Wild face of Traisen Valley: Walking along water and woods

Austria’s most densely wooded region is especially popular with pilgrims and cycling aficionados.

When moving through the Traisen-Gölsental, you might bump into people wearing walking boots, cycling helmets, hunter’s hats or holding long pilgrim’s sticks. On your trip through a marvellous region marked by the foothills of the Alps, you discover the villages from Wilhelmsburg to Lilienfeld to Annaberg to St. Aegyd/Neuwalde.

In former times, jaunty river Traisen and its branch Gölsen served as sources of energy for the production in grain mills and iron-hammer-works. Nowadays, these two rivers are known are as namesakes for the valley embedded between the foothills of the Alps. And, what’s even more important, Traisen and Gölsen function as signposts for all hikers and pilgrims making up their way to Mariazell Basilica.

A moving region

Traisen-Gölsental is not only marked by lively rivers but also by hiking mountains offering great panoramic views. The most popular peaks are Gippel, Göller, Tiroler Kogel, Gemeindealpe and Muckenkogel. The two most renowned pilgrimage paths of Austria, Via Sacra and Wiener Wallfahrerweg, wind their ways along both high pinnacles and deep basins of the region. The paths are each about 120 kilometres long and start in Vienna, leading on different trails to the Mariazell Basilica, Austria’s most important place of worship. For cycling enthusiasts, the cycling route Sagensteintour or the hiking tour Ausflugsziel Falkenschlucht are always worth a trip.

Time for calming down

The district Lilienfeld is Austria’s most densely wooded region and home of abundant wildlife. Therefore, the area has its own culinary region called “Lilienfeld Voralpen Wild”. One finds pure tranquillity not only in the forests but also in Lilienfeld Abbey, Austria’s largest medieval monastery.