Schladminger Tauern#

Schladminger Tauern Mountains, upper Styria, gneiss mountain range of the Niedere Tauern mountains south of Schladming, consists of crystalline rock of the Central Alps, in the north also of Ennstal phyllites of the greywacke zone. Its western part represents the border between Styria and the province of Salzburg; the Oberhuettensattel pass (1,866 m) connects the Schladminger Tauern mountains with the Radstaedter Tauern mountains and the Soelkpass pass (1,788 m) forms the connection to the Woelzer Tauern mountains. Highest elevations: Hochgolling (2,862 m), Hochwildstelle (2,747 m) to the north. In the north the Schladminger Tauern mountains are accessible via the Preuneggtal, Schladminger Obertal and Schladminger Untertal valleys and via Grosssoelk and Kleinsoelk (all located in Styria), in the south via the Weisspriachtal, Lignitztal, Goeriachtal and Lesachtal valleys (province of Salzburg) and via Prebergraben and Rantengraben and the Etrachtal, Schoedertal and Katschtal valleys (Styria). Numerous mountain lakes: Giglachseen lakes with Ignaz-Mattis-Huette mountain refuge (alt. 1,986 m), Riesachsee lake (alt. 1,338 m) below the Preintalerhuette mountain refuge (alt. 1,657 m), Sonntagskarseen lakes, Zwerfenbergsee lake (alt. 2,024 m), Schwarzensee lake (alt. 1,163 m), Klafferkessel mountain with numerous small kar lakes. Skiing regions (Schladming/Planai with world cup course, Oberhaus). Other mountain refuges: Landawirseehuette (alt. 1,985 m), Schladminger Huette (alt. 1,828 m), Gollinghuette (alt. 1,641 m), etc. In the north-east of the Schladminger Tauern mountains lies the Grosssoelk reservoir of the STEWEAG power company (alt. 901 m, 385.7 km2 catchment area, 1.4 million m3 useful capacity, dam 39 m high and 105 m long), Stein am Soelkbach power house, took up operation in 1978. Soelktaeler nature park (277 km2) since 1983, comprises the municipalities of St. Nikolai im Soelktal, Grosssoelk and Kleinsoelk. To the south, Krakau-Schoeder nature reserve.