Hello everyone! My name is Mckay and I am a student at HPU and just finished up my semester abroad in Salzburg, Austria. It was magical five months filled with adventure, laughter, self-growth, and new friends. During my semester abroad I took both biomedical courses and international office courses, and in this blog post I want to focus on a very interesting mountain located on the outskirts of Salzburg that I learned about in my "Inside Austria" course. This mountain is called Mt. Untersberg and is breathtakingly beautiful. While it features picturesque views, a quaint mountain hut that offers delicious food, and ice caves, it also comes with a harrowing tale. This tale is as follows ...
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| Mt. Untersberg |
They say a mighty king is sleeping deep beneath the mountain of Untersberg. He sits at a stone table, surrounded by his court. When his long white beard will grow around the table three times, the ravens will no longer circle the mountain top, and the King will wake up, grab his sword and fight in the final battle between good and evil after which the end of the world will begin.
| Art work depicting the king |
This tale is creepy! But also... kind cool :) Thats why when I was given the assignment to present about for my class regarding anything about Austria, I chose to present on Mt. Untersberg's legends. It was a very intriguing presentation and during my research for it, I stumbled upon a story that Miranda Waters has written from the POV of an adventurer who has roamed into the depths of the Untersberg and found the sleeping King. I read this story out loud to my classmates and they loved it. Here is the link if you would also like to give it a read https://nomadswithnotebooks.com/?p=1163
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| Artwork depicting the legend |
A few weeks after my presentation, I learned that my classmates and I would be taking a field trip to the top of the Untersberg and hike to a gorgeous peak and also an ice cave. I was so excited!! Whether my excitement was for the gorgeous adventure that was to happen or for the possibility to see the sleeping king myself is up for debate :)
When the day to explore the Untersburg was finally upon my classmates and I, we accessed the top of the mountain via a cable car that cost 28 euros round trip. However if you are feeling extra adventurous, you can also reach the top via hiking. *Quick side note* It is possible to reach the base of the Untersberg via public transport, if you decide to take this adventure you do not need to rent a car or Uber to do it.
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| Cable car you will ride to the top, the views are INSANE |
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| Said views |
Once at the top, my classmates and I embarked on a hike to a lookout, which was lead by my course instructor's husband. I am pretty sure this man was half mountain goat because when one of my classmates got a cramp, he just scooped him up and carried him down the icy mountain side that my classmates were slipping on like it was no big deal at all! For spring and early summer, the mountain top will be chilly and have snow, so be prepared with warm clothes and good shoes for hiking in the snow.
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| Me at the peak of the Untersberg |
Once we reached the peak, my instructor's husband then lead an optional hike to an ice cave. I had to jump on this opportunity because if I was ever going to see the sleeping king and see if the end of the world was near due to his beard growing three times around the table, this was the time! Our part mountain goat part human leader took us on about a 45 minute hike to an ice cave that has no name and is only known by locals, so I would love to tell you how to access this cave but I cannot due to the fact that it had no name, I have no sense of direction so I could not recreate the hike we took to get there, and that our hike leader spoke no English so I could not ask questions about this cave.
Upon arrival to the entrance of the cave, I was very nervous to go inside because I am extremely claustrophobic and was also nervous to maybe see the king and to see how far his beard had grown! However, with some motivation from my friends I was able to summon the courage to enter the cave and it was unlike anything I have ever seen before. There were giant icicles that stretched from the top of the cave to the bottom and giant chunks of ice everywhere. I explored the cave for a little bit before I concluded that sadly, the sleeping king was nowhere to be found in the cave :( The beautiful views and great time with my friends made up for the disappointment though ;)
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| Inside of the ice cave pt 1 |
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| Inside of the ice cave pt 2 |
My classmates and I then hiked back to the top of the cable car and nearby mountain hut and had some delicious food and beer to celebrate the hike that we had just conquered before we rode the cable car back down. While I was not able to find the sleeping king and measure his beard and consequently confirm or deny if the end of the world was near, this was still a gorgeous way to get outside, explore the mountains surrounding Salzburg, and get exercise. I highly would recommend this adventure!
-Mckay
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