Schwarzkopf - Mottakopf
Description
The starting point of the tour is the village of Bludenz, but you only get into the saddle at the Panoramabahn mountain station. To get up there, you first take the bus from Bludenz up to Brand and then take the Dorfbahn (gondola lift) and then the Panoramabahn (cable car). In this way you gain 1100 meters in altitude. Now follow the largely flat gravel road to the pass below the Schwarzkopf. Here it is worth making a detour on foot up to the summit with its first-class panorama from the Montafon as far as the St. Gallen Rhine Valley. Then it's time for the long descent down to the Mengschlucht gorge. You are greeted on the first section by a no-biking sign. However, the path is wide. This section can also be bypassed by tackling the first part of the descent on the gravel road. Above the Valscherinaalpe, however, head onto the trail that branches off to the right and follow it across the alpine meadows to below the Nenzingerberg Alpe. The route now rides past the Nenziger Berg chapel, although there is also a no biking sign at the entrance to this section. A little further down, the route crosses the gravel road, on which the section can be bypassed. From then on, you can enjoy unadulterated singletrail fun all the way down into the Mengschlucht gorge. There are some tight hairpin bends, especially in the lowest section, but the route is safe to ride. Once you reach the Meng stream, the trail becomes challenging for a while before riding smoothly into the village of Nenzing.
Now it's time for part two of the tour. The focus is on the singletrail descent from Mottakopf to Bludenz. First of all, a feat of strength is required. On a gravel road, you climb 750 meters in altitude until a trail branches off to the left a little after the culmination point. Here we go! The start is just like the whole descent: flowy, fun and varied. The trail over the ridge to the east of the Mottakopf is a particular highlight. The descent past the Fürkele down to Bludenz would be mostly singletrack if it weren't for several no-biking signs that spoil the overall experience. Some of them are bypassed, on others it is advisable to push the bike briefly for the section (usually gravel roads) and then turn into the trail later, where there are no prohibition signs.
Conclusion: The tour is one of the biggest singletrail highlights in the Montafon. Everyone has to decide for themselves how to deal with the numerous no-biking signs, especially as there are so many of them in Vorarlberg that the locals hardly pay any attention to them out of pragmatism.
Note: The route is located on Austrian territory and leads over routes that are not approved for mountain bikers. Riding this route on a mountain bike is the responsibility of each individual, in full awareness of the legal situation.
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Details of the tour
33 km
930 m
2025 m
517 above sea level
1675 above sea level
1 day
Bludenz
Bludenz
1957
well suited
More information
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User comments (4)
About the author: Thomas Giger
Note: This content has been automatically translated from German. Please report any incorrect translations.
Absolutely super tour. Brilliant trails, very flowy. I started from Bürs and rode up to Brand via the old road, a total of approx. 1500 m in altitude. Absolutely recommended. A top tour in this region.
An absolute top tour with wonderful trails, and lovers of hairpin bends will also get their money's worth here.
We didn't meet a single person on Sunday morning.
Very doable with an e-bike.
We didn't have a single closed gate on the entire tour.
Thanks for the great tour!
I did the descent from Schwarzkopf to Nenzing today. I postponed the descent until the evening because of the no biking sign, so I didn't run into anyone else. You can't miss the welcoming bike ban sign at the start. At best, it is there for liability reasons, as the trail is a little sloping but easy to ride on. If you don't have a conscience, you can skip this sector, as you won't miss much and there won't be a sign at the next junction ;-). What follows is almost impossible to describe. An awesome hiking trail downhill with all the facets that we mountain bikers were born for. My heart soared. It was great fun and is highly recommended. I would classify the descent as S2 with a huge fun factor. The second section described, which is also signposted with a no cycling sign, can also be omitted. I could have done without the 5 gates in this section. I considered the last descent to the Meng stream to be rather dangerous (S3+), so it's better not to fall. You can still get down safely with a few steps (not recommended for e-bikes).
Even with the risk of falling out of favor, but the quote at the end sums it up :) and there are (fortunately) many good trails hidden behind many a prohibition sign ... Ride On