Hiking, mountain biking, climbing on the via ferrata: mountain sports are booming - especially since the pandemic. The Germans spent their free time on their doorstep, many were drawn to the Alps. “In 2020 there was a real rush for the mountains,” says Lukas Fritz, safety researcher at the German Alpine Association (DAV). And that had an impact on mountain accidents, as the figures now show: Among the 1.4 million DAV members, the number of accidents fell in the first lockdown and was below the ten-year average. They rose all the more in the following summer months.

There were more rescue missions in 2020, especially on via ferrata.

The main reason was blockages: mountaineers got into distress without being injured.

“You overestimate yourself,” says Fritz.

"They lack the stamina and the energy, they can no longer get any further on their own." More and more often it is children who are on the road with their parents and experience blockages, says Fritz: "That was very frightening in 2020."

The mountain bike boom is also making itself felt through the increasing number of accidents.

Most of the time, there are falls on the descents due to driving or braking errors.

Most accidents still happen while hiking.

Usually falls or internal problems such as cardiovascular disorders are to blame.

But here, too, the blockages would increase, says Fritz.

Even in easy terrain.

More prevention

The numbers that the DAV collected from its members are similar to those of other Alpine associations and mountain rescue services in the Alpine region: the Bavarian mountain rescue service was also called in more often in 2020 than in previous years. The picture is the same in Austria. There, too, more people were rescued with blockages, as a study by the Austrian Board of Trustees for Alpine Safety shows, which accounted for around a third of all emergency calls in 2020. In Austria, too, the number of accidents in the first lockdown decreased. From May they rose again and exceeded the previous years. The Swiss Alpine Club recorded similar figures. In 2020 there were more mountain accidents there than ever before.

In the long term, however, mountain accidents will decrease, says Fritz.

In addition, fewer DAV members had a fatal accident in 2020 than ever before.

However, the increasing number of blockages shows how dangerous a false self-assessment can be.

Whether physically or mentally: Once the performance limit has been reached, you can't go any further.

Many accidents could be prevented if the preparation was better.

Too little provisions, changing weather conditions and unsuitable footwear are common mistakes that put mountaineers in awkward situations.

It is also important to have a healthy self-assessment, paired with careful route planning.

The accident statistics show that the DAV has to expand its offer, especially for via ferratas and mountain biking, says Fritz: "We have to take countermeasures - with prevention, training and education."