Summit Tour Jaufen Pass (South Tyrol)

Summit tour from Jaufenpass, via Fleckner, to Glaitner Hochjoch, past the mountain lake "Übelsee" up to Kleine Kreuzspitze. The panoramic view over the Passeier Valley and Ratschings is breathtaking!

• Start: Jaufenpass / Römerkehre parking lot
• Destination: Kleine Kreuzspitze
• Difficulty: Moderate
• Trail marker: No. 12
• Trail length: 7.2 km
• Walking time: 3-3.5h
• Elevation gain: 750 m
• Elevation at destination: Fleckner (2331m), Glaitner Hochjoch (2389m), Übelsee (2320m), Kleine Kreuzspitze (2518m)
• Refreshments: Flecknerhütte
• Experienced: Early June 2020

Journey to the starting point

Our hiking tour takes us to the Passeier Valley, a mountain valley in South Tyrol, north of the city of Merano. We drive by car to Sankt Leonhard. From there, we take the winding Jaufenstraße up to the pass of the same name. At the last hairpin bend before the Jaufenpass, the so-called Römerkehre, a narrow and steep road leads us up to the parking lot a little above the bend.

It's a sunny spring day. As it's quite windy, we generally recommend warmer clothing at this altitude.

Start of the tour

From the parking lot, we follow trail no. 13B towards Rinnersattel, an old pass between the Passeier Valley and the Ratschings Valley.

From there, trail no. 12 leads us gently up and down past a lift station.

We pass the 2,268-meter-high Fasnachter, which can be bypassed on the mountain path. We then continue to the slightly higher mountain, the Fleckner (2331m), which can also be climbed relatively easily and is reached after about 1 hour from the parking lot.

After enjoying the panorama with expansive views over the Passeier Valley, we continue!

The Glaitner Hochjoch

The tour leads us another hour downhill into the Glaitner Joch (2249m) and then briefly uphill again to the Glaitner Hochjoch (2389m). At the second summit cross, we take a longer break and eat our packed lunches. We don't let the wind spoil the view!

The mountain lake and the last summit cross

We continue downhill on the somewhat stony path. We follow the trail description for 40 minutes to the Übelsee.

The Übelsee (2320m), still surrounded by snow, lies at the foot of the Kleine Kreuzspitze. The mountain lake is 120×90 meters large and about 10 meters deep.

From there we can already see the Kleine Kreuzspitze (2518m) and want to climb it too! The ascent takes about an hour. A narrow path, which becomes increasingly steep, leads us to the starting point of the Kleine Kreuzspitze. Since there is still some snow, special caution is advised.

You have two options to climb the summit. The first leads rather steeply up stone slabs. Therefore, one should not be afraid of heights!

For the second alternative, you have to go around the mountain. From there, you can climb the summit a little easier. We opted for the easier way up and the more difficult way down.

At the summit cross, we are happy and proud to have arrived! :-) The view of the surrounding mountains is breathtakingly beautiful.

The way back

Experienced mountaineers can still go to the Hohe Kreuzspitze (2746m). Surefootedness is required!

However, we are already tired and, after having climbed the three peaks, we make our way back.

We take the same path back to the Glaitner Joch. From the fork in the path, we go diagonally right downhill through the grassy and rather steep south-facing slopes to the Fleckner Hütte.

At the end, we look forward to a detour to the Flecknerhütte for a small cool beer! The alm is open daily during the summer season from June to October and in winter from early/mid-December to mid-April.

From the Flecknerhütte, it doesn't take long to reach the starting point where our cars are parked.

Conclusion

It was a not too difficult summit tour with wonderful panoramic views. The Fleckner and the Glaitner Hochjoch are also easy to climb for beginners and children. For the last summit, the Kleine Kreuzspitze, more experience and, above all, no fear of heights are required.

However, one should choose a sunny and wind-free day.

We will definitely come back!

Best regards,

Anna & Tristan