From the heights of the Lech Valley Alps down into the Inn Valley and back up to Glander Peak as the northernmost spur of the Ötz Valley Alps (Part 1: Variant of the original E5 route – Part 2: Original E5 route)
On the northern side of the Alps, the long-distance trail E5 has a very special characteristic. Since you constantly have to cross large valleys, there are almost daily very long ascents and descents. Even the descent from the Ansbacher Hut down to Flirsch gives the hiker no respite. The narrow path is very steep in some sections and runs through a magnificent landscape of flower-rich mountain meadows, where especially the goats feel at home. Once you arrive down in Flirsch after the long descent, a bus or (if booked) a shuttle awaits to take you to Zams. Up until then, one has been following the E5 variant via the Ansbacher Hut – from this point on, one is back on the original E5 route and one of the aforementioned long ascents begins. In this case, the ascent to the Zammer Ski Lodge is long, but will take you along beautiful trails and flower meadows, it is quite enjoyable.
Description
From the Ansbacher Hut, you follow the hiking trail towards the Fritzhütte, passing under the material cable car and descending south along a ridge. After descending almost 200 meters of elevation, you reach a terrain step, and the trail now leads west across open mountain meadows through the hollow “In der Grube.” Soon, dwarf pines and later forest replace the open mountain meadows, and you descend via many switchbacks to reach the Fritz Hut.
Here the descent paths split towards Schnann or Flirsch. The most pleasant descent turns left just above the hut towards Flirsch. First, you cross about 300 meters downhill through steep terrain to the east, and then continue descending through many small bends (switchbacks) through the forest until you reach a forest road near the valley. You should now proceed to the left (signpost: “Jakobsweg”) and along the forest trail for about 800 meters – the terrain is relatively level – until you come to a place overlooking the village of Flirsch. A hiking trail shortly leads to the first houses of Flirsch. From here, you should follow along the Griess Brook through the village to the center of Flirsch.
The following section to the center of Zams is covered by bus/train or a shuttle. There is a bus stop directly at the street intersection in the center. If no shuttle to the center of Zams has been booked, you can reach Landeck-Zams station at the southern edge of Zams by bus line 270 (partly in combination with the train).
In the center of Zams, the second part of today’s hike begins: the ascent to the Zammer Ski Lodge stage destination via the Wiesensteig. From the parish church of St. Andrew in the center of Zams, follow Bahnstraße eastward to Bachgasse, then turn briefly right. At the next junction, you must turn left and then immediately right again, then continue to the end of the street. Here a hiking trail leads a few minutes up to the state road 311. Afterwards, the trail continues to the left uphill through two hairpin bends – about 200 meters after the second bend, the “Wiesensteig” begins on the right, leading up to the Zammer Ski Lodge. The hike now alternates between meadows and forest, along hiking trails and occasionally briefly on forest roads, over many bends (switchbacks) under the Venet cableway, up to the Zammer Ski Lodge or the nearby Zammer Alm.
