Dolomite Alps

Above the valleys of Upper Carinthia rises the Grossglockner, a peak of the Hohe Tauern. The Pasterze glacier lies on its eastern flank, below the sharp summit ridge. The mountain stands near the border of Carinthia and Tyrol, overlooking the approaches from Heiligenblut. In 1800 an expedition organized by Franz Xaver Salm-Reifferscheid, Bishop of Gurk, sought the summit. Local guides reached the top on 28 July and raised a cross there. The climb followed an unsuccessful attempt the year before, when the party had turned back near the summit.