In October we often have beautiful autumn weather for weeks on end. The meadow saffron is flowering in the alpine meadows and reminds us that autumn is coming to an end. Animals can now be seen grazing all around the village. Sheep, goats and cows eat the last grass. During the winter they are kept in the barns, but regularly get a few hours of fresh air. Both dairy and suckler cows are kept in Gimmelwald. Therefore, there is an incredible variety of different cow breeds like Simmental, Holstein, Red Holstein, Rhaetian cattle, Pinzgauer cattle and crosses of different breeds.
All the colours are very intense in autumn. The sky is steel-blue, the colours of the deciduous trees range from yellow to red and the mountain peaks are snow-white. Hiking is particularly enjoyable now. Because the higher regions are already snow-covered and the ground is frozen you must adapt your route to the weather conditions. The nights are getting colder and fires have to be lit in the evenings. The wood has usually been chopped in October and piled up to dry. It is often flown from the forest into the village by helicopter. Particularly when a Föhn storm has caused a lot of damage, firewood can be bought very cheaply. Usually only the transport has to be paid for. The wood then has to be stored in a dry place for a year so that it will burn well. For this it is piled up neatly against the walls of the houses.
