Travelling Blog: Europe 2018

Wednesday, 21 March 2018

Europe 2018

Europe 2018
1 - 21 March 2018

Dubai - Munich - Salzburg - Saalbach - Innsbruck - Zermatt - Zurich

Munich/Salzburg

Exploring at minus 10 degrees

Paulette - it's kind of like Adelaide.

Paulette - okay, in the day time it doesn't look Adelaide.

At the top of Hohensalzburg Castle

Saalbach skicircus

Saalbach is big... from east to west it is exactly like starting in Falls and heading up at Hotham, and North south Harrietville to Dinner Plain. (Froze Desirability Sealer)

Deserted 51 into Saalbach. Photographer spent many many hours to frame this action shot.

Austrian Alps and Fiebebrunn free skiing comp on the right peak

Looking back across hinterglem to the shatterberg

Chilling on the Leogang run

Ribs at the brewery

Skicircus' namesake

Brewery at 2,000m at Leogang

5 hr 42minutes - challenge complete. http://www.saalbach.com/thechallenge

Finished before 14:00

Saalbach from 1A gondala

The distance required to walk from the 1a run to our accomodation (left of yellow building) - 200m. Complaints from the skiiers - endless.

Bottom of 1a

Top of Seekar

Innsbruck

From the top of the tower. 5 bells means downtown is burning, 4 east village, 3 west village, 2 south, 1 north. If there's 6 bells it's 6pm.

From our reserved Lunch table (aka hide the english speakers on the private tables behind the curtains) at the 1809

Zermatt

St Nicolas church. Our train could not make it to Zermatt due to a rock fall blocking the track.

The rock was about the size of a house.

Accomodation was at House Wiedersehn above Zermatt near the Furi lift. (https://goo.gl/maps/MFtEUnHSD3q) If going to Zermatt to ski definitely worth staying near the bottom of the Furi lift. Yes there is still snow in March.

Matterhorn

Tick. Tick.

View in the morning - prepared for a good day

Skiing at 3500m+. No one has skiied to the right because it is a) flat b) there are better stashes everywhere or c)

c) Crevassses! Klein Matterhorn

Looking over Cervinia, Italy

Skied down the glacier from almost 4000m heading towards Zermatt

Gornergrat Railway

Clearing the snow

Gornergletscher and the Defourspspitze and Matterhorn

Looking towards Rote Nosa. Only allowed on tram with proper backcountry kit.

68 back to Zermatt

Top of Gornergrat

Toblerone

Cruising down the Matterhorn paradise. Tram > 35 minutes and 5 km of t-bars.

Excited to be in Italy

Cervinia was highly rated.

Salette on the Cervinia side was also terrific. Quieter than the other 4 areas. A long Poma out and some slow lifts, but plenty of fun to be had.

Last time up the top tram. 5/6 days weather was great for skiing. 3/6 days tram to the top was shut. 2/6 days Matterhorn was visible.

Sitting

Smashing it down under the Furggsattel. Most of the pistes may be very tame, almost too flat for boarding, but, if you cannot find fun/steep tracks all day you are doing something wrong.