Golling Waterfalls

Golling an der Salzach, Salzburg, Austria

About Golling Waterfalls


Hiking Distance: 1.4km round trip
Suggested Time: 75 minutes

Date first visited: 2018-07-04
Date last visited: 2018-07-04

Waterfall Latitude: 47.60146
Waterfall Longitude: 13.13706

Waterfall Safety and Common Sense

The Golling Waterfalls (or Golling Waterfall) consisted of a main waterfall, which turned out to be a lower waterfall, as well as a very concealed upper waterfall.

That upper waterfall was concealed because it managed to punch a hole in a wall revealing a natural bridge that I believe was called the Hexenkesselsteg (or Witches Cauldron).

Golling_043_07042018 - The Lower Golling Waterfall
The Lower Golling Waterfall

Together the Schwarzbach Creek was said to have a cumulative drop of 76m over the waterfalls.

The main lower waterfall probably dropped on the order of 31m or so, and it was by far the more accessible of the two.

The upper drop is said to be taller at 45m, but given its concealed location, it was harder to tell if that height figure was true or not.

Given its close proximity to Salzburg, this was a very popular waterfall.

Golling_099_07042018 - The Upper Golling Waterfall
The Upper Golling Waterfall

It could very well have been the closest waterfall to the famous city that we visited on our big Austria and Germany trip in 2018.

Yet despite its fame, I should mention that this waterfall was referenced in the literature several different ways.

While I’ve gone with the plural reference since there was more than one waterfall, people have also referred to this as the Golling Waterfall, Gollinger Wasserfall, Gollingfall, and Schwarzbach Wasserfall.

That latter name also happened to share the same name as a waterfall in South Tyrol in Northern Italy.

Golling Waterfalls Trail Description – hiking to the lower waterfall

Golling_016_07042018 - Julie and Tahia hiking towards a secondary kiosk beyond the entrance to the Golling Waterfall
Julie and Tahia hiking towards a secondary kiosk beyond the entrance to the Golling Waterfall

From the car park (see directions below), we walked towards the kiosk, where we paid a modest fee of 6 euros for two adults.

Our daughter got in free.

Then, we followed a flat walk towards another kiosk that wasn’t operational during our visit.

Next, the trail followed the Schwarzbach (Black Creek) upstream less than 200m before arriving at a curve right in front of the impressive Lower Golling Waterfall.

Golling_020_07042018 - The Golling Waterfall Trail briefly climbed alongside the Schwarzbach opposite an old mill
The Golling Waterfall Trail briefly climbed alongside the Schwarzbach opposite an old mill

Along the way, we noticed a mill on the other side of the Schwarzbach.

A signpost merely referred to it as the Old Mill at the Golling Waterfall (or Alte Mühle am Gollinger Wasserfall).

This mill dated back to 1618 back at a time when the Torren District sought to be self-sufficient on locally grown agricultural goods, especially grains tilled and processed here.

The Lower Golling Waterfall had a satisfying shape with thinner strands fanning out at its sides.

Golling_051_07042018 - Lots of people enjoying the Lower Golling Waterfall
Lots of people enjoying the Lower Golling Waterfall

Boulders fringed the front of its plunge pool, which lots of people scrambled onto to get as close to the spray as they could.

Given how easy it was to access, plenty of families and kids were content just to enjoy this waterfall and go no further.

Golling Waterfalls Trail Description – hiking beyond the lower waterfall

After having my fill of the base of the Lower Golling Waterfall, I then went up moderately ascending steps revealing more elevated views of the main waterfall.

The trail continued climbing upstream of the lower waterfall until it eventually reached one end of a metal footbridge.

Golling_065_07042018 - Elevated view of the Lower Golling Waterfall as I continued hiking towards the Upper Golling Waterfall
Elevated view of the Lower Golling Waterfall as I continued hiking towards the Upper Golling Waterfall

Called the Rainbow Bridge, it spanned the Schwarzbach while fronting the base of the Upper Golling Waterfall.

Unfortunately, most of the waterfall was hidden from view as a result of a rock wall blocking most of the line-of-sight.

However, a lot of mist came blasting out of the natural arch at the bottom, which often made photographing the hole from the bridge difficult.

Beyond the bridge, the trail continued its ascent until reaching another fork.

Golling_125_07042018 - The spring where the Schwarzbach gushed out of a mountain cave
The spring where the Schwarzbach gushed out of a mountain cave

On the right side of the fork, the trail meandered a short distance further around a bend before ending at a dead-end right in front of the Source Cave (or Quellhöhle).

This was where the Schwarzbach gushed out of a cave and promptly started its steep descent.

The left side of the fork descended towards the Witches Cauldron Bridge, which was right atop the rock wall supporting the natural bridge.

You can’t see the natural bridge from up here, but you can get awkward and very close views of the Upper Golling Waterfall itself.

Golling_153_07042018 - The Upper Golling Waterfall
The Upper Golling Waterfall

Also from this vantage point, I was able to look downhill across the Salzachtal, which was the very valley within which the city of Salzburg resided in.

After having my fill of these spots, I returned the way I came.

Overall, I spent about 75 minutes away from the car.

Of course if the goal was just to visit the lower waterfall and come back, then this excursion could be as little as 30 minutes.

Authorities

The Golling Waterfall resides near the town of Golling in the state of Salzburg (Salzburgerland), Austria. It may be administered by the Golling government. For information or inquiries about the area as well as current conditions, you can try visiting their website.

Golling_013_07042018 - The kiosk at the end of the car park where we paid our entrance fee to access the Golling Waterfalls
Golling_014_07042018 - Julie and Tahia starting the walk to the Golling Waterfalls after going through the entrance
Golling_017_07042018 - Past the second kiosk, the trail then meandered along the Schwarzbach en route to the Gollinger Waterfalls
Golling_019_07042018 - The Golling Waterfall Trail climbed briefly as it followed along the Schwarzbach Creek
Golling_024_07042018 - Looking across the Schwarzbach towards an old mill at Golling. Mills were an important part of living in the Salzach Valley when self-sufficiency was the goal
Golling_025_07042018 - Approaching the Lower Golling Waterfall
Golling_168_07042018 - Going past some monument as we approached the Lower Golling Waterfall
Golling_037_07042018 - Arriving at the attractive Lower Golling Waterfall
Golling_052_07042018 - Ascending the steps and footpath to continue higher above the Lower Golling Waterfall
Golling_053_07042018 - Continuing the ascent up the steps towards the top of the Lower Golling Waterfall and beyond
Golling_057_07042018 - Looking down towards the Lower Golling Waterfall from the ascending trail. Note the person at the bottom of the photo for a sense of scale
Golling_068_07042018 - Another elevated look down at the Lower Golling Waterfall during the climb up to the Upper Golling Waterfall
Golling_074_07042018 - The trail momentarily flattened out above the Lower Golling Waterfall
Golling_077_07042018 - Partial view of the top of the Lower Golling Waterfall
Golling_079_07042018 - Continuing the ascent well above the Lower Golling Waterfall and towards the Upper Golling Waterfall
Golling_080_07042018 - Looking over the brink of the Lower Golling Waterfall
Golling_087_07042018 - Approaching the so-called Rainbow Bridge fronting the hard-to-see base of the Upper Golling Waterfall
Golling_095_07042018 - Context of the descent towards the Rainbow Bridge and the base of the Upper Golling Waterfall
Golling_100_07042018 - Looking back towards the descent that I had made to access the Rainbow Bridge as seen from the bridge itself
Golling_105_07042018 - Looking downstream from the Rainbow Bridge over the brink of the Lower Golling Waterfall towards the valley below
Golling_114_07042018 - Looking back across the context of the Rainbow Bridge where the mist from the Upper Golling Waterfall wasn't as much of a problem, but that also meant you couldn't see much of that waterfall through the natural arch
Golling_116_07042018 - Climbing beyond the Rainbow Bridge to access the Upper Golling Waterfall and the Quellhöhle
Golling_117_07042018 - Signage at the fork in the trail leading to both the Hexenkesselsteg (Witches Cauldron) and Quelle Ursprung (Source Cave)
Golling_122_07042018 - After some more climbing, I finally made it up to the source of the Schwarzbach at this spring called Quelle Ursprung (Source Cave) or Quellhöhle
Golling_127_07042018 - Looking down over the brink of the Upper Golling Waterfall just downstream of the source
Golling_131_07042018 - Looking downstream across the valley over Golling as seen from the Quelle Ursprung
Golling_132_07042018 - Descending towards the Witches Cauldron and the Upper Golling Waterfall
Golling_135_07042018 - View downstream from the Witches Cauldron Lookout at the Upper Golling Waterfall
Golling_140_07042018 - Looking downstream across the Salzachtal Valley from the Hexenbrucke
Golling_143_07042018 - Context of the metal lookout and bridge opposite part of the Upper Golling Waterfall
Golling_157_07042018 - Heading back along the Rainbow Bridge as I returned to rejoin Julie and Tahia somewhere near the entrance of the Golling Waterfalls
Golling_161_07042018 - On the return hike, this could very well be the cleanest view that I could get through the natural arch and towards the base of the Upper Golling Waterfall
Golling_171_07042018 - Back along the trail between the Lower Golling Waterfall and the entrance kiosk
Golling_172_07042018 - Right before returning to the Golling Waterfall kiosk, I noticed this fairly long snake going across the trail


We’ll describe the driving directions from Salzburg since it made the most sense for most people to base themselves in the charming city.

So from Salzburg, we headed south on the B150 out of the city center and towards the A10 autobahn.

Heading south on the A10, we then drove about 19km before we then took the ramp for the Golling exit.

Salzburg_545_07032018 - The Golling Waterfall was pretty close to the charming city of Salzburg
The Golling Waterfall was pretty close to the charming city of Salzburg

This led us on the B159 and then onto the B162 due east.

After crossing over the Salzach River, we then took a left turn to head into Golling via the B159.

After keeping left at a main fork to take Durchlassstraße (as opposed to Obergäu on the right), we then drove roughly 400m before turning left at the bridge over the Salzach.

There were signs for the Golling Waterfall at this point.

Golling_012_07042018 - The car park for the Golling Waterfall
The car park for the Golling Waterfall

After going over the bridge, we drove on the Wasserfallsstraße a little over 2km before reaching a very narrow road that accessed the Golling Waterfall car park.

This drive took us about a half-hour from the Salzburg city center.

For geographical context, Salzburg was about 38km (30 minutes drive) north of Golling an der Salzach, 29km (over 30 minutes drive) north of Schönau am Königssee, 72km (over an hour drive) northwest of Hallstatt, and 144km (90 minutes drive without traffic) east of Munich.

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Sweep covering the main waterfall right at its base


Sweep covering the main waterfall from higher up on the trail


Longer video capturing the upper waterfall through the Hexenbrucke as I walked onto the man-made bridge before it


Slow deliberate sweep of the upper waterfall above the Hexenbrucke while also revealing the views further downstream

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Tagged with: golling, salzach, schwarzbach, austria, waterfall, natural bridge, hexenkesselsteg, witches cauldron, quellhohle, source cave, nikolaus, mills



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Golling Waterfall (Austria) December 29, 2015 2:45 pm by Ruth Williams - The lovely Golling waterfall is set amidst pine trees and plunges 75 metres in 2 drops. It is located not far from the city of Salzburg near the village of Golling an der Salzach. You have to pay to view the fall but it is not expensive. From the car park it is a pleasant… ...Read More

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Johnny Cheng

About Johnny Cheng

Johnny Cheng is the founder of the World of Waterfalls and author of the award-winning A Guide to New Zealand Waterfalls. Over the last 2 decades, he has visited thousands of waterfalls in over 40 countries around the world and nearly 40 states in the USA.
Read More About Johnny | A Guide to New Zealand Waterfalls.