East of Aschau are several resorts, of which the most attractive is RUHPOLDING , at the end of a branch rail line from the junction of Traunstein. The town's dominant monument is the Pfarrkirche St Georg , a typical example of Bavarian Rococo, save for the fact that one of the side altars incorporates a rare Romanesque survivor in the little polychrome wood sculpture known as the Ruhpolding Madonna . Following the Weisse Traun 3km upstream brings you to the Taubensee , a secluded lake which is the valley station of the cable car (DM17/?8.50 single, DM28/?14 return) up the Rauschberg (1645m). The summit commands a marvellous view over the Chiemgau Alps, south into Austria and north to the Chiemsee. Ruhpolding's tourist office is in the Kurverwaltung, Hauptstr. 60 (Easter-Sept Mon-Fri 8am-noon & 2-6pm, Sat 9am-noon; Oct-Easter Mon-Fri 8am-noon & 2-6pm; tel 0 86 63/8 80 60, fax 88 06 20, www.ruhpolding.de ). The town is choc-a-bloc with private houses offering rooms and guesthouses (less than DM60/?30-DM99/?49), and there are also good hotels , such as Sonnenbichl , Brandstätter Str. 48 (tel 0 88 63/12 33; DM100-124/?50-62), Diana , Kurhausstr. 1 (tel 0 88 63/97 05; DM125-149/?63-74), and Ruhpoldinger Hof , Hauptstr. 30 (tel 0 88 63/12 12; DM150-199/?75-99), all of which have fine restaurants .