Our tour started in gorgeous weather at the Salet pier at the far end of Lake Königssee in Berchtesgadener Land. To get to Salet, you take a boat from Königssee. These leave about every 30 minutes and the round trip costs 25 euros per person (effective October 2022). The lake crossing alone is picturesquely beautiful and the color of the water is truly incredible when the sun shines on it!
During the crossing, we were lucky enough to have our captain tell us a few facts about Königssee. At one point, pretty much in the middle of the lake, where the acoustics are particularly good due to the steep walls jutting into the water, he even played the flugelhorn and we could listen to the echo. By the way, the Königssee is quasi a Bavarian fjord due to its steep walls.
Tour data
- Start and end point: Salet landing stage
- Duration / walking time: Approx. 2:16 hours
- Trail length: 7.90 km
- Vertical meters upwards: 200
- Altitude difference downwards: 210
- Difficulty: Medium
- Suitable for strollers: Up to the upper lake (Obersee)
- Suitable for dogs: Yes
- Refreshment stop: E.g. Saletalm alpine restaurant
The tour on Komoot
Touring equipment
- Ventilated hiking backpack (depending on weather conditions and personal equipment between 15 and 25 liters )
- Sufficient to drink
- Cap
- Sunglasses
- Sunscreen (at least sun protection factor 30)
- Sunscreen for the lips
On a nice day, there is a lot of tourist activity at the Königssee and you get off the boat together with many people. Fortunately, the masses get lost along the hiking trail. Past a beer garden, we walked off in the direction of Obersee, which has become known mainly through Instagram.
Arrived at the top of the lake, we had to take some photos of course – the landscape is just too gorgeous!
Up to here it was hardly uphill and accordingly the way was not strenuous. On such a hot day, even the “natives” 😉 needed to cool down!
Above the upper lake we looked for a nice place on the meadow to have a snack and enjoy the landscape. The view was incredibly beautiful and here we were finally completely alone.
After the refreshment we continued in the direction of Röthbachfall. From the Obersee to the waterfall it was still about 45 minutes walking time. The Röthbachfall is the highest waterfall in Germany, but had little water during our visit due to the summer drought. The trail now led steeply uphill through a forest that was still quite devastated from an earlier storm.
The last meters to the waterfall were very steep and stony. The official path was also very difficult to see. Here it needs surefootedness and you should also be free from vertigo. For the view of the Obersee and the Königssee at the same time, it was worth it! Directly at the waterfall were then also hardly any people, so we could enjoy the moment and the peace even better.
For your next hiking tours I recommend our hiking backpack Storm 23 Women RECCO. Thanks to the ventilated X Vent Zero carrying system you are completely without sweaty back on tour. And the RECCO reflector offers you an additional piece of security.
To the landing stage of Salet the same way led us back again. You should not miss the last return trip. This leaves at 17:45. Otherwise, you will either be stuck in Salet, or you will have to take a long and difficult hike to get back. We had to stand in line for some time because of the big rush, but then we still made it back to the car.
Reading tip: Hike to the Daniel (2,340 m)
