The Türnitz Alps are a mountain range of the Northern Limestone Alps

Northern Limestone Alps

The Northern Limestone 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...

 in southern Lower Austria

Lower Austria

Lower Austria is the northeasternmost state of the nine states in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria since 1986 is Sankt Pölten, the most recently designated capital town in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria had formerly been Vienna, even though Vienna is not officially part of Lower Austria...

 and the adjacent state of Styria. They stretch from the Erlauf valley in the west to the valleys of the Traisen and Unrechttraisen in the east. To the south they are bordered by the Salza valley in Halltal and the municipality of Mariazell

Mariazell

Mariazell is a small city in Austria, in Styria, well known for winter sports, 143 km N. of Graz. It is picturesquely situated in the valley of the Salza, amid the north Styrian Alps....

.

Important peaks and passes

The mountain group covers an area of about 30 by 30 km and forms the transition from the pre-alps in the Danube region to the higher peaks of the Mürzsteg Alps, which mostly lie in Upper Styria. The mountains reach a height of 1,400 m in the Großer Sulzberg, and have several other peaks over 1,350 m. The best-known peaks are:

• in the area of the Türnitzer Traisen (the main southwestern valley) towards Annaberg: Türnitzer Höger, Eibl, Hohenstein and Tirolerkogel,
• in the area of the Unrechttraisen: Türnitzer Höger und Traisenberg,
• in the south near Mariazell
  Mariazell
  Mariazell is a small city in Austria, in Styria, well known for winter sports, 143 km N. of Graz. It is picturesquely situated in the valley of the Salza, amid the north Styrian Alps....
  
  : the Bürgeralpe.

Notable passes and crossings are:

• to the west the Pielachtaler Gscheid (841 m) and the Annaberg (976 m)
• in the southeast the Kernhofer Gscheid (982 m).

Geography

The valleys of the Türnitz and Traisen have steep mountainous sides and there is little room for settlements. The water quality is high. The summits are largely forested; only those which are well-known tourist destinations, like the Eibl and Tirolerkogel have large areas of Alpine pasture (Almen).