Climate Change Causes Glaciers in the Dachstein Area to Melt Rapidly
On Monday, about 14 degrees Celsius was measured at the Hunerkogel mountain station in sunny weather. According to reports, the snowmelt this summer is accelerating the separation of the Schladminger and Hallstätter Glaciers, which researchers had expected later. Maps from the Federal Office of Metrology and Surveying still show a 400-meter-wide ice area between the glaciers, which has significantly shrunk. Nevertheless, it was previously possible to hike from the mountain station to the Seethaler Hut over a continuous ice band.
Glaciers in the Dachstein Area: Connection Melted in "Two to Four Weeks"
The area below the Kleiner Gjaidstein (2,734 meters) and the Hunerkogel (2,687 meters) at the Gjaidstein saddle northwest of the mountain station is now only a roughly seven-meter-wide and one-and-a-half-meter-deep snowfield. "In two to four weeks," estimated the operations manager of the Dachstein Glacier Railway, Alexander Seebacher, "this connection will be completely snow-free. Last year, we still had 30 meters in width and two meters more in height at this point." The reason is the low snowfall: "This year it was only two meters, usually it's always eight to ten." This snow previously protected the glacier: "Therefore, it has already melted a month earlier than usual this year," said Seebacher. The rocks that have come to light act as heat storage and further accelerate the process. The connection between the glaciers existed for about 3,500 years.
The path leading over this area and prepared for decades opened up the connection between Hunerkogel, the Seethaler Hut, and the entrance to the northern wall of the Hoher Dachstein (2,995 meters), which is shared by the state of Upper Austria and Styria. The state border runs along the ridge line. The path also allowed non-alpinists to experience a glacier and high mountain adventure. A Ramsau mountain guide assesses the new situation as follows: If there is no more snow, there is bare ice, which cannot be managed without crampons.
Melting of the Glaciers in the Dachstein Area Creates Problems for Infrastructure
The development due to the melting is likely to pose logistical problems for the leaseholders of the Seethaler Hut, which opened in January 2019. The lease was newly awarded at the end of 2024. The modern house stands by the old and no longer usable wooden Seethaler Hut, formerly also called Dachsteinwarte. This too was - besides its dilapidation - a victim of climate change. It was built over a doline, whose ice melted due to the retreat of permafrost, making the hut unstable towards the south wall. According to a media report, the Planaibahnen, which operate the Dachstein cable car, are considering building a ramp over the soon-to-be-exposed rocks at the Gjaidstein saddle. The warming also required special measures. In 2007, the "Ice Palace" was built into the glacier ice west of the Hunerkogel mountain station, with figures, grottos, and connecting paths in the glacier ice. Due to the rising summer temperatures for about two decades, combined with lower snow heights in winter and heavy rain events, it was decided to cover the glacier ice in the area with white tarps. Regarding the future of the Ice Palace, which is considered a tourist attraction, Planai Managing Director Georg Bliem said in August 2021: "It has seven to ten years left. Beyond that, I dare not say." Now Bliem said according to media reports: "We did not expect such dynamics."
With the melting, a ski tour that is especially popular in spring is likely to disappear: From the Hunerkogel with an ascent over the Schladminger Glacier to the Hallstätter Glacier and then the descent over the Simony Hut to the Krippenstein mountain station (2,069 meters above sea level), where the cable car from Upper Austrian Obertraun leads. From there, it went - with favorable snow conditions - to the valley station in Obertraun at around 600 meters. Despite the ice melt, the Dachstein remains the favorite among Austria's mountains on the Meta platform Instagram in 2025. As of the cut-off date of July 30, 2025, the mountain located between Styria and Upper Austria reaches first place again with over a quarter of a million posts with the hashtag "Dachstein." This result comes from an analysis by the PR and communications service provider APA-Comm, which examined the hashtag presence of Austrian mountains for the third time after 2019 and 2022.
(APA/Red)
This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.