Central Eastern Alps

The Central Eastern Alps are a major mountain region in Europe. They are found mainly in Austria, but also stretch into nearby countries like Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Italy, and Slovenia. These mountains are part of the bigger Eastern Alps and form the main chain that runs through the area.

People often call this area the Austrian Central Alps. It is one of the seven big natural areas of Austria. The Central Eastern Alps make up the eastern side of what is called the Alpine divide — the central line of high mountains — and include many ranges that spread out north and south from this line.

The tallest mountain in the Central Eastern Alps is Grossglockner, which rises to 3,798 metres (about 12,461 feet) above sea level. This peak is not only the highest in the Austrian Central Alps but also a famous landmark for hikers and climbers.

Location

The Central Eastern Alps are home to the tallest mountains in the Eastern Alps. They sit between the Northern Limestone Alps and the Southern Limestone Alps and are made of different rocks.

These mountains stretch mainly across Austria. They begin near Lake Como and the Bernina Range in Switzerland, run along the shore of Liechtenstein, and reach as far east as the Hochwechsel in Styria, Austria. The valleys of the Inn, Salzach, and Enns rivers form their northern edge, while the Drau river marks their southern edge.

Central Alps as a major landscape region in Austria

In Austria, the Eastern Alps are split into different parts: the Northern Alps, the Greywacke zone, the Central Alps, and the Southern Alps. The Southern Alps are partly in South Carinthia and mostly in Northeast Italy.

The Central Alps and Northern Alps are separated by a valley line that goes from Klostertal through Arlberg, the Inn Valley, the Salzach Valley, to Lake Zell, then up to the Wagrain Heights, the Upper Enns Valley, the Schober Pass, the Mürz Valley, the Semmering area, and finally the southern part of the Vienna Basin. The Central Alps and Southern Alps are divided by another valley line called the Southern Longitudinal Valley, which runs from the Puster Valley (through the Rienz Valley to the Toblach Field and up the Drava Valley), then continues through the Klagenfurt Basin and the Meža Valley.

Geomorphology

The Central Eastern Alps have some of the tallest mountains and the most ice in the Eastern Alps. In the area where the Eastern Alps meet the Western Alps, these mountains stand out, especially near peaks like Piz d'Err and Piz Roseg. Around the edges, there are shorter and gentler mountain ranges, such as the Gurktal Alps.

The Eastern Alps are separated from the Western Alps by a line that runs from Lake Constance to Lake Como, following the Alpine Rhine valley and passing through the Splügen Pass.

Geology

The Central Alps are made mostly of gneiss and slate rocks, which belong to the Austroalpine nappes. There are some areas, like the Hohe Tauern and Engadine windows, where the rocks are mainly from the Jurassic period, including limestones and sometimes granite. These Austroalpine nappes have moved over other rock layers called the Penninic nappe stack. Unlike the Western Alps, the Central Alps do not have large areas of unmoved crystalline rock.

At the eastern edge of the Alps, the Austroalpine rocks lie under sediments from the Tertiary period, especially in areas like the Pannonian Basin. This area shows some active volcanism, for example, in the Styrian thermal region.

Alpine Club classification

See also: List of mountain groups in the Alpine Club classification of the Eastern Alps

The Central Eastern Alps include some mountain ranges from the West Eastern Alps. These ranges are part of the Southern Alps and are also grouped under the Western Limestone Alps.

The Ortler Alps and the Sobretta-Gavia Group are sometimes thought of as part of the Central Alps. This is because they lie north of an important geological line called the Periadriatic Seam. However, they are usually considered part of the Southern Limestone Alps because they are south of the Veltlin (Adda)–Vintschgau (Etsch) valley. The rocks of the Ortler main ridge also belong to the Southern Limestone Alps.

AVE- No.	Name	Country	Highest mountain	Height (m)	Image
25	Rätikon	Switzerland Austria Liechtenstein	Schesaplana	2,964
26	Silvretta Alps	Switzerland Austria	Piz Linard	3,411
27	Samnaun Alps	Austria Switzerland	Muttler	3,294
28	Verwall Alps	Austria	Hoher Riffler	3,168
29	Sesvenna Alps	Switzerland Italy Austria	Piz Sesvenna	3,204
30	Ötztal Alps	Austria Italy	Wildspitze	3,768
31	Stubai Alps	Austria Italy	Zuckerhütl	3,507
32	Sarntal Alps	Italy	Hirzer	2,781
33	Tux Alps	Austria	Lizumer Reckner	2,884
34	Kitzbühel Alps	Austria	Kreuzjoch	2,558
35	Zillertal Alps	Austria	Hochfeiler	3,510
36	Venediger Group	Austria	Großvenediger	3,666
37	Rieserferner Group	Italy Austria	Hochgall	3,436
38	Villgraten Mountains	Austria Italy	Weiße Spitze	2,962
39	Granatspitze Group	Austria	Großer Muntanitz	3,232
40	Glockner Group	Austria	Großglockner	3,798
41	Schober Group	Austria	Petzeck	3,283
42	Goldberg Group	Austria	Hocharn	3,254
43	Kreuzeck Group	Austria	Mölltaler Polinik	2,784
44	Ankogel Group	Austria	Hochalmspitze	3,360
45a	Radstadt Tauern	Austria	Weißeck	2,711
45b	Schladming Tauern	Austria	Hochgolling	2,862
45c	Rottenmann and Wölz Tauern	Austria	Rettlkirchspitze	2,475
45d	Seckau Tauern	Austria	Geierhaupt	2,417
46a	Gurktal Alps	Austria	Eisenhut	2,441
46b	Lavanttal Alps	Austria Slovenia	Zirbitzkogel	2,396
47	Prealps East of the Mur	Austria	Stuhleck	1,782

AVE- No.	Name	Country	Highest mountain	Height (m)	Image
63	Plessur Alps	Switzerland	Aroser Rothorn	2,980
64	Oberhalbstein Alps	Switzerland Italy	Piz Platta	3,392
65	Albula Alps	Switzerland	Piz Kesch	3,418
66	Bernina Group	Italy Switzerland	Piz Bernina	4,049
67	Livigno Alps	Italy Switzerland	Cima de’ Piazzi	3,439
68	Bergamasque Alps	Italy	Pizzo di Coca	3,052