Hoher Sonnblick
Hoher Sonnblick is a glacier-covered mountain on the main Alpine ridge in the Goldberg Group, on the border between Austria’s Carinthia and Salzburg. It stands at 3,106 meters (10,190 feet). At the summit you’ll find the Sonnblick Observatory, a weather and research station, and the Zittelhaus Alpine refuge.
The mountain forms a large mass with a distinctive rock pyramid at the top and a steep North Face above Kolm-Saigurn. The highest peak in the Goldberg Group is Hocharn (3,254 m), north of Sonnblick.
Nearby huts include the Rojacher Hut at 2,718 m and the Schutzhaus Neubau at 2,175 m; both are open in summer.
In history: on January 1, 1905, Austria’s coldest summit temperature then recorded was −37.4 °C. From 2012 to 2014, St. Elmo’s fire was seen on the observatory via webcam. The area has old gold mines; Kolm-Saigurn was an ancient mining settlement. Today you can still pan for gold at the foot of the mountain.
The climate here is tundra (ET), meaning it is cold and snowy most of the year.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 04:51 (CET).