 Poster: A snowHead
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Many thanks to Steilhang, ami in berlin, mountainaddict, and scottishskier from the snowheads forum
snowheads thread
and Toadman, burny, freak, klar, Marius, Hicks, beer30, DeutschBag, and TomyLight from the TGR forum
TGR thread
for all their pre-trip advice and help.
My brother came home to Wales to look after our Dad so I could get the fxxx out of Dodge for a few days R&R.
I was flying solo, so no action shots just scenics and info.
DAY 1: WEDNESDAY 17th FEBRUARY 2010
Half-term school holiday week in the UK and a very small window of opportunity so I was looking for:
1. an area that I hadn't been to before which offered good and interesting skiing
2. a cheapish flight from my local airport, Cardiff
3. a ski area that was close to the arrival airport
4. an area that wasn't rammed by British holidaymakers
Munich and Upper Bavaria was the answer.
As I was arriving in Munich after 9pm I decided to base myself in Bayrischzell. Chose this village as it was the most convenient to get to late at night from Munich, and it would allow me to ski on the Saturday morning before heading back home.
Got dropped off at Cardiff airport at 3pm and flew to Munich via Amsterdam with KLM.
COST: 319.00 euro r/t
Arrived on time in Munich, with my bags  , and it was an easy train ride from Munich airport to Munich main station on the Deutsch Bahn and then an hour wait before boarding the Bayerische Oberlandbahn (BOB) train to Bayrischzell.
COST: 22.50 euro one way
deutschebahn
BOB
I'd booked two nights accommodation at the Hotel Alpenrose through booking.com, and put a note with the booking saying I'd be arriving after 1am
COST: 45.00 euro per night B&B in a single room
The hotel was about 100m from the train station (which I didn't know beforehand - I'd booked by availability and price) but all the doors to the hotel were locked on arrival. I knocked to no avail so took a walk through the village to see if I could find the tourist information centre.
Thankfully there was a hotel board with phone numbers outside the info centre and a phone that was free for local calls.
The manager was far from happy being called in the middle of the night, but had opened up for me by the time I'd walked back to the hotel. I explained that I'd put a note with my booking, and he told me that it hadn't come through to him.
So I'd either recommend booking direct or emailing him about your arrival info if it's outside normal hours.
Hotel Alpenrose
Got to bed around 2am, looking forward to skiing mountains, and having mechanised uplift after a winter hiking for turns in Wales.
TR: Wales - Between a Rock and a Soft Place
DAY 2: THURSDAY 18th FEBRUARY 2010
The Alpenrose is a warm, comfortable hotel with a great welcome, service and food. Stefan, the manager, speaks perfect English and is very helpful. It's a very convenient hotel just 100m from the train station and 5 mins walk to everything you need in Bayrischzell.
I was the only non-German in the hotel, and to my knowledge the village. They didn't hold that against me. Well not to my face anyway.
After a good night's sleep, it was on to the included buffet breakfast which was delicious, nutritious and prodigious.
Organised a pair of Salomon 24h slalom skis & poles at Sport Alm for 41 euro for two days. When I took them back on day 3, they said don't worry about it. Score.
COST: 41.00 euro for 3 days ski rental
Sport Alm
And then I was off to Wendelsteinbahn, just one stop on the BOB train from Bayrischzell.
COST: 3.00 euro r/t
Wendelsteinbahn 1
Wendelsteinbahn 2
From the bottom left of the trailmap you can see that you can take the BOB train from Bayrischzell one stop to Osterhofen, walk 50m to the end of the platform, click into your skis, ski the piste that runs through a tunnel underneath the train tracks and glide down to the gondola base station a minute later. Perfect.
COST: 27.00 euro for Wendelsteinbahn lift ticket
The snow wasn't the greatest and it was pretty cloudy to start the day, but man it was fabulous to be in the mountains.
View from Wendelstein Chapel
Wendelstein Chapel
Wendelstein Chapel detail
Skied down to Brannenburg on mixed snow - packed powder, warmed up heavy powder, hardpack, slush, snirt (snow and dirt mix) - through open bowls, chutes, mogul fields, rock gardens, steep forests, and farmers' fields and after pea and ham soup for lunch caught the train back to the top.
COST: 11 euro for mineral water, pea & ham soup, 500ml beer and an espresso
pint envy in Brannenburg station
Wendelstein rack and pinion railway, the fog in the valley starting to lift
Three quarters of the way up the train stopped, and the driver, 3 ski instructors and myself got out to shovel off a small slide that had buried the tracks. 20 mins later we were on our way. First time that's happened to me.
View of the top station of the Wendelsteinbahn
Took another lap down to the Mitteralm stop on the railway through this chute. The snow was shaded and chalky and made for the best turns of the day.
Late afternoon the clouds parted, the sun came out, and I got to see the whole area. Magnificent.
Ski Patrol surveying the mountain on the last cable car of the day
Wendelstein cable car coming in to dock at the top station
Lines straight off the cable car
Looking back to the valley floor
Panorama of the upper slopes of Wendelsteinbahn and Sudelfeld resort from the lookout platform on Gacher Blick
Bayrischzell and the upper slopes of Sudelfeld resort from Wendelsteinbahn
Never more than 10 people on the cable car and no lines to get on the t-bars. With good snow the mountain would be superb. Thoroughly recommended.
At day's end I skied right on to the BOB train platform, and 10 mins later I was back in the hotel. An excellent first day.
scottishskier from the snowheads forum has a great write up and pics of Wendelsteinbahn and other resorts in the area in this post:
TR: Bumbling Around Bavaria
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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 report, always on of the places on the ideas burner doing a few of the south german ski areas for a trip.
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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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I much enjoyed the report - and must admit that this is another area I've never skied, despite passing the Wendelstein regularly.
Last edited by Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see? on Tue 2-03-10 22:33; edited 1 time in total
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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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Nice stuff Mike. Looked like there was some nice steeps and trees on the North side. Will need to go back sometime to explore a bit more. Train was only running from Mitteralm too when I was there. Trying to picture where the chute was. Is it dropping back off the ridge down to the black?
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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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Thanks guys.
scottishskier
Top of the t-bar take the black run down to where it narrows and then goes uphill for about 30m. Instead of sidestepping up that incline, head off right across the flats (think there's a tarn under there in the summer).
As you go round the corner you'll see the chute.
Drops you back on to the black run down to Mitteralm.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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DAY 3: FRIDAY 19th FEBRUARY 2010
I'd only booked two nights accommodation at the Alpenrose (Wed and Thur) thinking I'd move on to Mittenwald for Friday night. More than enough to see and do in this area, so I decided to stay on.
The hotel was fully booked for Friday night, so before breakfast I'd packed my bags and stored them at reception hoping for a cancellation in order to avoid changing hotels.
After another hearty breakfast I took the BOB train four stops to Fischhausen-Neuhaus (20 mins), where a bus was waiting to go up to the Spitzingsee ski area (20 mins).
COST: 6.40 euro r/t on the train
COST: 2.50 euro r/t on the bus
Spitzingsee-Tegernsee 1
Spitzingsee-Tegernsee 2
COST: 30.00 euro for Spitzingsee lift ticket (with 3 euro refund if you returned the plastic lift card at day's end)
Spitzingsee Ski Area
Spitzingsee is Very well organised and laid out, with on-mountain accommodation, restaurants and services. Transport links are excellent.
Skied the Stumpfling side in the morning, and experienced my only queuing of the trip. But there is a singles line at the quad so I was on in under 5 mins.
Skied down to the t-bar that takes you up to Roskopf and then skied the black run off the back of it. Ducked into the trees after the first pitch and skied spongy, lightly tracked pow back to the base of the beginner t-bar.
Second lap I dropped down to the Rottasch-Egern side. Thinner coverage and a combination of hard-packed and spongy pow but some great terrain through the trees and under the chairlift.
Then back over to Roskopf and hiked the ridge line to the two gladed bowls between Roskopf and Rotkopf
and Rotkopf and Stolzenberg
Some really good skiing either side of the ridge line through steep, old growth forests, thinning out to mellow bowls set amongst summer pasture land.
The summer road back to the beginner t-bar was a real 'Mr Toad's Wild Ride'.
20 mins or so of hiking takes you to the best of the Stumpfling area and in new snow you'd be skiing untracked all day.
Caught the bus to the Taubenstein area in the afternoon, and took a gondola with the only other Brit I met on the trip. He was out with his sons and daughter and their young families, and had been coming to this area for the past 5 years.
Skied the main bowl (red 10) and the cat track around to the t-bar below Rauhkopf. Did one lap on very mixed snow and bumps, then went back up an skied down to take a look at the backside of Rauhkopf.
Access was through a turnstile. The two bowls I skied in the Stumpfling area can be seen in the distance
and there was some excellent yo yo skiing off the back of Rauhkopf
From my vantage point the resort facing cirque off the Jagerkamp-Benzingspitz ridgeline looked very inviting and accessibile with a little hoof. The line I was looking at is the one with an arrow over the top of it
Bootpacked it past a very cool looking hut and had a quick chat to a couple out for an afternoon tour.
Getting closer to the line
After about 40 mins I got to the summit of Benzingspitz that afforded views down to the towns of Neuhaus on the left and Fischbachau on the right
Then it was the final ridgeline walk to see if the line was doable. Looking in
I'd love to be able to write that I pointed it and and skied the chicane of the couloir in one shot out onto the apron.
The reality was exhausting jump turns, sinking up to knee deep in off-white slurpy every other turn, followed by some side slipping in what was at times a 5m wide channel trying to avoid rocks.
I was shitting myself at the top, but once past the crux it was all good. Even had some boot top heavy pow in the apron.
There is some great terrain on the Taubenstein side which would be magic in pow. Or spring conditions. Or in good light.
Missed the bus back to Fischhausen-Neuhaus, but managed to hitchhike a ride with a couple from Augsburg. Got to the train station as the train back to Bayrischzell was leaving, which meant a cold hour waiting for the next one.
Got back to the hotel at 6:35 and Stefan (manager) told me that he had a cancellation at 6:25! Put me in a different room, smaller and on the top floor, but also 5 euro less than the previous room.
COST: 40.00 euro per night B&B in a single room
If I'd made the earlier train I would have spent the hour walking the village looking for a room. Things happen for a reason.
Quick shower, then an excellent dinner and drinks in the hotel, the Men's Super G from Whistler in the lounge, and then slept the sleep of the gods.
COST: 24.50 euro for goulash soup, jagerschnitzel (3 schnitzels with a mushroom sauce and spaetzle), small bottle of Proseco, large bottle of mineral water, 2 espresso, and 1 grappa
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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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DAY 4: SATURDAY 20th FEBRUARY 2010
Woke to the sound of the snowplow and between 5-10cm of light, dry powder in the village. The decision to stay put had paid off.
Showered, packed, stored my bags at reception, breakfasted, and on the Skibus Bayrischzell to the local hill, Sudelfeld, at 8:30. The bus stop is in front of the train station, and it's free. Someone had left this chocolate Santa on the bus stop bench.
Got off at the Schwebelift stop and walked up to the single chair base station - ticket office and one restaurant. The road is pretty steep and I wouldn't recommend it for families.
Sudelfeld 1
Sudelfeld 2
COST: 30.00 euro for Sudelfeld lift ticket (with 3 euro refund if you returned the plastic lift card at day's end)
The extent of the queue for first chair at Sudelfeld on a powder day!
As I got higher on the single chair the weather closed in and it continued to snow. And the end of pics. There's some excellent gladed terrain back to the base of the single chair, but it needs a good base. Lots of deadfall.
Sudelfeld Ski Area
Took the quad and then the t-bar to the top of the system and spent most of the morning skiing laps down to the Rosengasse t-bar station. Up to knee deep of light powder on a crusty, hard base, and nobody skiing where I was.
Best skiing is in this area and the hike to terrain off Kleiner Traithen. Pics from scottishskier's thread:
TR: Bumbling Around Bavaria
3 great hours then back to the hotel to re-pack, wash up, and load up for the train back to Munich airport. Easy, stress free journey and I Was back in cardiff at 9pm
COST: 22.50 euro one way
Fabulous, fabulous area and wonderful people. Would definitely recommend and return to this area. Plenty of skiing, plenty of challenge, bags of charm, and to my mind very reasonable prices.
The AlpenPlus area
TOTAL COST: 706.40 euro (of which 319 euro was the flight)
Last edited by You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net. on Mon 8-03-10 11:31; edited 1 time in total
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Mike Pow, there was a death on Traithen yesterday due to an avalanche. A local couple touring - he went when a windslab broke, she was left standing alone and called the Bergwacht. I don't have all the details yet obviously but was chatting with the rescuers at Graffenberg (upper area of Sudelfeld), they said they were expecting to have to go out but had hoped that there would be no deaths.
I was up there working yesterday and the snow was in perfect condition. But due to the drifting the avi warning for the off-piste areas was at 3/4 level.
Friends who run 2 of the lifts on this great little area were grateful for the snow at the weekend as they were not sure if the base was going to last until Easter. Now they think they will be working through the school holidays at least.
Great little area and as it is only 20 minutes drive from me I can make a quick decision if the weather is looking good! Today it is perfect but unfortunately I'm in work in Wessling 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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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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Are you sure that was this last weekend? There was a death in that area earlier this season I think. I've not heard anything on the news or the grapevine about any other deaths in the Bavarian Alps over the weekend yet.
I can check the avi reports on the Environment Ministry's site to be sure later on. I mentioned on another thread that they are trying to raise the profile of avi awareness currently. The Thursday night mountain weather report was preceded by a report on avalanche searches and how to avoid avalanches in general on the BR Abendschau.
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You know it makes sense.
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Thanks.
Wires crossed on another forum.
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