Austria Inn-Salzach-Enns Region Klagenfurt Basin

East of Arlberg a much larger natural region contains the northern longitudinal valley and the adjacent mountain ranges. Human occupancy, as might be expected, is concentrated in the main valleys, where many prosperous villages raise field crops and fruit on the valley bottoms, graze their cattle on the high meadows, and work in winter in the great mountain forests. The western part, Tirol, has a special disadvantage in that its logical outlet is northwards down the Inn and Salzach valleys to southern Bavaria. Here a political separation prevents the economic co-operation between the mountains and their foreland which has worked out so well in Switzerland. Similar conditions limit the development of the Salzburg region which lies in the Austrian part of the foreland where the boundary turns north. In both sections, Tirol and Salzburg, the feeling for union with Germany is strongly developed. One evidence of the close relationship with Germany is found in the fact that in this Tirolean westward extension of Austria motor cars turn to the right, as in Germany, whereas everywhere else in the old AustroHungarian Empire they turn to the left. Innsbruck, a delightful town at the junction of the Vorarlberg railroad with the Brenner line which leads into Italy, is a classical example of a city at the foot of an important mountain pass.

The Klagenfurt Basin

Located between the southeastward or Dinaric wing of the Alps and the central section which continues straight east, the Klagenfurt region is part of the Drava River system and geographically looks toward Slovenia. With its continental climate (cold winters and warm summers), favorable relief, and fertile soils, the basin is very productive and well populated. Its chief significance, however, is its central location in regard to the railroads. Two northern passes (Tauern and Semmering) connect it with the rest of Austria, while two southern passes permit the continuation of these two roads from the north directly southwards, respectively, to the Italian Plain and Trieste.