Drunk mountaineer without equipment tackles Drachenwand – mountain rescue deployed

A spokesperson for the mountain rescue described the action as "lebensgefährlich." The 57-year-old had traversed the via ferrata without any via ferrata equipment at all. According to his account, he had already set off at 4 a.m. from the Attersee, hiking via the Brennerriesensteig to the Dachsteinblick in the Höllengebirge, then descended and climbed again via the Mahdlgupf via ferrata. Afterwards, he said he had driven to St. Lorenz am Mondsee and stopped in for a drink there.

During the descent, the man stated that he had consumed several beers before the tour. He had then decided to tack on the Drachenwand via ferrata as a third tour. How it came about that he set off on the via ferrata in this condition and without equipment cannot be conclusively determined from the available information.

Equipment and risks

Mountain rescuers from the Mondsee local unit took over the 57-year-old at the forest road and brought him back into the valley in an emergency vehicle. According to police, no injuries were reported.

The incident illustrates the risks that arise when alcohol consumption and alpine activities coincide – particularly on secured routes that require via ferrata sets, helmets, and appropriate experience. The Drachenwand is one of the better-known via ferratas in the Salzkammergut and at times leads very exposedly along the rock face.

In the region alone, operations repeatedly occur in which mountaineers underestimate their own strength or the external conditions. The Mondsee mountain rescue pointed out that relatives and companions frequently provide the decisive tip-off in such situations.

Reaction of the emergency services

No further details were provided by police regarding the man's specific state of health after the operation or possible criminal consequences for tackling a via ferrata without equipment and under the influence of alcohol. There is also no public information about the precise level of intoxication – for example, from a breath alcohol test.

Police and mountain rescue used the incident to once again point to the basic rules for tackling via ferratas: complete equipment, a sober state, and a realistic assessment of one's own capability.

In the end, it remained at a warning from the emergency services and a recovery – an outcome that, in the rescuers' assessment, could also have turned out differently.

According to the available information, the conditions on Saturday evening at Mondsee were not aggravated by a storm or other external factors; according to current findings, the danger came solely from the mountaineer's condition.