the Winnebachhof is available. A further conversion with an enlargement on the south side took place in 2015. The Sektion Frankfurt/Oder of the DAV was re-founded in April 1992; however, a return of the hut at the Winnebachsee to that section is not planned. The hut remains in the ownership and operation of the Sektion Hof of the DAV and continues to serve as an active alpine refuge in the Stubai Alps.

• 2015

  A further conversion with an enlargement on the south side takes place.

• 1992

  The Sektion Frankfurt/Oder of the DAV is re-founded in April; no return of the hut is planned.

• 1986

  Another extension of the hut is carried out.

• 1983

  A further extension of the hut is carried out.

• 1960

  An extension of the hut is carried out.

• 1955

  On 1 January, the Österreichischer Alpenverein transfers the hut to the Sektion Hof of the Deutscher Alpenverein.

• 1901

  The hut is built by the Sektion Frankfurt/Oder of the Deutscher und Österreichischer Alpenverein.

A traditional alpine club refuge (Schutzhütte) in the Stubai Alps, operated by the Hof section of the German Alpine Club for hikers and mountaineers.

• Mountain hut accommodation and meals

  The hut provides shelter, food and overnight accommodation for hikers and mountaineers in the Stubai Alps.

• Material cable car

  A material cable car with the possibility of luggage transport from the Winnebachhof is available.

1. 1Winnebachseehütte – Wikidatawikidata.org
2. 2Winnebachseehütte – Wikipedia (German)de.wikipedia.org
3. 3DAV Hof – Winnebachseehüttedav-hof.de