The Northern Limestone Alps (German: Nördliche Kalkalpen), also called the Northern Calcareous Alps, are the ranges of the Eastern Alps north of the Central Eastern Alps located in Austria and the adjacent Bavarian lands of southeastern Germany. The distinction from the latter group, where the higher peaks are located, is based on differences in geological composition.

Geography

If viewed on a west-east axis, the Northern Limestone Alps extend from the Rhine valley and the Bregenz Forest in Vorarlberg, Austria in the west extending along the border between the German federal-state of Bavaria and Austrian Tyrol, through Salzburg, Upper Austria, Styria and Lower Austria and finally ending at the Wienerwald at the city-limits of Vienna in the east.

The highest peaks in the Northern Limestone Alps are the Parseierspitze (3,036 m/9,961 ft) in the Lechtal Alps, and the Hoher Dachstein (2,996 m/9,826 ft). Other notable peaks in this range include the Zugspitze, (2,962 m/9,717 ft), located on the German-Austrian frontier and listed as the highest peak in Germany.

The Limestone Alps (German: Kalkalpen) are a mountain ranges system of the Alps in Central Europe.

They are of economic importance, including as a watershed source of drinking water. They have many accessible dripstone and ice caves.

Geography

They are roughly 600 kilometres (370 mi) long. The two main groups run parallel to the main Austrian Central Alps mountain ranges, on their north and south.

The mountain and hill profiles of the Limestone Alps are very varied and range from jagged peaks and shear rock faces to high plateaus and extensive areas of karst formatons.

Groups

The numerous ranges of the Limestone Alps are within three mountain groupings, the Northern Limestone Alps, Southern Limestone Alps, and Western Limestone Alps: