Ciclovia Alpe-Adria 3.cycle section: Bad Gastein / Mallnitz-Spittal. d. Drau

Spittal an der Drau

The starting point of this tour is either Bad Gastein or Mallnitz. This depends on which side of the railway tunnel you decide to spend the night. The Tauernschleuse motorail service runs hourly from Böckstein to points south, with the first train at 6:20 a.m., the last at 10:20 p.m. On busy weekends, trains run every 30 minutes. Ticket prices are listed separately on this website.

 

Bad Gastein to Tauernschleuse Böckstein: From the Tourist Information office on the Mozartplatz Square we ride uphill on the Karl-Heinich-Waggerl-Straße and so conquer the last altitude climb in Bad Gastein. At the Local Council building (Gemeindeamt) we ride straight on until the Waggerl-Straße leads into the main state road. We then follow this for 800 metres, after which we turn right into the Hirschaustraße. Just before the bridge over the Gasteiner Ache, we bear left onto the cycle path which continues for 2km to Böckstein. Here, we turn right into the main state road and cycle the last kilometre slightly uphill on the access road to the Tauernschleuse (sluice).

 

Continuation of our journey in Carinthia: From Mallnitz, a popular winter and summer tourism destination at 1,200 m above sea level, located in the heart of Hohe Tauern National Park, we have three options for the continuation of our tour: The first option takes us 8 km downhill along the B 105 (Mallnitzer Strasse) to Obervellach, a spa community located at 686 m elevation. We have to drop around 500 vertical meters, the road is well maintained, paved and traffic is not too heavy. Just make sure your brakes are working well!

As a second variant, experienced cyclists may wish to tackle an exceptionally scenic route through Dösental valley. Setting out from Mallnitz, just beyond the railway station we make a left in the direction of Dösental. Following the main village road, we encounter a brief climb up to Gasthof Siegelbrunn, which shouldn’t be any kind of problem for experienced bikers, though if you need to, you can always get off and push for a few meters. At the inn, the path branches off to the right, and remains paved as far as the last farm, followed by a short stage (ca. 500 m) on a dirt lane, where you should exercise caution. But even this section is easy for experienced cyclists. We then come to the Dösenbach stream, which in turn brings us to the "Alte Bahntrasse" (former railway line), and follows this, accompanied by wonderful views of Mölltal valley, to the former Kaponig railway station. Here we turn right, and ride down through a series of occasionally steep hairpin bends to the B 105, which we reach about 1 km outside of Obervellach.

The third variant is perhaps a better option for less experienced cyclists. By taking the train to Spittal an der Drau, you “save” yourself a stage, or you might wish to take a day trip on your bike to Seeboden, where you can also circumnavigate the Millstätter See, the second-largest and deepest lake in Carinthia. This one-day stage is around 40 km in length and features barely any climbs, with only a few hills to be overcome on the southern shore of the Millstätter See. Furthermore, you can also complete some sections of the lake by ship – a welcome change of pace from the usual biking routine.

For our steadfast bikers, things now continue in Obervellach. Here the Alpe-Adria Bike Tour feeds into Glockner Bike Route R8. From the town center of Obervellach, shaped by a rich mining tradition, our route takes us alongside the Möll once more, in a southwesterly direction. The bike route now continues to Spittal/Drau without any significant gradients, mostly on barely traveled side roads through the small, idyllic communities of Mölltal valley. Important to mention, and always before your eyes, is Danielsberg mountain, which stands in the middle of the valley, a small church – consecrated to St. Daniel – on its top. Falkenstein Castle is likewise a striking companion during this stage of the bike tour, though due to its location atop a rocky ridgeline high above Mölltal valley, difficult to reach by bicycle.

In Penk, we cross the Möll river for the first time, and at Kolbnitz reach the shores of the Möllstausee. After Mühldorf, we come to the Möllbrücke bridge, where the Alpe-Adria Bike Tour feeds into the Drau Bike Path, the most famous and most important bike route in Carinthia. From here it is just another 14 km to Spittal/Drau, which we reach via Lurnfeld, Lendorf and St. Peter im Holz.