Hot Pursuit of Brecherspitz
Although I managed to avoid getting sick during my vacation, I could resist the disease after my trip to GamesCom 2025. Having a 38.6°C fever and a clogged nose, I had a brilliant idea to ignore my symptoms and go hiking with a mask on.
Since Brecherspitz (1685 m) was in my to-do list ever since I saw it on my first Spitzingsee hike, I decided to go there. Annette warned me on our sledge riding trip to Obere Firstalm (1369 m) that this path is quite dangerous in winter, which implied it being also not too safe in summer, so I knew I had to be extra careful, considering my sick state.
My usual plan for the 637a hiking trail involves getting a fast-paced start, then slowing down to a normal pace around Untere Firstalm. This time, however, was very different. Very quickly I realized that I can't keep up any decent speed. As a solution, I decided to slow down to the speed of some senior hikers along the way, keeping a significant distance to them to not get them sick.
When I reached Untere Firstalm, I had a full-on nausea attack, having to catch my breath and calm down in the bathroom.
After somehow passing Obere Firstalm (1369 m), I started climbing the 625 mountain trail towards Brecherspitz Vorgipfel (1643 m). It was an unusual experience having to wait every two minutes to catch my breath away from the trail, while elderly hikers walked past me without pausing.
The path further along to Brecherspitz (1685 m) turned out to be close to what was described as dangerous. Although most of it is secured by a cable on one side, having an accident or horrible luck can still get you tumbling down the mountain wall.
At one point, I was passed by an Asian hiker complaining to everyone that she lost the cap on one of her hiking sticks. I shrugged and kept going to the summit.
Eventually I reached the peak, quickly took a few photos and moved away into a corner to catch my breath again and recuperate. The view from the top was quite nice, and made me realize that Ankel-Alm existed.
It was nice to be on a peak I kept on my wishlist, but I knew I had to go down sooner or later. And with my sickness getting worse due to my stupidity of doing sports in this state, I knew I didn't have much time.
I headed further along the ridge to reach the Alm below, took my sweet time climbing down, passing by quite a few families with children going to the top, and made my way below. It was unusual to see kids on the route, as there are some slippery rocks and narrow paths on the way, which most parents would deem unacceptable. I also met a few Asian tourists taking photos while going up too.
After getting to the hut and seeing the famous Panorama-Klo with a giant queue, I headed along the gravel road back to Neuhaus and went back home to rest in bed.
I would recommend this route to anyone in the area, as it's quite a different experience compared to Stümpfling (1506 m) and others I've been to before. The views of the lake and other peaks, including Wendelstein (1838 m), are great, giving you a sweet panorama to look at. Just don't go there while sick, ok?