The past two summers have been a challenge for many excursion destinations in the Bavarian Alps - so great was the rush of visitors, so strong was the impulse for many to escape the corona restrictions at least for a day in the mountains.
Now the trend seems to be continuing in winter.
The Bavarian mountain rescue service and the avalanche warning service recorded an unusually large number of deaths while hiking last winter, as they announced on Friday in Bad Tölz when presenting their balance sheet.
Bernd Steinle
Editor in the department "Germany and the World".
Follow I follow
19 hikers and climbers died in accidents, a new high.
In addition, four people died in avalanches, including two hikers.
Experts had recently warned against underestimating the winter conditions in the mountains, despite the high spring temperatures.
In several cases, people had slipped on snowfields or in icy places and fallen down.
Many hikers do not have the necessary equipment - pickaxe, crampons or lugs - and they often lack the awareness of the dangers and the competence to adapt the tour to the situation.
Enticing images on social media
"The lightness of the digital world of images in social media often suggests the ubiquitous availability and feasibility of summit goals, regardless of all other factors and personal abilities," said Jürgen Bummer, Deputy State Manager of the Bavarian Mountain Rescue Service.
Overall, the mountain rescue service had to deploy around 5,500 times between the beginning of December and the end of April - more often than in the previous season, but as often as before the corona pandemic.