Kanzelwand, Mountain summit in Allgäu Alps, Austria and Germany

Kanzelwand is a 2,058 m summit of the Allgäu Alps on the Austria-Germany border, a side peak of the Oberstdorf Hammerspitze above Riezlern in the Kleinwalsertal. It is built of Hauptdolomit, drops north in a steep rock face and is otherwise covered by steep grass slopes. The Kanzelwandbahn from Riezlern reaches a station about 20 minutes below the top.

The Kanzelwand was once a remote border point between Bavaria and Vorarlberg, used mainly by farmers and traders crossing the ridge. The construction of the cable car during the 20th century opened the summit to a much wider public and shaped what the place is today.

The Kanzelwand sits exactly on the border between Austria and Germany, which hikers notice through the mix of signage and trail markings from both countries. The mountain huts on each side keep their own regional character, from the food they serve to the way they are decorated.

The cable car is the most direct way to reach the top, with access from both the German side near Oberstdorf and the Austrian side near Mittelberg. Mountain weather can shift without much warning at this elevation, so carrying an extra layer is a good idea even on clear days.

The name comes from the mountain's shape: the east ridge climbs to the summit in regular rock steps, which suggested a comparison with a church pulpit. The first recorded mention dates from 1783, in Blasius Hueber's Vorarlberg map; a Bavarian border description of 1844 calls the peak Warmatsgundkopf, also known as Kanzelwand.