Marmots, ibex and vultures, Hohe Tauern
Alpine marmot, Alpine ibex, chamois, red deer; bearded vulture (reintroduced from Rauris since 1986), griffon vultures (60–80 in summer), golden eagle. Nationalpark Hohe Tauern — Großglockner, Rauris (Krumltal), Heiligenblut, Austria.
Best time: 20 Jun – 31 Aug and 1 Dec – 31 Dec (June to August, December). Where: Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe, Großglockner Hochalpenstraße, Krumltal 'Tal der Geier', Rauris (Kolm-Saigurn), Heiligenblut – Gößnitztal / Gamsgrube (Austria). Time of day: Marmots and ibex from first light (the Glockner road barrier opens 05:00–06:00) until about 09:00 when traffic starts.
- You can go on your own
- Entry fee
- Binoculars helpful
- Sound 3/5
Open it in the interactive calendarSunrise and sunset listening times for the day you pick, and the map.
When is the best time?
- Peak 1: 20 Jun – 31 Aug — Late June to August: marmots, ibex and vultures
- Peak 2: 1 Dec – 31 Dec — December: ibex rut around Heiligenblut
Active from 15 May to 31 Dec (May to December) in a typical year.
Time of day
Marmots and ibex from first light (the Glockner road barrier opens 05:00–06:00) until about 09:00 when traffic starts; vultures on the thermals from about 10:00 to mid afternoon; a second mammal window from 16:00 to sunset.
- Morning mammals: sunrise → 09:00
- Vulture thermals: 10:00 → 15:00
- Evening mammals: 16:00 → sunset
What will you hear?
Marmot alarm whistles bouncing between glacier-polished walls, chough flocks, ibex hoof-clatter, the wing-rush of a griffon passing at 20 m, ptarmigan; glacier streams and cowbells below.
Binoculars?
Binoculars helpful. Marmots and ibex within metres at Franz-Josefs-Höhe; binoculars for vultures and eagles over the Krumltal.
Where to go
- Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe, Großglockner Hochalpenstraße — Very habituated marmots and ibex within metres; toll road, heavy motorbike traffic 09:00–17:00 — go at 06:00 when the road opens or stay at the Glocknerhaus. Map
- Krumltal 'Tal der Geier', Rauris (Kolm-Saigurn) — Bearded and griffon vultures, golden eagles; ranger-led vulture hikes; taxi road to Kolm-Saigurn. Map
- Heiligenblut – Gößnitztal / Gamsgrube — Ibex colony; ranger tours from Heiligenblut; quieter side valleys. Map
How to go on your own, and what it costs
Großglockner Hochalpenstraße: toll road (barrier opens 05:00–06:00, closes about 21:30 in summer) to the Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe car park — or stay at the Glocknerhaus to be there at first light. Krumltal: park at Kolm-Saigurn (Rauris; taxi road, small toll) and walk the valley trail — free. Heiligenblut: Gößnitztal trail from the village. Marked paths only.
Cost: Großglockner road toll €46.50 per car day ticket (2026); Kolm-Saigurn taxi road toll (check current prices); trails free; ranger hikes and 'Rent a Ranger' €270/day (2026).
Free or no-guide alternative: Krumltal from Kolm-Saigurn is the free version: walk in from the car park at first light for wild marmot colonies and vultures over the ridge, no toll road.
Who runs access
- Nationalpark Hohe Tauern – ranger tours (park authority) — Group ranger hikes (vultures in Krumltal, ibex at Heiligenblut) and private 'Rent a Ranger'.
Field-recording notes
The Glockner road is the loudest place in the Alps by day and silent at night (barrier closes ~21:30 in summer; reopens 05:00–06:00). Marmots at Franz-Josefs-Höhe are tourist-fed and vocal; wild colonies in Krumltal whistle at real distance. National park core zone: marked paths, no drones, no camping; huts allow a dawn start. Helicopters (rescue and hut supply) are frequent in summer mornings. Vultures are silent in flight — the recording is the air over your head; sit on a ridge below their soaring line at Kolm-Saigurn around noon.
Sources
- Nationalpark Hohe Tauern – Geier, Gold und Urwald in Rauris
- Nationalpark Hohe Tauern – ranger tours
- Raurisertal – Krumltal
Similar spectacles
Marmots, ibex and chamois in the Berchtesgaden AlpsMarmot whistles echoing off the Watzmann east face, chough flocks, chamois sneezes, ptarmigan on the Steinernes Meer plateau, golden eagle; cowbells on the alpine pastures; in autumn, roaring stags in the Klausbachtal.
Mercantour summer: marmots, ibex and wolf countryMarmot alarm whistles across high cirques, ibex hooves on rock, alpine choughs and lammergeier wingbeats; wolf howls are possible but rare and never guaranteed.
Alpine ibex, chamois and marmotsIbex horn-clashes in the December rut, hoof-clatter on rock, chamois alarm hisses, marmot whistles echoing, chough flocks, water pipit; the wind.
Marmots, ibex and chamois in the Julian AlpsMarmot alarm whistles echoing off limestone walls, chough flocks, ptarmigan croaking above the treeline, chamois hissing alarm sneezes; in autumn the roar of red deer from the valleys below.
Alpine summer: marmots & ibexPiercing marmot alarm whistles echoing across cirques, cowbells far below, alpine choughs, streams.
Bearded vultures and golden eagles of the EngadinSilence and wind — the recording is of the alpine air, chough flocks, marmots and the occasional whoosh of a 2.8 m wingspan overhead; the visual spectacle is the point.
More: all spectacles in Austria · vultures · ibex · marmots · mountain wildlife · Austria in June · Austria in July · August · Austria in December