From the parish church in Kals/Ködnitz down to Kalserbach via the riverbank trails, to the left or the right to Lanabrücke, continuing on the orographic left side of the river to the viewing tower with views over this area of sparse vegetation, and on the right side of the river to the fish pond – continuing to the Libenetsteg and the circuit hike, back on the other trail. This circular hike is particularly suitable for families with children – in this sparse area there are wonderful natural playgrounds, biotopes, flat watercourses, colourful pebbles, driftwood, ... the imagination holds no bounds. For those who are keen on botanics the ‘Kalser Schotterfluren’ are one of the last retreat areas for the myricaria germanica in Austria – the only species of its kind of the tamarisk family in Central Europe.
Thanks to the regulation of many river systems their distribution is still limited to just the upper reaches of a few natural Alpine rivers, enabling their bushes to establish in the fresh sand and gravel banks. Due to the annual floods, river material is shifted, however the tamarisk, with its taproots, firmly attaches itself in the subsoil, and thereby survives such extreme situations. Since it needs a great deal of light and is slightly overgrown by other riverbank plants such as alders and willow, it can only stay where there are new areas of water.
