Audio tour Annahütte Hiking Trail

We present to you an Audio Guide for the Annahütte Hiking Trail, also known as the Annahütte Pilgrimage among locals. Embark with us on this cross-border hiking journey through the Karawanks mountains, tracing paths once shaped by wartime movement, smuggling routes, and centuries of cultural exchange between Austria and Slovenia. The trail leads to the ruins of the Annahütte, a former alpine lodge on the edge of the current border, now standing as a powerful symbol of memory, reconciliation, and shared European heritage.

Along the route, you will pass through alpine meadows, dense pine forests, and panoramic ridgelines offering sweeping views of both countries - inviting reflection on the region’s layered history, from WWII partisan resistance and Cold War border controls to today’s open Schengen crossings marked by nothing more than a small white brick. More than a scenic walk, we invite you to consider it a space for remembrance and renewal.

We hope that the 9 Audio Tour Stations encourage hikers and pilgrims to engage with different aspects of local history that our organization is working to preserve. We also hope that you will support the locals who are advocating for the rebuilding of Annahütte.

This vision has been carried forward since the early 2000s by Josef Puschan, a carpenter whose determination to rebuild the Annahütte is driven by what he calls a historical obligation deriving from his personal witnessing of deadly ethnic conflicts in this zone. His tireless dedication and admirable values won us over, and we number ourselves among the Friends of the New Annahütte.

Hopefully you will join us in some fashion. We see this site as a lasting place of cross-border connection and shared memory.