Gravel Grand Tour to Lake Fuschl and Lake Hallstatt

Bikepacking bags have made touring over several days by bike cool again. Together with gravel bikes, there has been a real hype around the topic of "bikepacking" in recent years. But among all the impressive routes, there is often a lack of good beginner's routes to try out. We can recommend this route for bikepacking beginners full heartedly, and experts can of course ride the tour in one go and enjoy an epic day out.

Grand gravel bike route from the inner Salzkammergut region

Our start point is located in beautiful Bad Goisern in the Inner Salzkammergut. The Inneres Salzkammergut region realized early on what potential it has in cycling and cycle tourism with events such as the Salzkammergut Trophy Mountain Bike Marathon, many official cycle routes and of course bike shops, restaurants and more!
You rarely see a no cycling sign here.
From here, we cycle north along the Traun river on the cycle path, alternating between gravel and small tarmac roads. We soon reach Bad Ischl.

Emperors' City of Bad Ischl

In the 19th century, the spa town was the summer residence of Emperor Franz Joseph I. The historic town center and its impressive architecture bear witness to Bad Ischl's golden age.
If you spend a little more time in the town, you should visit the Kaiservilla, the summer residence of Franz Joseph I. Today it is a museum.
But don't be put off - you can also just roll through and admire the architecture of the magnificent buildings, stop for an ice cream or a drink and then continue on your Gravel Grand Tour, your Gravel Gran Fondo if you like!

Hidden gravel paradise Schwarzensee

The Schwarzensee lake is not far from the Wolfgangsee lake, but far fewer people know it.
We sneak out of Bad Ischl on small roads and around the busy streets. We soon reach the Rußbach and follow it on a picturesque road that leads up to the lake.
At the top, it's the end of the road for cars, but we can continue on our gravel bikes! We have to watch out for hikers around the lake, but otherwise we can enjoy the view in peace and quiet.

Via the Moosalm to Lake Attersee

The tarmac ends and we continue uphill on gravel with gentle gradients. In between, we pass the Moosalm, which invites us to take a break with local dishes and drinks. It's a lovely spot!
We cycle a little further uphill before a descent to Lake Attersee awaits us. The view of the lake is gigantic!
Now we cycle a little further along the lake before we have the opportunity to end our day in Unterach am Attersee. Intercamping Attersee is a good alternative for anyone who wants to spend the night under the open sky!

Via the Mondsee lake to the Wolfgangsee lake

We continue to Lake Mondsee. A special highlight awaits us here. A long tunnel leads us through a large rock face along the Mondsee with interruptions that offer us a fantastic view.
Don't worry, the tunnel is only for cyclists! But perhaps take a small light with you so that you can recognise others and be seen yourself.
After the tunnel, we turn right and then immediately left again in Schärfling onto a gravel road. This allows us to avoid the traffic that awaits us on the main road and climb the Schärflinger Höhe in peace!
From here we roll along the road past Lake Krottensee to Lake Wolfgangsee, where St. Gilgen invites us to take another break. Cafés and restaurants, but also accommodation, all garnished with wonderful lake panoramas in a charming Austrian lakeside town - that's what you'll find here.

The azure blue Fuschlsee

It gets steep out of St. Gilgen! The cycle path first leads along the main road through the village, then we turn right and cycle steeply uphill with a view of the striking rock face of the Plombergstein. If you look closely, you might see a few climbers.
The ascent doesn't take long and after a short descent, we cycle a few more meters uphill on a more pleasant gradient before rolling downhill to Fuschl.
In Fuschl we find everything our hearts desire. Ice cream, restaurants and the Hotel Jakob, a hotel specializing in triathlon and cyclists!
A real tip if you want to spend the night here! And of course you should at least dip your feet in the water at the beach promenade as a minimum!
The water here is incredibly clear and the color unbelievable. You have to see it.

Gravel climb with a panorama: the Sausteigalm

From Lake Fuschlsee you now return to Bad Goisern. But don't worry, there are still a few Salzkammergut highlights waiting for you. The first takes us far above Lake Wolfgangsee and offers us a wide panoramic view over the lake and Bad Ischl below the Zwölferhorn.
If you've had enough of riding uphill, you can ride back the same route we took from St. Gilgen to Fuschl am See and save yourself a few meters in altitude!

For panorama fans and those looking for a sporting challenge, the route first takes us over the Perfalleck to Tiefbrunnau. On the way there, we pass the Red Bull headquarters in Fuschl. The building with the bulls running into the lake is impressive and well worth a photo!
The Perfalleck is quite pleasant to cycle up at the start, but save your energy, the last few meters are steep! Nevertheless, there's nothing to hold us back, we ride carefully down the fast descent and turn left at the bottom towards Tiefbrunnau.
The road leads us deeper and deeper into the end of the valley, climbing gently and steadily. We soon pass a car park and the asphalt ends, the gravel begins.
Now the road becomes steeper and we cycle uphill through the forest with a few hairpin bends. The forest thins out and we have a marvelous alpine panorama in front of us.
The exertions of the climb are blown away and the alpine pasture soon comes into view.
A cool drink on the terrace of the Sausteigalm and a "Schmankerl" with a fantastic view of Lake Wolfgangsee? You've certainly earned it!

Downhill to Lake Wolfgangsee

Now we ride downhill through the dense forest to Lake Wolfgangsee. Part of the descent is on tarmac and therefore easy to cycle. At the bottom, we cross the main road onto the cycle path. We follow this in the direction of Strobl am Wolfgangsee. The cycle path soon leaves the main road and we turn off into dense forest. Over a large wooden bridge we come to an old railway line, which has now been converted into a cycle path!
The cycle path leads through a moor right next to the lake. A fishing tower invites you to take a short break here, the view from above will surprise you, you wouldn't expect this landscape here!

Gravel with a historical journey along the Roman path

In Strobl you can stock up on supplies, eat an ice cream, have a coffee, there are also restaurants here. We ride through the town and wind our way back towards Bad Ischl along small side roads and gravel paths close to the main road.
This time, however, we don't pass through the spa town but instead cycle along a gravel road to the west, which has a special highlight in store for us:
The ruins of Wildenstein Castle which was built in the 13th century and you should definitely stop here for a photo and read a bit about its history. Incidentally, the castle ruins are located on the Roman Trail. We hope that's not too much of a history lesson for one day. 😜

Cycling along the Traun river to Bad Goisern

Now we have almost made it. We cycle back to Bad Goisern along quiet side roads and cycle paths, sometimes on gravel, past the Weissenbachtal valley and the Weissenbachwirt restaurant.
Well, not directly. We reckon you're hungry after such a mega gravel tour?
We'll send you on a mini diversions to the Steegwirt World Heritage restaurant.
Here you'll find good local cuisine, but also a few nationally inspired dishes of the highest standard. And a beautiful view of Lake Hallstatt. Highly recommended!
The Agathawirt is also located directly on the route, which not only spoils you with culinary delights, but is also a cyclist-friendly hotel.
From here, it's just a stone's throw back to the centre of Bad Goisern!