MTB
Explore the amazing mountain and lake experience of Carinthia, Austria, with our latest destination guide.
Carinthia sits in the southern part of Austria and offers a unique lake and mountain experience. You can enjoy amazing mountain bike trails and ride straight down to a beautiful lake.
The two Enduro World Series riders Yana Dobnig, Julian Hauer and the local mountain bike guide Christoph Schaunig tackle the trails of Mount Petzen, Lake Faak and Lake Weissensee. This guide focuses on these three regions, but nevertheless you'll get a feeling for this epic bike destination.
The riding
1. Mount Petzen
Flow Country trail
The 11.5km-long Flow Country trail on Mount Petzen is one of the longest mountain bike flow trails in the world. It was built by Didi Schneider, one of Europe’s best mountain bike trail designers.
The tarmac and gravel fixed track offers countless turns, berms, tables and winds down the mountain into the valley with a slope of about 10 percent.
On the one hand the trail's good for beginners as it isn’t very technical and on the other side it's great for experienced riders as you can go really fast and jump. On the trail you can enjoy panoramic views over the surrounding lake valleys.
The trailhead is easily accessible with the Petzen cable car.
Thriller trail
Unlike the Flow country trail, the Thriller trail is a rough, technical trail for experienced riders. It's 7km long, has loose rocks, tight corners and lots of roots.
It was recently revealed that Mount Petzen will be part of the Enduro World series 2018. Athletes will experience some of the longest stages in the history of EWS – and even some underground riding – in what'll surely be one of the most interesting races to date.
2. Lake Faak
Samonigg trail
The 2km-long Samonigg Trail, close to the castle ruin of Finkenstein, is one of the highlights of the Lake Faak region. At the beginning, this natural trail winds down through an open pine forest.
The narrow and slightly technical singletrack goes along an exposed ridge and offers beautiful views on the surrounding lakes.
The second part through a beech forest is less steep, faster and a bit wider. The flowy and and easy trail on soft forest floor is good for beginners as well as for experienced riders.
You can easily climb the 250m to the trailhead. For the first part you need to push your bike approximately 15 min to the start.
Another highlight is that the public bathing beach of Lake Faak, with its turquoise-blue water is just five minutes away and is perfect for a refreshing break.
Kopain trail (T23)
The new 1.8km-long single trail is an easy mix of natural and man-made trails.
The upper part is a natural singletrack winding through an open pine forest with a canyon crossing. It's not that steep and has easy turns so that you can go quite fast, but be careful as it's a shared trail with hikers.
The lower part has some fun man-made elements. Little jumps and berms make it really fun. To access this trail you have to climb around 300m on a nice, paved road through a forest.
3. Lake Weissensee
The Lake Weissensee trail in the heart of the Gailtal Valley Alps is a 3.3km-long mountain bike trail with a difference of 370m in altitude. Challenging and easy sections are the perfect mix for beginners and experienced riders. It offers everything a mountain biker’s heart desires: roots, switchbacks, berms and wooden bridges.
Furthermore, you can enjoy a stunning mountain panorama and views on the beautiful Lake Weissensee. The ascent to the start is possible by bike taking Route 5 or by the Weissensee cable car.
Where to stay
We can recommend the following accommodation for the three different regions: the bike hotel Marko which is close to Mount Petzen and the Wrolich apartments in the Lake Faak region. At Lake Weissensee you can stay at the famous Arlbergerhof bike hotel.
Riding the lifts
Carinthia’s lifts are open May to October. As a guide, the Mount Petzen lift's 2017 dates are June 15 to September 9. Weekend operation is Fridays to Sundays from May 25 to June 11 and September 15 to October 26) One ride costs €20 and a day pass is €28.
Lake Weissensee cable car's operation times this year are from May 20 to September 10, although it's worth checking the website for public holidays before you finalise your travel. The lift is also closed on Mondays and in the case of bad weather. One trip costs €13 costs and a day pass is €30.
Getting there
The Carinthia region sits in southern Austria and has very good transport connections. It's around 300km from Vienna (highway A2), 200km from Salzburg (highway A10), 130km from Graz (highway A2) and 80km from Ljubljana (highway A11), Slovenia. Having a car is useful for accessing the three regions and reaching the starts of the rides. The closest airports are Klagenfurt, Graz and Ljubljana. You can reach the main city of Klagenfurt by train from anywhere in Europe.
When to go
Because the two access lifts are open from May to October, this is the time to ride laps on these great trails. Carinthia is the sunniest region of Austria and you can also ride in April, but the lifts aren't open yet, so expect to pedal! You can expect warm temperatures, up to 30ºC, but like any mountain area, be prepared for changes in the weather.
With thanks to our partners at Carinthia.at
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