…And the hills (of Mayrhofen) were alive with sound of US (Day 1)…..
We arrive in Mayrhofen around 4pm….grab a taxi and head to where we will be staying, Alpenschlössl. (Title courtesy of Sound of Music…give credit where credit is due…not me making up cheesy titles, at least this time.)
The train station in Mayrhofen….off to our “chalet”
Front door.
We have been out to get a few snacks for skiing tomorrow, and some cold drinks, at a grocery store down the street. It is Saturday and it is the only food store open till 6pm. Believe it or not, on Wednesday we went to buy sandwich fixings at 12noon and the grocery was closed from 11am -2pm. What? crazy!
A short walk down the street and we end up having dinner at the Hotel Brüke. Delicious meal!!
Inside the restaurant. There is a very distinct style that is Austrian with a homy, cozy feel, lots of natural, thick wood. The christmas decorations are more familiar feeling to me. After the long day of traveling, a cold beer and warm meal would taste good anywhere!!!!
Ski Area Ahorn__________________________________________________________
Our first morning of skiing, and the Penkenbahn is closed due to wind. We were advised to head to Ahorn, get warmed up with a few runs and keep an eye for movement across the way….So we walked a short distance past where we ate dinner and bought tickets for our week.
There was quite a line, due to the weather…this was a 160person tram….and 160 people get counted and put in a queue awaiting the next ride.
View on the way up.
The tram heading back down.
Amazing views!
George and I were on one of the chairs…a two person chair. The skiing was easy, the conditions were excellent, so it was a good way to warm up.
Two runs at Ahorn and we decided to call it quits. We headed out, grabbed the first ski bus and ended up at the Zillertalbahn train. We ended up spending the afternoon at Zell am Ziller…another ski resort, 4 train stops away from Mayrhofen.
Ski Area Zell am Ziller_____________________________________________________
The skiing here was fantastic. Powdery, steeper, a nice long run, a real treat since thinking we might be out of luck for the day due to the previous weather. A new experience for us all was how to get on the lift. You get in your lane behind a gate, that would open, you slide out a bit and then let the rubber rolling mat, like a magic carpet or the belt at the grocery store, giving up control of your skis, you roll into position and sit. The chairs could be an many as 8, and often they were 6 person so it fit us well! And there were covers on the chairs and heated seats. It was really nice!!!!
We stopped here at one of the many little “skihütte” (ski huts) that all these mountains have scattered around the mountain. We enjoyed a couple of german sausages, pretzels and a bier!
Tonight we found ourselves at Mo’s and we enjoyed American Fare, bacon cheeseburgers!
Having a little fun with Dad’s hand and a skewer!
Kaylee being Kaylee.
And last but not least, a local favorite, let me introduce, Zillertal! A crisp and refreshing pale ale.
Beautiful views .. Stunning scenery .. Looks like a ski heaven ..