Austria Expedition Feb 2005

Introduction

Hello and welcome to the web page of the 'Allcomers Snow Fun in Austria Expedition 2005. Hopefully you will find all the information you need here but if you think the page could be improved or there is something we have missed please email us with your questions / suggestions.

Who's going

whos who

pic	name	description
	Phil	He's a fast learner and is always on the look out for a chance to stick his head through a cornice or else just stick his bum out as far as possible... As tour rep and most responsible person on the organising committee any complaints should go directly to Phil. He will ensure that your every need is met and one of his duties will be running your bath after a hard day on the slopes. Attention: in the interests of fairness we thought that we should print Phils concerns over certain elements of the statement above in full
	Rachel	Recently visted the scottish training camp and collected level one two and three bruising awards in just two days!! Clearly a fast learner she is one to watch out for! This year she has new sponsorship from Weleda (makers of Arnica ointment).
	Kirsty	Kirsty is coming boarding for the second time, from the look of the photograph it would seem that the first time she went was 30 years ago in the seventies when she was 14, and not 3 years ago. She will be getting everyone up early in the morning to take their breakfast orders, before leading the morning yoga session.
	Simon	This man is in a hurry, he will undoubtedly be impatient and drag beginners onto black runs as soon as they are able to stand up. Will be carrying more expensive electronics than your average AWACS plane, team geek... Rodger out... Simon will have diamond files, wax and an iron to keep your sticks in tip-top condition .
	Pete	He certainly looks pleased with himself - and after watching this video you'll know why. He's got what it takes to make it big - but before you start your hero worshiping look at this video... shamone MoFo!
	Oli	'King of the mountains' or 'man with a sore bum' his fate is to be decided. Lets hope he does better on a snowboard than he did on a quad bike... :-)
	Kate	As happy foot mining as she is in the mountains, Kate progressed well on her last expedition, we are extremely happy to welcome this advanced foot specialist and massuer on board. WARNING: Please ensure that you keep all alarm clocks and other noise making devices out of Kates earshot until she has had AT LEAST 8.0 hours sleep. Or you will pay...
	Chris	Unmittigated and unrepentant lunatic, and jolly good fun to boot! We are slightly concerned about possible 'lunatic critical mass' being reached in conjunction with Merk.
	Toby	The smile says it all, ( well actually it doesn't really, does it?) One can expect to be wiped out at least once in a while, just hope it's somone smilling as nicely as this whilst you take mouthfuls of snow drift.
	Catriona	Our intelligence is limited ( no, not that intelligence ) but we have heard that she broke her coccyx on her first trip to the snow and so is well versed in snow bound expeditioning.
	Merk	Is that a description of his mind, or perhaps the iffy goings on that surround this unknown quantity. He climbs ice - a lot - in the dark - on his own if necessary - or is that for fun? We fear that this mentality pervades his skiing... "Ludicrous speed!" being his motto - you have been warned!!!
	Sophie	Climbs etc. with Merk, errrr, what more can we say???
	Rachel (plumber)	The only person who's had lessons and the only one who wears a helmet.... go figure as they like to say.

Sleeping arrangements

There are eight beds so first come first served.....and we've got the key! Just kidding, we can work out a rota system or something when we get there but bring carry mats and sleeping bags. There is some bedding but not for all, ( and the more the merrier when it comes to bedding - read padding - when you're battered and bruised.... )

Food

Hope it's ok but it's a veggie kitchen ( the middle ground of vegan and carnivourous ). People in cars will be trying to take some decent english fayre to get us started...

The place




It's 200 euros a week which is pretty darn good, and those two on the left are Kirstys ma and pa ( and also the owners) so send them nice vibes.... :-)

Ski Passes

This is what we think the ski passes will cost.... ( this is for the super ski pass, if you stay nearer maria alm it will be cheaper abit )

There is a ski lift that goes from the village ( not free, sorry kate! ) with a few runs of varying graded routes but they are short and fairly limited so best for learners. We can get the ski bus from a road that is 100m from where we are staying and that takes us to the big mountains.

Maria Alm and the surrounding environs

We don't want to sound like a tourist brochure and the job has been done much better by others so check out this website for the official honeycoated version. All I can say is it's a smallish self-contained village surrounded by big snowy mountains. It has a few bars which can get lively for apres ski and later, one main food shop which should meet all our needs, plenty of restaurants if you want to eat out. Everywhere is a 5-10 minute walk from the flat. There is some winter walking in the area al thought the more adventurous paths are closed in winter. There are some langlaufen (cross country skiing) routes through the valleys. Maps available in the flat and in the Tourist Information in the village. If anyone is up for sledging there are some in the cellar of the building in a lock up where we will put the skis/boards etc.

Click here to see a map of the ski area i've prepared :-) !

How to get there

Directions to the house in the town:

Address:
Top 55,
Dorf 96
Maria Alm 5761
Austria.
Tel: 0043 6584 2225
Simons Mobile +447815 061 473
Kirstys mobile +447855 698737
Phils Mobile +447941 147206
(please text if possible 'cause incoming calls cost as well as outgoing)

Directions to Maria Alm:

By coach:

Coach to Munchen/Munich. From here get a train or coach or bus to Salzburg. I haven't done that leg of the journey so don't know what is cheapest/fastest/easiest. (Auf Deutsch: "Wie komme ich am besten nach Salzburg?" - "what is the best way to Salzburg?", "Wo ist der Bahnhof?"- "where is the train station?", ich fahre nach Saalfelden/Maria Alm" - "I am going to Saalfelden/Maria Alm", "Was kostet das?"- how much does it cost?). From Salzburg you want a train to Saalfelden. One way cost me about 8 quid three years ago which is pretty good deal for a journey of an hour and a half to two hours on the train. From Saalfelden you can get a bus to the village ( "Ich mochte [pr. 'merkte') ein Bus nach Maria Alm" - "I would like a bus to Maria Alm.") Or give us a call at the flat and Phil Easicab taxi service would be happy to come and pick you up- it's just a 15 minute drive.

By car:

use this it looks pretty good for directions between places....

Check back here later they are being prepared...

click for a sort of map from saalfelden

STOP PRESS here is a link to an online public transport finder to maria alm just add the date and maria alm. Can't seem to find if it tells you the price but it seems fairly comprhensive.

this is pretty darn good for transport...

Maria alm centered on multimap.com so you can work it out yourselves.

http://www.hochkoenig.at this is the ski region maria lm is part of. not massive but it goes on about powder alot....

and that region is part of a mega region called amande , which it looks like you get to ski on the same lift pass, not sure how you get about between them yet as they look fairly far apart.... can't figure ou tthe maps as they are not all with N at the top....

and you can get super ski card to let you havea go at the whole salzburg region if we can get there, looking at public transport options at the mo...

Don't forget you want it, and don't forget to get one that covers you for off piste!! :-) Haven't yet found one that covers you for being pissed but still looking... Also need an E111 for non ski related medical aid that you can fill in at the PO, free but handy.

Further reading

Basic Snowboard Technique

Make ur own bum pad

Looking forward to seeing you all there, safe journeys however you may be travelling. 17 days to go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!