Wank - what a relief to finish

Yes, I always giggle when I see the name but with a name like that, it just has to be climbed.

Yesterday my wife and I enjoyed a nice day trip from Munich to climb Wank and we reccommend it to anybody wanting to go for a day hike in the Alps.

We set off from Munich Hauptbahnhoff at 8:30am. Arrived Garmisch-Partenkirchen at 10:00. Walked through Partenkirchen which is actually a very attractive town once you get well away from the train station. It took us half an hour to reach the edge of town where the path begins.

The path starts off climbing gently through the forest until it crosses a waterfall after about 15mins walking. It then gets steeper and after half an hour from the base we reached Gamshutte where there was a decent amount of people enjoying breakfast with a view to Garmisch.

We pushed on and stopped for a short break 20mins further up in a big grassy clearing. From here it was a steady climb all the way to the top. We reached the top in 2hours 40mins from leaving the train station (or 2hours 10mins from the base of the mountain where the sign said it would take 3.5 hours).

The summit was very open and grassy. Quite a lot of people up there due to the Wankbahn (gondola). There are two huts at the top with the main one being the Wankhaus. We had a picnic with the food and drinks we carried up and sat in the sun for a about an hour enjoying the view.

We walked down the same route which we came up. It took us 1hour 50mins from the summit to the train station and we managed to catch the 4pm train back to Munich.

The path is a clearly marked footpath from the base to the summit. It would be very difficult to get lost or take a wrong turn. There is also a enough people walking up and down to make you feel safe if you were on your own, but not enough to feel too crowded. The weather for us was perfect. It was a sunny Sunday with very little wind. It had been raining for a few days previously but the path was very dry with only a few patches of mud along the way that could easily be avoided. Easily done in sneakers.

Its a nice hike as the views are great looking towards Gramisch and to the Zugspitze. You also have the option of using the Wankbahn to get back down. A few people seem to catch the Wankbahn up and walk down. Many people catch it both ways since the top of the mountain offers some nice short hikes too.

The vertical climb is approx. 1000m from the train station to the summit. The distance as the crow flies is approx. 4km but obviously the path isn't straight.

In summary we left Munich at 8:30am and were back at 5:30pm it wasn't too hard, it was a big relief to get back to the train station and the stiffness dosen't hit till the following day.

The route we took.

Where is the picture of Wank by night?

Cheers for the write-up. For future reference, you can jump on a bus at the station that cuts out the Fußmarsch through the town.

would that be the Express Wank then STB?

do you remember the name of the stop where you have to get off the bus to find the path? or is it obvious when you are on the bus?

Thanks for sharing your "Wank" experience with us! I haven't done any hikes around Garmish as yet, but after reading your post, I'm tempted to try this one

So, is it 1000m or 1750m to the top as your map indicates?

Nice pics btw

Ooops, 1780m!

OG you get off at the Wankbahn, and yes it is obvious. But you also need to make sure you get the right bus, basically just check the schedule to make sure it stops there, it is the bus going to Burgrain/Farchant, if you want to take the cable car I think its 17 round trip.

Wankbahn Link
Wankhaus Link

Here is the website, they normally update it daily if you want to check conditions before setting off, there are also live cams for the Wank. Zugspitzbahn

You can take Lines 3 or 5 to the Wankbahn, or one stop further to the south, Dr-Gazert-Str., depending on which path you want to take up.

Timetable (PDF)
Garmisch-Partenkirchen town buses

I see the Wank-Haus erection went up in 1911, and it's still standing today.

He said vertical climb, not the height of the mountain..

I was on the Kramerspitze last week-end.
2.5 hrs to first refreshment stop (a hut that serves nice cold Radler)
1.5 hrs from the hut to the peak.
3 to 3.5 hrs down depending on which route down you take as there are two ways down.

Looking across to the Wank

Looking across to the Wettersteingebirge

Would that be right to the tip?
Nice pictures, by the way.

It would be to the tip I guess, but 1000m is just an estimate of the vertical difference I'm sure..

The elevation of the train station at Garmish-Partenkirchen is 708m (above sea level). The summit of Wank is 1780m. So that's a height difference of 1072m.

I doubt you saw anything. It makes you blind, you know...