Poster: A snowHead
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The four of us who initially joined forces on this trip managed about three good legs between us:
Irbis: meniscus operation last October
Alexoffroad: broken ankle two seasons ago
Chowdahridah (off TGR): two broken tibias a few seasons ago, still has the metal plates
horizon: ACL replacement two seasons ago, torn ankle ligaments (on the other leg) at end of Jan so I was still in a cast 5 weeks before the trip
Joining us for various days were also Sideshow Bob (broken wrist in December) and, amazingly, a group of uninjured skiers (Batman_123, Tomas the Polish Menace and a couple of Americans off TGR).
But...we had two snowfalls, loads of sunshine, a larger than life guide (Hubi, aka Hubi wan Kenubi) and skied some beautiful lines.
First some scenics:
Now for some action pics:
Sideshow Bob goes deep:
Batman_123 follows:
Tomas is on his fourth offpiste day ever - not doing badly! (well, he WAS a racer)
Irbis takes two turns at sunset:
JRainey shows him that young, uninjured and raised in Jackson Hole also works well for skiing:
End of Part 1. Some other good pics to come when I figure out why snowmediazone isn't working for me today (the ones above are taken by me and uploaded on another site).
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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horizon, Very very nice!!
Can you tell me where the tour stuff is please Cedric? Me and Dan going out last weekend of season and are looking for some new routes, this looks great. First one Maroikopf dropping into Langen?
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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horizon, those first 2 pictures are something special, with the others just being brilliant
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Dude, sweet!
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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horizon, Wow, thanks for the PM. Great photos.
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How the other half ski, eh? Terrific.
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Twas properly blower stuff Great to ski with these guys. Hope to have some shots of our few days with our other guide for the week, Mr "Tanz Himmel" Franz Trimmel of P2P, soon, though doubt they'll be quite as spectacular as Horizon's shots. Best conditions I think I've had in a decade with easy to find fresh rendering regular face shots five of the six days.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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It also looks like SH's favourite guide has given up the day job and taken up lead guitar in the Underground - forget Heli Nick, meet Axeman Nick!
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Well spotted .... Can't get lost from the Underground can you ......
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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nicely played, chaps
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Nice work
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Gorgeous photos! I wish I could ski like that.
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You know it makes sense.
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Looks great, am suitably green with envy
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Fab.
But Jesus H Christ don't they sell suncream in Austria?
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Poster: A snowHead
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horizon, cracking pics, off out there myself in just over a week.
Where was the hike up, did you do that with a guide???
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Great stuff, horizon.
How does Hubi compare with Pio? Did you hire him because Pio wasn't available?
I ask because I'm booking Pio from your/Irbis's earlier recommendation for next year.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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snowball, Pio was indeed not available so we booked Hubi. I would rate them both as excellent at finding good snow and doing tours. Personality-wise they are different: Pio is more reserved whereas Hubi is a storyteller, has a wise / funny (?) saying for any situation, and a healthy appreciation of the apres-ski arena. I'd venture a guess that your group would find it easier to get on with Pio but that said we had loads of fun with Hubi and we're quite likely to book him again.
kitenski, the hike in the pic is from the top of the Trittkopfbahn (from Zurs), 20-30 mins up to the antenna - then we turned right and skinned for another 20 minutes to find a suitable place to enter the valley - which is the same as the one you get to from the North Face of Valluga, just accessed from another aspect.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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horizon, Going to give the Trittkopf one a go when we go 18th.
Does Hubi give out as many bollockings as the other guide we know?!! Ha.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Markymark29, Hubi tends to joke a lot more than give bollockings.
There was one time, on the first run on a powder day, when first one of us got lost for a couple of minutes and then I took a blind line between trees, jumped through a bush and fell in a hole - he got a little annoyed with our clumsy powder fever. I think he had low blood sugar level at that moment as he recovered rapidly to his usual self.
Are you going 18th of April? Hmmmm...if I don't make it for Easter and the snow is still good I may join you for a weekend...
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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horizon, Yeah, be great if you wanted to come out - me and Dan going out arriving 1am on 19th and staying at Angelika right next to Galzig/ Rendlbahns (think Inge still have rooms free if you email). We fly Manchester by Lufthansa arriving 22.00 (or so) on 18th at MUC, and have a hire car so we could split 3 ways fuel and car (cheap deal that Dan has booked with Avis). Plan is to ski 3 days and leave late afternoon Sunday 21st (last lifts open day) catching late MUC-MAN Lufthansa flight back. Saturday is the Weisses Rausch so there should be a good atmosphere in town, few beers and a pizza Saturday evening. Plan on getting some high level stuff maybe Trittkopf one day and Malfontal/ Petteneu plus others, perhaps Maroikopf down to Langen (might not have time for this), Rossfall, Shimmelegg, Maroi Leiten etc. No plans for a guide, budget weekend, taking skins/ ABS's, crampons etc.
Think Clarky999 could be tempted too eh, Matt.........?
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Fab pics, esp the first two. Looks incredible.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Some very nice shots - presume it was your intention to take these (in as much as you took a suitable camera) - what sort of lens were you using, especially for that first shot?
pleased to say I recognised the hike up to the 'antenna'... wasn't so much snow when I was there... ditto the Underground....
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horizon wrote: |
snowball, Pio was indeed not available so we booked Hubi. I would rate them both as excellent at finding good snow and doing tours. Personality-wise they are different: Pio is more reserved whereas Hubi is a storyteller, has a wise / funny (?) saying for any situation, and a healthy appreciation of the apres-ski arena. I'd venture a guess that your group would find it easier to get on with Pio but that said we had loads of fun with Hubi and we're quite likely to book him again.
kitenski, the hike in the pic is from the top of the Trittkopfbahn (from Zurs), 20-30 mins up to the antenna - then we turned right and skinned for another 20 minutes to find a suitable place to enter the valley - which is the same as the one you get to from the North Face of Valluga, just accessed from another aspect. |
I agree with Horizon that Snowball's group is more likely to go on with Pio. The other difference is that Pio is a mountain guide ((IFMGA/UIAGM) whereas Hubi is a level 3 (highest) skiing instructor.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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hamilton wrote: |
Some very nice shots - presume it was your intention to take these (in as much as you took a suitable camera) - what sort of lens were you using, especially for that first shot? |
Thanks!
The first two shots were taken with a Canon G12.
The next one is taken with a Nikon V1 and the 30-110 lens.
I did have a DSLR and a couple of very nice lenses with me on the trip but they never left the hotel room.
I've just realised that I forgot to post this one (taken with the Nikon), which I quite like (although I don't remember the midget at position no.3 being part of our group):
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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horizon, we are back there 6th April, hope we get conditions as good as that!!
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brilliant pictures - inspiring
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You know it makes sense.
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Just discovered this thread - great shots! Not envious in any way whatsoever. Arno and I will have to try and match it in the Arctic next week
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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horizon,
This was last weekend! Was actually close to joining you, was in Stanton for a work ski-day and had originally planned to ski with Josh (JRainey).... my day ended very differently to yours! after 6 runs and many beers and schnapps i simply crawled onto the train home....
Wish I'd made the effort now! how long was the tour in the end and did young Josh manage to keep up ok ?
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horizon, we are back there 6th April, hope we get conditions as good as that!!
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There's a fair amount coming down and it seems to be staying colder, I would expect it to be all good then as well, just might have to stick to the north faces a fair amount.
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Poster: A snowHead
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horizon, thanks. I already just booked Pio for the week from 13th Jan. 2014. He was already booked for the other weeks of January or I'd have booked for the week before.
My main concern is not to have someone who wants to stop early, and after that to have someone who likes to push on, and will push us a little rather than always playing safe.
We also climbed up to the antenna from Zurs (in January). The first time we did a narrow 45º couloir from the antenna which nobody else had skied. Great fun. The second time, after walking further up the ridge, we went in from a minimum point of the cornice. Which did you do?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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dulcamara, Josh had the benefit of youth and health, he was the fastest in the group! I might have given him a closer run for his money, at least downhill, if my ankle had been at 100%. Instead, he freed me from the hole I had fallen into (pic above). He's a very good skier and nice guy allround. You should have joined us and THEN drunk the beers and schnapps
snowball wrote: |
We also climbed up to the antenna from Zurs (in January). The first time we did a narrow 45º couloir from the antenna which nobody else had skied. Great fun. The second time, after walking further up the ridge, we went in from a minimum point of the cornice. Which did you do? |
We did the latter - the guide mentioned the first but it was a lot less unskied vertical and after that climb (second in the day) we wanted to maximize our ski mileage. We ended up skiing a big face which had only had a couple of tracks before us, so all was good.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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horizon, the extra bit of vertical walking gently up near the cornice can't have been much, surely, compared to the lift and steep main climb to the antenna? I'm surprised you didn't look over the edge at the couloir on the way up.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Markymark29 wrote: |
horizon, Yeah, be great if you wanted to come out - me and Dan going out arriving 1am on 19th and staying at Angelika right next to Galzig/ Rendlbahns (think Inge still have rooms free if you email). We fly Manchester by Lufthansa arriving 22.00 (or so) on 18th at MUC, and have a hire car so we could split 3 ways fuel and car (cheap deal that Dan has booked with Avis). Plan is to ski 3 days and leave late afternoon Sunday 21st (last lifts open day) catching late MUC-MAN Lufthansa flight back. Saturday is the Weisses Rausch so there should be a good atmosphere in town, few beers and a pizza Saturday evening. Plan on getting some high level stuff maybe Trittkopf one day and Malfontal/ Petteneu plus others, perhaps Maroikopf down to Langen (might not have time for this), Rossfall, Shimmelegg, Maroi Leiten etc. No plans for a guide, budget weekend, taking skins/ ABS's, crampons etc.
Think Clarky999 could be tempted too eh, Matt.........?
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Distinct possibility I recently bought the Powderguide Tirol guidebook (written by a couple of Innsbruck guys) which is all about minimising uphill travel to maximise quality downhill, has a couple of Arlberg routes that could be worth checking out. I'm in France skiing with my parents (and scoring pow!) atm and don't have the book here, I'll give you the info when I get back home.
Rad photos btw Horizon!!
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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clarky999, Have fun!
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Or 63 routes in the Andy Thurner "Off Piste all around the Arlberg" book.
If you don't happen to have it already I find I have ended up with 2 copies so you could have my 2000 Edition, horizon.
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horizon, great pics! A few memories from our trip in amongst that lot. What were you skiing?
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horizon, Great stuff as usual.
next years trip might be crown green bowling it sounds like to me!
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Sideshow_Bob wrote: |
It also looks like SH's favourite guide has given up the day job and taken up lead guitar in the Underground - forget Heli Nick, meet Axeman Nick!
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Kiwi Floss has been playing at the UG (New and the old UG) for at least 20 years. Probably one of the hardest working people in St Anton.
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These pics are insane . Really awesome!
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