The best cycling routes in Horner Wald

This brutalist church was built from 1965 to 1967 according to plans by architect Norbert Heltschl. The freestanding, sculptural bell tower is particularly striking. A drinking water fountain is located directly next to the tower.

There is now a brand new bridge (08/2025)

Rosengarten Gorge

Rosengarten Gorge - 250 meters elevation gain to climb in 1.5 hours.

Stams Abbey – a Baroque gem on the Inn Valley Cycle Path – is a magnificent Cistercian monastery in the Tyrolean Inn Valley, founded in 1273. It is particularly famous for its Baroque abbey church with twin towers, the richly decorated high altar, the princely crypt, and the atmospheric Bernardi Hall. Today, the abbey is not only a spiritual center, but also a place of education (with its own high school) and culture. Due to its location directly on the Inn Valley Cycle Path, the abbey is an excellent destination or stopover for cyclists. The tranquil abbey courtyard, the café in the abbey area, and the opportunity to take a guided tour offer cyclists a relaxing and culturally enriching break. The view of the surrounding Tyrolean mountains also makes the visit worthwhile.

This church was first mentioned in a charter from the foundation in 1304, but was already recorded elsewhere in 1267. Originally, the parish church had a narrower floor plan and octagonal pillars. It was first enlarged in 1350. In 1462, the foundation stone for the new Gothic building was laid. Between 1462 and 1475, the present choir was added. Between 1475 and 1493, the nave was built in its present form with the help of miners. The interior was given a Baroque makeover at the end of the 18th century; the reticulated vaults were removed and the frescoes on the exterior were painted over. The Baroque furnishings were almost completely lost in the great fire, but attempts were made to restore the interior to its Gothic form. In 1899, the tower roof was raised. In 1909 and 1912, the building was re-Gothicized; the west rose window on the façade was exposed and an organ loft was added. There are some remarkable frescoes on the outside of the church.

History of the Cistercian Monastery of Stams The Cistercian Monastery of Stams was founded in 1272 by Count Meinhard II of Gorizia-Tyrol as a burial place for the Tyrolean princes in memory of the last Hohenstaufen dynasty, Conradin, and settled a year later. The monastery's Baroque and Rococo furnishings date from between 1650 and 1750. A monastery school has been documented since the 17th century. The monastery was dissolved in 1807 and re-established in 1816 under Emperor Francis I. In 1938, the foundation was dissolved again by the Nazi regime. A new beginning was made in 1945. Monks from the Cistercian monastery of Stična (Parakeet) in Slovenia made a significant contribution to the abbey's revival. Text / Source: MEDIA OFFICE OF THE RELIGIOUS ORDER ORDERS AUSTRIA, Vienna https://www.ordensgemeinschaften.at/portal/ordensgemeinschaften/ordenswiki/address/589.html#:~:text=The Cistercian monastery of Stams was founded in 1272 by Count Meinhard and dates back to the period between 1650 and 1750.

The History of Stams Abbey The first documented mention of "Stambs" dates back to 1065, when a document describes a fiefdom of the noble family of Wangen in the central Inn Valley, with a settlement and a much-visited pilgrimage church dedicated to Saint John the Baptist. Stams Abbey was founded in 1273, when the founding convent, led by the first abbot, Heinrich von Honstetten, moved into Stams. Count Meinhard II of Gorizia-Tyrol had intended to establish a monastery here some time before, which would henceforth serve as the burial place of the Counts of Gorizia-Tyrol. The popular legend surrounding the founding of the monastery is now considered historically refuted, but it clearly demonstrates the connections of the Counts of Tyrol and their class consciousness: It states that the founding of the monastery was due to the gruesome death of the last Hohenstaufen, Conradin (beheaded in Naples in 1268). Conradin's mother, Elisabeth of Wittelsbach (d. 1273, her first marriage to the Hohenstaufen King Conrad IV), is said to have asked her husband, Count Meinhard II, to establish a memorial for her unfortunate son ("Mors Conradini – Vita Stamsii"). The mother monastery, the Cistercian monastery of Kaisheim (north of Donauwörth in Bavaria), was closed at the beginning of the 19th century as part of the secularization process. Text / Source: Association of Tyrolean Rifle Companies, Brixner Straße 1 / 6th floor, A-6020 Innsbruck https://www.tiroler-schuetzen.at/tirol_lexikon/stift-stams/