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Birnhorn in 3D: real relief (Copernicus DEM) and satellite image (Sentinel-2)

Mountain·AustriaAustria

Birnhorn

2,634m

Loferer und Leoganger Steinberge

Summit weather

3D view drawn from Copernicus WorldDEM-30 (© DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA) and Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX IT Services GmbH, CC BY 4.0

Elevation
2,634m
Prominence
1,665m
Isolation
16km
Relief
1,967mabove the lowest point within 5 km
Steepest slope
64°within 1 km of the summit
Snow at the summit
Oct–JulSee month by month ↓
First ascent
1831
Summit
47.4736°N, 12.7331°E

Mountain in the Leoganger Steinberge in Salzburg

Birnhorn is a mountain in the Loferer und Leoganger Steinberge (Austria). Its summit stands 2,634 m above sea level. Its prominence — how far it rises above the highest saddle linking it to a taller summit — is 1,665 m, and the nearest higher ground is 16 km away. It was first climbed in 1831.

From the lowest point within 5 km (667 m), it rises 1,967 m. The steepest side is the south-east face: 50° on average over the first kilometre. In places the ground near the top reaches 64° — terrain for climbers, not walkers.

The nearest town is Leogang, 4 km away at 785 m: 1,849 m below the summit.

Read more on Wikipedia

Scores

Birnhorn for skiers and climbers

Two scores out of 10, built only from open data — every part is shown. They describe what the mountain offers, not how safe it is.

Hiking & mountaineering

9.7/10

Difficulty to the top

Mountain walk

Most path sections around the top are T3 on the SAC hiking scale.

Indicative only — never a safety assessment. Conditions change: ask local guides and check the forecast.

  • 2.5/2.516 waymarked routes and 216 path sections nearby
  • 1.5/1.514 huts and shelters
  • 1.8/21,849 m of ascent from the valley
  • 1.4/1.51,665 m of prominence
  • 1.5/1.59 months with summit afternoons above −5 °C
  • 1.0/1via ferratas, climbing and glaciers

Ski score

8.6/10

  • 3.9/4264 km of downhill runs
  • 1.5/1.561 ski lifts
  • 0.2/1.5227 m between the lowest and highest lift station
  • 3.0/37 months of snow at about 1,760 m

Runs by difficulty

  • Beginner 2 km
  • Easy 162 km
  • Intermediate 79 km
  • Difficult 15 km
  • Freeride 5 km

Snow season on the slopes (estimate)

Around 1,760 m, in the middle of the ski area: snow from November to May.

  1. Jan
  2. Feb
  3. Mar
  4. Apr
  5. May
  6. Jun
  7. Jul
  8. Aug
  9. Sep
  10. Oct
  11. Nov
  12. Dec
  • Snow on the ground all month
  • Snow some of the time
  • No snow
  • This month

61 lifts · lift stations from 1,647 to 1,874 m · 108 km cross-country

How these scores are made

Ski (where OpenStreetMap has skiing within 12 km): up to 4 points for the length of downhill runs (300 km or more = 4), 1.5 for the number of lifts (40+), 1.5 for the vertical between lift stations (1,500 m) and 3 for the snow season — a month counts when the estimated mean temperature at the height of the ski area is −1 °C or lower and snow falls or lies there (NASA POWER, 2001–2020). Hiking & mountaineering: up to 2.5 for waymarked routes and paths, 1.5 for huts, 2 for the ascent from the valley (2,000 m), 1.5 for prominence (3,000 m), 1.5 for the season (months with summit afternoons above −5 °C) and 1 for via ferratas, climbing and glaciers. OpenStreetMap is built by volunteers: where few things are mapped, a score can be lower than reality.

Plan your visit

Stay, climb and get there

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Snow

When there is snow on Birnhorn

At the summit, snow from October to July (some years from September to July). Month by month below, at different heights on the way up.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Summit2,634 msnow from October to July (some years from September to July)
Snow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthNo snowSnow some of the timeSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all month
Halfway up1,710 msnow from November to May
Snow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all month
Leogang785 msnow from December to March
Snow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowSnow on the ground all month
  • Snow on the ground all month
  • Snow some of the time
  • No snow
  • This month

Estimate for a normal year: average temperature and precipitation from NASA POWER, carried to each height, in a simple model of snow building up and melting. In a given year snow can come earlier or stay longer. It does not replace the local snow and avalanche bulletin.

Summit weather

Birnhorn, month by month

Not a forecast: long-term averages (1991–2020), carried up to the summit. The orange line is where an average afternoon reaches 0 °C; above the dashed blue line it freezes even at dawn.

On an average July afternoon the summit reaches about 11 °C; on January nights it falls to about -18 °C. In 5 months of the year it stays below freezing at the top even in the afternoon. In July the 0 °C line climbs to about 4,330 m, above the summit: the top thaws on an average afternoon. Across the region, February is the driest month (75 mm) and August the wettest (188 mm).

0 m1,000 m2,000 m3,000 m4,000 mSUMMIT · 2,634 mLEOGANG · 785 mJanuary: 1,130 mFebruary: 1,250 mMarch: 1,910 mApril: 2,800 mMay: 3,480 mJune: 4,080 mJuly: 4,330 mAugust: 4,280 mSeptember: 3,560 mOctober: 2,940 mNovember: 2,030 mDecember: 1,310 mJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
0 °C on an average afternoon 0 °C at dawn the summit
MonthSummit high °CSummit low °CLeogang high °C0 °C line (m)Rain & snow (mm)Wet daysSun h/day
January-10-1821,13094133.0
February-9-1731,25075134.5
March-5-1471,91093165.2
April1-9132,80090155.7
May6-5183,480154205.5
June9-1214,080178226.4
July111234,330185227.0
August111234,280188206.5
September6-3183,560132165.1
October2-7142,940104144.5
November-4-1282,03078142.8
December-9-1631,31083142.4

Estimate: the NASA POWER climate of a ~55 km cell (average height 1,279 m), adjusted to the summit by −6.5 °C per 1,000 m. Rain, wet days and sunshine are those of the region. Mountain weather changes fast — always check a local forecast. ★ = mildest months at the top.

Relief

The mountain in profile

Two cuts through the summit, 16 km long, from the 30 m Copernicus elevation model. True scale: no vertical exaggeration.

West – east
2,634 m695 m0 km2 km4 km6 km8 km10 km12 km14 km16 kmWE
South – north
2,634 m654 m0 km2 km4 km6 km8 km10 km12 km14 km16 kmSN
Steepness by direction
30°N: 16°NNE: 27°NEE: 26°ESE: 50°SES: 37°SSW: 34°SWW: 17°WNW: 23°NW

Average slope of the first kilometre from the summit. The orange petal is the steepest side.

Around the mountain

Huts, lifts and trails around Birnhorn

Counted around the summit in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit. The satellite plate shows 14 × 14 km.

Birnhorn seen from above (Sentinel-2) N 5 km

Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 14 × 14 km, north up. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.

A lift reaches Asitzgipfelbahn (L5) at 1,874 m — just 760 m below the summit.

  • 14mountain huts and shelters

    Sinnlehen Alm, Knappenstube, Lindlalm, Passauer Hütte (2,051 m) and 10 more

  • 13cable cars, gondolas, chairlifts and rack railways

    Magic 6er (Bergeralm), Muldenbahn 8er, Asitzbahn I, Panorama 6er and 9 more

  • 2ski areas

    Skicircus Saalbach-Hinterglemm Leogang Fieberbrunn, Buchensteinwand (Pillersee)

  • 16waymarked hiking routes

    AV Weg 411, AV Weg 401, Nordalpenweg 01, Arnoweg (Kalkberge West) and 12 more

  • 21via ferratas

    Klettersteig Leogang Süd (D/E), Klettersteig Leogang Nord (C-D) Teufelsloch-Variante, Klettersteig Leogang Nord (C-D), Klettersteig Zahme Gams (B/C) and 17 more

  • 355climbing crags and routes

    Hohlwegen Brechl Platte, An Reini Seini, Babylon, Apollo and 351 more

  • 1named glaciers

    Verlorener-Weg-Schacht

  • 14viewpoints

    Vorderkaserklamm, Schöne Aussicht, Turnstile, Terrasse and 10 more

  • 4campsites

    OEAV Campingplatz "Ferienwiese", Camperplatzl, Obergründbichlgut, Stellplatz am Steinernen Meer

  • 133hotels, B&Bs and chalets

    Der Krallerhof, Pfindlhof, Alpengasthof Hirschbichl, Millinghof and 129 more

  • 110restaurants and cafés

How hard are the paths?

216 path sections within 5 km, by SAC hiking scale (T1 easy walk … T6 difficult alpine).

T1T2T3T4T5
  • T1 hiking
  • T2 mountain hiking
  • T3 demanding mountain hiking
  • T4 alpine hiking
  • T5 demanding alpine hiking

Towns at the foot

  • Leogang4 km · 785 m
  • Hochfilzen9 km · 1,000 m
  • Saalfelden am Steinernen Meer10 km · 748 m
  • Sankt Martin bei Lofer10 km · 683 m
  • Mitterhofen11 km · 777 m
  • Saalbach12 km · 1,003 m
  • Viehhofen12 km · 855 m
  • Lofer13 km · 626 m

OpenStreetMap is built by volunteers: a low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet. Places © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).

Photos

Seen by climbers and visitors

20090802-Birnhorn von Passauer Hütte
Luidger · CC BY 3.0
20210904.12er Kogel.-033
Bybbisch94, Christian Gebhardt · CC BY-SA 4.0
Birnhorn Leogang 46
reyengine · CC BY-SA 4.0

Recent years

How each month compared at the summit

Afternoon high at the summit (estimate). The first row is the reference, the 1991–2020 average in °C; the years show only the difference.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
1991–2020 average-10-9-5169111162-4-9
2020+2.7+3.1+0.8+2.9−1.3−1.5−0.1+0.9+1.5−1.9+2.3+0.3
2021−1.5+2.9−0.7−3.0−3.2+2.5+0.7−1.9+2.6−0.2−0.4−0.3
2022+0.7+1.3+1.9−0.9+2.1+3.0+1.5+0.9−1.0+4.6+1.1+1.1
2023+1.2+1.7+2.4−3.5−0.5+1.1+1.6+1.3+5.2+3.7−1.6+1.8
2024+1.2+4.8+3.4+1.1+0.9+0.5+1.8+3.4+0.1+2.6+1.1+0.5
2025+2.1+4.0+3.2+2.2−1.4+3.9−1.0+0.8+2.2−1.6−0.3+2.4

+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual

About these numbers

Names, elevation, prominenceWikidata (Q683611) · CC0
Relief, 3D view, profilesCopernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA
ClimateNASA POWER, 1991–2020 · CC BY 4.0
Around the mountain© OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL
ImagesEOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons

Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.

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