Bodental
A Favourite Place
When I composed the last article in Abu Dhabi in February, I expected to write about the ADNEC project as it developed over the next nine months. As it turned out I had to return to Austria for family reasons and consequently this article is once again about Carinthia.
About 30 kilometres from Klagenfurt in a southerly direction, there is a mountain range known as the Karawanken which forms the border between Austria and Slovenia. Near the foot of the range on the Austrian side there is a narrow steep sided valley called Bodental. It is a region where my wife and I like to walk when the weather is reasonable. The area is sparsely populated with most of the local inhabitants involved in farming or forestry whilst some are employed at the ski resort. There are two Gasthäuser (Inns) which are equally popular with hikers in summer and skiers in winter.
The road into the area is narrow, winding and in places very steep and is often inaccessible without snow chains during the winter months. The valley is a cul de sac as it is closed at the southern end by an almost vertical wall of rock.
When we are able to drive up to the Bodental, we park our car at a Marterl (Austrian name for a shrine) which is sited beside the road as this is a convenient place from which to start our hike. We follow the road for a couple of hundred metres and then turn into the forest and follow a path down through the trees into the valley. In autumn the colours of the few deciduous trees are spectacular against the backdrop of the dark green pine forest.
There is a fast flowing stream to cross at the foot of the slope and then a gentle climb past the ruin of a water mill. We pass the Gasthaus Sereinig at the bottom of the ski slope and then walk on up the valley to Meerauge (literally ‘sea eye’).
The Meerauge is a small round lake filled with crystal clear, turquoise coloured water that legend insists is connected to the sea by subterranean tunnels – no mean feat when it is considered that the water surface is nearly 1000 metres above sea level and about 200 kilometres from the nearest ocean.
One of the legends about the Meerauge describes how a farmer driving an ox cart laden with hay fell into the water and disappeared. Some time later a remnant of the cart was discovered in a lake on the other side of the mountains in Slovenia!!!
Another thirty minute walk along a stony path through the woods brings us to Märchenwiese (Fairytale Meadow). The wide flat floor of the valley is covered with rich green grass. The steep tree covered sides of the valley extend down to the grass on either side and at the end is the rugged and nearly vertical limestone rockface known as ‘die Vertatscha’ which blocks further progress.
Here we have a rest for a time and then turn back. After passing Meerauge again we walk up and along the opposite side of the valley until we arrive at Gasthaus Lausegger. Here we enjoy a lunch of traditional Austrian cuisine at a table looking out across the valley.
After the meal we continue along the side of the valley and eventually the path descends through the trees to the Marterl at our starting point.
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John Langdon
Klagenfurt
May 2008.