The long and winding road…

That leads to Grossglockner!

Grossglocknerstrasse aka Grossglockner High Alpine Road, the longest and most splendid alpine highway in Europe, and one of the biggest tourist attractions on the continent, was where we drove along on our way from Innsbruck to Salzburg. The Grossglockner High Alpine Road actually leads into the Hohe Tauern National Park, and naturally to Grossglockner, the highest mountain in Austria.

Taking the high road

The road is closed from November to May and since it also leads into a national park, you do have to plan properly if you want to be able to enjoy the sights. We were lucky that they actually opened the road in April so we could make a detour there before arriving at Salzburg. There are restricted hours to drive along the road and we managed to arrive there in time to see some of the sights before we had to leave. We didn’t do any hiking trails as we were pressed for time, we did see some people cycling and wondered how on earth they will be able to leave by the stated time. It was still pretty cold when we were there, so camping also doesn’t really seem to be an option as one could easily freeze to death overnight I think.

One of the more memorable stops we made was at Edelweisspitze, the highest point on the Grossglockner High Alpine Road. Coaches are prohibited on the around 2km Edelweiss Road and actually even cars need to be parked at the car park and you have to make your way up by foot. We didn’t climb all the way cos I felt that it was too far and I was freezing. The scenery was beautiful though and it was a pity that we didn’t have enough time to complete the whole route.

Up in Edelweisspitze

After the adventure of Grossglockner, we arrived at Salzburg pretty late in the evening. We did manage to squeeze in time for a dinner at a beer garden, Augustiner Brau, which we took forever to find. This place has been serving beer since 1622 and given that a 5 litre mug option is available, you get an idea of how much beer one can drink here.

Holds up to 500 seats and lots more beer mugs

As it was pretty dark by the time we reached there, we weren’t sure if we had found the correct place, especially since the entrance was totally non-descript. Luckily a bunch of people spilled out from the door and it appeared we had reached the correct place. Once we got in, we had to walk down a couple of steps before entering what must be the largest indoor dining area I’ve ever seen. What was interesting was that you could actually bring your own food in and just buy the beer, otherwise there were also individual stalls (think something like our food courts), selling various types of food such as sausages, roast chicken, bread etc which you could buy and bring to your table. As for the beer, you could either do self-service, which is cheaper, or pay slightly more and have a waiter bring it over for you. We chose the self-service option, partly because we weren’t sure how to call for a waiter and it seemed like everyone was doing self-service. For self-service, you pay some lady at the counter and she will bring you a mug, after that you bring it over to a guy who will pour the beer straight out of the barrel for you. It was great fun and there were loads of locals just drinking their beer. I can’t remember the price now but it was cheap and the atmosphere was great. A pretty good way to end the day I must say.