Göllerlifte: Austria’s Hickory

Sorry to keep beating you over the head with Euro-related content, but hey, something to balance out the foodfights about Daddy's money.


When you're writing TRs about places outside the northeast, of course you'll concentrate on the things that vary from what we have. For the Alps, that obviously means gargantuan ski areas, modern infrastructure, cute villages, etc., but what you don't realize until you drive through any given region is that there are literally hundreds of comparatively tiny family-oriented joints too, including many that are pretty similar to what we have in the northeast.




While taking my daily spin through the Alpinforum trip reports yesterday, I stumbled upon what looks like a classic town hill about 90 minutes southwest of Vienna, thus, on the far eastern edge of what would be considered Austria’s ski country: Göller Lifts (gotta love the get-right-to-the-point name).




I thought it’d be interesting to share this TR, which, in typical Alpinforum fashion, doesn’t stop at just five or ten pix, but dozens -- as if he put the shutter on continuous shooting mode and then posted all of them, with zero action shots! By the time you get to the end of the thread, it feels like you’ve spent the day there.

The most interesting part is how similar it is to everyone's southern ADK favorite on pretty much every level:

· Vertical: 1,300 feet
· Base elevation: 3,400 feet (low for Europe)
· Snowmaking: None
· Lifts: Three t-bars
· Ticket price: €23 = $26
· Topography: “Gebirge” -- somewhere between big hills and actual mountains, below the treeline
· Tagline: "Sei g'scheid, fahr' nicht weit!" -- "Be smart, don't drive far!" (it rhymes in German)
· Website: Really old school (link)
· Operations Schedule: Saturday, Sunday, and holidays from Xmas through March depending on coverage

That's pretty cool.

I'm thinking of a few months in Europe before I can't ski anymore, and try to ask as many as I can who have been there. My present roommate in Co. Really talks up St. Anton, and he's been around. I lean more towards France, for some reason. But, I have heard that there are so many little areas outside the mega circuses that are awesome, and, after spending a month in Summit County with a week in Steamboat, I am starting to hate crowds. Crowds ruin the snow and make bumps.

Thanks for sharing James, that is cool to see. That TR was mind-boggling, though. Thank Ullr for the Mac trackpad and fast scrolling with two-finger swiping. Clearly there there is an Austrian alter-ego of Snoloco, obsessing about about t-bars.

Sick Bird Rider wrote

That TR was mind-boggling, though.

LOL, I tried to warn you.

Benny Profane wrote

My present roommate in Co. Really talks up St. Anton, and he's been around. I lean more towards France, for some reason. But, I have heard that there are so many little areas outside the mega circuses that are awesome

Yep, you can mix it up with the gigantic ones (absolutely worth checking out) all the way down to the comparatively small.

Jamesdeluxe wrote

Sick Bird Rider wrote

That TR was mind-boggling, though.

LOL, I tried to warn you.

 

Mind-boggling, YES!

Finally had time to check it out.

That place really looks like a great time!

campgottagopee wrote

Mind-boggling, YES!

And they're ALL like that (99% scenics or lift pix), so clearly it's their preferred TR format. Maybe they think that North American TRs -- usually five to ten photos and primarily in-action shots -- are odd?

I'm acquainted via e-mail with the Harv of that forum; I'll follow up and ask what the deal is.