Location: |
Donnersbach.
The trail starts at Gasthof Leitner, 500 m to the gorge. The road to Donnersbach Au goes directly to the entrance of the gorge, but there is no parking lot. (47.461935, 14.122980) |
Open: |
MAY to OCT no restrictions. On the trail of the lumberjacks: Mid-MAY to mid-OCT Thu 9:30. [2012] |
Fee: |
free. On the trail of the lumberjacks: Adults EUR 3, Children EUR 1.50, Sommercard free. [2022] |
Classification: | Gorge |
Light: | n/a |
Dimension: | |
Guided tours: |
self guided On the trail of the lumberjacks: D=2.5 h, Min=4. |
Photography: | Allowed. |
Accessibility: | steep wooden staircases with uneven steps |
Bibliography: | |
Address: |
Donnersbachklamm, Gasthaus Leitner, 8953 Donnersbach, Tel: +43-3683-2267.
Tourismusverband Bergregion Grimming, Irdning 220, 8952 Irdning, Tel: +43-3683-23999. |
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info. |
1936 | Triftweg opened for the public. |
1961 | last wood transported down the gorge. |
1962 | fork for collecting the beams at the lower end removed. |
1982 | trails restored. |
1991 | declared a Natural Monument. |
The Donnersbachklamm is a gorge located near the town Donnersbach. The German name of the town may be translated thundering brook, which is a good hint for the gorge with its white water stream.
The valley is V-shaped and was used for the Trift of wood, Trift is a german term which might be translated drove and means the transport of wood with the help of water. The trees were cut in the forested valleys around the town and transported to the streams. Sometimes the water was dammed and when the dams were released the flood transported the wood down the valley. Here the Trift was carried out during high water levels in spring, when huge amounts of melting water were flowing down the gorge.
During the Trift the beams often got stuck between rocks, and so it was necessary to oversee the transport and untangle blockages. For this purpose a wooden trail was built through the narrow part of the gorge. It was secured with railings and opened to the public in 1936, while the Trifts were still going on. The trifts ended in 1961.
The gorge is free and there are no open hours, but it is cosed during winter and bad weather because the visit is too dangerous. The entrance to the gorge is on the road from Donnersbach to Donnersbach Au, but there is no possiblity to park at the narrow road. The trail and the guided tours start at the Gasthof Leitner where you can park your car. Siegfried Leitner, the landlord, is caretaker of the gorge since the trails were renovated in 1982. There are guided tours through the gorge called on the trail of the lumberjacks guided Siegfried Leitner. He explains the geology, history and nature of the gorge. To participate you have to register until noon on Wednesday at the tourist office, the tour is on Thursday morning.
The gorge was formed by the enormous amounts of melting water created by the melting Glaciers at the end of the last Ice Age, about 12,000 years ago. The rocks are quartz phyllites, which are rather soft, so the erosion was extremely fast, at least for a geologic process. The area belongs to the Niedere Tauern mountain range which is part of the crystalline central Alps.