Lower Tauern

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Lower Tauern
Lower Tauern.png
Highest peak Hochgolling
location Styria , Salzburg ( Austria )
part of Central Eastern Alps (Central Alps)
Classification according to SOIUSA  II / A-18 Eastern Tauern Alps ; Lgld.d.Stmk.  NT; Trimmel  2600
Coordinates 47 ° 16 '  N , 14 ° 5'  E Coordinates: 47 ° 16 '  N , 14 ° 5'  E
rock Old crystalline
dep1
dep2
f1
p2
p5

The Niedere Tauern are a large group of the Central Alps in the Eastern Alps . They connect to the east of the Hohe Tauern . The mountain group is located in Austria in the federal states of Salzburg and Styria .

About the name

In the Middle Ages the mountains were mostly named after the accompanying river, the Salzburg and Admont side of the Ennstal Alps (1207 “ ad alpem que dicitur Enstalar ”, between Lungau and Enns), and the Styrian side of the Murtal Alps . As in the course of the beginning alpinism of the 18th / 19th Century the geological connection in the chain of the Central Alps comes to the fore, the - also Salzburg - expression Tauern , which originally referred to the pass crossings, and one speaks of the Tauern Alps , and in contrast to the "Hohe" Tauern of the 3000er of the "Lower" Tauern. The name Ennstaler Alpen then wanders eastwards into the mountains on both sides of the Gesäuses; the Murtaler Mountains are a subgroup of the Niedere Tauern, the southern chain.

geography

Boundary and neighboring mountain groups

The Lower Tauern are bounded by the following valleys:

The landscape structure of Styria shows the southern Murberge  (Z.1) as an independent group for geological reasons, the demarcation in the south then follows the Murparalleltal via Oberwölz.

Subgroups

The Alpine Club division of the Eastern Alps (AVE) divides the Lower Tauern into the following four subgroups:

Rottenmanner Tauern and Wölzer Tauern are also regarded as independent groups, the delimitation of the two is quite unspecific, and they are also often seen as a subgroup of the other. For geological reasons, the Rottenmanners are often placed next to the Seckauer Tauern ( Seckauer Alpen  i. W. S.). In addition, the Murberg Mountains ( Tamsweg-Seckauer Höhenzug , Gstoder 2140  m above sea level ) in the south - also for geological and natural reasons - are distinguished as a fifth independent subgroup, which includes the parts of the Radstädter, Schladminger and Wölzer Tauern.

Geology and formation

As part of the Central Alps, the Niedere Tauern are mainly made up of mica schist . Granite and slate gneisses occur increasingly in the east . In the " Tauern window ", some limestone peaks emerge from this central eastern alpine blanket : z. B. Mosermandl and Pleißlingkeil (Radstädter Tauern) or the Kalkspitzen in the Schladminger Tauern.

The mountains were heavily glaciated during the ice ages . The deeply cut valleys with the wide valley floors bear witness to this. The numerous small cirque lakes are also a result of earlier glaciation. Today the area has no glaciers, but is considered to be the mountain range with the greatest number of lakes in the Eastern Alps .

Historical

In the Middle Ages and up to the beginning of the 19th century, metal ores were mined in the Schladminger and Wölzer Tauern ( iron , copper , lead , nickel , silver ). Old mine tunnels can still be viewed today near Schladming and Oberzeiring .

At the time of the Counter Reformation , the area around Schladming in particular served as one of the last retreats for farmers, workers and craftsmen who were loyal to Luther. Even today this area is the one with the highest percentage of Protestant Christians in Austria.

The tourist development of the Niedere Tauern began as early as the 19th century. First ascents were on the agenda. Even high-ranking personalities were led to the mountain peaks, such as Archduke Johann to the Hochwildstelle (Hohe Wildstelle).

The main reasons for the development lay in the establishment of the first railway lines through the valleys in the 1860s and the establishment of the Austrian Alpine Club in 1862. The first mountain hut was built relatively late, however: in 1920 the Hochwurzenhütte . In the 1950s, tourist development began in a modern form - with streets, cable cars, hotels and restaurants. The north side (Radstädter Tauern, northern Schladminger and Wölzer Tauern) was particularly preferred.

Economy and nature conservation

traffic

The mountain range is crossed by three pass roads from north to south:

In addition, the Tauern tunnel of the Tauern motorway runs through the Radstädter Tauern.

There are only a few, small settlements in the long, deeply cut valleys. The larger cities are in the bordering valleys:

Development and Tourism

The most important economic factor is tourism , whereby both summer (hiking, climbing, cycling) and winter ( alpine skiing ) are used.

In particular, the north-west, with areas of the Ski amadé and the Schladming – Dachstein region, makes up the most important ski regions in the Eastern Alps. For alpine skiing, the foothills in the Ennstal are especially accessible with cable cars and tow lifts , but also the area between Judenburg and St. Michael im Lungau. Schladming, with its Planai and Hauser Kaibling ski areas, was the venue for the Alpine World Ski Championships in 1982 and 2013 .

The Radstädter and Schladminger Tauern in particular are accessible through numerous mountain huts and hiking trails. Some long-distance hiking trails also lead through the Niedere Tauern region: the Central Alpine Trail from east to west, the Eisenwurzenweg, the Salzsteigweg and the Styrian circular trail from north to south.

In addition, forestry and alpine farming are carried out. There are also some graphite and magnesite deposits on the northeastern edge that are used economically.

The steep steps, which are formed by the valleys of the Niedere Tauern in the Ennstal, are used for small hydropower plants that generate electricity for local needs. In addition, in the Wölzer Tauern near Oberzeiring there is currently the highest wind farm in Europe, the Tauern wind farm , with 13 wind turbines for generating electricity.

Protected areas

The south of the Salzburg part of the Niedere Tauern belongs to the Salzburg Lungau and Carinthian Nockberge , the northern central part is the Sölktäler Nature Park . A large part is NATURA 2000 protected area (European protected area) Niedere Tauern according to the bird protection directive of the EU, and the high areas of the southeast Schladminger Tauern and the eastern Wölzer Tauern and Seckau Alps according to the flora-fauna-habitat directive. In addition, large areas are also protected landscape areas ( Niedere Tauern in Salzburg, Schladminger , Wölzer and Rottenmanner, Triebener Tauern and Seckauer Alps in Styria).

literature

Web links

Commons : Niedere Tauern  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Source contemporary original, Salzburger Urkundenbuch III, p. 80, line 5