Travel Photography Blog by Nisa Maier and Ulli Maier. » Snow

Cross Country Skiing In The Vienna Woods.

Nisa — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 20:24:48 +0000

This winter season, Mother Hulda really took her time … at least in the Eastern part of Austria. But then, after lots of begging, she answered my prayers and sent some snow. Lot’s of it!

Within 24 hours, Vienna and its surrounding was covered in 50cm of white powder. A true paradise for snow lovers and a pain in the butt for everyone else. For me, this only meant one thing: it was time for some hardcore cross-country-skiing!

So I packed my gear and was on my wait out to the Vienna Woods, where you’ll find lots of cross-country skiing slopes. Through to the temperature change the area was totally in fog and the ice crystals on the vegetation brought a real surreal look. It was almost a spooky atmosphere while skiing through the Vienna Woods because such weather phenomenon only occurs very seldom; the whole forest was covered with ice crystals. Everything was frozen, but still very fragile. The right temperature produced ice crystals on all the vegetation and it really looked like a winter wonderland…

Ice Crystals in the Vienna Woods, Austria.

Cross-Country-Skiing in the Vienna Woods, Austria.

Ice Crystals in the Vienna Woods, Austria.

Me shooting among Giants in the Vienna Woods, Austria.

Hochkar – A Great Skiing Area Not Far From Vienna.

Nisa — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 11:08:19 +0000

This winter has been really strange in all of Austria (and the rest of Europe). From November until the middle of January it was nothing close to a typical winter. + 10° Celsius, sunny days, no rain or snow. I already thought that this was it for the 2011/2012 season … but I was wrong – very wrong! By January 14th, it started snowing and getting (much) colder. For the last week, we’ve had temperatures between -5° and -18° Celsius in and around Vienna! Brrrr.

So since winter hit us after all, I really felt like going snowboarding & skiing again. So last weekend we were off to our cottage in Göstling. Why Göstling and not one of these fancy areas like Kitzbühl or Schladming?

1.) I can’t stand all these wannabe society people.
2.) I would never pay up to 100 € for a single day of skiing or snowboarding.
3.) I like a manageable skiing area.
4.) Hochkar is only 1 1/2 hours away from Vienna, so this is perfect for the weekend.
5.) The locals in Göstling are super friendly and they don’t give a damn how much money you have!

Anyway, enough said … here are some impressions (GoPro videos are coming up soon):

Our “little” cottage in Göstling.

“Los banditos” on the slopes in Göstling.

No one was crazy enough to go skiing with -20° … except us of course.

Glorious weather conditions up on the mountain.

One day snowboarding, one day skiing.

Winter In Austria.

Nisa — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 13:45:10 +0000

To be honest, I didn’t think we’d see snow this year (in Vienna and its surroundings), but Mother Hulda gave us a big sign today: Winter is definitely not over yet!

Since I know that many of you are still waiting for a real winter, I wanted to post a couple of winter wonderland photos of the landscape around Vienna. Enjoy and daydream. I’m sure we’ll have a tough January & February…

The Vienna Woods can turn into a real winter wonderland.

Hard rime can only be seen very rarely around Vienna. It’s a white ice that forms when the water droplets in fog freeze to the outer surfaces of objects. It is often seen on trees atop mountains and ridges in winter, when low-hanging clouds cause freezing fog.

The peaks and mountain passes of the Eastern Alps are lower compared to the Western Alps, while the range itself is broader and less arched.

The Erlaufsee is only about 1 1/2 hours away from Vienna and therefore popular for day-trippers.

I love the atmosphere in the Vienna Woods that comes with snow.

Eisenerz is a market place and old mining town in the Austrian state of Styria.

Winter landscape in the Alps in Lower Austria.

Frosty times during winter in the Vienna Woods around the capital city.

All.I.Can. – JP Auclair Street Segment.

Nisa — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 08:46:53 +0000

The day before I wrote about Raja Ampat, which is pretty much paradise as we know it: white sand beaches, crystal clear water, 30° in the shade & no tourists in sight … Wanderlust action to the max! But anyway, since I’m not in Raja Ampat at the moment, and the first snow fell here in Vienna today, I might as well start getting used to the fact that it’s winter! So therefore I want to share the video “JP Auclair Street Segment (from All.I.Can.)” with you. It’s a 5 min video from the award-winning 70 min film, “All.I.Can.” by Sherpas Cinema.

“All.I.Can” is a stunning exploratory essay that compares the challenges of big mountain skiing to the challenges of global climate change. Shot on 6 continents over 2 years, the world’s best skiers deliver inspirational performances while ground-breaking cinematography expands our vision of the natural world. Journey through Morocco’s majestic desert peaks, Greenland’s icy fjords, Chile’s volcanic craters, Alaskan spine walls, and more.

This segment was directed by Dave Mossop & JP Auclair, and well … it’s pretty damn awesome!