If you know me, you know that I hate picking favorites. However, Schrecksee is without doubt one of the most beautiful lakes in Germany! What makes it so special for me is the fact that it can only be accessed after a solid three to four hours of hiking. This makes it largely unknown to the masses and ensures a pure alpine experience right from the get-go!
In this blogpost, I spill everything you need to know to hike up Schrecksee and enjoy the beauty of this alpine wonder in the heart of Allgäu all by yourself!
Contents
- Why Schrecksee?
- Getting to Schrecksee
- Public Transportation
- Car/Motorbike
- Hike to Schrecksee
- Best time to visit Schrecksee
- Things to know about Schrecksee
- Costs
- Ready, Set, Go!
Why Schrecksee?
Schrecksee in German literally translates to ‘Fear Lake’ and is the highest alpine lake in Germany. Although it is called ‘Schrecksee’ and is also coincidentally the highest lake in Germany, there is nothing to be scared of! The name is solely because the water nears subzero temperatures all year around and swimming in this lake could be a terrifying experience. As long as you stay away from jumping right in (unless swimming in freezing cold water is your jam! In that case, go ahead), you should be absolutely fine!
Moreover, Schrecksee is also one of the most picturesque lakes that I have ever been to! Set in an idyllic alpine environment, this lake with a tiny island in the middle looks like a painting that I would gladly hang on my walls. There are no cable cars or secret short cuts that will lift you to the top. So, if you are looking for a true alpine experience with breathtaking views, this trail is your best bet!
Getting to Schrecksee
This hike is a little long to be done as a day trip from Munich using public transportation. A better alternative would be to start from either Kempten or even Oberstdorf! However, as Munich is the biggest city in the area, this section will feature directions from Munich.
By Public Transportation to Schrecksee from Munich
Getting to the starting point of this hike from Munich takes just short of four hours! It is therefore quite long and time consuming to do this as a day trip from Munich. However, if you decide to do so anyway, the route is as follows,
Munich – Sonthofen – Bad Hindelang – Hinterstein
Sonthofen is on the way to Oberstdorf. Thus, to reach Sonthofen, you will have to take a train that goes to Oberstdorf. Depending on your time of departure from Munich, you will either take a direct train to Oberstdorf or Bayerische Regiobahn (BRB) to Füssen, switch at Kaufbeuren and continue in a regional train (RE) to Oberstdorf. In both cases, make sure that you alight at Sonthofen!
Once you have reached Sonthofen, proceed to the bus stop right outside the train station and take bus number 48 to ‘Bad Hindelang’, alight there and continue your journey to Hinterstein with bus number 49. More information regarding the train and bus schedules can be found here (The departure and arrival stations must be mentioned as ‘München Hbf’ and ‘Hinterstein Grüner Hut, Bad Hindelang’ respectively).
If you are in luck you will be able catch another bus called ‘Gibelhausbus’ (or line 50) that runs between Hinterstein and Giebelhaus. The hike to Schrecksee begins at the bus stop called ‘Auele, Bad Hindelang’. The timetable of this busline is linked here.
However, if you miss it (like I did), you can walk to the beginning of the hike by navigating to this location!
By Car to Schrecksee from Munich
If you would rather drive, put this GPS co-ordinates in your navigation device and you are good to go! The co-ordinates correspond to a paid parking lot close to the starting point of the hike. The drive time from Munich to this location is just under two hours.
The hike begins at Auele Kraftwerkhaus (Auele Power Plant Station). However, since there are no parking spots close to the power plant station, you will have to walk to the starting point of the hike. If you are in luck, you might be able to catch the bus to Gibelhaus and alight at the power plant mentioned in the earlier section. The timetable of this busline is linked here.
Hike to Schrecksee
Trailhead: Link
This hike is signposted using tiny white boards. The hiking trail is steep in the beginning, slowly leading to a meadow which is a good spot for a quick stretch and some snacks. Shortly after, the trail transitions into steep rocky terrain. After a series of steep serpentines, a glimpse of Schrecksee will finally be revealed after approximately three hours of hiking at a moderate pace.
The ascent takes approximately three hours with an altitude difference of 1000 metres. Depending on your fitness level, the entire hike (i.e., ascent and descent) with photo stops can take anywhere between seven to eight hours!
Although a dip in the lake is possible at this point, the lake is well known for its subzero temperature. Bear that in mind before jumping in!
If you are new to the world of hiking, I highly recommend reading my beginner’s guide to alpine hiking before starting your hiking journey. If you are looking for some useful tips and tricks regarding hiking equipment, feel free to glance through this blogpost for an another insightful overview!
Best Time to Visit Schrecksee
As the trail is quite narrow and exposed in some regions, I would advise against visiting Schrecksee during the winter months or even after heavy rainfall! Moreover, the trail is not maintained during winter. Therefore, unless you are an experienced mountain hiker used to the alpine hiking conditions in winter, hiking Schrecksee during this time is a strict no no! In addition to this, the lake freezes pretty fast and the best thing about this hike is the view towards Schrecksee. With a frozen lake, the view will be completely different. Thus, my chosen seasons to visit Schrecksee would be either late spring or summer. A sunny autumn day would also work in a pinch!
Things to Know About Schrecksee
- The hiking trails in Germany normally would have some kind of alpine huts along the way. However, the trail to Schrecksee is devoid of any huts. Do not forget to carry your own snacks and food to consume during the hike!
- The trail to Schrecksee from Auele Kraftwerkhaus is quite steep and stays that way till you reach the lake. It is a wise choice to carry hiking poles to protect your knees during the descent! With the right posture, they can also help you tremendously by distributing the weight evenly across your four limbs during the ascent.
- The Gibelhaus bus shortens the hike by about 10 kms! Therefore, if you want to save some energy, wait for the bus.
- Schrecksee belongs to ‘Naturschutzgebiet Allgäuer Hochalpen’ (Allgaeu High Alps Nature Reserve). Free camping, campfires, paragliding, and drones are strictly prohibited here!
- If you want to continue hiking, there are several hiking trails from Schrecksee. One such trail leads to Vilsalpsee in Austria via the smaller lakes Traualpsee and Lache. Another one is a round trip option via Rauhhorn with stunning views of Schrecksee from above. I highly recommend both of these if you have the time and energy!
Costs
Transportation
If you are traveling from Munich with a group of friends, I would highly recommend purchasing the Bayern ticket! Bayern Ticket is a day ticket that lets you travel all around Bavaria in regional trains. This Ticket costs 25 EUR for one person and 7 EUR for every additional person (upto 5 people). i.e.,
- If you are traveling alone, you would pay 25 EUR
- If you are traveling with a friend, you would pay 25 + 7 = 32 EUR (for 2 people, 16 EUR per person)
The bus from Bad Hindelang to Hinterstein and from Hinterstein to Auele Kraftwerkhaus is not included in the Bayern ticket. The bus tickets costs 4.60 EUR per person.
Food
Since there are no huts on the way, food is completely up to you! If you need some insight regarding the kind of snacks to buy, the ‘smart snacks’ section of this blogpost should give you a fair idea. I would estimate the food costs for two people from a decent supermarket would be around 10 EUR.
Ready, Set, Go!
Schrecksee is a beauty to behold. The turquoise green water and the charming island in the middle of the lake is bound to swoon you! Although getting here is a true alpine experience, I highly recommend adding this lake to your summer hiking itinerary!
Before you embark on your hiking adventure, I suggest skimming through my mountain hiking guide for an unparalleled overview on alpine hiking. All the necessary equipment required to hike in the Alps is listed in this blog post.
If you are looking for another hiking experience, I cannot recommend the following hikes enough:
Have any questions about traveling to Schrecksee? Leave them in the comments below!
Most of the photos featured in this blog are taken by my friend, @doyouflash
