More snow adding to the 5.2m in St Anton

When St Anton am Arlberg has a January snow pack of 5.2m forecast snow is hardly needed - yet the incredible winter of 2012 rolls on. With barely a white patch of mountain but for the glacier areas at the start of December, it has been almost weekly heavy snow systems that have been rolling in across Austria. 5.2m is basically a male adult standing on the head of another with a third on top of the second - confusing maybe, but what it means is that at current rates is that in St Anton and most of Austria you won’t need to worry about catching an edge on a rock until mid summer. There have been building collapses in the northern Austrian Alps due to the snow and these units weren’t built to beach hut specs. This really has been a remarkable 8 weeks of winter in Austria. To what extent this heralds future weather patterns is unclear but after a record breaking dry period in November the heavens have opened to dramatic effect and there seems no let up.

545cm snow depth - St Anton, Galzig

So the 5 day storm has basically run out of steam at a time when the snow base at the Galzig mid-station in St Anton is a stunning 5 and a half metres. Little wonder that several of the 5 Arlberg resorts were completely cut off in the last week - 5 metres is taller than many of the buildings in the area! And the astonishing thing about the 545cm snow depth is that it was essentially 0cm until very late November - the snow, certainly since mid December has been absolutely relentless and in the last week the snowfall has been staggering!

December brings the snow

After a November that can best be described as mild to reasonably cool, very sunny and very, very dry, then the arrival of December is bringing winter fully back to earth with heavy snow set to hit the west of Austria from this weekend onwards. Records for lack of precipitation have been smashed in the Tirol in November with possibly not a millimetre of rain, snow or anything else falling out of the sky for the entire month. It hasn’t prevented Obergurgl and Ischgl from opening on schedule but I am sure that they are as relieved as anyone by the weather charts. Over the weekend resorts such as Ischgl, Solden, St Anton and Kitzbuhel are set for a period of heavy snow that will have a slight interlude before the snow returns early next week. We are very likely be announcing the first flake as soon as it leaves the cloud so keep checking back.

Endlich - the snow is coming

After a month-long period of blue skies and sun and a complete lack of rain or snow, the cycle seems headed for a welcome end over the Austrian Alps with snow forecast in Kitzbuhel in the east and Ischgl and St Anton in the west. It hasn’t been the temperatures necessarily over the last month that have been despairing, more the dryness of the conditions - the sun has been warm but generally the air has been cool. The problem though has been the relentlessly dry conditions, with no part of the Alps spared. Luckily for Austria the glacier skiing takes place on 8 glaciers and these benefitted from some great early autumn snow so have been offering some great skiing. All of them will be welcoming a top-up for sure, from cloud laden skies. Forecasts are conflicting at the moment but all agree that Friday / Saturday should see a decent dump, others are identifying Wednesday as another day due to bring snow.

Crossing borders - the Trittkopfbahn ski lift from Alpe Rauz to Zurs am Arlberg

Intrusion or access to the Trittkopf, Zurs am Arlberg? - image © www.skiingaustria.co.uk

One of the more obvious ski lift links in the Alps is back on the boil with consultations underway regarding a lift linking the western extent of the St Anton am Arlberg ski area with the Lech - Zurs ski area in Zurs am Arlberg. The Arlberg ski area has long comprised of the ski areas of St Anton am Arlberg, St Christoph am Arlberg, Stuben am Arlberg, Zurs am Arlberg and Lech am Arlberg. Until now the Arlberg ski area has contained distinct areas that are not connected by lift or ski piste, those of St Anton, St Christoph and Stuben and Lech - Zurs. A single ski pass covers all the areas and it is possible to ski throughout the separate entities but to move between the 2 it is necessary to catch a short bus transfer between Alpe Rauz and Zurs am Arlberg. The only other ways I know of skiing or snowboarding between the 2 are the Valluga 2 descent into Zurs am Arlberg from St Anton and the Zurs route into Stuben that worryingly includes the roof of the semi-tunnel / ‘gallerie’ that leads into the Flexen Pass. Neither route should be tackled without a certified local guide meaning essentially the areas are cut off on skis or board. And whilst the proposed lift connection has been rumoured to have been a proposal for the last 70 years, the link is now in a consultation process. There are powerful arguments from both the proponents and the opponents of the Trittkopfbahn ski lift development with a great deal making sense. From the point of view of a passionate skier then the link has great merit and the argument that it will further degrade the area ecologically has justified yet limited resonance as far as I can see on the basis that this is already a highly developed Alpine area. For me a logical compromise would be to build the lift and make meaningful changes to the locality which would mitigate the effects of the development. Toll charges on through traffic may be unpopular but the traffic through both Lech and Zurs can be needlessly heavy at times and does nothing for the atmosphere or environment of an outstanding area. The large parking areas at Zurs am Arlberg could be transformed into other uses if the traffic using them was forced / taxed into using free local ski buses or else the new lift link. The ideal solution surely encompasses a level of development balanced by action to mitigate the effects which does something that is significantly beneficial for the environment and visitor experience. Quite what action is necessary would require careful analysis but the result could turn out to be a win-win situation for skiers, the resorts and the environment - a better environment in one of the very best ski areas in the world.

St Anton opens for 2010/11

The fantastic Galzigbahn, St Anton - image © www.skiingaustria.co.uk

Just back from St Anton where the season opening weekend brought grey skies and intermittent snow today after the epic conditions of yesterday. There were some forlorn looking people in the restaurant I visited today who were talking about the night before - St Anton parties pretty hard and the season opening party is a ‘biggy’ for sure. Snow at resort level was maybe 15-20cm with a great deal high up. Snow is forecast all week and temperatures are set to be very cold. I will be visiting my local hill this week as it is now open. A quick snow report from today in St Anton am Arlberg:

Dumping with snow right now in St Anton, Gerlos and everywhere in-between

First an email yesterday evening from a friend in St Anton saying it was dumping with snow, then another from Gerlos today with 40cm of snow in the resort this morning and a trip down to Innsbruck to see snow all over the city - this latest weather system is going make many ski holiday resorts ready to go. The snow has been falling all day somewhere between moderate and heavy and certainly without let-up. The smaller ski areas are likely to be looking to bring forward their opening dates, the larger areas are less flexible. For those able to visit a ski area this week then aim for Tuesday afternoon or Wednesday on any of the glacier over here - conditions could be spectacular. And if you are a touring skier then head to the Arlberg, see only other tourers and get some incredible powder skiing. 6 days left of October 2010, how much more can it deliver?

The Arlberg opening 26th November 2010 - why so late?

Most have heard of the Arlberg, fewer my local hill Axamer Lizum. And whilst Axamer Lizum has a loyal following amongst Innsbruck locals who know its off-piste secrets it can’t really claim to have the international appeal of St Anton, St Christoph, Stuben or Lech - Zurs. One thing Axamer Lizum outdoes the Arlberg for is season opening date. Axamer Lizum often opens at the beginning of November and no matter what the early November snow is doing the Arlberg stays firmly shut. I recall being in St Anton 2 winters ago and seeing the best part of a metre of fresh snow (on a pretty solid base) the second week in November and their wasn’t a moving chair in sight. In fact the only things to be moving were the ski touring locals who cut through incredible depths of snow with beaming smiles. Apart from the lucky and no doubt protective locals there were a great deal of people missing out on a lot of pristine snow. So small is sometimes better? Mobilising the local lift crew at Axamer Lizum (no insult intended) means trawling a few of the local watering holes and distributing a jacket, pants and a start time. Rather different for the Arlberg for sure, with hundreds of staff required to get the lifts rolling and a major marketing campaign in place many months before to get people into the Arlberg resorts. And for most of the French resort a November opening is unheard of in any case. So where would I rather be skiing mid-November - Axamer Lizum for sure! The end of November is a different story though

Arlberg season dates 2009/2010

Season times for the big one - the Arlberg! With a new lift for the St Anton Rendl and a fair bet that the region will get more snow than anywhere else but for Bregenzerwald, then get in some early season action in the Arlberg this winter. For the resorts of  Lech,  Zürs,  St. Anton,  St. Christoph and  Stuben the ski lifts are set  to roll on the 27.11.09, whilst the Klösterle-Sonnenkopf season starts on the 05.12.09.  The Season runs until  25.04.10 in Lech,  Zürs,  St. Anton,  St. Christoph and  Stuben and finishes a week earlier in  Klösterle-Sonnenkopf.

47 days old and checking out the piste map at Ischgl

Josh in Ischgl - waiting for the powder days

Josh made his first real trips into the heart of Austrian skiing with a day combining visits to St Anton am Arlberg and Ischgl – two of the places he is likely to spend some time if all goes to plan. St Anton was abuzz with work on the new Rendlbahn ski lift and you can see the first impressions of how it is going to look when work is completed alter this year on the following video:

Watch his progress on our blog as he is absolutely sure to ski next winter barring freak weather or a meteorite strike.

The new Rendlbahn, St Anton am Arlberg is underway

I have been in contact today with the Arlberg Bergbahnen and the Apartment La Vita in St Anton and things are moving fast on the new Rendlbahn. The old Rendlbahn that has run since 1974 is now fully demolished and work is underway to build the new base station at the existing bus terminal close to the new Galzigbahn. I am trying to get hold of a few more design details but basically the new Rendlbahn is part of a major redevelopment of the lift systems in St Anton, centring them around the heart of the resort and linking both the Galzigbahn and the Rendlbahn from a central location, with the bus terminal that serves the outlying areas of St Anton am Arlberg terminating at the point of embarkation for the 2 lifts. One thing that is for sure, the Rendl area is certainly going to become more popular as a result of the new developments, precisely the reason for the huge investments required but likely to sadden the locals who have had the Rendl region to themselves for many, many winters.