Would you hand in your snowboard for a pair of ski? Never!, my proud snowboarding self has kept on saying for virtually all of my adult life. After an early snowboarding lesson at the age of fifteen had lured me away from skiing (I have been skiing all my life, since the age of three), I have happily been snowboarding ever since. To this day, I remember the joy I felt when my sports teacher pointed out my beautiful curves and perfect posture in the snow (carving .. snowboarding, that is. Of course. What where you thinking? 😀 ).
There you go. Not even a year ago, I would never have imagined renouncing my beautiful board .. Neither back home in Austria, nor abroad (as for instance here, in northern Finland). Well, never say never, I guess.
Because at the end of the day, we are all just human. Eventually, curiosity wins all of us over. The fragile balance tips …
… and actually, I must admit, I did keep thinking, I could give it another try for quite a while. Skiing, that is. Again. Now that everyone is talking about it, and getting back into it .. saying that the new, modern carving skis have become so easy to handle. That the twists and turns once only in the realm of the early snowboarders, are now just as well available to those on skis and .. oh .. well. It has made me curious, for sure … So … well, alright then. Let’s just give it another go, shall we!
It has really cost me some time, and effort, to “back out on” snowboarding after all this while ..!
Zell am See, at the heart of the Austrian Alps, provides the perfect backdrop for easing my transition. Easy slopes mixed with steeper ones, all of them well-known to me, and a glacier ski resort of a kind, are a definite go-to.
The glacier ski runs of the Kitzsteinhorn mountains have last seen me in the spring of 2016, in equally sunny splendour …
… and while my dear friend & travel writing colleague Wolfgang is still busy capturing those shots on his phone …
… my focus is down on my feet: What have I done?! Those two boards strapped to my ski boots are mine, and the board is Wolfgang’s. Aaaah!
While my friends pose for a beautiful skiers’ photograph, I am caught between thoughts of high snowboard treason and the early excitement of going back to skiing …
… and yes, it does cost me a little while to ease back into it all again. “With a little help from my friends”, that is. Such as ski instructor Wolfi here, who guides our group safely down the mountains …
… or the magical mountain vistas, awe-inspiring and soul-soaring from glancing up the glacier ski runs at 3.000 metres above sea level …
… and “Buchteln”. Always “Buchteln”, please. A typical, yet super simple Austrian dessert traditionally served at mountain huts. Perfectly apt for both skiers and snowboarders alike, to be especially enjoyed in the lofty heights of the mountain top restaurant “Gipfelrestaurant Kitzsteinhorn”.
Besides skiing vs. snowboarding, Kitzsteinhorn does offer some fantastic alternatives for explorers, too. “Channelling” through the mountain to see the mountainous rooftop of Austria, for instance!
When you book your lift ticket, do not forget to ask for an admission to the mountain museum & viewing platform “Top of Salzburg“, located at precisely 3.029 metres above sea level. Back in the spring, I have already enjoyed its magical views, stretching across the horizon in an almost complete 360° panorama. Absolutely mesmerising, and among all the mighty peaks of well over 3.000 metres above sea level, I cannot take my eyes off the highest of all: Großglockner, Austria’s tallest mountain at 3.798 metres above sea level, looms in the distance and beckons us to climb it. One day!
Right through the mountain, we are taken to explore the crystal gems of the Hohe Tauern mountains, Austria’s largest national park and mountain realm at the centre of the Eastern European Alps …
… and all of us, centre stage in this awe-inspiring natural attraction …
… with a view across the “rooftops” of Austria, stretching all the way northwest from here … Magical, don’t you think?
You just have to fall in love with skiing, mountaineering, climbing, or else out here …
… and the magic works on literally everyone around …
… however small & still in front of a view like this: Come & greet the stunning panorama of Austria’s highest mountains, with the unpronounceably beautiful Großglocknerberg taking centre stage in this late afternoon photograph!
For yet another step up in this beautiful mountain game, all the slopes presented here are connected with the “Schmittenhöhe” ski slopes just across the valley, presenting ever more opportunities for alpine enthusiasts!
“Carving on my skis, I just looove it”, I squeal with delight reaching my group at the end of the second morning. Not even the sun could possibly beam any brighter than my happy, satisfied self in that moment. Carving with skis has become so different from my early memories way back: Now, the skis are actually 20cm shorter (my brand new Atomic ski being only 140cm long!), and I do not really mind the somewhat tighter ski boots all that much, either. It is so easy, really, and such a huge amount of fun, to ski again like this.
On the third and final day of exploring the ski resort Schmittenhöhe, I am so vested with my confidence & regained techniques, that I even decide to a) pose for a short, introductory video …
… and b) mount my brand new IceFox camera on my ski helmet in order to record some fun, 270° wide angle shots of me & my groups’ carving efforts (there’s a very funny twist there towards the end, so make sure you watch all of it) …
[su_youtube url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TLbIlPFAPk” width=”800″]
Thank you so much, dear Ursula Auer (Hotel Restaurant Feinschmeck), for looking after us so well on this ski day out on the Schmittenhöhe, high above your home town of Zell am See …
… high up here, where modern mountain huts open up panoramic views of the stunning scenery beyond …
… as well as the food (always the food, out here in Austria!), a typical “Germknödel” sweet dumpling in this case, which is served in sugar & poppy-seed coating and stuffed with plum jam, at the traditional Eder Hütte mountain hut …
… and “hanging out” at the Schmittenhöhe ski slopes, you will even find yourself an old little mountain chapel strewn into the views from time to time …
… no wonder this perfect combination of food, sports, history, and mountain culture, has really grown on us …
… and I have easily overcome my “initial fear” of getting back into those notoriously tight ski boots, especially after years and years of proudly wearing wider snowboard boots …
… not really minding anything more in this perfect panorama – not even being filmed almost constantly in our group of excited bloggers, vloggers, and digital influencers of all kind ..!
Schmittenhöhe, Kitzsteinhorn, Zell am See: We will head back up there as soon as possible !
Why and how this is also due to lovely Toni, is another story I have shared with you here …! 😀
More winter fun fair from Zell am See – Kaprun:
And if you feel inspired to look on, my friends have shared the following about their trip:
- DieKremserin: “Wie daheim: #CasinoUrlaub in Zell am See-Kaprun“
- Travelwoman: “5 Tipps für Unternehmungen im Paradies (Winter)“
- CitySeaCountry: “Zell am See / Kaprun oder da, wo es nie langweilig wird“ & “In die Berg bin i gern .. beim Ski fahren in Zell am See und Kaprun“
- Reiseblitz: “5 gute Gründe für ein verlängertes Wochenende in Zell am See“
- TravelPins: “Winter Abenteuer in Zell am See“ & “Romantischer Casino Urlaub in Zell am See“
- LadyOfStyle: “Casino Urlaub, alpiner Lifestyle, Genuss und Wellness in Zell am See, Österreich“
Disclaimer: We have been supported on this trip by Casinos Austria as well as Zell am See – Kaprun tourism destination. All opinions are my own.