Kühtaisattel

The maximum gradient here is 16%, so the scenic and well-developed route offers a bit of relaxation after sometimes quite high alpine and challenging stages in this area.
Coming from Ötz, the L 237 runs through the wild and romantic Nedertal, past the village of Ochsengarten, up to Kühtai at 2,020 meters above sea level. Or you can travel from the eastern village of Kematen via Sellraintal (L 13), through Sellrain, Gries and St. Sigmund to the pass summit. This variant offers a particularly panoramic ascent from the Inntal into the alpine high mountains. But no matter from which side you cross the 2,017 m high pass, the toll-free road leads through an overwhelming mountain world.

The route over the Kühtaisattel also offers a less busy alternative to the heavily frequented Inntal by motorway and federal road. While the section between the Inn and Ötztal no longer plays a major role for car traffic, the Kühtaisattel is very interesting for road cyclists - it is even a section of the well-known Ötztaler Radmarathon. Many participants have been struggling for years to cross the pass from the west (Ötz), with some surely remembering the stage in painful memory - especially the many irregular steep sections and agonizingly long straight stretches on the steep eastern slope.

In summer, the pass summit is rather quiet and the hotel village in Kühtai appears deserted. Hardly surprising, as it is almost exclusively a winter sports resort. However, the saddle is an ideal starting point for all kinds of hikes, mountain bike or climbing tours. With the "DreiSeenBahn" you can reach even higher, to over 2,400 meters. From there, for example, you can walk down to the Finstertaler reservoir, explore the Panorama Via Ferrata, or conquer the Sulzkogel, one of the 3,000-meter peaks around Kühtai.

For those aiming for a combination of the three passes Kühtaisattel, Timmelsjoch, and Jaufenpass, you can also stop by the Dortmunder Hütte and enjoy the incomparable panorama with coffee and cake.

The present-day winter sports resort Kühtai, located near the summit, originally emerged from an old cow pasture ("Chutay"), which was first mentioned in the tax book of the Counts of Tyrol in 1280. Today, you can easily visit and cross the alpine pass by car or public bus, by motorcycle, or sportily by bicycle. However, as the name suggests, you should watch out for cows, which are often encountered on the road.