Rieserferner Group | |
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Highest point | |
Peak | Hochgall (3,436 m s.l.m.) |
Geography | |
Location | Italy (South Tyrol) and Austria (Tyrol) |
Range coordinates | 46°54′45″N 12°08′30″E / 46.9125°N 12.14167°E |
The Rieserferner Group (Italian: Gruppo delle Vedrette di Ries, German: Rieserfernergruppe) is a mountain range in the Austrian Central Alps. Together with the Ankogel Group, Goldberg Group, Glockner Group, Schober Group, Kreuzeck Group, Granatspitze Group, Venediger Group and the Villgraten Mountains the group is part of the High Tauern. The Rieserferner mountains extend across the Austrian state of Tyrol and the Italian province of South Tyrol (Trentino-South Tyrol region). The mountains mainly lie in South Tyrol, where the greater part is protected within the Rieserferner-Ahrn Nature Park.
The Rieserferner Group forms the southwesternmost part of the High Tauern, its foothills running towards the southwest as far as Bruneck in the Puster Valley. Its name is derived from the Rieserferner, a glacier on the northern flank between the Hochgall (highest summit in the range at 3,436 m s.l.m.) and the Schneebiger Nock (3,358 m s.l.m.).
The Rieserferner Group is rather small in comparison with other Alpine ranges. It is, however, popular with climbers and hikers due to its prominent and steep, partly glaciated summits.