Achensee Bus Trip
Description: Achensee - Lake Achen
Location: Tyrol
Duration: full day
The Achensee has a good claim to be one of the most beautiful lakes in the Tyrol. It is certainly the largest and deepest. It lies at the opposite side of the Karwendel mountains from the Seefeld plateau - off to the east in the valley between the Karwendel and Rofan ranges.
On foot through the Karwendel mountains, the route from Scharnitz to Pertisau is just over 50 kilometres - on the bus it is substantially longer. The excursion heads down the Inn valley to the east, past the towns of Hall and Schwaz, to Jenbach.
Jenbach is an industrial town but its claim to fame lies in its railway station, which has made it a hub for rail enthusiasts from all over the world. As well as the main line from Kufstein to Innsbruck, Jenbach boasts two narrow gauge railways - the Zillertalbahn, which leads to the south and Mayrhofen, and the Achenseebahn, which winds up behind the town to the shores of Lake Achen.
The Achenseebahn
Built over 100 years ago, the Achenseebahn is the oldest
steam-cog railway in Europe. Each fourteen-kilometre return journey consumes
300 kilograms
of fuel and 3 cubic metres of water on its way up though the villages of
Maurach and Eben. Some of the bus excursions give the option to take the
40 minute ride on the train to the Seespitz station on Lake Achen, while
others take the road up to the village of Pertisau.
Pertisau was a favourite hunting area for the rulers of the Tyrol, and the hotel on the lakefront is a former hunting lodge. The mountains behind Pertisau also provided a special type of oil - ichthyol, a type of fossil-oil - used in homeopathic remedies (there is also a former ichthyol mine near Seefeld).
On most trips there is an option to take a guided lake tour of about 45 minutes.
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