Supreme freeride of Salzburg land
Kaprun - Kitzsteinhorn
Insert: 30.11.2009
In the area of Salzburg you can see the one of the most beautiful ski areas in Austria. You can find here such important resorts as Amade ski in Bad Gastein, Saalbach Ski Circus in - Hinterglemmu or even the area around the town of Zell am See. In this area you can get to an altitude of about 2000 meters and in many cases above. Just such a case is the ski resort Kaprun - Kitzsteinhorn.
In the area of Salzburg you can see the one of the most beautiful ski areas in Austria. You can find here such important resorts as Amade ski in Bad Gastein, Saalbach Ski Circus in - Hinterglemmu or even the area around the town of Zell am See. In this area you can get to an altitude of about 2000 meters and in many cases above. Just such a case is the ski resort Kaprun - Kitzsteinhorn.
Kitzsteinhorn glacier itself is located about 10 km from Zell am See, above picturesque village of Kaprun. Kitzsteinhorn glacier is located in the massive of High Taur where the highest mountain of Austria is Gross Glockner (Big bell-ringer) with altitude 3798 m above sea level. The high if Kitzsteinhorn mountain is 3202 m, but the lift to get just over 3000 meters, which offers a variety of hidden options, especially when is bad weather.
Kaprun - Kitzsteinhorn has become very well-known bacause of tragic event which has happened here in 2004. From the bottom station there used to be a train coming up to middle station. What happened? The human’s factor failed. The train was also used for tranporting different grooming tools for maintenance, and other technical equipment which were flameable. The equipment was not properly fastened and container with oil trigered the fire. Then over 168 people were killed and only those in botton train were saved I think only 11. Since then, the memory of the deceased the train does not operate any more. This train lift can still be seen when you come to upper parking lot.
After this event there was a problem with the transporting skiers to the resort. That is why 2 new gondola lifts were built. Marked as Gletscherjet I and II, which will take you to the main resort Alpincenter, which lies 2450 m above sea level. Afterward you can find here huge gondola which will take you from Alpincentra to the top station located at the foothill of the Kitzsteinhorn mountain 3029 m .
In this part you can find the center highest place for the freeride on this glacier. Runs are in initial part quite steep and begin under the train lift, which brings people from the to the top station to top part of T-bar lift. Come out to observation terrace put your skies on and then drop into the black slopes, from which you immediately leave by turning right under the path of the train lift and then you can just choose which line you’re gonna drop in. I need to make a note here that this terrain is not for beginners. In addition, you are on the glacier, which could pose a hidden threat breach. I personally has never seen any ice gaps, and I rode the steeper section many times, but it is true that the years are increasingly warmer and the fracture, there may easily occur. When finish the steeper section,follow the the huge plain, which has a width of 200 maybed 300 meters and is 1.5 km long. It is regular and therefore you can go pretty fast there and start enjoying deep pow. Is a bit pitty that you dont reach the same lift you just came up. You need to take a chair lift and then follow the slope to the Alpincentra to do it again. Glacial plan is recommended to all beginners who can test huge turns and fast ride in pow. There is quite strong wind which could coz very deep pow it this places or frozen crust.
Another interesting part of the resort are 2 T-bar lifts leading to the black slope to the saddle between the peaks Gr. Schmiedinger and Mauererkogel. Here is usually a traverse heading to snow rails and furthe continue to the top of a New 6-chair lift Kristallbahn. The traverse is from the beginning quite easy and can be turned off from it at anytime to the plain, which leads to the black slope. This part is quite fast ruined, but it is not difficult. Steepy and thus more difficult rums are farther toward traverse to Kristallbahnu. Traverse then take the difficulty and its really for brave skiers coz you come to a point where is "no fall" zone. Sometimes you need to take you skies off oand continue over the spine. Runs here are among the large avalange barriers made of steel bars. If you managed to get to the end of the traverse, you've got completly wonderful simple run which urificial directly to the output station of Kristallbahnu.
Thanks to a newly constructed 6-chairlift a new runs have been made. From the lift go up the road to the saddle between the peaks with a beautiful view to the next valley. Subsequently turn to traverse under Tristinger peak (2641 m) and continue it until you reach the table land from which is a large and easy shute down. The run is quite cool and you can go pretty fast without the various hack, followed by passage around the mountain to the next lower plateau and then to the urificila groomed path from the Kristallbahnu slope. From here you can either go back to the chairlift or go down to the bottom station Langwied (1978 m).
Just between stations Landwied and Alpicentrem are the most interesting terrain for freeriding. Many thousands of years the whole mountain was covered by glacier and gradually edged into the valley and created a deep and quite broad trough lined with various rock formations. These shuttes are located across the width of the mountain and some are very exposed, but aůsp wide, so it creates an interesting natural U-ramp. It can be reached easily, just go off on any side of the central slopes. The biggest problem these beautiful water holes is the number of people who are here with easy access to traying freeride. Thus it happens that when you see all the beautiful morning snow in the adternoon everything is like after a big mountain competition.
Presently, it is necessary to go further away from the troughs, where you can get by long traverses below the peak Rettinger (2640 m). These places are more ddifficult, steep at the bottom . Thus the avalanche dange is higher here. All usually ends on the right side of the station Landwied.
Regarding the avalanches, the Kitzsteinhorn relatively safe. On the one hand, you ride in comfort, and on the other hand on the other side everything is falls. I recommend always at least observer the snow condition before riding it. If the snow is the same as everywhere an experienced freerider should probably know what to do and thus avoid a furter problems.
To sum up the entire resort Kaprun - Kitzsteinhorn. It is one of the highest places in Salzburg, so if the clouds are lower here is mostly sunny. There is a lot of sunny days than the on low-lying resorts. Technical equipment and gastronomic services of the resot is are very good and also the prices are comparable with the surrounding resorts. The problem is the speed of ruining freshly dumped pow, because there is a relatively small area ehre is a bid concentration of people who like go into fairly not so difficult free terrain. Conversely advantage is that it is a valley between several peaks, from which the snow blows into this and thus soming here even if is not snowing. If there is enough snow, every day is basically something to shred.
Kitzsteinhorn glacier itself is located about 10 km from Zell am See, above picturesque village of Kaprun. Kitzsteinhorn glacier is located in the massive of High Taur where the highest mountain of Austria is Gross Glockner (Big bell-ringer) with altitude 3798 m above sea level. The high if Kitzsteinhorn mountain is 3202 m, but the lift to get just over 3000 meters, which offers a variety of hidden options, especially when is bad weather.
Kaprun - Kitzsteinhorn has become very well-known bacause of tragic event which has happened here in 2004. From the bottom station there used to be a train coming up to middle station. What happened? The human’s factor failed. The train was also used for tranporting different grooming tools for maintenance, and other technical equipment which were flameable. The equipment was not properly fastened and container with oil trigered the fire. Then over 168 people were killed and only those in botton train were saved I think only 11. Since then, the memory of the deceased the train does not operate any more. This train lift can still be seen when you come to upper parking lot.
After this event there was a problem with the transporting skiers to the resort. That is why 2 new gondola lifts were built. Marked as Gletscherjet I and II, which will take you to the main resort Alpincenter, which lies 2450 m above sea level. Afterward you can find here huge gondola which will take you from Alpincentra to the top station located at the foothill of the Kitzsteinhorn mountain 3029 m .
In this part you can find the center highest place for the freeride on this glacier. Runs are in initial part quite steep and begin under the train lift, which brings people from the to the top station to top part of T-bar lift. Come out to observation terrace put your skies on and then drop into the black slopes, from which you immediately leave by turning right under the path of the train lift and then you can just choose which line you’re gonna drop in. I need to make a note here that this terrain is not for beginners. In addition, you are on the glacier, which could pose a hidden threat breach. I personally has never seen any ice gaps, and I rode the steeper section many times, but it is true that the years are increasingly warmer and the fracture, there may easily occur. When finish the steeper section,follow the the huge plain, which has a width of 200 maybed 300 meters and is 1.5 km long. It is regular and therefore you can go pretty fast there and start enjoying deep pow. Is a bit pitty that you dont reach the same lift you just came up. You need to take a chair lift and then follow the slope to the Alpincentra to do it again. Glacial plan is recommended to all beginners who can test huge turns and fast ride in pow. There is quite strong wind which could coz very deep pow it this places or frozen crust.
Another interesting part of the resort are 2 T-bar lifts leading to the black slope to the saddle between the peaks Gr. Schmiedinger and Mauererkogel. Here is usually a traverse heading to snow rails and furthe continue to the top of a New 6-chair lift Kristallbahn. The traverse is from the beginning quite easy and can be turned off from it at anytime to the plain, which leads to the black slope. This part is quite fast ruined, but it is not difficult. Steepy and thus more difficult rums are farther toward traverse to Kristallbahnu. Traverse then take the difficulty and its really for brave skiers coz you come to a point where is "no fall" zone. Sometimes you need to take you skies off oand continue over the spine. Runs here are among the large avalange barriers made of steel bars. If you managed to get to the end of the traverse, you've got completly wonderful simple run which urificial directly to the output station of Kristallbahnu.
Thanks to a newly constructed 6-chairlift a new runs have been made. From the lift go up the road to the saddle between the peaks with a beautiful view to the next valley. Subsequently turn to traverse under Tristinger peak (2641 m) and continue it until you reach the table land from which is a large and easy shute down. The run is quite cool and you can go pretty fast without the various hack, followed by passage around the mountain to the next lower plateau and then to the urificila groomed path from the Kristallbahnu slope. From here you can either go back to the chairlift or go down to the bottom station Langwied (1978 m).
Just between stations Landwied and Alpicentrem are the most interesting terrain for freeriding. Many thousands of years the whole mountain was covered by glacier and gradually edged into the valley and created a deep and quite broad trough lined with various rock formations. These shuttes are located across the width of the mountain and some are very exposed, but aůsp wide, so it creates an interesting natural U-ramp. It can be reached easily, just go off on any side of the central slopes. The biggest problem these beautiful water holes is the number of people who are here with easy access to traying freeride. Thus it happens that when you see all the beautiful morning snow in the adternoon everything is like after a big mountain competition.
Presently, it is necessary to go further away from the troughs, where you can get by long traverses below the peak Rettinger (2640 m). These places are more ddifficult, steep at the bottom . Thus the avalanche dange is higher here. All usually ends on the right side of the station Landwied.
Regarding the avalanches, the Kitzsteinhorn relatively safe. On the one hand, you ride in comfort, and on the other hand on the other side everything is falls. I recommend always at least observer the snow condition before riding it. If the snow is the same as everywhere an experienced freerider should probably know what to do and thus avoid a furter problems.
To sum up the entire resort Kaprun - Kitzsteinhorn. It is one of the highest places in Salzburg, so if the clouds are lower here is mostly sunny. There is a lot of sunny days than the on low-lying resorts. Technical equipment and gastronomic services of the resot is are very good and also the prices are comparable with the surrounding resorts. The problem is the speed of ruining freshly dumped pow, because there is a relatively small area ehre is a bid concentration of people who like go into fairly not so difficult free terrain. Conversely advantage is that it is a valley between several peaks, from which the snow blows into this and thus soming here even if is not snowing. If there is enough snow, every day is basically something to shred.
