How This River Caused a 50-Year-Long Fight
Why Austria's last free-flowing, glacier-fed river in East Tirol is a success story for conservation and tourism alike...
How much can a person fit into five days? Five days, 120 hours, 7,200 minutes – in our fast-paced world, it doesn’t feel like a huge amount of time. It’s a working week, easily measured in cups of coffee consumed, emails sent and received, and episodes of evening telly watched after a day at one’s desk.
But along the Isel River in Austria’s East Tirol, time takes on a different meaning. It slows down. Here, five days is the time it takes to hike the Isel Trail, where water cooler chat is replaced by the steady roar of waves, spreadsheet columns by towering spruce trees, and the incessant glow of laptop and phone screens by the white of glacial ice, glistening in the sun.
The Isel Trail Experience
The Isel is Austria’s last glacier-fed river. It runs, completely uninterrupted by dam or other man-made structure, from the Umbalkees glacier, near the summit of the mighty Rötspitze mountain in the Hohe Tauern National Park, to where it joins with the Drava. The Isel Trail, which was opened to the public in 2020, is a long-distance hike of around 75km, split into five stages across five days. Over these five days, hikers walk from the medieval town of Lienz the to the Umbalkees Glacier, encountering a mind-blowing plethora of settings and eco-systems: picture-perfect mountain villages, sun-soaked valleys, sandy beaches, serene ancient forests, rushing waterfalls and glittering arctic landscapes.
As one hikes through this incredible roster of habitats, the free-flowing Isel Rivers remains the one constant. In all of its forms – as crashing white-cap waves or as a gently babbling stream – it reminds visitors of the way in which it has resisted all interference from the modern world, and it invites them to follow its example. “Take your time”, it whispers, “listen to the birdsong, breathe deep and enjoy the cool, pine scented air – take this moment to enjoy being in harmony with nature”.
This wide, continuously changing riverbed in the valley is now a rare habitat, one which has largely disappeared across Europe.
The Unique Eco-System of Glacier-Fed Rivers
Glacier-fed rivers are unique in the way that they constantly shift and change. Without dams or other disruptions to control the natural flow of the water as it melts from the glacier under the sun, the banks of the river flood each day, creating a unique and rare habitat for increasingly endangered species of flora and fauna.
To take one example: the German tamarisk – a tall plant with deep roots and pale pink flowers – used to be a common sight, but as wild rivers have dwindled to just a handful across Europe, it’s become a much rarer occurrence. This species needs floods to survive: the constant shifting of the gravel banks provides the plant with access to vital nutrients and prevents the sun-loving species from becoming overgrown by pines and alders. The Isel River is a safe harbour for the endangered German Tamarisk, as well as a number of animals. Decreasing sandpiper, common otter and huchen populations have been recorded in recent years, but those with their homes in and around the Isel are guaranteed sanctuary.
It’s clear that, with free-flowing, glacier-fed rivers increasingly few and far between due to threats such as glacier retreat caused by climate change, it’s more important than ever that those remaining are guaranteed conservation. The Isel River is now protected, and when following the trail, its incredible natural power feels boundless. But its presence wasn’t always so secure.
A Decades-Long Struggle for Conservation
In 1971, plans were made to build a huge hydroelectric power storage plant in East Tirol, which proposed that all glacier streams would be disrupted and diverted so as to fill a reservoir. It’s thanks to the indomitable efforts of individuals like conservationist Wolfgang Retter that the Isel River exists as it does today. In response to the power plant plans, Retter founded the Association for the Protection of the Recreational Landscape in East Tirol, and dedicated himself to campaigning for the river’s conservation, organising lectures with renowned scientists and working hard to convince the local population that this area of outstanding and undisturbed nature must be preserved.
The power plant plans were incomprehensible to me. "That's impossible!" I thought. "We can't divert so many glacial streams here for a reservoir while there are plans for a national park!" So I started asking questions.
A Hiking Trail as a Protective Wall for Nature
Finally, after decades of hard work, the Isel River became a Natura 2000 protection zone in 2015, securing its place in a protected network of valued yet threatened European habitats. Five years later, in 2020, the river’s eponymous trail was opened. Developed in collaboration with environmentalist and nature photographer Matthias Schickhofer, the Isel Trail isn’t just a new path for holidaymakers and hikers to follow and enjoy; it also adds another layer of protection to the river and its surroundings, bringing public awareness, increased funds and a deeper understanding to the struggle facing Europe’s remaining glacier-fed rivers. To use the words of Wolfgang Retter himself: the Isel Trail is like “the last stone in the protective wall surrounding the Isel”.
The creation of the Isel Trail was the last stone in the protective wall surrounding the river.
More Than a Long-Distance Hiking Trail
The Isel Trail represents a commitment to sustainability. The creation of this extraordinary path should enhance the public’s appreciation for and understanding of glacier-fed rivers and other natural environments. Those who follow the Isel Trail and see the power, beauty and vital importance of untouched nature may feel inspired to become eco-friendlier in their own personal lives, or to become advocates for environmental conservation themselves.
In addition to inspiring visitors, the Isel Trail secures sustainable jobs for local residents, creating increased demand for guides and rangers, as well as hospitality staff at the mountain huts, hotels and other establishments along the route.
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From easier eco-system monitoring for scientific studies, to increased funds for further conservation and the development of eco-friendly policies, the potential of the Isel Trail to benefit the nature that surrounds it is undeniable.
The Isel Trail's Status is Finally Secure - and Adventure Now Awaits
In Austria, conservation and tourism go hand in hand. In few places is this as clear as when following the Isel Trail. Thanks to the unrelenting resolve, expertise and future-facing mindset of campaigners and environmentalists like Wolfgang Retter and Matthias Schickhofer, holidaymakers in Austria can experience the wonder of one of Europe’s last remaining free-flowing glacial rivers. Amongst the quiet hush of the ancient trees, when feeling the mist of a waterfall cool one’s face, and while watching kaleidoscopes of butterflies dance over the riverbanks: this is a place for adventure, where visitors can find their moment to reconnect with the sublimity of the natural world.
This place is completely unique - from an environmental perspective, but also for tourism.Wolfgang Retter - Environmental Activist