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A Schnitzelbahn History: hiking and skiing in the Alps

We've received some feedback from readers that we should add "index" pages for specific content.
An index page is better than the Categories ("Navigation" on the right side of this page) because
you don't have to scroll through entries you've already seen -- instead, just go to the entry you want.

So, here is a brief index of our blog entries about hiking and skiing in the Alps:

Hiking

- Fuschl am See and the Frauenkopf, Austria.

- The Plumsjoch, Austria.

- Pertisau and the Achensee, Austria.

- Breitenstein, Bavaria.

- Spitzingsee, Bavaria.

- The Höllentalklamm (through a gorge), near Garmisch, Bavaria.  The way up and the hike down.

- Bad Dürrnberg, Austria.  A summer sledding run down the mountain!

- Murnau, Bavaria.

- An extended, four-day hike in the Spanish/French Pyrenees.  An Overview, Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, and Day 4.

Forest Climbing and Zipline Park

- Pfaffenhofen, Bavaria.

Skiing

- St. Jakob in Defereggental, Austria.  The ski slopes and the snowboarder funpark.

- Spring skiing on the Stubai Glacier, Austria.

- St. Anton (am Arlberg), Austria.

- Skiing in downtown Munich.  (made possible by a man-made slope at Wittelsbacherplatz)

Combination Activities !

- Kufstein, Austria.  Hike up, and go snow sledding down!

- Kufstein, Austria.  Hike up, and ride a mountaincart down!

We'll keep adding to this index page as more blog posts fall into this category...

Ski Trips - St. Anton am Arlberg

Not long ago, a friend of mine from Northwestern University moved to Hamburg with her husband and two daughters.  One of their first vacations was to St. Anton in Austria for skiing.  That reminded me of my trip there. 

St. Anton is a skiing mecca - 2700 km of runs!  It's only a couple hours from Munich (she and family had to drive perhaps 8 hours from Hamburg). 

St. Anton is a specific town, but also references the general area with all of those ski slopes.  Below is the skiing map for the area, and you can see the neighboring villages of Lech, Zuers, Stuben, etc..

The practical area is also larger, because the towns just outside of the above map have more affordable lodging, with the drawback that you have to drive (or take the convenient ski bus) 30 minutes each way.  I stayed in Flirsch, a ways down the main road (east).  Each town has small hotels or houses to rent.

I mentioned affordable lodging because St. Anton is definitely an upscale ski area.  Lots of BMWs to be seen!  The ski lifts seemed to be pretty modern and attention given to upgrades, whereas other older/less posh areas will still simply maintain more T-bars and 2-person lifts. 

 

 Once you get up -- and the highest points are pretty high -- you can see what the fuss is all about.  Some of the views are dramatic, with trails running past peaks jutting through pure white snow:

The weather for my trip was great, and there were some places where the trails ran above the clouds.  You would overlook the valley covered by a blanket.  Very cool.

In the next photo, the trail actually disappears into the clouds below, with gorgeous peaks in the distance. 

Hopefully we can arrange to meet my friend next season and get some more shots (and video).  Until then, we have to start moving on to hiking & vacation season while waiting for the snow to return!

Spring Skiing in Stubai (Austria)

Here in Germany, Easter is a prime time for vacation because everyone gets Good Friday and Easter Monday off (four day weekend!).  And it's not just a long weekend -- schools are out for 2-3 weeks so many of my colleagues are taking a holiday for the entire time.  Munich really empties out as families leave for Italy, Spain, Greece and Turkey.

Things are a bit different this year because Easter arrived so "late", on the 24th of April.  For those heading south, it doesn't matter, but many Bavarians like to use this time for one last ski trip.  Frau A and I decided to do this too (although only for a couple of days).  Since we're in late April, there is one place guaranteed to have decent slopes: the Stubai Glacier.

The snow is truly guaranteed -- you can buy a lift ticket online and they will refund your money if there is not enough snow to ski through Easter.  They offer the same guarantee in October too!  Here is a snippet of their website recently:

In the valley there is no snow left, but on the glacier at 3000+ meters they have 200cm of snow.

As you seen on the map above, the Stubai Alps are in the south of Austria, near Innsbruck, on the border with Italy.  The range has at least 9 peaks over 3000m, and the glacier is accessible via the Stubaital (Stubai Valley).  The valley stretches 40km with a single main road going through it, with a half-dozen "large" towns along the way catering to tourists year round (hiking and similar activities in the Summer).

There are many other ski areas in the Stubai region, but the glacier is the only one with the altitude and depth to support skiing so late into warm weather.  In fact, the season there usually starts in the middle of September and ends in early June!  (Of course, the snow quality starting in May is relatively low, with mostly slushy conditions... but addicts can get their fix.)

Here is a map of the pistes:

The glacier area has 110km of slopes, most of them (85km) are easy-to-medium difficulty.  There is a mix of gondolas (5 of them), chair lifts (7), and t-bars (9).  They also have a "fun park" like Defereggental.  What's really nice is that you can drop you equipment off in the "comfort center" at the base of the pistes and leave your skiis & boots overnight -- no lugging equipment back & forth from the hotel!

At the top of the highest lift, they have a great lookout platform - gorgeous place for photos.  Here is Frau A walking up to the top:

This is the view from down on the slopes, looking over the Fun Park...

 

... and the same view from the viewing platform -- you're standing on a small peak (snow in the foreground) looking over the same range in the background:

 

The pistes at the highest altitude had great snow, but with such blue skies and intense sun the runs near the bottom were getting a bit wet.  The scenery was beautiful and it was not too crowded as you can see in the photo below (taken from an open window in a gondola):

We would stop frequently to take more photos, because the weather was incredible.  This is one of the upper slopes, winding through the mountains:

They also had a short Super-G run, complete with a starting gate and appropriately spaced flags to weave through.  The timer was not working that day (sometimes they will even have a clock that shows you how fast you made it) but you still got a feel.  Here is Frau A ready to go:

It was simply a great, and unusual, Easter weekend.  We've already circled September dates on the calendar to get our first skiing next season in Stubai.

Ski Trips - St. Jakob in Defereggental (the Funpark!)

In a previous post, we showed briefly the skiing in St. Jakob in Defereggental (Austria).  A little further than most skiiers in Munich will drive, but wide open slopes and short lines make it a relaxing alternative to the crowded mountains closer to big cities.

Another especially interesting dimension of Defereggental is the "Funpark".  This is basically a long, broad slope that has ramps, jumps, and other possibilities for trick skiing.  Think of your local skateboard halfpipe area at the park - this is the skiing version.  You have to go to a specific lift for it -- the arrow on the map shows you where it's located on the slopes.

This is a pair of good sized snow jumps.  I would see a bunch of snowboarders and skiiers (see the double tracks?) try them, although conservatively.  I tried a jump like this at a different Funpark and fell back on my butt - you have to lean forward more than you'd think. I would see a lot of snowboarders resting uphill from the jumps with their buddies, perhaps getting up the nerve to kick off and tackle the jumps.

Expecially for the snowboarders, St. Jakob has installed skateboard-like handrails to jump up and slide down.  Here you can approach from the right or the left.  I actually saw a skiier do this one!  He was one of those Austrian teenagers that has probably been skiing since he was three years old.  I saw him all day, and he would ski down the easy slopes going backwards, so this guy had chops. 

This one was almost exclusively used by snowboarders.  Maybe because of the curve?  It would theoretically be possible to do this with skiis, right?  You can see a lot of snowboard tracks to the left of the ramp, where people changed their minds at the last minute and changed course to go right of the ramp. 

I didn't see anyone try this particular prop while I was taking the lifts.  But I think it's cool that they installed an entire stairway in the slopes, and am guessing that when the hard-core snowboarders are out there that this is used quite a bit.  I want to see three guys board down this at the same time, one on each section!  It's funny that you can see footprints on the left - did someone wipe out and head back up for another go?

 

Finally, there was this monster jump.  HUGE.  I thought about taking this veeeeery slowly, but chickened out.  Look at the right side of the ramp and you'll see ski marks about halfway up - that come diagonally down from right to left.  These people, like me, started approaching this towering pile of snow and changed their minds, swerving to the left and cutting across the side of the ramp rather than over it!  I did see some people do this, and a professional photographer taking photos.  I'll look for them on the next brochure.  Cool. dude.

Ski Trips - St. Jakob in Defereggental (the slopes)

Skiing is so incredibly convenient in Munich.  You can be at the foot of excellent slopes in 90 minutes within Germany, and if you open up to a 2-3 hour perimeter you get hundreds of options in Austria.

One trip I especially liked was to St. Jakob in Defereggental, in the famous area of Tirol, Austria (also spelled Tyrol).  It's a little farther to drive than most Müncheners will venture -- a little more than 3 hours with a car.  You can see that it is near the narrow stretch of eastern Austria, close to Italy! (Brunico is in Italy on the map.)  Yes, Munich rocks -- you can get to Northern Italy in 3.5 hours.  

Defereggental is smaller than a lot of ski destinations, with "only" 52km of slopes.  Most of them are blue (17km are easy) or red (32km are medium difficulty) rather than black too.  The slopes are a little shorter than the "best" destinations, which is why the far eastern and western lifts are t-bars -- you can do that if it's not too long.  The ski map is below. 

When you factor in the remoteness, size, and the less-than-completely-new lifts, you get two advantages:  it costs less for the day pass, and fewer people are on the slopes with you.  Obviously it's not a fancy schmancy as St. Anton, but check out the photo below.  I took that from the chairlift, at about 9:30 in the morning.  On a Saturday.  Look at the empty piste on the right!

Here's another shot I took from the lift, this time looking back down the mountain.  You see some fellow skiiers, but nobody on the slopes.  I did see a lot of locals that came to ski for an hour our two -- it must be incredible to live in the area.  Get an annual pass, and "stop by" for a couple runs maybe after work, or even at lunch!  Again, this is Saturday in the middle of ski season!  And with less ski traffic, the fresh snow stays longer... almost no ice patches to be found.

The mountains are not quite as majestic as the best in Tirol, but the view is still great.  That Saturday was relatively clear, and you got a good glimpse of the entire valley and surrounding peaks.  And yes, the ski huts had outdoor seating to enjoy your glühwein with the view.  This pic was again taken from a ski lift.  Just a brilliant ride up each time.

Here's a view from one of the huts - the highest one in the area.  It was really cold up here, but there was a good 6 inches of fresh snow, so nobody was complaining.  Because the runs are a bit shorter than usual, if you really motor downhill you'll have a bit of a different pace than other destinations.  Shorter trips down, but shorter intervals on the lifts.  And no waiting in line.  Also, the crowd seems a bit friendlier.  Can you tell I liked this place?

The one gondola was great when the wind started whipping up strongly.  This photo was taken on the way up, and you get a great picture of a local mountain top with fresh show.  You can also see that the village is pretty small -- it doesn't stretch for kilometers like the large resorts.  There are nice (and inexpensive) hotels and pensions in the area, and a handful of restaurants/bars.  not a lot, but just enough.

So Defereggental is NOT the place for socialite skiing, apres ski bunnies, nor for the wannabe racers in the family or those dying for the blackest of the black runs across car-sized moguls.  However, for what it is, it's great:  an inexpensive, relaxed, uncrowded destination that let's you enjoy skiing more than waiting in line.

Skiing in Central Munich

Back in July, we spent a wonderful(ly hot!) day watching Germany crush Argentina in the World Cup. We visited as many venues as possible, and that day chose Siemens Soccer City. Siemens had transformed Wittelsbacherplatz into a beer garden and viewing area for the World Cup¹ matches.

For winter, they did it again....but this time even bigger!    

To coincide with the Alpine Ski World Cup, Siemens built a 40 meter-long (120 feet), 12-meter high (36 feet) ski slope outside their world headquarters, located at Wittelsbacherplatz in Munich.  It's right downtown near the larger Odeonsplatz, next to the Hofgarden and beyond that, the south entrance to the English Garden.

The "ski area" was complete with two "magic carpets" to carry people to the top. Of course there also was the obligatory après ski hut (complete with glühwein, beer, and hearty bavarian food to warm you), and big screen showing the World Cup events. 

 "Magic carpet" ski lift

 
For a little over two weeks, Siemens Snow City was open free to the public. Though you were welcome to bring your own skis and snowboards, sleds were provided for visitors.

According to Siemens' tally, over 50,000 people took a turn down the slope, and over 420 kids participated in free children's ski clinics run by the German Ski Federation. As it was a corporate-sponsored event, there was the usual fanfare....an opening ceremony with children carrying flags of various countries, demonstrations and exhibitions, and the Celebrity Cup race pitting celebrities against Siemens employees to raise money for childrens' charities.

Munich loves sports and the outdoors - cold does not stop Müncheners, it only changes their attire, activities, and beverage choice! This was a fun chance for kids to try out skiing (without the trouble or expense to go to the mountains) and for all the inhabitants to enjoy a taste of winter sports after work or while out shopping. We fit in a few sled runs and a glühwein Saturday before finishing up our shopping before the stores closed for the weekend.

I don't know if it was only tied to World Cups, but I'm hoping Siemens continues putting up these public venues. They do a really impressive job!

poor Elector Maximilian I and his horse are boxed up and hidden from the party!

As you'll see from my spill in the video, it was quite a bumpy ride down!

¹ Known as the "WM" (pronounced "vey-em"), in German lingo. As WM just means World Championship ("Weltmeisterschaft"), you'll hear it attached to multiple sports. For example, we attended the Alpine Ski WM a couple of weeks ago. People usually know which one is going on at the time, so you'll see most headlines or pubs' listing just as "WM" and then the event or teams.