Archive for the 'Vorarlberg' Category
August 21st, 2011 by matt
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.
July 16th, 2011 by Saalbach local
You don’t have to look far to find a summer party in Austira. Many villages have a Dorf-Fest in Summer or Autumn which is a wonderful excuse to drink beer and eat great food in the streets until late at night. Saalbach used to have an amazing Dorf-fest which involved a boat race on a man made river. It no longer takes place due to permission being removed from one land owner so now there are a number of smaller festivals. I do miss the opportunity to dress up as Amy Winehouse, drink beer in the afternoon and race down a river of foam followed by a party on a fake beach. Now you wouldn’t get that in England - and if you did it wouldn’t be kid friendly like it is in Austria.
Alm festivals are basically mountain hut festivals - good if you fancy a walk to and from the party. There are about 2 a week near us so its not hard to find a happening hut. They are quite traditional often with local musicians and traditional dress. there may also be a small market and children’s activities to keep the family happy. If your lazy get the cablecar up and down.
A great Austrian excuse for a drink in the morning is Frühschoppen - translated its morning pint. Yes you start drinking about 11am with food and music and go home at about 5pm full of beer and ready to sleep. The thing that amazes me is the amount of beer that people who are the age of my parents manage to put away at these things and still remain standing. They are definitely atmospheric and fine if you can stomach beer that early and plan to be in bed early.
My favourite festival of all is Bauern Herbst - a kind of farmers festival that you see from August through to October. This can be anything from a harvest festival party, to a food event celebrating the harvest to a farmers market. It always includes fresh produce and local ingredients and as ever music and beer usually figure. A fantastic way to ski and experience some of the real Austria is to go to the Glaciers between September and the end of October and go to some of the Bauern Herbst events. It really gives you a local view of Austria as although your welcome it really is a locally let and not a tourist experience.
December 21st, 2010 by matt
A couple of things stand out this year on the slopes, one last weekend was great powder skiing followed by the Hoff and Kit on stage in Saalbach-Hinterglemm, the other was heli-skiing in the Arlberg. It is fair to say that everyone should experience these 2 alpine treats. Last weekend in freezing but sunny weather Saalbach-Hinterglemm served up 2 days of great powder skiing with endless untracked routes to tackle. For those more suited to pistes then the slopes were in great shape with groomed fresh snow. After dark things were as good (better for some) with David ‘the Hoff’ Hasselhoff headlining on Saturday night. I was in the media centre when news came through that the Hoff was stranded in London due to his plane being cancelled. Saalbach-Hinterglemm got on the phone and chartered a private jet to get this ‘god-like’ man into the valley and he duly arrived and produced some memorable entertainment:
In terms of experiencing a heli flight, getting dropped off on a tiny peak and being guided down some serious off-piste terrain in deep powder by a former powder skiing world champion then the heli ski day in the Arlberg earlier in the year was a pinnacle in many respects. For skiers and snowboarders of good standard then it has to be one of the must-haves to be ticked off. Lesser skiers and those with vertigo would be well advised to avoid - as soon as the helicopter lifts off from the peak there is no turning back. For others the many hundreds of metres below of banked powder was the stuff of magazine shoots.
October 30th, 2010 by matt
Huge snow pack on a Stuben roof and this shot was taken early November - image © www.skiingaustria.co.uk
Our articles on the snowiest part of the Alps, the ‘snow triangle’ that runs from Damuls east to Warth and then south to Zurs am Arlberg are causing a bit of debate. The latest shot comes from Stuben am Arlberg and the Hotel Mondschein. This from the owner Markus - “There is only one true statistic. This one is coming from Innsbruck from the official ZAMG Wetterdienst. When you want to build a house for example, you have to take care about the static. The static of the house is controlled by the snow load. And the government of Austria takes the statistics from ZAMG to decide, in which category your house have to be built. So, Stuben has the major snow load of Austria and this information’s are from the official statistic office ZAMG from Innsbruck.” So basically if you want a roof in Stuben it has to conform to certain structural requirements and these are determined by weather (snow accumulation) data. Stuben has the highest rating in Austria suggesting that it has the highest snowfall rate. Anecdotally I have seen unprecedented amounts of snow on the roofs of Stuben property. So advantage Stuben - at present the snow capital of Austria and the Alps.
October 28th, 2010 by matt
yep that’s a lot of snow for April - image © www.skiingaustria.co.uk
Going back to the ‘snow triangle’ theme, Damuls in the Bregenzerwald labels itself as the ‘The snowiest village on earth’. We had a post today asking for more information on the snowfall stats in the Alps which I am trying to dig out. This image above taken toward the end of April 2008 is indicative of the snow that the Arlberg and Bregenzerwald regions in Austria get. I was impressed by the snow pack that day but the guy I was showing the region to insisted we jump off the ski bus and photo this scene. The image was taken just above Stuben am Arlberg and yes there was a mighty snow pack even if I was blasé about it at the time 
October 22nd, 2010 by matt
The Stubai Zoo is back at the Stubai Glacier tomorrow - the 2010 season opener of the Stubai Glacier park. Rails, twin tips and partying till late are on the menu. With the recent incredible snow conditions on all the local glaciers the Stubai Glacier is set to be a popular destination over the weekend. The weather is set to be fine tomorrow and then snow returns Sunday till Tuesday. This has to be the best early season I can ever recall! Evidence to support that below from Stuben am Arlberg yesterday:
Incredible October snow in Stuben am Arlberg
October 18th, 2010 by matt
I had someone asking for more information on Stuben am Arlberg after saying in the last blog post that it was the part of the snow capital of Europe. I explained with a sketch of the map below that there is one region of the Alps that gets more snow than any other statistically. There are higher places in the Alps (the Arlberg has a top lift height of 2811m) but as Bregenzerwald proves snow accumulation has less to do with height, more to do with location. Bregenzerwald and the Arlberg in the far north west of Austria are ideally located to snag weather systems that are rolling in from the west (Switzerland and Germany) and the peaks of this regional get unbeatable amounts of snow. The Bregenzerwald resort of Damuls is statistically reckoned to be the snowiest ski resort in the world, whilst just down the valley Warth is rated as being the snowiest ski area in the Alps. Heading south past Lech am Arlberg, Zurs am Arlberg is rated as the second snowiest ski area in the Alps. And on the corner of this snow triangle there is Stuben am Arlberg - clearly snow doesn’t obey strict borders of the triangle and Stuben gets incredible amounts of snow. Stuben is also the ski holiday resort serving the Albona off-piste Mecca, the area I rate in terms of terrain and snow as the best off-piste skiing in the Alps. Sure others will have different favourites but the Albona for me is number one and the snow record certainly backs up my case.
The snow triangle of the Alps including Damuls, Warth and Zurs, Austria
September 18th, 2010 by matt
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
September 2nd, 2009 by matt
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.
August 31st, 2009 by matt
Saturday, 16th January 2010 sees the 5th annual runninng of the of the ‘White Ring’ (Der Weiße Ring) longest ski race in the world is being held int he Lech-Zurs ski region. Olympic Champion and World Champion Patrick Ortlieb was the innaugrual winner if the 2006 White Ring race and he record is still up for grabs. Great skiing as well even if you can’t get a race bib.
Zurs am Arlberg - the centre of the White Ring course - Image © www.skiingaustria.co.uk
April 7th, 2009 by matt
Mild, spring weather is upon us in the Tirol but only last week the weather was far more wintry with some great powder skiing up in Stuben am Arlberg. I had taken some great film using a helmet camera of the powder runs that I was getting but the camera came out of its housing on the chair and fell to the piste – there two guys grabbed it and that is the last I have seen of it or you will see of the Stuben powder runs. C’est la vie but at least the power cable and accessories of the camera cost a fortune so the people who took it will have some outlay before they see my great runs – if you are reading this guys, why not drop the memory card into the lift station at least you morons?
Ok, the videos that survived in another camera include a short film of the avalanche transceiver tester that is locate din the centre of Stuben:
And a snow report and description of this off-piste Mecca:
April 2nd, 2009 by matt
Perfection in Stuben am Arlberg, 1st April 2009 – image © skiingaustria.co.uk
With a 5km ridge, a vertical of at least 1km and snow accumulation record that is in the top 3 in the Alps, the case for Stuben being the best off-piste ski holiday destination in the Alps is strong. Added to that there is heli skiing on offer (Lech – Zurs being the only region in Austria to allow this) and you quickly get the idea that it is the most serious of off-piste destinations. Verbier in Switzerland has the label but La Grave, France and the Krippenstein Freeride Arena in Austria offer good equals to Stuben am Arlberg. When the ski guides of St Anton all head out to Stuben for powder action there can be few better recommendations.