On the 4th of february I joined a ski tour organised by the local mountain sports association (SAC PizSol). The tour was called "der Nähe nach", which meant that we were supposed to do a ski tour nearby. Tour leader Kurt planned to do a tour right in our backyard, in the section area of PizSol. Unfortunately, the weather, snow conditions and avalanche situation required a little flexibility. That's why Kurt decided to do an alternative tour on a 20-30 min drive, in the Valzeina region.
The weather forecast was not so good, but luckily there was some fresh snow. Because the weather was very unpredictable already for weeks, the tour leader decided that the tour would take place anyway. Depending on the conditions in the morning we would decide, if we would have to adjust the tour a bit.
At 7.15 we (Kurt, Stefan, Vreni and myself) met at the Landquart train station and drove together to Valzeina, where the tour started. It was still snowing lightly, but we had high hopes that it would clear up. There were 1800 vertical meters on the program, but there were various ways to shorten or extend the tour.
Scroll for more photos
We quickly went up the first part in the direction of Alp Falsch. At the Alp, we took a short break and the ski skins urgently needed some care before we could continue the ascent. Since nobody else was in the valley, we had to make all the tracks in the fresh snow ourselves. It was hard work for the captains, but Kurt and Stefan made a good team and alternated the group’s head position regularly.
Vreni had no problem keeping up with the men's pace and also managed to stay in the slipstream. I had it a little harder myself, couldn't quite keep up with the pace and had to let them go a few times. I knew my hybrid ski touring set was a little heavier than average, but that shouldn't be an excuse. Well, I just tried to stay in the flow and not let the distance get too big.
Scroll for more photos
Because of the challenging conditions and the fog, Kurt thought it would make sense to shorten the tour and skip the ascent to the Sunntigberg. Instead, we went straight on towards the Scamerspitze. At the highest point, the sun suddenly came through for a short time so we could enjoy bit of the sun's warmth. What a difference in temperature, wonderfull! And we definitely deserved that!
After a short break, we quickly continued our way through the fresh snow. We descended a few hundred meters and then went back up to the Scamerspitze via a different route. This time all the way up to the top with the cross. When we were up, the sun showed up again as well. That felt great and was also the perfect moment for the group photo.
Scroll for more photos
From Scamer we went on an adventurous forest path and via nice open terrain to Stams. It was relatively warm and therefore the snow was very firm and heavy. For a beginner in freeriding like me, it wasn't easy and it also meant some losing control and falling. But luckily, the landings in the fresh snow were soft and comfortable. Despite the conditions, Vreni, Kurt and Stefan went down without any difficulties. Although they told me afterwards that their skiing skills have looked better at other times.
In Stams we had to put the skins on the ski's again for the last meters uphill. After this short climb, a nice and open landscape awaited us to make a few more turns in the fresh but heavy snow.
Seven hours after our start we got back to the car, all very much satisfied with the beautiful adventure. And luckily the local “Beizli” in Valzeina was open, so we could end the day nice warm and dry in the bar.
Comments