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Kitzloch2672

Austria Austria Slot canyon

Kitzlochklamm

1,077 m of rock, cut by the Salzach.

See the cutWhen to go

Einer flog zu Weit · CC BY-SA 3.0

The cut

1,077 metres, to scale.

A slice through Kitzlochklamm where it is deepest and narrowest, measured on the Copernicus relief model every 30 m. Same scale as the landmark standing on the floor.

1,755 m2,033 m1,077 m10 km rim to rim5.0 km1,755 m2,033 m1,077 m10 km rim to rim5.0 kmvertical scale × 1.7

Standing on the floor, to scale: Eiffel Tower · 330 m · Burj Khalifa · 828 m

Depth is measured to the lower rim; the width is from rim to rim. A 30 m relief model smooths the narrowest walls, so a slot canyon reads shallower than it is. This is a narrow canyon: the published depth, where there is one, is the better figure.

1,077m

Depth

measured on the 30 m relief model

10.5km

Rim to rim

measured on the 30 m relief model

43°

Steepest wall

average over 300 m, from the relief

678m

Floor altitude

Rim to floor

9 °C warmer at the bottom.

In July the afternoon reaches 24 °C on the floor, against 15 °C on the rim. The best months to hike are from May to June and from August to September. The rim freezes at night from October to April. The wettest months are from June to August: in a narrow canyon a flash flood arrives without warning, even from rain upstream.

rim · 2,033 mfloor · 678 m
  1. 3°-6°Jan
  2. 4°-5°Feb
  3. 8°-1°Mar
  4. 14°5°Apr
  5. 18°10°May
  6. 22°14°Jun
  7. 24°15°Jul
  8. 24°15°Aug
  9. 19°10°Sep
  10. 15°6°Oct
  11. 9°0°Nov
  12. 4°-5°Dec
Hike: May–Jun, Aug–SepFrost on the rim: Oct–AprWettest: Jun–Aug

Afternoon highs, 1991–2020 averages (NASA POWER) brought to the altitude of the rim and of the floor with the standard lapse rate (6.5 °C per 1 000 m). Shade, wind and rock change this on the day. Not a forecast.

Valley in Salzburg, Austria

Kitzlochklamm is a slot canyon in Austria, cut by the Salzach river. The relief model measures 1,077 m from the floor to the lower rim, and 1,355 m to the higher one. Rim to rim it is 10 km wide where the cut was taken.

Getting there.

  • Taxenbachnearest town · 1.1 km in a straight line
  • Parking 570 m awaynearest car park in OpenStreetMap, straight line
  • Dechantsbühel Informal signs about historical valuenearest viewpoint · 3.2 km from the floor
  • Salzburg Airport (SZG)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 56 km in a straight lineCar hire at SZG airport (Salzburg)Discover Cars · sponsored link
  • From May to June and from August to Septemberbest months to hike (estimate)

Plan the visit

Guided hikes, a bed nearby, a car.

Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.

The river

The Salzach runs highest from May to September.

The Salzach carries about 6.4 m³/s on average here. It runs highest from May to September.

  1. 2.0 m³/sJan
  2. 3.2 m³/sFeb
  3. 6.9 m³/sMar
  4. 7.4 m³/sApr
  5. 10 m³/sMay
  6. 12 m³/sJun
  7. 13 m³/sJul
  8. 13 m³/sAug
  9. 10 m³/sSep
  10. 6.2 m³/sOct
  11. 2.7 m³/sNov
  12. 1.7 m³/sDec

From about 1.7 m³/s in the lowest month to 13 m³/s in the highest. Its basin above this point covers 260 km².

Follow the Saalach from source to mouth on Riveryas

Estimate: long-term flow from the HydroATLAS model (WaterGAP, 1971–2000) shaped by the monthly rain, snow and temperature of the area (NASA POWER). Dams change it. Not a forecast.

From the sky.

The canyon from above, with the relief shaded, the line of the cut, the river and what people have mapped around it.

Kitzlochklamm seen from above (Sentinel-2) N 6 km

Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 23 × 23 km, north up. The line is the cut above. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Around the canyon.

  • 2viewpoints within 5 kmDechantsbühel Informal signs about historical value
  • 16marked hiking routes within 4 kmZentralalpenweg 02A, Rupertiweg 10, Wanderweg 14 and 13 more
  • 10via ferrata routes within 4 kmKitzlochklamm Klettersteig, Kitzlochklamm Klettersteig Klammfloh and 8 more
  • 29footbridges and suspension bridges within 3 km
  • 1rafting, canoe, kayak or canyoning spots within 4 km
  • 1named waterfalls within 4 kmGrosser Wasserfall
  • 5caves within 3 km
  • 18car parks within 3 km
  • 5information boards and visitor centres within 4 km
  • 14bus stops within 2 km
  • 2campsites within 8 kmOberhasenberghof, Camping Biohof Unteregg
  • 97hotels and guesthouses within 8 kmHochalm, Kreuzboden-Hütte, Rauriserhof and 94 more
  • 11restaurants and cafés within 4 km
  • climbing crags within 3 km
  • swimming spots within 3 km

Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, around the floor of the canyon. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).

Towns nearby

  • Taxenbach1.1 km in a straight line
  • Lend6.0 km in a straight line
  • Rauris6.8 km in a straight line
  • Pichl9.4 km in a straight line
  • Dorfgastein11 km in a straight line
  • Dienten am Hochkönig11 km in a straight line
  • Bruck an der Großglocknerstraße11 km in a straight line
  • Thumersbach13 km in a straight line

In our other atlases

What else is around Kitzlochklamm.

The river that carved it, the waterfalls inside it, the mountains on the rim, the lakes, beaches and island nearby — from our six sister atlases, each with its own figures.

Riveryas5 rivers in the canyon
Saalach106 kmGroßarler Ache31 kmKönigsseeacheDientenbachSchleiferbach
Peakyas83 mountains within 15 km
Kramkogel2,454 m · 13 kmLamkopf2,846 m · 14 kmHohe Köpfe2,875 m · 14 kmHochkönig2,941 m · 14 kmBratschenköpfe2,857 m · 14 kmHochseiler2,793 m · 14 kmGamskogel2,436 m · 15 kmHochstellkopf2,478 m · 15 km

Figures from the sister sites' databases (Wikidata, HydroATLAS, GeoNames, NOAA, OpenStreetMap). Links open when each site is online.

Month by month

The weather, at the floor and at the rim.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Afternoon · floor3481418222424191594
Afternoon · rim-6-5-15101415151060-5
Night · rim-14-13-10-5-13550-4-8-12
Rain (mm)907289851511761841841351027682
Rainy days131316151921221915141314
Sun hours/day3.04.55.25.75.56.47.06.55.14.52.82.4
Snow on the ground (cm)29281884100261220
Afternoon · floorAfternoon · rimNight · rimRain (mm)Sun hours/day
Jan3-6-14903.0
Feb4-5-13724.5
Mar8-1-10895.2
Apr145-5855.7
May1810-11515.5
Jun221431766.4
Jul241551847.0
Aug241551846.5
Sep191001355.1
Oct156-41024.5
Nov90-8762.8
Dec4-5-12822.4

Averages 1991–2020 (NASA POWER) for a cell about 55 km wide, brought to the floor (678 m) and the rim (2,033 m) with the standard lapse rate. Not a forecast.

Photographs

Seen from the trail.

2017-Kitzlochklamm-Maik-Meid-0274
Maik Meid · CC BY-SA 4.0
Kitzlochklamm0990
Ewald Gabardi · CC BY-SA 3.0
Kitzlochklamm0992
Ewald Gabardi · CC BY-SA 3.0

Recent years

Wet years, dry years.

Rain of each month as a share of the 1991–2020 average. A dry year means a lower river and hotter rock; a wet one, more water in the gorge.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
202056%197%92%67%97%128%136%146%137%167%37%121%
2021102%57%94%74%124%64%131%135%61%48%146%125%
202277%133%22%113%101%113%90%86%131%99%124%75%
202376%104%126%182%108%55%116%150%36%94%282%207%
202488%111%99%120%114%148%99%89%209%110%34%92%
202551%36%126%58%102%81%154%76%92%87%115%25%

130% or more: wet month 70% or less: dry month

Compare with the neighbours.

Kitzlochklamm

Austria

  • 1,077 mDepth
  • 10 kmRim to rim
  • —Length
  • 43°Steepest wall

Liechtensteinklamm

Austria · 15 km

  • 1,181 mDepth
  • 17 kmRim to rim
  • —Length
  • 50°Steepest wall

See the guide

Sigmund-Thun-Klamm

Austria · 20 km

  • 1,154 mDepth
  • 12 kmRim to rim
  • —Length
  • 37°Steepest wall

See the guide

Gadaunerer Schlucht

Austria · 17 km

  • 1,554 mDepth
  • 9.5 kmRim to rim
  • —Length
  • 40°Steepest wall

See the guide

Where these figures come from

Name, type, published depth and lengthWikidata (Q1148011) · CC0
The cut: depth, width, wall and 3D modelCopernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA
River flow and basinHydroATLAS / RiverATLAS v1.0 (Linke et al. 2019) · CC BY 4.0
ClimateNASA POWER, 1991–2020
Viewpoints, trails, bridges and the river line© OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL
ImagesEOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons
Rivers, waterfalls, mountains, lakes, beaches and islands nearbyCoastya, Lakeyas, Peakyas, Cascadyas, Islandyas, Riveryas

Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.

The family

Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers or canyons?

Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, month by month, in seven languages.

beachesCoastyaFind your beach: sea temperature, sun and swimming month by month.Visit
lakesLakeyasEvery lake on Earth: water temperature, ice, depth and the shore.Coming soonVisit
mountainsPeakyasEvery summit in 3D: summit weather, the 0 °C line, huts and trails.Visit
waterfallsCascadyasEvery waterfall: height, flow month by month and when it roars.Coming soonVisit
islandsIslandyasEvery island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.Visit riversRiveryasEvery river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.Visit
canyonsCanyonyasEvery canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.You are here