23-May-2008 -- Nearly one year ago I spent a weekend in South Tyrol. I saw that there is a confluence point nearby and it seemed easy to conquer. I wondered why there were only two visits and I had the goal to add another visit.
So I drove to the village of Gatter and saw that the point is about 220m beeline from the village. But a river and a steep slope made this approach impossible. When I roamed through the village I saw a topographic map with UTM grid mounted on the wall of a shop. According to the map the point is located very close to the road from Steinhaus to Holzlechen. But when I took that road the point was too far away from the street to give it a try. Now I was really confused.
After a bit of thinking I found out, that the map uses probably the European 1950 map datum. If I would switch to this datum the point is located near the hiking trail no. 13. To get there I drove out of Gatter on the SS621 towards north east. Shortly after crossing the river Ahrn a small road forks uphill and has a little signpost to the Bärentalalm. (Caution: the little road has deep ruts!)
It is possible to park the car with 450m beeline to the point. At this time it was too dark to continue and I aborted this attempt. But it was a good approach and I left the area with a good feeling for another attempt!
Today I was again in South Tyrol, drove as described towards the Bärentalalm and parked my car at the first bend. I decided to hiked the remaining 870m and followed the road uphill. Later I took the trail no. 13 (signpost: Steinhaus) crossed a wet meadow and entered the forest still walking on the small trail.
While walking in the forest my GPS receiver showed that I arrived within the 100m distance. Getting a stable GPS position was hardly possible. It rained the night before and the trees were very wet. My old Magellan managed to get a zero reading, but I do not trust it. Even my SiRFstarIII receiver had problems to get a stable fix. Zeroing out the GPS was not an option: I assume the point is on the steep and slippery slope, which you can see in the south view picture and I did not want to risk my bones.
Very satisfied I walked back to my car.
Continued at 46°N 12°E.