Ukrainian Hike to Fockenstein and Geierstein
After my trip to Landshut that took around 30 kilometers, I was ready to do an easier hike. Thus, I was looking for a group that would focus on socializing and not just speeding through the summits.
Natalia from "Wandern für glückliche Menschen" wanted to organize a trip to Schrecksee that I myself planned for two years, but after I warned her about the snow, she changed the route to visit Fockenstein (1564 m) instead. Although I already visited the peak with Maskym, it was better than sitting at home, so I decided to accept the invite.
We started by walking to the Sonnenbichl hotel. I proposed taking the steeper ski slope up to visit Zwergelberg (1113 m) instead of taking the forest trail which I walked on in the past. The group was not too thrilled, but after taking a toilet break, we put our differences aside and set off.
After climbing the slope, we approached the Zwergelberg (1113 m) summit, but the group decided to skip it and keep walking. Natalia and I made a detour to actually check the peak out, seeing an electric pole and some metal poles in the ground.
As we kept going, the group started suggesting that we should make a picnic break, as most people were getting hungry. Although I'm used to ignoring my hunger and thirst to get home quicker, the others wanted to make this trip slow and enjoyable, so we did the break and ate the snacks we had.
Eventually we reached Aueralm (1269 m), where some hikers took another toilet break. We managed to convince them to keep going though, instead of taking a longer break to eat a meal at the Alpine restaurant. Soon after, we went to Neuhüttenalm near Fockenstein (1564 m), where I waited for the rest of the group to catch up, then climbed up Fockenstein (1564 m) itself.
The whole way through, the snow was melting from the 20 degree heat, and there were giant puddles everywhere. We were sliding down all the time, but it was nothing compared to my hike to Auerkamp (1607 m) where I had to climb up the snow with my hands. When I and two others got to the top, the rest of the group was nowhere to be seen, so we started taking the photos and drone shots alone.
It was really nice seeing Hirschberg (1670 m) from the summit, which brought back a lot of memories of the DAAD FK group going there. After the rest of the group showed up 30 minutes later, Natalia asked the other hikers at the cross to take photos of our group, and one of our member took some drone shots as additional group photos.
Once we started descending 1.5 hours after reaching the Fockenstein (1564 m) summit, I realized the trip was going too slow for my taste and left to visit a few more peaks. First, I followed some random footsteps to Schlagkopf (1330 m), where I discovered a tower of rocks instead of a cross.
I kept going all the way down to the hunting stand on the crossroads, then took the turn to Geierstein (1491 m). On the way there, I came across a dried-up avalanche which I had to climb over. This was the second time I had to traverse one, the first one being in Austria on the way down from Hoher Kalmberg (1833 m).
As I was reaching the cliffside peak, I came across two guys going down. They warned me it took them more than 3 hours to climb from Lenggries to the top of Geierstein (1491 m), so my descent should take around 2 hours at least. My app said 1.5 hours, and I was confident I could lower it down to 1 hour, but I still thanked them for the feedback.
As I reached the summit, there was nobody there, and the sunset was in full force. I didn't linger for too long and went down to another viewing spot to see a better panorama of Lenggries and Benediktenwand (1800 m), where I spent some time to catch my breath. I messaged the group to say that I should be down in Lenggries in about 1.5 hours, but didn't hear anything back from them, assuming they would wait for me.
As I started climbing down, I realized why it took so long for the hikers to reach the top. The route was very steep, covered in snow, ice, mud, and loose rocks. I was staying on the cautious side, making sure my every step was solid. Still, I made it down the steeper area pretty fast, took off my gaiters and shoe spikes, and continued on foot.
The more I descended, the easier and more horizontal the way became. At the end I reached the Hohenburger Weiher lake, with some locals walking their dogs around the lake. I followed the hiking trail to the train station, then skipped two trains as I was waiting for more than an hour for the rest of the group to catch up, although they were taking the much faster dirt road straight from Fockenstein (1564 m) to Lenggries.
Overall, I would certainly recommend this route for medium-level hikers. It's decently challenging and you can see great views all around. The first half up to Fockenstein (1564 m) gives you a view of Tegernsee, Hirschberg (1670 m), and Ochsenkamp (1594 m). The second half shows a great panorama of Lenggries and Brauneck (1555 m), with barely visible Benediktenwand (1800 m) in the back. That being said, this route is best attempted in summer, as climbing the rocky Geierstein (1491 m) may prove dangerous with snow and ice around.