Travelling in Eastern Europe has come to an end in Austria. The train ride from the city with too many J's to the ski town in Austria captured my attention more than the gripping book I was reading. Mountains shot into the sky cutting the horizon like the jagged edge of a broken knife. Just one thing was missing: snow.
In the middle of our vacation we had a week long ski trip in the Austrian Alps. Nothing sounded better. But the problem remained; no snow. This winter has been really warm all throughout Europe. Evidence of this is that I wore a T-Shirt in Bulgaria in February. During winter in this region, most people are cutting open TaunTauns and crawling inside to keep from freezing to death. As we got closer to Austria geographically and chronologically my concerned grew. However I had one of the best ski trips of my life in these last five days.
The view outside our ski cabin in Austria blew my mind. These same rugged Alps now seemed to be close enough that I could cut my finger on their edge if I tried to touch them. On this trip I had decided to both ski and snowboard. There was no way that I could limit this experience to one sport. This later became one my best choices. The first day was an easy day where the hardest run was a blue (to Europeans a red). I got my metaphorical sea (or ski) legs back, and with a little bit of effort became the skier I remember being. Remembering how to ski after so long is like riding a bike. It comes back, but it doesn't mean you aren't going to fall. Fortunately all of me is still in one piece. There was a straight groomed run designed specifically for going straight down it. So naturally I used it for its designed purpose, and I got my adrenaline rush for the day that way. This was day one of these last five days.
Day two would have shone bright through my window when I woke up had it been late enough for the sun to be fully up. There are few things in this world I will get up early for; skiing is high on that list. Eager to hit the slopes Michael and I ended up being one of the first groups out the door. Now that I had my ski legs back I could do more challenging things. So naturally we headed for the first black run (conveniently still called black in Europe) to warm up. Then we saw a beautiful sight. A high mountain where people had been climbing so they could do some back country skiing. Our Colorado heritage and constant search for adventure kicked in and away we went. We would end up climbing this mountain twice to the top and about four times half way in the span of that day. We were feeling pretty good about being the crazy Americans who would ski crazy things. Our group grew a little and we became the crazy group that would ski crazy things. This was day two of these last five days.
The day blended into a whirl of adrenaline, high peaks, razor edges, potential avalanche danger, the Alps, and all around adventure. Now addicted to the high country snow conditions versus the low country, no snow condition, we spent the entirety of every day in search of the perfect line and the perfect powder. My skiing ability grew although it was never as good as it used to be and it certainly wasn't as good as Michael's. This was okay though no one seemed to mind waiting for me. I kept this in mind as I would later wait on them. On Wednesday evening I traded in my skis for the sport I know more and am subsequently better at: snowboarding. I was picky about the board I would be getting because I was doing something so specialized and well, because who isn't picky about the board they ride? After communicating what I wanted completely in German (something I am quite proud of), I got the right board for me. This ended day three of these last five days.
Snowboarding day began just like the ski days, getting out of bed before the sun and hitting the slopes as early as possible. Although this time something was different. Maybe it was the fact that my boots are a thousand times more comfortable and at least half the weight, or maybe it was the fact my sore knee from a fall in the trees while skiing yesterday didn't seem to effect my snowboarding, either way I had a new found energy that my group pointed out as I left them in the dust on our hikes up the mountains.
On the days before I had been only moderately fast. But on Wednesday I had changed to a bigger back, one that had a hip carry option, and distributed the weight better and on Thursday I didn't have heavy skis to carry. Now it was Thursday, and people were calling to me from behind saying that I must have eaten too many energy bars. I remembered how patiently they waited for me while I was skiing so I returned the kindness and waited patiently at the tops of the peaks. Besides, I had my camera and could take pictures. Our attempt to ride down from the summit was dampened when we checked the snow and found a 3 inch layer of powder on about a ten inch layer of crust that had powder under it. Deciding that this was too high of an avalanche danger for our liking, especially since it was late in the day and the daytime highs were up to 10 C, we started from lower. Our summit was not for nothing though, because besides the accomplishment of the climb we had a spectacular view on a knife edge ridge to enjoy. Our decent was beautiful, the deep powder under my board was a dream. It didn't matter if I fell, nothing besides gravity would bring me down. And so concluded day four of these last five days.
With the threat of rain while on the slopes, day five began with an interesting fervor. A low fog hung in the valleys of the ski area we were at. We knew that if it was too thick, our backcountry escapades could be in danger. Cliffs are a thing you have to worry about and if you cannot see them, you are sequestered to the slopes. Fortunately the fog lifted before we made it too far into our hike up the first mountain for the day. The skies completely cleared and the threat of rain dissipated as quickly as the morning fog. The heat of the day was just like the others and soon we were very hot. Stopping for a rest we determined that this snow was quite terrible.
The previous day's heat combined with the night's freezing temperatures had made the whole mountain side a crusty horribleness. It felt more like an icy groomed run than the deep fresh powder we were used to. Fortunately by the time we made it to the top the sun had changed it back to a soft powder and our decent was wonderful. After lunch with the group they decided that we needed a group video. Fifty people of varying skill, skiing in semi close proximity didn't seem like that good of an idea. Feeling as though I was one of the better ones I was close to the front of the group. After I passed the camera I shot down the hill. I promptly hit a patch of ice and then remembered the one bad thing about this rental board. The edges. The board laid me down like a motorcyclist turning too sharp in sand, and I slid for about 100 meters varying between head first feet first on stomach and back trying to stop, catch and edge or in some way slow down. I finally stopped and cursed my luck for inwardly claiming to be one of the best and then falling in front of all the people, Pride apparently does go before the fall.
After we made a hasty departure from the group, our smaller group headed back to the back country in our quest. This time we were going where no one else had gone before so we had to break our trail. It was extremely hard work that ended up being exceedingly rewarding. We accidentally found the best snow of the week. On our way here we saw where we had gone earlier that morning. I noticed a small fresh avalanche. It wasn't very big but it was definitely big enough to have swallowed our group. I was thankful that it happened after we had gone. The beauty of the mountains and of the snow conditions on our last ride cannot be described. It was truly one of the best pieces of fresh snow I had ever experienced. It was a great day to end these last five days.
Epilogue:
Even though we did some things that are considered dangerous, we made sure that it was as safe as it could be for our trips. The last thing we wanted was anything bad to dampen our wonderful time. A few times we had to choose somewhere else because of the danger to where we were.
This is my second time in Austria. I love this country a lot. The mountains are irresistible. The country is beautiful and it has a homey feel to it. Even on the radio they play American Country Music. I discovered this when I heard Take Me Home Country Roads by John Denver on the radio and the Germans told me that Austria loves country music. Another check in the list for why Austria is a super country.
We ride back to Friedensau on Sunday. I expect the train ride to be wonderful for the first two hours. I cannot wait to see more of this countryside on my way home. Though I will be on the train, Take Me Home Country Roads will undoubtedly be going through my head.
