In a time when people still believed in witches, the Zauberkogel near Diex was the talk of the town. At over 1200 meters, the little mountain is the highest point of the southern Saualm foothills and, when the weather is fine, offers magnificent views of the Jauntal valley, the Klagenfurt basin and the Karawanken peaks. The Carinthian Blocksberg – a truly magical place. Even today.
Hexenstein and Bösenort
In ancient times, it is said that this hill was a meeting and cult site. Legends tell of witches who took off on their sightseeing flights from here. The summit plateau is indeed still popular as a take-off site today: only today it is not witches but paragliders who take to the skies from here. Whether the nearby so-called “Hexenstein”, a limestone rock at the edge of the forest, is a remnant of these old stories or was actually a place of justice in times of witch-hunts has disappeared into the darkness of the past. Just like the question of whether Bösenort, a village on the eastern slopes of the mountain, owes its name to the misdeeds of its former inhabitants.
Sunny cone hike
Today, the Zauberkogel is one thing above all: a wonderful hiking destination. In the immediate vicinity of the sunny village of Diex, there are often rays of sunshine here, especially in autumn and winter, even when the fog is stubbornly sitting in the valley below.
Thanks to the new network of adventure trails in Diex and the precise signposting of the “Zauberkogelweg”, the circular tour through dense coniferous forest and along kitschy, beautiful alpine meadows is easy to find for everyone. Start in front of the Diex twin-tower church, always following the signs. And simply let yourself be enchanted as you walk…
