Maisäß landscape & Montafon farmhouses

Whoever hikes in the Montafon is constantly walking through a cultural landscape. The Maisäß settlements – clusters of small huts and stables on cleared meadows between roughly 1,200 and 1,600 m, below the tree line – are the middle stage of three-stage farming: in May the family moved with the cattle up from the valley farm, in summer on to the alp above the forest, in autumn back to the Maisäß for haymaking and only then down to the valley. The term has been documented in Vorarlberg since 1380. After 1945 this form of farming lost its importance and many huts became weekend houses – but from 2000 the Federal Monuments Office recorded every hut in the “Maisäßinventar Montafon”, nine volumes strong. The best-known example lies directly above our house: Garfrescha at around 1,500 m, reachable in summer by toll road or the Garfrescha cable car, in winter in the middle of the ski area. In the valley the Montafon farmhouse shapes the picture: whitewashed stone at the front for kitchen and hall, dark timber log walls at the back, a shallow shingle roof pitched at 23 to 25 degrees, and inside the parlour with tiled stove and the octagonal Montafon table with its slate slab.

The best explanation is the “Luaga, Losna und Stuna” themed trail in Gortipohl: 3 km, about 1½ hours, five stations starting at St Nicholas's church, 1.8 km from our house. On the alps, try Sura Kees, the lean Montafon sour cheese whose production here has been documented since 1240.

Last updated: 13 Sep 2026