The Hoher Göll massif is located in Austria, It is small compared with other massifs in the Salzburg area but its steep walls make it difficult to access. Many of the cave entrances located on the massif are still waiting to be checked though some areas are slowly becoming well explored. What makes this massif special for Polish cavers is that no other massif outside of Poland has been the scene of so many Polish expeditions. The first expedition was organized in 1969 and its purpose was to visit Gruberhornholhle, at the time one of the deepest caves in the world. In 1970 polish cavers were invited by Austrians to join the exploration of the Gruberhornhohle. The expedition extended the depth of the cave to 854 meters. During the following 30 years Hoher Goll was visited by polish expeditions about every year. Many different clubs organized the expeditions and they found and explored many well-known caves. Till the end of the Eighties the exploration was mostly concentrated on the small glacial valleys located high in the massif near the peak of Gruberhorn. During this time two major caves were discovered and explored Mondhöhle (-546) and the deepest in the massif Jubilaumsschacht (-1173).
Since 1990 expeditions organized by Katowicki Klub Speleogiczny have started the exploration of the eastern side of the massif. After three years the Katowice group left the eastern part of the massif and started exploring the area in the western direction. The eastern part of the massif was not left alone for a long period of time. In 1995 Sekcja Grotołazów Wrocław joined by cavers from Sopocki Klub Taternictwa

Within the clouds, ph. Dariusz Bartoszewski

Jaskiniowego organized an expedition to continue the exploration of the caves found during earlier expeditions in this area. The main target of the expedition was Koboldschacht, a 676-meter deep cave known for its notoriously tight, muddy and uncomfortable canyons connecting a series of pits. The cave was discovered during the Katowice expedition. Cavers who visited this cave have called it the most difficult they ever encountered. The expedition extended the length and the depth of the cave though the amount of time needed for progress was so significant that it was decided that exploration of other caves in the area would yield better effects.
During the same expedition in 1995 many more new caves were found. The largest and deepest of them was called Ogrschacht and was very different from Koboldschacht. After removing the rock blocking the bottom of a tight pit the cave opened up and in a way consists of three two hundred meter pits divided by ledges. During that expedition a - 500 meter level was reached.