Schleierfall

Hintertux / Tux Municipality, Tyrol (Tirol), Austria

About Schleierfall

For Subscribers Only. See Membership Options.

Waterfall Safety and Common Sense

The Schleierfall Waterfall (I’ve also seen it called the Schleierwasserfall; “Veil Waterfall”) was probably the most impressive of the waterfalls in the Hintertux Resort Area.

Sitting where the Weitentalbach plunged at least 30m, it sat tucked away beneath the Weitental Valley, which was a side valley above the Tuxertal (i.e. the main valley containing the Hintertux Resort Area).

Hintertux_293_07182018 - Schleierfall
Schleierfall

Therefore, I had to earn my visit with a bit of a strenuous uphill hike to reach it.

According to my GPS logs, I could have hiked as little as 5.2km round trip with roughly 425m of elevation gain.

However, with some bit of confusion, I wound up hiking closer to 6.4km round trip taking me around 2 hours.

So to keep things simple, I’m going to describe the hiking route that I should have taken and spare you the details of my haphazard route.

Schleierfall Trail Description – ascending to a view over the head of Tuxertal Valley

Hintertux_227_07182018 - Context of the climb out of Hintertux along the trail leading to the steep part of the Schleierfall Trail
Context of the climb out of Hintertux along the trail leading to the steep part of the Schleierfall Trail

From the Hintertux Resort Area, I followed the signs and walked along a gently sloping path towards the foot of the west end of the Tuxertal Valley.

During this stretch, I noticed a little archery course that I definitely didn’t want to mistakenly go into (that’s what bogensport translated to in German).

After about 500m, the trail started to reach a part where the climb became steeper while affording me views back towards the Hintertux Resort Area.

This view also showed parts of the Hintertux Glacier as well as long cascades coming from the melting ice and down towards the head of the valley.

Hintertux_246_07182018 - Looking in the other direction towards the town of Hintertux while continuing the ascent towards the steep part of the Schleierfall Trail
Looking in the other direction towards the town of Hintertux while continuing the ascent towards the steep part of the Schleierfall Trail

The continuation of those long cascades ultimately fell as the Kesselfall, Schraubenfall, and other waterfalls further upstream.

During this climb, I was mesmerized by the scenery at the head of the Tuxertal Valley.

In addition to looking towards the head of the valley, I was also able to look further down the valley in the other direction towards the town of Hintertux as it sat in a classic V-shaped valley.

Schleierfall Trail Description – continuing the direct trail to the waterfall

After getting through a little fence, the trail forked.

Hintertux_393_07182018 - Approaching a 'misleading sign' (because it made no mention of the Schleierfall) where the continuation of the Schleierfall Trail proceeded past this 'rope stile' (not a closure barricade) while the Bichlalm Trail continued to the right
Approaching a ‘misleading sign’ (because it made no mention of the Schleierfall) where the continuation of the Schleierfall Trail proceeded past this ‘rope stile’ (not a closure barricade) while the Bichlalm Trail continued to the right

To the right, the trail climbed a bit more gently (albeit away from the Schleier Waterfall before coming back) as it would eventually make its way to the Bichlalm.

So the shortest route to the falls would be to keep left and continue up the narrow but steep trail.

It would eventually lead up to a sign that was somewhat misleading as it made no mention of the Schleierfall.

I actually made the mistake of giving into my doubts and turned back at this point.

Hintertux_389_07182018 - Continuing the steep climb along the direct Schleierfall Trail
Continuing the steep climb along the direct Schleierfall Trail

However, with hindsight being 20/20, I should have continued along this narrow trail as it would go through a rope stile before entering a forested area.

The trail then continued along the forested path, which was a little rocky and steep in parts.

Eventually, the forested part would give way to expansive views once again before traversing a grassy area flanking the Weintalbach.

At nearly a kilometer from the fork with the trail to the Bichlalm, I would reach a trail junction next to a bridge over the Weintalbach.

Hintertux_365_07182018 - The trail junction by the bridge over the Weintalbach Creek well downstream of the Schleierfall
The trail junction by the bridge over the Weintalbach Creek well downstream of the Schleierfall

Turning right at this junction, I would then reach the next fork in the trail shortly thereafter.

Taking this fork on the left, the path then steeply climbed an extensive grassy area alongside the Weintalbach as the trail was making its way up to the Schleierfall.

After another 700m of this climb, I would finally reach the base of the Schleierfall’s main drop.

Schleierfall Trail Description – beyond the waterfall

However, the trail continued nearly another 100m uphill before reaching a much wider (albeit rockier) trail.

Hintertux_331_07182018 - Approaching the Schleierwasserfall from the bottom
Approaching the Schleierwasserfall from the bottom

This was the trail that would ultimately make it to the Tuxerjoch Haus, which was a high mountain hut.

For the purposes of experiencing the waterfall, however, it was sufficient for me to just get up to the fence and benches near the brink of the falls.

This yielded an attractive profile and top-down view towards the Schleierfall with the surrounding mountains as the backdrop.

That was my turnaround point and thus the end of the relentless 425m climb that I had made to this point.

Hintertux_300_07182018 - Context of the climb continuing beyond the brink of the Schleierfall towards the Tuxerjoch Haus, but I was content with the top down views of the Schleierfall before returning to the Hintertux Resort Area
Context of the climb continuing beyond the brink of the Schleierfall towards the Tuxerjoch Haus, but I was content with the top down views of the Schleierfall before returning to the Hintertux Resort Area

On the return route, I had a choice of going back down the way I came (for the shortest amount of hiking) or descending the rocky route then going back to the Weintalbach before returning the way I came.

I even had another choice of continuing on an even wider trail to the Bichlalm (basically a cantina) before continuing the descent via a much longer and more roundabout path.

The shortest path was roughly 6km round trip from the Hintertux Resort Area (maybe around 5.2-5.4km from just the car park).

Meanwhile, visiting the Schleierfall via the alm would have added another 4km in one direction.

Hintertux_278_07182018 - Context of the trails around the Schleierfall, where this photo was taken from the trail leading to the Bichlalm
Context of the trails around the Schleierfall, where this photo was taken from the trail leading to the Bichlalm

I wound up spending over 2 hours on this trail, but some of that time was wasted.

In particular, I had mistakenly turned back and took the Bichlalm Trail (when I shouldn’t have).

Then, when I realized my mistake, I took a very steep “shortcut” to cut from the lower switchback of the Bichlalm Trail to the upper switchback of the Bichlalm Trail along some former snowmobile path or something.

Authorities

The Schleierfall Waterfall resides in the Hintertux Resort in the state of Tyrol (Tirol), Austria. It may be administered by Hintertux community. For information or inquiries about the area as well as current conditions, you can try visiting their website or the Zillertaler Gletscherbahn website.

Maps and Routing Content are for annual subscribers. See Membership Options.
Content is for subscribers. See Membership Options.
Tagged with: hintertux, weitental, bichlalm, tuxer joch haus, austria, waterfall, zillertal



Visitor Comments:

Got something you'd like to share or say to keep the conversation going? Feel free to leave a comment below...

No users have replied to the content on this page


Share your thoughts about what you've read on this page

You must be logged in to submit content. Refresh this page after you have logged in.

Visitor Reviews of this Waterfall:

If you have a waterfall story or write-up that you'd like to share, feel free to click the button below and fill out the form...

No users have submitted a write-up/review of this waterfall


Have you been to a waterfall? Submit a write-up/review and share your experiences or impressions

Review A Waterfall

Nearest Waterfalls

The Waterfaller Newsletter

The Waterfaller Newsletter is where we curate the wealth of information on the World of Waterfalls website and deliver it to you in bite-sized chunks in your email inbox. You'll also get exclusive content like...

  • Waterfall Wednesdays
  • Insider Tips
  • User-submitted Waterfall Write-up of the Month
  • and the latest news and updates both within the website as well as around the wonderful world of waterfalls


How To Build A Profitable Travel Blog In 4 Steps

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.