After a month of haggling over a reasonably acceptable fee with the publisher, we can start in June 2021. It should a real book because we like to have printed travel guides with us. It's easier to browse through on the journey, it's more practical on the water than a mobile phone and it's still a very relevant form for us.
In addition to the full-body workout that paddling provides, we also get a few muscles on our arms from the frequent towing.
So we get ourselves an old Renault Espace, the French wonder car. In the boot, our multi-part hardboard - the Bomber and two i-Sups as well as paddles and a lot of equipment, the car mutates into a real eye-catcher thanks to its numerous Tiki and CrosLake stickers. The fixed roof rack carries the boards when changing to neighbouring lakes, as in the Salzkammergut. We quickly get used to the constant inflating and deflating on this tour. We don't find out much about many of the 44 lakes from our internet research. However, we already had a lot of personal knowledge beforehand _ we had been to many of the lakes before. However, we couldn't think of 44 lakes off the top of our heads. Some of the lakes we had scouted were completely closed to paddlers or required strange permits. We often have to find the car park and access to the water on site. We quickly get used to getting the boards off the roof of the car and marching off. We prefer to check the situation beforehand. By now, we're used to attaching the boards with the lashing straps in a minute, and they're down again even quicker at the next lake. In addition to the full-body workout that paddling brings, we also get a few muscles in our arms from the frequent towing.
A few friends are also happy to join us for a ride through Austria. We ride the Tyrolean lakes from home. For the rest of the federal states, we stay with relatives in Upper Austria, Salzburg and Vienna. In Carinthia, a youth hostel serves as our base for a week. We roar from Lake Constance to Lake Neusiedl, where the weather is kind to us, but we are not spared a few tougher tours with cloudy skies and wind. Although I'm not a fan of cold water, I soon realise that my squeamishness won't get me very far. People often ask us if it's a bit cold for paddling. Of course not, we say: as long as we can paddle against the wind, bad weather certainly won't stop us. This is also the case at Lake Hallstatt, where we get caught in the typical Salzkammergut fog and a family of swans won't let me onto the lake.
Austria's lakes are diverse. They offer oases of peace, such as Hechtsee or Irrsee, but also spectacular mountain backdrops and breathtaking blue water, such as at Achensee or Vorderer Gosausee. No two lakes are the same and each of the 44 SUP tours has its very own charm, but also its own adversities. In the Salzkammergut in particular, it is virtually impossible to get free access to the water. Not only can the kilometre-long private plots on the shore become rather monotonous, but it can also be exhausting at times: Taking a break is not possible on the private lakeshores. So we grit our teeth and pay the entrance fee to the lido from time to time.
Of course, we also have our favourites, our absolute highlight tours, which are a lot of fun for us alongside our work. Lake Mondsee in Upper Austria, for example, where we enjoy a fantastic view of the Drachenwand. Incidentally, this lake takes its name from an old legend _ according to which a duke was saved from a fatal fall a long time ago because he saw the moon reflected in the dark waters of the lake at night and thus saved his life.
Another highlight (which is no longer strictly speaking in Austria, but is definitely worth a visit) is our Lake Reschen tour. If the water level is high enough, it takes us once around the sunken church tower of Alt-Graun, which is a bit scary if you know the dark history of the village's forced relocation.
Our conclusion:
It was a cool summer in 2021. The biggest challenge was the timing with the very changeable weather. The boundaries between work and pleasure blurred on the water. We got to know some of the most beautiful spots in Austria. We won't forget how happy some of the people, especially on the smaller lakes, were that we came to them and enjoyed their lake. in the book occurs.
Lake Traunsee: "Lacus felix" - the happy lake
Lake Traunsee is one of the most popular holiday destinations in Upper Austria. Despite its rather cold water, even in summer, it attracts holidaymakers to its culturally rich shores year after year. The Traunsee is ideal for exploring, especially on a SUP board, and so our extended tour takes us past Ort Castle, along the Gmunden esplanade to an absolute culinary classic, the Hois'n Wirt: there's something for everyone.
We start our tour at the Gmunden lido. Covering a total area of 6,000 square metres, it has sanitary facilities as well as a heated water area with a water slide, children's playground, a sports area and a self-service restaurant. There are very few public lake access points on Lake Traunsee, so the lido is the best place for us to start. If you want to hire a SUP board, the best place to do so is in Altmünster at the SUP Centre Traunsee.
We start our tour from there and head north. Our first stage takes us past Toscana Park, which extends into the lake like a peninsula. As soon as we turn the corner, we catch sight of our first destination: Ort Castle. Not only is it one of the oldest buildings in the Salzkammergut, but there are also numerous myths surrounding the lakeside castle. Today, Schloss Ort is owned by the municipality of Gmunden and is open to the public as well as a venue for seminars, parties and weddings. However, you shouldn't fall into the water here because of the freezing cold water temperature of just 17 °C. There are pillars under the water all around the castle where you have to take extra care. We circle the building once and then continue our tour.
After just a few minutes, we arrive at the centre of the municipality of Gmunden. Gmundner Keramik, the largest ceramics factory in Europe, is particularly famous here. Its products are made by hand using a very special technique according to an old tradition.
The Gmunden Esplanade is bustling with walkers and sun worshippers, there is of course also an electric boat hire service and, in combination with the Gmunden scheduled boat service, it can quickly get quite busy on the banks. But of course we don't let that bother us. We paddle on past the mouth of the Traun and along the riverbank towards the south to start our third stage.
Now we can really enjoy the Traunsee countryside. In front of us we can already see the Traunstein, Traunsee's local mountain and a favourite hiking mountain. Its rugged walls make it look like a huge rock. When the wind blows the clouds to the east, it looks as if the mountain is falling forwards into the lake. Lake Traunsee is also home to many different fish such as trout, char and many more. We also encounter the mute swan here.
After about an hour, we arrive at the Hois'n Wirt. If you want to stop off there, you should consider making a reservation _ on nice days, the Seegasthof is quickly full to bursting. But it's definitely worth it _ you can enjoy all kinds of delicacies there and savour the afternoon sun on the sun terrace. If you don't want to paddle back afterwards, you can simply take a boat back to Gmunden and then paddle the remaining few kilometres back to Gmunden lido.
Traunsee: Start & Finish & Arrival
Finding a car park near the lake is not so easy at Lake Traunsee, especially at the northern end in Gmunden. There are a number of car parks along the Esplanade and the Gmunden lido has a few available. The easiest place to get a parking space is at Toscana, from where it is only a stone's throw to Gmunden lido (day ticket six euros). You can easily get anywhere in Gmunden by public transport, with lines 505 and 509 taking you directly to the lido.
44 short and crisp, adventurous and challenging tours are now described.
Our first book is being printed.
>>The book with all 44 lakes, texts and maps is available for 19.95 euros. available here .<<
