Hut Fund Report

Berghaus in der Walchen

by Janet Britnell

The Berghaus in der Walchen, belonging to Sehion Oblarn with only 369 members, is situated at 985m in the Walchental, a side valley of the Ennstal in Upper Styria. This historically significant building dates from 1709 and was part of a silver mine complex. The mining company finally closed in the 1950s and the building was out of use for about 40 years until it was bought by Sektion Öblarn in 1998, restored and opened in 2001, their 50th anniversary year.

Berghaus-in-der-Walchen
Photos by ÖAV Öblam

This self-catering hut, normally open all year round, is mostly used by Alpenverein families and Youth Groups with about 40 sleeping places and approximately 1000 overnight stays per year. The hut is usually self-financing since it has been looked after for 20 years by two volunteers, or Hüuttenwarten, Hans and Marta Stieg, and all the revenue from letting the hut is reinvested into the annual maintenance of the hut. However, this very small section has invested a lot of money into is huts over the years. Their original hut was the Engliltztalhütte, which they leased for 4O-years, and in 1985 undertook a costly renovation and extension of the hut only to be evicted by new landowners in 1994. They did get financial compensation but still had to find considerable funds to buy and restore the Berghaus, but this time they own the hut and the land it stands on.

The section also owns the spring that supplies the drinking water, but it costs €600 a year for the water to be tested. There is a good waste water system; the hut is heated with oil, and cooking is done on a wood burning stove. The electricity supply comes from a small hydroelectric power plant, belonging to three neighbours who sell electricity to the village and the Berghaus. The existing cable to the Berghaus can only supply 6-8KW; when funds allow they plan to install a bigger cable, to increase the electricity supply to the hut and enable more environmentally friendly cooking and heating. Goods are supplied to the hut by road.

ln 2016/17 Sektion Oblarn built a new boiler room near the hut, and the official opening was scheduled for 15 August 2017 but, during the weekend 4 to 6 August 2017, a torrential storm hit the area and the Walchenbach overflowed, bringing stones, boulders and uprooted trees, down the valley. The river bank and bridge near the Berghaus were destroyed and the front of the hut was undermined. Photographs from an army helicopter showed that the front wall of the hut had been washed away, leaving the ceiling beams of the ground floor Stübe, and of the room above, unsupported. Three days later three Austrian army pioneers were flown in and put in place 5 pillars under each of the beams, to prevent further collapse of the hut, There was an enormous ground swell of support for the Berghaus from the village and the emergency services. An Alpenverein and nationwide appeal for funds was launched and, as soon as possible, a group with relevant expertise made an onsite visit to decide if it was possible to save the Berghaus. The outcome was positive but the estimated cost of the work was over €300K. The section voted unanimously to go ahead and try to secure the hut before winter set in. One important decision was to move the course of the stream, and the track, further away from the hut and to rebuild the bridge lower downstream. This work was done by the Federal Department for Safety from Avalanches at no cost to the section. They also helped build the new steel reinforced concrete hut foundations and the cellar. By October they had the first invoice of €52K for the foundations and the cellar. By the end of November, the outer shell of the hut had been repaired with reinforced concrete for the ground floor section and bricks above, so with the window and door openings boarded up, it was secured for the onset of winter. The stream embankment in front, of the hut had also been rebuilt. There is still much to be done, but they are determined to complete the work in time to celebrate the re-opening on the 15 August 2018.

Berghaus and Walchenbach in 2017

The most recent cost estimate to secure and restore the hut is €332K, the Alpenverein hut insurance fund will pay 52%, the Styrian local government will contribute €62K, leaving €97K to find. The section and the local population are very committed to the hut. A fun run in Oblarn, in torrential rain in early September, raised €5,400 which the mayor immediately doubled; a concert raised €1,200, the members of the European Order of St George donated €6K; these and other contributions mean that by early March 2018 the appeal fund had reached about €80K, leaving about €20K to find. At their meeting in late March the AAC(UK) Board agreed to contribute €10K from the Hut Fund towards the restoration of the Berghaus in der Walchen.

Thank you for your donations, which are much appreciated.

Return to the top of this page, or to the complete Index, or to this section's Index.