Vorarlberg has many gorgeous places to hike. Just when you think you’ve found the most beautiful place in Vorarlberg, you’ll do a different hike and and find another — especially in the Montafon region, where all you see are rows and rows of mountains stretching off into the distance…😍
So I’m sure you can imagine my dilemma in choosing a hike to do for my 25th birthday. I wanted to do something really special: an overnight hike with some close girlfriends to watch the sunrise. While there are many places with spectacular views, I had some stipulations for the weekend. I didn’t want to end up on a crazy, strenuous hike or to have to camp in a tent (we didn’t have one) or have to wake up at 3 a.m. to hike several hours to get to the top to see the sunrise. I was looking for somewhere that would offer a moderate hike, an amazing view for the sunrise, and a Hütte close by to comfortably spend the night in, where we could sip wine and chat about everything under the sun the evening before. 💁🏻♀️🥂
Cue the Hoher Frassen, a mountain near Bludenz.
After searching on the Vorarlberg Alpenverein Hüttenfinder (as recommended by a friend), I stumbled upon the lovely Frassenhütte. The Frassenhütte is situated at 1740 meters and is only about 1.5 hours from the top of the Muttersberg, conveniently located on the outskirts of Bludenz. From the Frassenhütte, it’s only a 30-40 minute hike to the top of the Hoher Frassen (1979 meters), making it the perfect option for both an easy day hike and an overnight.
Although there were other options I looked at, in the end, the Hoher Frassen won out for a couple of reasons: 1) it’s easy to get to from Bludenz and the main train line, so we wouldn’t have to worry about timing busses on a Sunday 2) the Frassenhütte was open in early June and still had rooms available for that weekend 3) you can take the Muttersberg lift part of the way up, which I thought was a good option since it was supposed to rain the whole day.
With the Hoher Frassen meeting all of the requirements, I quickly reserved space at the Hütte and prayed to the weather gods for nice weather. 🌞
The Morning Hike
After hiking up to the Hütte on Saturday afternoon, we spent the evening taking silly photos, relaxing, and making new friends. 😉
We restrained ourselves from staying up too late the night before (playing a French card game where I had became “the president”–fun game 😉 ) and crawled into our comfy “Matratzenlager” around 11p.m. (This is essentially one long row of mattresses, where everyone sleeps next to someone, so it can feel a bit cozy.) We basically slept in our hiking clothes and set our alarms for 4:15. As we fell asleep, we could hear rain pelting outside, and I hoped that meant that the clouds would have passed by the time morning rolled around….
Before we knew it, our alarms were beeping and we jumped out of bed to peer out the window — it had been overcast the night before. Stefan, the owner of the Hütte, had told us that if we saw stars, then we’d be able to see the sunrise. Fortunately, we could see stars twinkling. As we whispered in the dark (so as not to wake the family with little kids sleeping in the room), my friends all wished me happy birthday and gave me hugs, which was amazingly sweet of them at 4:15 in the morning! I couldn’t stop smiling. 🙂
Even at 4:30 in the morning, it was already becoming pretty light outside. We used headlamps for the first part of the hike, but they soon became unnecessary.
Coralie and I (and Flo — a super nice Austrian we met at the Hütte who accompanied us in the morning!) were pretty excited morning birds full of energy. Vic and Elin weren’t the craziest about waking up so early but were troopers for going along with it. 😉 By the time we reached the top, the view was stunning enough to put us all in stellar moods.
As you can see from the photo above, it’s not the easiest hike. Even in the daytime, we had to be careful of loose rocks. In the morning, Flo lead the way.
Before we knew it, we were at the top — about fifteen minutes before sunrise at 5:25. Of course, being the Moaddle (girls) that we are, we immediately took a lot of photos.
Then the sun started peaking over the mountains. 
When the sun was up, my friends started singing happy birthday and we passed around cookies (“Gipfelkekse”) and chocolate. ❤️ I couldn’t think of a more perfect way to start my birthday and am so thankful to have my friends there with me who even went along with a crazy early sunrise hike! It’s a memory I will cherish forever. 🎂🎉🍾
If you’re looking for a great place in Vorarlberg to watch the sunrise and / or to celebrate your birthday, I’d highly recommend the Hoher Frassen. It’s easy to plan, not too difficult, and will give you a fantastic view of the region!
xo,
Sarah
p.s. here’s my top three tips for what to pack for this hike
- Cash – the Frassenhütte did not take card
- Gipfelkekse – cookies to eat when you reach the top (or sustain you along the way) 😉
- Card games – to play while you’re at the Hütte and to make new friends!
Sarah the Adventurer 