The Tux Alps () or Tux Prealps (''Tuxer Voralpen'') are a sub-group of the Austrian Central Alps, which in turn form part of the

Eastern Alps The Eastern Alps are usually defined as the area east of a line from Lake Constance and the Alpine Rhine valley, up to the Splügen Pass at the Main chain of the Alps, Alpine divide, and down the Liro (Como), Liro River to Lake Como in the south. ...

within Central Europe. They are located entirely within the Austrian federal state of

Tyrol Tyrol ( ; historically the Tyrole; ; ) is a historical region in the Alps of Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Empire and Austria-Hungary, f ...

. The Tux Alps are one of three mountain ranges that form an Alpine backdrop to the city of

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; ) is the capital of Tyrol (federal state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the Wipptal, Wipp Valley, which provides access to the ...

. Their highest peak is the Lizumer Reckner, , which rises between the glen of Wattentaler Lizum and the valley of the Navisbach. Their name is derived from the village of Tux which is tucked away in a side valley of the

Zillertal The Ziller Valley () is a valley in Tyrol (state), Tyrol, Austria that is drained by the Ziller River. It is the widest valley south of the Inn (river), Inn Valley () and lends its name to the Zillertal Alps, the strongly Glacier, glaciated sectio ...

. The Alpine Club classification of the Eastern Alps (AVE) calls this range the Tux Alps. The name Tux Prealps was declared in the 1984 edition of the AVE as outdated and not longer applicable. The reality is that the mountain range can hardly be described as "prealps" in view of their sheer extent and height. The description only makes any sense when the range is seen in the context of the

Zillertal Alps The Zillertal Alps (; ) are a mountain range of the Central Eastern Alps on the border of Austria and Italy. Name The range is named after the Zillertal (Ziller river valley) on its north. Geography The range is bounded by the ''Tuxerjoch'' m ...

to the south, which are considerably higher than the Tux Alps and permanently covered in glaciers.

Neighbouring ranges

The Tux Alps are surrounded by the following other ranges in the Alps: *

Karwendel The Karwendel is the largest mountain range of the Northern Limestone Alps. It is located on the Austria–Germany border. The major part belongs to the Austrian federal state of Tyrol (state), Tyrol, while the adjacent area in the north is part ...

(to the north) *

Brandenberg Alps The Brandenberg Alps () are a sub-group of the Northern Limestone Alps, that run in front of the Eastern Alps for their whole length. They lie entirely in Austria between Achensee in Tyrol (state), Tyrol, the Inn Valley and the Bavarian Prealps. ...

(to the northeast) * Kitzbühel Alps (to the east) *

(to the south) *

Stubai Alps The Stubai Alps (, ) is a mountain range in the Central Eastern Alps of Europe. It derives its name from the Stubaital valley to its east and is located southwest of Innsbruck, Austria. Several peaks form the border between Austria and Italy. The ...

(to the west) Rastkogel HQ

Boundary

To the north the

lower Inn valley The Lower Inn Valley () is that part of the Inntal valley through which the Inn river flows from a point a few kilometres west of Innsbruck near its confluence with the Melach downstream to a few kilometres before Rosenheim. A further distinctio ...

forms the boundary of this range from Innsbruck downstream to the Inn's confluence with the Ziller. The Ziller valley (Zillertal) borders the range in the east from the mouth of the Ziller on the Inn upstream as far as

Mayrhofen Mayrhofen is a town in the Zillertal (Ziller river valley) in the Austrian state of Tirol, Austria, Tyrol. It is located approximately an hour from the Tyrolean capital city of Innsbruck. Population Tourism The town offers a variety of summer an ...

. In the south the

Tuxertal The Tuxertal is a valley located in Tyrol (state), Tyrol, Austria. A side valley of the Zillertal, from which it branches at Mayrhofen, the Tuxertal is about 13 km long and accessible on the Tuxer Straße (Tux Road). From Mayrhofen () to Hin ...

valley outlines the range from Mayrhofen to Hintertux. From there the boundary continues up to the saddle of the

Tuxer Joch The Tuxer Joch is a mountain pass in the Zillertal Alps at a height of that links the lower Zillertal valley with the Brenner route just north of the Brenner Pass. To the northeast just below the summit lies the Tuxer Joch-Haus. History In ea ...

and through the Schmirntal valley to Sankt Jodok. To the west the Tux Alps are bounded by the Wipptal valley from Sankt Jodok downstream to Innsbruck. The

saddle links the Tux Alps to the Zillertal Alps. The Tux Alps are a popular

ski touring Ski touring is skiing in the backcountry on unmarked or unpatrolled areas. Touring is typically done off-piste and outside of ski resorts, and may extend over a period of more than one day. It is similar to backcountry skiing but excludes the ...

and hiking area. Its ski resorts are Glungezer, Lizum im Wattental, Hochfügen-Hochzillertal, Penken and Kellerjoch, Patscherkofel. The

Patscherkofel Patscherkofel is a mountain and ski area in the Alps, in Tyrol in western Austria, 7 km (4 mi.) south of Innsbruck. The peak rises to a summit elevation of above sea level. The town of Igls at its northwest base is at , a vertical drop ...

mountain was a venue for the

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 – In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patria ...

and

1976 Winter Olympics The 1976 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XII Olympic Winter Games (, ) and commonly known as Innsbruck 1976 (), were a winter multi-sport event celebrated in Innsbruck, Austria, from February 4 to 15, 1976. The games were awarded to Inn ...

held in nearby

Major peaks

* Lizumer Reckner, 2,886 m * Geier, 2,857 m * Kalkwand, 2,826 m * Rosenjoch, 2,796 m * Rastkogel, 2,762 m * Malgrübler, 2,749 m * Hirzer, 2,725 m * Glungezer, 2,677 m * Gilfert, 2,506 m * Grüblspitze, 2,395 m *

Kellerjoch The Kellerjoch is a 2,344 m-high mountain above the Inn valley near Schwaz in Tyrol Tyrol ( ; historically the Tyrole; ; ) is a historical region in the Alps of Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core ...

, 2,344 m *

, 2,246 m

Geology

The largest part of the Tux Alps comprises low grade metamorphic rocks, that are classified as part of the ''Innsbruck quartz-phyllite complex'' (quartzitic

phyllite Phyllite ( ) is a type of foliation (geology), foliated metamorphic rock formed from slate that is further metamorphosed so that very fine grained white mica achieves a preferred orientation.Stephen Marshak ''Essentials of Geology'', 3rd ed. I ...

slate). Next to this zone of

Paleozoic The Paleozoic ( , , ; or Palaeozoic) Era is the first of three Era (geology), geological eras of the Phanerozoic Eon. Beginning 538.8 million years ago (Ma), it succeeds the Neoproterozoic (the last era of the Proterozoic Eon) and ends 251.9 Ma a ...

rocks to the south there is a localised zone of various

Mesozoic The Mesozoic Era is the Era (geology), era of Earth's Geologic time scale, geological history, lasting from about , comprising the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous Period (geology), Periods. It is characterized by the dominance of archosaurian r ...

rocks, the so-called ''Tarntal Mesozoic''. This complex zone belongs, like the quartz-phyllite zone, to the tectonic unit of the Lower Eastern Alps. Amongst the rocks of Tarntal Mesozoic may be found dolomite and

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

s that are the basis of rock faces (''Kalkwand'' and ''Torwand'') in the area of the Wattentaler Lizum. On the other hand, there are also elements of the former ocean bed, in the shape of

serpentinite Serpentinite is a metamorphic rock composed predominantly of serpentine group minerals formed by serpentinization of mafic or ultramafic rocks. The ancient origin of the name is uncertain; it may be from the similarity of its texture or color ...

that make up the Lizumer Reckner. The southern perimeter of the Tux Alps belongs to the tectonically deeper-lying Penninic ''

Hohe Tauern window The Tauern Window is a geological structure in the Austrian Central Eastern Alps. It is a window (in German ''fenster'') in the Austroalpine nappes where high-grade metamorphic rocks of the underlying Penninic nappes crop out. The structure ...

''. Here in the Tux Alps these are mainly rocks of the Penninic ''Glockner Nappe'' (calc-schist envelope of the Tauern). The northeasternmost corner of the Tux Alps, from the area of

Schwaz Schwaz () is a city in the Austrian state of Tyrol. It is the administrative center of the Schwaz district. Schwaz is located in the lower Inn valley. Location Schwaz lies in the middle of the Lower Inn Valley at the foot of the Kellerjoch ...

to Fügen im Zillertal, belongs to the Upper Eastern Alpine '' greywacke zone'', which consists of Paleozoic rocks.

Silver Silver is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag () and atomic number 47. A soft, whitish-gray, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. ...

and

copper Copper is a chemical element; it has symbol Cu (from Latin ) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkish-orang ...

were once extensively mined in this zone in the area around Schwaz.Tirol Atlas, ''Geologische Übersichtskarte von Tirol'' 1:300,000, Entwurf: Rainer Brandner.

Long-distance hiking trails

The long-distance hiking trail known as the "Munich to Venice Dream Path" (''Traumpfad München-Venedig'') runs through the Tux Alps. This is not an official

long-distance trail A long-distance trail (or long-distance footpath, track, way, greenway) is a longer recreational trail mainly through rural areas used for hiking, backpacking, cycling, equestrianism or cross-country skiing. They exist on all continents exc ...

. Nevertheless, the route, which was first proposed in 1977, has achieved a greater profile than many of the other trails officially established and maintained by states or rambling clubs. The 9th day leg of the dream trail runs from Hall in Tirol up to the Glungezer Hut; the next stage over the ''seven tuxer summits'' and the Naviser Jöchl to the Lizumer Hut which is operated by the Austrian Alpine Club section at Hall. The 10th and 11th days run from the Lizumer Hut to the Tuxer Joch Haus, then over the Pluderling Saddle and the Gschützspitze Saddle. Other long-distance trails in the Tux Alps are the Eagle Way (''Adlerweg''), the

Via Alpina The Via Alpina is a network of five long-distance hiking trails across the Alps, alpine regions of Slovenia, Austria, Germany, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Italy, France, and Monaco. The longest of trails is the red trail, whose termini are in Trie ...

(red), Olympic Way (''Olympiaweg''), Glungezer & Geier Way No. 335 (''Glungezer&Geier-Weg 335''), and Central Alpine Way No. 02a.

Huts

The following Alpine Club huts are located in the Tux Alps: * Glungezer Hut * Kellerjoch Hut * Lizumer Hut * Meißner Haus * Navis Hut * Patscherkofelhaus * Rastkogel Hut * Vinzenz Tolling Hut * Voldertal Hut * Weertal Hut * Weiden Hut

References

External links

Glungez Hut, Lizum HutAdlerwegOeAV HallTux Alps on kamdoalp.cz - Hikes description, prominent peaks
{{Authority control Mountain ranges of the Alps Mountain ranges of Tyrol (federal state)