The cancelling of a proposed connection between the Tirol's Pitztal and Oetztal valleys has become something of a line in the sand for future 'marriage' proposals between municipalities whose reliance upon tourism and in particular winter sports has become excessive. It was perhaps surprising that opposition to the connection which was to include new lifts…
Obergurgl must blend ancient and modern to avoid becoming a monotonous tourist village
Overdevelopment of and within the European Alps is nothing new, and by my definition is the excessively intense building of any edifice(s) and infrastructure common to mountainous regions that impacts upon their aesthetic beauty and undermines the very reason they are visited. These may be sympathetically designed and sited or their antithesis, quite simply through…
Why you should visit the Oetztal, Galtuer, and St. Anton am Arlberg
Continuing the theme from my previous blog post, this time around I will be extolling the virtues of several other Austrian alpine settings, which if only given a limited number of places to visit for the remainder of my existence, would rank alongside the Wildschoenau, Saalbach Hinterglemm, Kitzbuehel, and Bohinj (Slovenia) as 'go to' locations.…
Oetzi the Iceman – 30 years on
Thirty years is a long time in the lives of most people but to Oetzi, the mummified iceman monikered as such due to the location of his discovery, it represents barely a blink of an eye in the timeline from when he roamed the high alps to the present day, via his introduction to the…
The Tirol’s Oetztal – where social distancing is an established bonus
For those accustomed to overseas travel the last twelve months has been a time of great frustration, but also represented an opportunity to reflect on the places we have missed so much, and what makes them special to us. It is now twenty years since my first visit to the Oetztal, which served as a…
Oetztal in 2021: Remembering the past and rebuilding the present
If two events so contrasting to each other have come to exemplify the modern era and that of antiquity in Austria's Oetztal region, their diametrical opposed nature but weighty significance to the valley have once more reminded us of the fragility of life, and indeed that of the built environment which man often puts disproportionate…
Will the intervention of Covid-19 inadvertently prevent environmental encroachment, or merely represent a stay of execution?
In the immediate term Austria's delayed ski season is due to begin on Christmas Eve or January 7th, depending on the resort. Where the Soelden ski area in the Oetztal aims to reopen for business in 12 days' time, further up the valley in Obergurgl and Vent, the slopes expect to receive guests after many…
Glacier protection must not be sacrificed during uncertain times for the winter-sports industry
Aside from my general feelings on the damage that winter sports can inflict upon alpine regions, it has always been the use of glaciers for skiing and snowboarding which has drawn the majority of my ire. It is understandable how the leviathan snow sports industry has managed to convert glaciers in the minds of Austrians…
Will Covid-19 provide the perfect smokescreen for further incursions into Alpine Europe?
As the dust settles cautiously on the beginning of the end of novel coronavirus' first wave, I ponder if what the world has learned during the last six months will be long forgotten once the need for rampant materialism once more kicks in, first during the egregious Halloween/Bonfire Night season before the vulgarity wrapped within…
Pitztal-Oetztal link: Will Covid-19 consign the scheme to history or give it renewed oxygen?
Novel coronavirus necessitated us all to pause and take in what was around us in plain sight all along. Many won't have liked what they saw as the 'look at' me generation co-opted Covid-19 for their Narcissistic ends; others will have been astounded by nature in their gardens and neighbourhoods, while some set off for…
Obergurgl memories: Nostalgia ain’t what it used to be
Stepping back in time from my previous post, the turn of the millennium is when my relationship with alpine Austria firmly took root. For decades, my family had already established individual connections with the Alps but aside from a visit as a young child to Salzburgerland's St. Wolfgang these experiences were never shared together and…
Oetztal: How much did Auguste Piccard and Otzi shape the valley’s destiny?
A backward glance to 2014 and my time in the Oetztal region of the Austrian Tirol. Predominantly based in Obergurgl, I also journeyed to Soelden, Vent, Umhausen, and Oetz. Despite the at times indifferent weather but perpetually spectacular landscape and man's attempt to tame it for his own ends, this is an area of the…
Tirol: Will Austria stand up for its environment and against Climate Change by refusing the Oetztal & Pitztal ski area merger?
Whilst not yet amounting to a charm offensive those 'pro' the development of a link between the Pitz and Oetz valleys in the Austrian Tirol have begun to counter the many arguments against the scheme, whose proponents have up to this point had exclusive use of the floor. The Pitztal has long been seen as…
Proposed Oetztal-Pitztal link a potential benchmark for future development in the Austrian Alps
Controversy caused by the expansion of Austrian ski resorts is nothing new. The Alpine arms race continues unabashed, consisting of resorts intra-competing with neighbouring towns and those in adjacent valleys and provinces. There surely though has to be a time, which could already be upon us, when seeking an edge over the competition could reduce…
Europe’s Alpine Regions fail to escape the scourge of plastic litter
The utter indifference some hikers and skiers show their alpine playgrounds never ceases to amaze me. Perhaps naively I assume that the act of communing with the mountains instead of merely viewing the jagged landscape from afar, a la Mark Twain*, and the considerable physical effort in doing so, indicates affection for their surroundings and…
First snows of the season facilitate early Soelden opening
Ahead of the traditional FIS Ski World Cup curtain-raiser in the Oetztal resort of Soelden, an early fall of snow has enabled the Rettenbach Glacier to be opened to the general public before competition begins in earnest the weekend commencing Saturday 24th October.Public transport to the glacier is free in conjunction with a valid lift…
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