The Hiking World

Pielachtaler Pilgerweg

Verified OSM relation: Pielachtaler Pilgerweg, St. Pölten to Mariazell, 80.4 km OSM 2-D. Vertical figures sampled from Copernicus GLO-30.

Byline

  • The Hiking World editorial · author

    Desk byline for seed records. Named surveying editors replace this once a trail is verified.

Green hill country on the Pielachtaler Pilgerweg corridor, Austria

Figures marked provisional are seed data and still need verification. Source and last-checked date sit under each cited value.

Altitude weather delta

High 1,082 m minus low 265 m is 817 m of relief on this record. A standard tropospheric lapse of 6.5 °C per 1,000 m implies about 5.3 °C cooler at the high point than the valley, all else equal.

That is a model (International Standard Atmosphere environmental lapse), not a forecast and not a trail-closure. Wind, snow, and storms stay in Hazards.

derived:lapse-rate · 2026-09-10 · provisional

ISA 6.5 °C / 1,000 m · wikipedia.org · 2026-09-10

loading map...
Facts48.216, 15.626
Distance80.4 km
osm:relation:1017596 · 2026-09-10 · osm
Ascent+2,433 m*
copernicus-dem:glo-30 · 2026-09-10 · dem · provisional
Descent1,833 m*
copernicus-dem:glo-30 · 2026-09-10 · dem · provisional
High point1,082 m*
copernicus-dem:glo-30 · 2026-09-10 · dem · provisional
Low point265 m*
copernicus-dem:glo-30 · 2026-09-10 · dem · provisional
Routepoint-to-point
Days4
Seasonunverified
GradeSAC T2 · YDS 1

Editorial v1 · Provisional catalog

DifficultyUngraded (OSM ingest)
SAC T2
Mountain hiking. Continuous trail, some steep ground, sure-footedness helpful.
YDS Class 1
Class 1. Walking on an established path; low fall risk.

Log in to view the elevation profile

Ingested from OpenStreetMap relation 1017596 (ODbL). The mapped line and 2D length are derived from that geometry. Ascent, descent, and high/low points are sampled from Copernicus GLO-30 (copernicus-dem:glo-30) and remain provisional. Water was not taken from OSM tags.

OSM 2D length is 80.4 km (relation 1017596). lengthKm is verified: 80.4 km is within ±3% of the official 80.06 km (https://www.mostviertel.at/en/tour/pielachtaler-pilgerweg-gesamtverlauf-von-st-poelten-nach-mariazell, checked 2026-09-10). Official km is the ±3% cross-check, not this DataPoint.

DEM high 1,082 m / low 265 m. GLO-30 cumulative ascent 2,433 m (10 m hysteresis).

typicalDays 4 is the recommended 4-day split (https://www.mein-pilgerweg.at/pielachtaler-pilgerweg-gesamtverlauf-etappen-und-karte, checked 2026-09-10); the same desk also publishes a 3-day variant. Not Math.round(lengthKm/12) and not a duration statute. Finish is Mariazell in Steiermark; primary Land is Niederösterreich.

Water was not mapped to named WaterSource points (no honest atFraction).

Water

No water sources recorded.

Permits & fees

No permit required.

Getting there

Sourced legs to the St. Pölten (OSM line start) base start station — where this trail record begins. This is not a route planner: durations are approximate and marked provisional until an official transport page confirms them.

  1. Rail · Vienna (VIE) → St. Pölten

    Vienna International Airport is the usual air gateway (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vienna_International_Airport, checked 2026-09-10, CC BY-SA). ÖBB continues to St. Pölten (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sankt_P%C3%B6lten, checked 2026-09-10, CC BY-SA). The Pielachtaler Pilgerweg starts in St. Pölten and finishes at Mariazell (https://www.mostviertel.at/en/tour/pielachtaler-pilgerweg-gesamtverlauf-von-st-poelten-nach-mariazell, checked 2026-09-10).

    en.wikipedia.org · 2026-09-10 · wikidata · official · provisional

No walking permit on the Austrian public Wege network (Forstgesetz 1975 §33 / ÖAV Wegefreiheit, checked 2026-09-10). ÖAV/DAV hut booking is logistics. Return from Mariazell is commonly the Mariazellerbahn.

Plan from your location

Type a city, then pick a match. These links open external search tools — they do not fetch fares or timetables.

Trailheads

  • St. Pölten (OSM line start) car-free: yes
  • Mariazell (OSM line end) car-free: yes

Log in to view trailhead transit detail

Hazards

  • Length: official 80.06 km over 3–4 days (https://www.mostviertel.at/en/tour/pielachtaler-pilgerweg-gesamtverlauf-von-st-poelten-nach-mariazell, checked 2026-09-10). The last third from Schwarzenbach is steeper alpine-foothill country toward Mariazell.
  • No walking permit on the Austrian public forest and alpine Wege network (Forstgesetz 1975 §33; https://www.alpenverein.at/gebirgsverein/natur-umwelt/bergsport-umwelt/gesetzliche_regelungen.php, checked 2026-09-10). ÖAV/DAV hut booking is logistics, not a trail permit. There is no walking fee on those pages.

Questions

Do I need a permit for Pielachtaler Pilgerweg?

No trail permit is listed on this record for Pielachtaler Pilgerweg.

How difficult is Pielachtaler Pilgerweg?

Pielachtaler Pilgerweg is graded SAC T2 · YDS 1. A sourced hazard on this record: Length: official 80.06 km over 3–4 days (https://www.mostviertel.at/en/tour/pielachtaler-pilgerweg-gesamtverlauf-von-st-poelten-nach-mariazell, checked 2026-09-10). The last third from Schwarzenbach is steeper alpine-foothill country toward Mariazell.

How long is Pielachtaler Pilgerweg?

The OSM 2-D length on this record is 80.4 km (verified). Published figures may differ. See /guides/how-long-is-the-trail

How do I get to Pielachtaler Pilgerweg?

The record’s base start is St. Pölten (OSM line start). A primary gateway on the record is Vienna International Airport (VIE). Trailhead transit notes are not included in this public FAQ.

Related trails

Featured in