 Poster: A snowHead
|
The Ski Circus opened (more) today and -wow- what a day: blue skies, sun, and great snow. A friend and I started out from Leogang, skied a little there. One improvement there is that the first section of the run from beside the Asitzbräu to the bottom station of the Asitzgipfel chairlift, below the Chicken Man, has been doubled in width by blasting away a bit of the hill. And today there were none of the usual moguls, though I don't suppose it will stay that way 
Then we moved over to Saalbach and enjoyed two runs on the piste beside the Schönleiten gondola. The Kohlmais area wasn't open, so we took the bus from the Schönleiten to the Schattberg. There I had my only fall of the day - on the escalator in the Schattberg gondola building, not having noticed that I had reached the top as I looked back to check the state of the Schattberg piste  However, being much practised elsewhere, I survived that and we had a great run over to Hinterglemm. We lunched at the Breitfussalm and had two runs down the Zwölferkogel. Then it was back to the Schattberg, where we downloaded from the middle station of the gondola.
After that we worked our way back to the Leogang side (taking the bus again to the Schönleiten gondola), in time for hot chocolate at the Alte Schmiede. All in all a great day.
Once I get a router working again and have normal Internet access, I'll probably add some photos.
Last edited by Poster: A snowHead on Fri 1-12-17 18:53; edited 1 time in total
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
Yep it was stunning! I arrived in Leogang this afternoon to sun, great snow and some fresh turns. The valley run isn't open back to Leogang but it was worth the combat skiing at the bottom for the powder at the top.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BcKqErujPW8/
|
|
|
|
|
|
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?
|
@espri, @leggyblonde, lucky bugs!! Looks like one of the best opening weeks in years, typically the first time in years we won't be there, or in Gasteintal area,in the week before Chrimbo.
If it's half as good as it looks on Bergfex then...
|
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
|
All things being equal whats the thinking about ski-ing Christmas week in Saalbach......worth a punt?
|
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
|
Certainly.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
|
@RetroBod, That’s putting it mildly! The lift company says that the whole system will be running by 7th December, and conditions are clearly fabulous!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Looks pretty much perfect @espri!
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
|
Looks fantastic @espri!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Yes, it was a great day.
|
|
|
|
|
|
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
|
|
Pretty special out there today too on piste with some fluffy stuff still to be found off piste on North facing aspects
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
|
A bit of news today from friends in Saalbach: "The snow is amazing although it is dumping today...We went to the opening of a Tapas and Apres ski bar last night. It's fab. It is below Mango's. So cosy, reminds me of the Piccadilly in St Anton."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Was in the Ski Circus again today but started this time in Fieberbrunn. And that's where we finished too, for annoyingly the link to Hinterglemm, which had been open last Friday, wasn't open today (and the display said not from 4th-6th Dec). After the perfect weather on Friday, today was more disappointing, overcast and snowing. Disappointing too was that not much of the Fieberbrunn uplift was running, basically just the Doischberg, Lärchfilzen and Reckmoos Nord lifts.
However, on the positive side, the snow was good. We only had one run on the Reckmoos Nord, were the light was difficult up the top. We spent most of our time on the pistes at the other two lifts but, when snow was falling more heavily after lunch, stopped skiing about 13:30. It wasn't a great day for photography but here's one of the other lift we used, the Maiskopf T-bar, the link to take you back to the Doischberg...
|
|
|
|
|
|
You know it makes sense.
|
Thanks for the updates espri & Richard
40cm new snow reported at top and 20cm at village level. More to come Friday as well!!
|
|
|
|
|
|
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
|
|
It was mega out there today. Perfect packed powder on piste and knee to thigh off piste at Leogang and Fieberbrunn. Slightly less at Saalbach apparently.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Poster: A snowHead
|
|
@leggyblonde, Try up at the end of the valley beyond Hochalm - Spieleck chair and then along the ridge.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
|
@tatmanstours, Next time! Im back back in the office today but can't believe how lucky we got.
|
|
|
|
|
|
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?
|
|
@leggyblonde, even last year - supposedly the worst in living memory for early season conditions - we had some of the best on- piste skiing I’ve ever experienced in mid-December. However you certainly were lucky with all that off- piste powder. Much more to discover I’m sure!
|
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
Looks idyllic! Annoyed that I'm not there (yet!) 
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
for Saturday to Saturday travel, is the drive from Salzburg airport materially less stressful than the drive from Munich airport?
How about trains from either? how close can I get, how long does it take, and how much hassle, and then what are my logistics on getting from the station to Saalbach (or Hinterglemm)?
With much of the western US dry and looking to stay that way for the forecastable future, I'm daydreaming of redirecting my early January trip from Vail to Austria.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
@mr. mike, flying to Salzburg is by the best option. From there it’s not much more than an hour by road to Saalbach. Most people either get the public bus, which leaves every hour from outside the airport terminal (18 euros and 3 hours to Saalbach), or they get the 8 times a day shuttle service (www.holiday-shuttle.at), which costs 44 euros (84 euros round trip) and takes usually about 1 hour 15 mins.
The usual method of transferring from Munich Airport is either to hire a car (2 1/2 - 3 hours drive) or take a train to Zell am See. The times and prices of trains can be researched on www.oebb.at or www.db.de
The rail service is very good - regular, efficient and relatively inexpensive.
From Zell am See, there is a public bus every couple of hours from outside the railway station to Saalbach ; however the drivers seem to have some kind of unofficial arrangement with the local taxi drivers to pull away just as people are emerging from the station! A taxi will cost about 40 euros, and there are usually a few equally pissed off people, who have been left in the same position and are willing to share a taxi.
Last edited by Then you can post your own questions or snow reports... on Thu 7-12-17 23:48; edited 1 time in total
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
@tatmanstours, thanks. Obviously a bit easier to fly into Munich than Salzburg from the US, but I'll balance that against the easier post-arrival logistics and evaluate if I am able to pull it off.
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
|
@mr. mike, Don't be put off by flying into Munich - plenty of people do it.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Had another great day skiing the Ski Circus on Thursday and where able to ski a full anticlockwise circuit, starting from Leogang. Virtually everything was open, the only restrictions I noticed were that the Spieleck lift, the far corner (Zehner 6er lift) and piste 15 on the Zwölferkogel and the Zwölfer Nord and lower section of the Schattberg pistes were closed. The Jausern run, 2b, was open and in good condition.
|
|
|
|
|
|
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
|
Can anyone tell me if the Saalbach area ski paas covers you for Fieberbrunn? Also I seem to remember being able to ski on the lift pass on the Saturday afternoon of arrival......does this still.happen?
Looking forward to Christmas in Saalbach. Yeh!!
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
@RetroBod, yes to both. 
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
@hammerite, whoooooooohoooo even more excited. Can hardly contain myself!!
|
|
|
|
|
|
You know it makes sense.
|
|
@tatmanstours, surprisingly, flights to Salzburg not too bad on either logistics or price. 3 stops vs. 2 because no non-stops from anywhere in the US, but total air travel time only a little more and overall price comparable. Balanced vs. shorter ground transfer and, more importantly, ability to avoid a long drive jet lagged, and Salzburg is the clear winner right now. Very attractive flight options into Turin for the time frame I'm thinking right now too and big snowfalls forecast in southern French alps next few days, however...
|
|
|
|
|
|
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
|
|
Will the snow parks be open Christmas week?
|
|
|
|
|
|
Poster: A snowHead
|
|
@RetroBod, I would be surprised if they're not; can't think of any reason why they wouldn't be.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
|
conditions seem quite good looking at webcams, but website shows no skitours open (0/11), only 26 of 42 red runs and 44/56 blue. Why are so many runs closed?
|
|
|
|
|
|
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?
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
|
@mr. mike, it's very early in the season. It's most likely that not everything is open as it's just not worth it. Pisteing runs and manning the lifts costs money and there probably isn't the volume of skiers to make it worth their while. Check out what's open at weekends or Christmas week, that's when everything is most likely to be open.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
|
@hammerite, I'd be surprised if it's not all up and running by next weekend. The lift company said that it would be by 9th December. Last year (obviously mainly artificial snow) over half of the area was open by 10th Dec and, to my recollection, practically all of it a week later. However you are almost certainly right about the numbers - no point in opening and maintaining loads of runs if there's no one on them.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
|
@tatmanstours, have a fantastic season. No Christmas trip for us this year. Half term (Schladming) and hopefully Easter (not sure where yet but Saalbach is a strong possibility!).
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
@hammerite, Thanks - really looking forward to it. Let me know if we can help re Easter (17th March onwards available).
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Just a brief first report. Arrived in Saalbach this afternoon (most of the seats on my Eurowings flight were empty). A day of brilliant sunshine, blue sky and cold air temps. Haven't been up yet, but the pistes look as fantastic as I'd anticipated - nicely groomed and hardly anyone on them. The streets are snow-covered, and I encountered a few people I knew on the way to the shops - all were very pumped about the fabulous early conditions, as well as the prospects for more of the same. The few people in ski gear, whom I saw relaxing with a beer at Burgi's and the Spitzbub looked very happy too. I know that none of this is news, but really, it's worth emphasizing that it's all pretty idyllic. It's pretty cold out there, and all the visible snow cannons on Kohlmais, Bernkogel and Schattberg are blasting away, adding to the atmosphere. The Schattberg Xpress lift station car park is being turned into an open-air auditorium for this weekend's "Rave On Snow". I met the guys from the Underbar, walking through the village, and they confirmed that the Underbar will be open every evening from tomorrow onwards - the same guitarist as last year is returning (and he did pretty well).
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
|
Sounds great, thanks for the update. February is getting closer and closer😀
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Thanks for the update @tatmanstours. Any news on the new bar at the Post?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FAQ
Leaving for Saalbach tomorrow so will be able to report back.