Otztal Glacier Road

The Ötztaler Gletscherstrasse climbs from Sölden at about thirteen hundred metres to the Rettenbachferner at around two thousand eight hundred, which makes it the highest paved road in Austria that is driven rather than walked, with a tunnel through to the Tiefenbach glacier beyond. It was built for the ski areas, which is why it goes where it does, and the Rettenbach hosts the opening giant slalom of the World Cup season each October - the first races of the winter, run on a glacier because nowhere lower has snow that early, and increasingly precarious as the ice retreats. In summer the road is open for driving and cycling and the glacier is skied. The top is bare rock, moraine and ice with no vegetation at all.

What you actually see

• Austria's highest paved road - climbing to around 2,800 metres at the glacier.
• The World Cup opening slope - the Rettenbach giant slalom course each October.
• Bare high ground - moraine, rock and ice above the vegetation line.
• A tunnel between glaciers - the link through to the Tiefenbach side.

When to go

June to October for driving; the ski season for the glacier. Half a day.

Honest expectations

Tolled and closed by weather and race preparation at times. Altitude affects people at 2,800 metres. The glaciers here have retreated visibly and the ski runs are increasingly managed with covers.

Nearby

Sölden is below; the Timmelsjoch road to Italy branches from the valley.