The High Descent — Kaiser-Franz-Josef-Höhe to Heiligenblut

This is Stage 1 of the world-famous Alpe-Adria-Trail. Starting at the dramatic high-alpine amphitheater of the Kaiser-Franz-Josefs-Höhe (2,369m), the trail drops roughly 1,000 meters of descent into the legendary mountaineering village of Heiligenblut. You traverse the moraines of the Pasterze glacier, cross the dramatic turquoise Sandersee and Margaritzen reservoirs, and follow the Briccius trail past ancient chapels. The scenery transitions from raw, glacial desolation to the lush, flower-filled meadows of the Möll valley.

Reinebringen is undoubtedly the highly recognizable and photographed viewpoint in the Lofoten Islands, and perhaps all of Norway. This short, aggressive 1.2-mile (2km) round-trip hike skyrockets out of the ocean to an altitude of 448m. The trail was famously dangerous and eroded due to massive over-tourism, so a team of Nepalese Sherpas was hired to build a massive, 1,978-step stone staircase up the mountain. Conquering the stairs leads to a dizzying, knife-edge ridge that drops vertically into the ocean, offering a mind-blowing bird's-eye view directly down onto the picturesque fishing villages of Reine, Sakrisøy, and Hamnøy, connected by bridges across the deep blue fjords.