St Anton beta

[bad_roo]

Heading there this Christmas and need to know where to head for some fun stuff. I've never been but I seem to remember an awesome picture posted on Powmag.com with some sexy looking chutes beneath the Schindlergrat chair that are in need of a few bombholes. Any other places I should look for? Albona sounds interesting.

[Ted Stryker]

there many fun things to do, depending how much snow of course.

a fun ski tour is to ride the lifts out of Stuben, and the hike from the top lift. After about a 20-30min skin, there are excellent routes that go west and east back down to the valley. Taxi ride needed for the east (Maori?) route, but a good bar at the bottom to hang in.

if there's good snow, then you can also go up the Katlenberg? Galacier as well. good all day tour. we did a few years ago, super fun, no big holes to fall in, etc.

and then there's the stuff west of Lech.........

[subtle plague]

been there. done no interesting route. snow was bad too *sigh*

i guess this posting doesn't help, but i feel so relieved now.
see it as a bump.

[Hayduke]

Take the Rendl lifts as high as you can go, drop off the back at the top. - Unlimited fun all round that area.

[fez]

I was too young when i went there to really appreciate it.

Highlights i remember:

Skiing down to St. Christof for lunch.

Rendl in the afternoon if there is no powder, its like every day is a corn day.

[el_jefe]

yup - hit up the valluga face for sure. we took a guided tour up the vallugagrat and down the backside to zurs that was amazing. i've heard since then that you can hike from the top of the valluga tram to access the same spot (you can't take your skis up the vallugagrat without a guide).

also, i second the motion to hit up rendl (across the road) and head off piste for fresh tracks. just poke around, or watch for someone with a guide and follow them discreetly.

back @ stanton, stop for lunch @ the ulmerhutte, then cruise down toward the albonabahnen lift. if i remember right, you can go across the road there too (its the road up to to zurs/lech) and catch another lift (name unknown) up to some good off piste exploring. we hit up some avalanche barricades that were schweeeet launch ramps into fat pow.

wish i was going. we'll be in italy and switzerland in february. i can't wait...

[bad_roo]

Thanks guys - it sounds sweet and I think i've snapped the needle off my stokeometer.

[comish]

Roo,Here are my suggestions from my weeks spent there the last few years.

Hike from the top of Valluga II to the top of the Valluga. The little tram to the top can't be taken with skis unless with a guide, but the hike looks really short, ala 15minutes and there should be a boot pack trail.

From the top of the Trittkopf tram in Zurs. Shoulder the skis and hike uphill. After a fairly short hike, again 15-25 minutes. Drop off the backside. This stuff only had a handful of tracks in it 5 days after a storm, when the backside of the Valluga leading to Zurs was well tracked.

Go to the top of the Albona. Hike / skin toward the restaurant and keep going along the ridge. Drop down the northwest (I think that's the right direction, at least go toward Stuben/Langen) face. You can traverse back skiers right to Stuben or if you go too far, you end up at the Langen train station. Grab the number of the local Langen cab company before starting. A ride back to Stuben is only 1 Euro / person and you can call halfway down the slope.

The backside of Rendl has already been mentioned and is great, but will need more snow than the 60cms they are currently quoting.

Sonnenkopf is another area that can be reached by cab after the Langen decent. From the top of that mtn another off-piste run can be done all the way back to Langen where you need another cab.

This was an epic day I had last year: Direct to the top of the Valluga. Backside pow run to Zurs. Bus to Stuben. hike a bit and pow run through the trees to Langen. Cab to Sonnenkopf. Lunch at the top. Off-piste pow run back to Langen. Cab to Stuben. Ski back to Ruiz (the fast triple that ends at the Ulmerhutte) and high speed bomber run back to the Mooserwirt/Krazy K. This was all 5 after the last snow.

Schindlergrat is definitely the shit for right after the storm! It was amazing in 2 feet of fresh. First one right under the chair was GOOD!

Go to the Funky Chicken for cheap lethal marg's and great chicken.

Enjoy, I plan to return next year in Jan! It doesn't have the vert of Cham or La Grave, but I think more than makes up for it with the amount of snow they get, amount of easily accesible off-piste, and a rockin town.