First stop was the Scope White Peaks Challenge for charity. The objective here was to ski every peak across four ski resorts in two days (i.e. 24 peaks in 48 hours!). There were 40 people in the group and we were the only Aussies, which was refreshing.
It was a great event. The conditions weren't great, given that it rained for most of the first day. However it snowed overnight to give us some great first runs up high on day 2.
Here's a shot of us in our team bibs - these were a necessary evil because there was no stopping or waiting all day, so you had to keep your eye on the bibs to make sure you didn't get lost!
The group of 40 was split into three teams - we were in the blue team.
We stayed in a small village called Bruck, just outside of Zell am See. The day after the challenge finished, before heading off to Salzburg, we walked through the farms from Bruck into Zell.
In Zell there was a massive souvenir shop - more cuckoo clocks than you could poke a "cuckoo" at! The sound reminded Sarah of her grandparents house.
Then Salzburg - and no trip to Salzburg would be complete without the Sound of Music Tour... get out your guide books and strap on your big camera - this is tourist central!
It was a very entertaining tour and as is always the case, the guide really made the day - a very eccentric, outgoing, Sound of Music encyclopedia of a man!
The tour took us through Salzburg and then out to the nearby lakes district - spectacular scenery! This is where they filmed the final wedding scene in the church.
One of the key sights in the city was the Mirabell Garden - this is where they filmed the "Do Re Mi" sequence. Below is a shot of Pete running through the tunnel, like they did in the movie (maybe with a bit of artistic licence of his own!).
Sarah did her version of the run around the fountain...
...and the final sequence jumping up the steps - "Do Re Mi Fa So La Ti Do!"
We visited the Von Trapp house on the lake (...although this was only used for outdoor scenes, like the bit were they fell out of the boat in their curtain clothes).
Still in training for our marathons, we managed to fit in a quick run in one of the local Salzburg parks.
This photo is a bit dark but that's what you get for "authentic", candle lit dinner, complete with a program of Mozart's favourites performed by a string quintet and singers. Mozart is a constant theme in Salzburg - he was born there so they name everything after him, even the airport!
On our last day in Salzburg, we awoke to a fresh blanket of snow covering the city (below is the view from our hotel room)... this was great news, because that day we were headed for Obertauern to ski for three days.
...and look what was there to greet us - blue sky and half a foot of fresh snow!
One of the key sights in the city was the Mirabell Garden - this is where they filmed the "Do Re Mi" sequence. Below is a shot of Pete running through the tunnel, like they did in the movie (maybe with a bit of artistic licence of his own!).
Sarah did her version of the run around the fountain...
...and the final sequence jumping up the steps - "Do Re Mi Fa So La Ti Do!"
(you can also see the Castle in the background)
We visited the Von Trapp house on the lake (...although this was only used for outdoor scenes, like the bit were they fell out of the boat in their curtain clothes).
Still in training for our marathons, we managed to fit in a quick run in one of the local Salzburg parks.
This photo is a bit dark but that's what you get for "authentic", candle lit dinner, complete with a program of Mozart's favourites performed by a string quintet and singers. Mozart is a constant theme in Salzburg - he was born there so they name everything after him, even the airport!
On our last day in Salzburg, we awoke to a fresh blanket of snow covering the city (below is the view from our hotel room)... this was great news, because that day we were headed for Obertauern to ski for three days.
...and look what was there to greet us - blue sky and half a foot of fresh snow!
(M&D/C&J - this is what Pete was looking at when he spoke to you from the lift)
Sarah (Slaw) and her brother James joined us in Obertauern - here are the Sarah's...
On Day 2, we booked a guide to take us off piste for the morning - Awesome!
Sarah (Slaw) and her brother James joined us in Obertauern - here are the Sarah's...
On Day 2, we booked a guide to take us off piste for the morning - Awesome!
There was a bit of a walk uphill to start with, because we climbed above the highest lift and over the back of the resort into a 'backcountry' bowl. It was a good sign that even our footprints at this point were fresh and deep (i.e. we were the first up the hill!!)
The last push to the summit was almost vertical and quite a climb (you can see our fresh footprints in the background).
On reaching the top, Sarah took the opportunity to have a well earned rest.
...and then we celebrated!!
We would never have expected what was to come next... and completely fresh, untracked, open bowl of powder! This is Pete making some fresh tracks - I think he's saying "Woohooooo!!"
The last push to the summit was almost vertical and quite a climb (you can see our fresh footprints in the background).
On reaching the top, Sarah took the opportunity to have a well earned rest.
...and then we celebrated!!
We would never have expected what was to come next... and completely fresh, untracked, open bowl of powder! This is Pete making some fresh tracks - I think he's saying "Woohooooo!!"
(The tracks you can see on the right side of the photo are Sarah's - she said "Woohooo" too!)
Our guide kindly took the photos for us, so we got this rare shot of both of us coming though the trees. The powder bowl is at the top left of the shot. It was a very long run top to bottom (1200m vertical - it took us 45mins, every turn a fresh track!).
Sarah making her mark on some untouched powder while Pete looks on... yes, more "Woohoo"!
That afternoon we caught up with Slaw and James for a drink at the top of the mountain, looking down on the town of Obertauern.
The constant snowfall for three days straight was fine for skiing but quickly became less amusing when it came time to leave... Pete and James chipped away at snow and ice to release the mighty Volvo.
Our guide kindly took the photos for us, so we got this rare shot of both of us coming though the trees. The powder bowl is at the top left of the shot. It was a very long run top to bottom (1200m vertical - it took us 45mins, every turn a fresh track!).
Sarah making her mark on some untouched powder while Pete looks on... yes, more "Woohoo"!
That afternoon we caught up with Slaw and James for a drink at the top of the mountain, looking down on the town of Obertauern.
The constant snowfall for three days straight was fine for skiing but quickly became less amusing when it came time to leave... Pete and James chipped away at snow and ice to release the mighty Volvo.
And so our European ski season comes to an end. We're happy that we managed to squeeze in as much as we could: 17 days skiing, 11 resorts, rain, snow, sun, -10deg, +10deg, ice, slush, knee deep powder, perfect corduroy, family, Aussies and some new English friends - what an experience!
