Way of St. James in Austria
A glorious day awaits us. Finally sunshine again and not too hot. An ideal pilgrimage day. It began with a lovingly prepared breakfast at the Franciscan Sisters.
This is how our fine Z'Morge (breakfast) presented itself at the Franciscan Sisters.
We should definitely visit the newly renovated church in Oberthalheim, the sister recommended us.
The well-signposted Way of St. James leads from behind the monastery in a few minutes to Oberthalheim.
There she lies before us, the newly renovated Anna Church.
Church guide as PDF (new edition 2011 in German)
The interior shines with a fresh brightness.
The gravestone of the founder couple
"Hie liegt begraben der Hochwohlgeb. Herr Wolfgang Freiherr zu Polharn und Wartenburg, Obrist Hauptmann der Ober- und Unterösterreichischen Lande und dieses löblichen Klosters der mindesten Brüder gnädiger Stifter, der gestorben ist am Martinitage Ao. 1512, dem Gott gnädig sei!" Und: "Die Hochwohlgeb. Frau Johanna von Borsela, Gräfin und Frau d'Vere, des Hochwohlgeb. Herrn Wolfgang Freiherrn zu Pollham und Wartenburg ehliche Gemahlin, die gestorben ist zu Maria Geburt Ao. 1509, der wolle Gott gnädig sein!"
"Here lies buried the high lord Wolfgang Freiherr zu Polharn und Wartenburg, colonel and captain of the Upper and Lower Austrian provinces and of this laudable monastery of the least brothers of gracious founders, who died on St. Martin's Day Ao. 1512, God have mercy on him! And: "The noblewoman Mrs. Johanna von Borsela, Countess and Mrs. d'Vere, wife of the nobleman Mr. Wolfgang Baron of Pollham and Wartenburg, who died on the Nativity of Mary Ao. 1509, may God have mercy on her!"
In a side chapel the gothic Madonna and Child from the 15th century.
During the renovation frescoes appeared, but could not be restored due to cost reasons. A small detail of the old frescoes was made visible on the ceiling.
We left the church and after a few kilometres Timelkam is reached.
At the entrance of the village in a chapel Johannes Nepomuk welcomes us.
In the centre of the village there is a protestant Nepomuk church.
Above the entrance to the parsonage there is a statue of John Nepomuk. Instead of a green martyr palm in his hand, a green branch grows before him.
In the church there is a Nepomuk altar.
We continue through Timelkam ...
... to the town gate.
At the bridge over the Dürre Ager behind the city gate another Nepomuk wishes us a good journey.
We follow the Dürren Ager and turn left.
Signpost at a road underpass
In the distance this mountain panorama accompanies us.
Once again we cross the Dürre Ager (Drought Ager).
Over meadow paths along the Dürre Anger, past a Roman milestone we come to the Weissböcksteg (small bridge) and to the other side of the river ...
... and then to two clean, well-kept villages. Every blade of grass is right here.
In Haunolding you could branch off to Gampern to visit the gothic winged altar there.
This is what the gothic winged altar looks like when it is closed.
and so when the altar is open.
It shows the crowned Mother of God as Queen of Heaven with the Child Jesus in her arms, flanked by the church patron Remigius and St. Pantaleon. (Picture from the website of the Salzburger Nachrichten)
But we kept walking straight ahead to Witzling. The name means in German 'little joke'.
After a few bends we arrive at Vöcklamarkt. The path does not go through the village, but along the railway line to the plague chapel.
Commemorative plaque:
In 1649 the plague wreaked havoc in the parish of Vöcklamarkt. The dead were buried in various places. Here at Mösenberg lie many people who died of the plague. The 1st was the old Staufer of Asten died on 21.1.1649. In the same year 286 people died in the parish.
R.I.P.
Through the Marktwald (market forest) it goes uphill to ...
... the Baumann Chapel. From there you have a fantastic view to the Dachstein.
Well rested we march towards Mösendorf. The place is really called like that - here you don't think anything indecent! (Möse = pussy)
In the background you can see Weissenkirchen im Attergau (hardly recognizable on the photo - search and click on the small picture!).
The place after Mösendorf is once again called Asten. Shortly after Asten there is this cross with the sad news that a bypass road is to be built here.
Proposal: a tunnel through Frankenmarkt!
Frankenmarkt is on a hill, so we climb up.
The main road in Frankenmarkt is the much frequented B1. Crossing it is not so easy. The people of Frankenmarkt are certainly happy about the planned bypass. The Hotel Post was our pilgrim hostel, where we had a very good meal.
Below some more pictures of Frankenmarkt
Vöcklabruck
to the Hager chapel
