Spiegelsee Hike in Schladming, Austria

jana meerman spiegelsee hike reiteralm austria-104

I love hiking in any season and you'll find me on the trails in snowy winters, flowery springs and bright summers, but there is just something so peaceful about hiking in autumn that makes it my favourite time of year to be in the mountains. The air is fresh, the smell of winter on the distance horizon, the colours are so vibrant and abundant, and there is a sense of nostalgia in the air for another hiking season drawing to a close.

We celebrated with one last autumnal hike in the mountains of Styria, Austria, chasing that feeling and photographing the best colours of the season.

→ Check out all my other Austria hiking guides!

The hike to Spiegelsee actually passes six different lakes. With just one difficult scrambling section, the rest of this hike is just so beautiful; I might even argue it's one of the prettiest I've done so far in Austria!

"Spiegelsee" literally translates to "Mirror Lake" - so get ready to see a gorgeous mountain reflection in the main lake on this hike.

→ Check out all my other favourite lakes to visit in Austria!

If you're lucky, you might get to meet the resident goats who sleep at Spiegelsee - and they love to lick salty, sweaty legs!

→ Check out the funny reel I made about being licked by alpine goats!

Spiegelsee Hike Details

When: June to October

Where: hike begins from the parking lot of the Reiteralm in Styria

Difficulty: intermediate, with one steep, rocky section climbing above one of the lakes

Length: from the Reiteralm parking lot, we did a loop hike of 6km which took us just under two hours of moving time

Directions: from the Reiteralm parking lot, follow the yellow signs for the Spiegelsee. We did this in a loop, first heading past five lakes including Glackerch-Teich, Waldsee, Untersee, Spiegelsee and Obersee. The steep section is above the Untersee and does not need to be hiked down on the way back! Instead, at the Untersee, you can take the left trail and walk a softer incline all the way back past a sixth lake, the Reiteralmsee. In the winter, this is a popular skiing area!

→ Check out my exact route on Strava!

Bathrooms: no

Public Transit: no

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Jana Meerman

Hi! I’m Jana, a Dutch-German-British-Canadian with a dream of seeing every country in the world. I am a storyteller, photographer and adventurer passionate about documenting and sharing my travels.

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