They have the season opener in Mitterdorf successfully completed in the Bavarian Forest. At best, eight lifts, a toboggan run, cross-country ski runs and hiking trails await winter sports fans in the Freyung-Grafenau district. Boss Bernhard Hain is “absolutely satisfied” with last week’s start: the weather was excellent, he says on the phone, and the snow was great. However, the question is whether this will remain the case in view of the weather report. It’s supposed to rain. And storm. As a precaution, Hain has therefore had the chairlift taken out of service. In order to protect the snow, there are only two drag lifts and the feeder to the junior ski circuit. If possible, they should also remain open over the Christmas period, for the children. Will that work? Depends on the weather, says Hain. “We’ll decide that tomorrow.”
It’s not just cable car and ski lift operators who are wondering how much fun there will be on the slopes in the coming days. The start of the Christmas holidays traditionally marks the start of the winter sports season in Bavaria. However, the snow that the onset of winter brought in mid-December could melt away quickly if the weather reports are right with the announced rain and temperatures in the plus range. In some holiday resorts, a lot depends on holiday guests finding their way onto the slopes as early as possible in the season. The Bavarian Ministry of Economic Affairs therefore also supports the construction of snow cannons as part of its cable car program. But even that doesn’t help much when it’s too warm and too wet and the energy for the cannons is as expensive as it is at the moment.
As a result, some ski areas had to postpone or pause their season start. This is particularly visible in the Bavarian Forest, where most ski areas were forced to close on Thursday. The webcam at Great Arber presented a lot of white – but mainly in the form of fog. Where there were no shreds of cloud blocking the view, there was snow on the ground, but apparently not enough: Those responsible had to postpone the start of the new ski season from this Friday to Sunday. Then the gondola lift, the six-seater chairlift on the Sonnenhang and the drag lifts on the Thurnhofhang would open, according to the ski resort’s website. “From December 26th, the 6-seater chairlift on the north slope and the toboggan run will also be open.”
Also in Saint Englmar one hopes that the 15 centimeters of snow on the mountain will not melt further. Last week the season started with two lifts, until it got too warm. The Grün-Maibrunn, Predigtstuhl Arena, Markbuchen and Kapellenberg ski lifts are expected to run on Saturday, according to the ski area on the network. “Unfortunately no cross-country skiing is possible at the moment.” At the high arc the lifts were also forced to stand still: “because of the heat”. It was similar in Franconia. Among other things on Kreuzbergat the oxhead and on arnsberg operations were suspended.
If you take the gondola to the Nebelhorn, you can expect 50 centimeters of snow.
(Photo: Karl-Josef Hildenbrand/dpa)
In terms of snow, things are looking a little better in the Alps; the mountains tend to be higher, which makes things easier. Nevertheless, the weather remains a factor that is sometimes difficult to assess. This is how the cross-border ski area warned Oberstdorf-Kleinwalsertal on Thursday on its website that there could be “restrictions and delays in driving operations” due to strong winds. A good 20 lifts and 30 kilometers of pistes were open in the entire area in the afternoon, and there was 50 centimeters of snow on the Nebelhorn. On the other hand, it was missing in the near Balderschwang. As well on greens there was no skiing – for legal reasons. “Due to unclear rights of use with a property owner, skiing is not possible this winter season,” says the Grünten lifts.
The large Upper Bavarian ski areas have also started the season. On the Winklmoosalm at Reit im Winkl, for example, the lifts have been running since last Friday; most recently it was three out of five, and even seven out of eight on the Steinplatte in Tyrol, which is connected to the Winklmoosalm. In Lenggries were on Brauneck 50 centimeters of snow at the top, 20 at the bottom. 16 of 21 lifts, nine of 15 slopes and all three valley runs were open. The ski bus will start its shuttle service on Christmas Day. At the Sudelfeld At Bayrischzell, 16 of the 27 pistes were open to skiers, as were two of the three valley descents and the fun park with its kickers. The price increases made at the start of the season can be considered customary in the industry: Ski tourers who do not need a ski pass because they can climb the mountain under their own steam will in future pay 15 euros for parking at the cable car instead of five. The passes themselves became more expensive in many places because of the high energy costs. At Brauneck and at Sudelfeld, an adult pays 48 euros each for a day on which Zugspitze 57 euros.
There, at the top, the winter world still seems to be reasonably ok. However, this impression is deceptive. Like all Alpine peaks, Germany’s highest mountain is also suffering from climate change and glacier loss – but has the advantage of being at least higher and potentially snowier than the Bavarian competition. Skiing has therefore been able to take place there since the beginning of December. On the Zugspitze itself, all trains were running on Thursday afternoon except for the Brunntal lift and the Weißes Tal ski lift. For Garmisch Classic a good half of the lifts were reported as open. On Friday, however, the Kreuzeckbahn will open for pedestrians, followed by the Alpspitzbahn and Hochalmbahn on Sunday. The well-known Kandahar run was only open in the upper part. And here too, as in the Bavarian Forest, precipitation has been announced for Friday.
The conditions and opening times apply to Thursday, December 22, 2023, as posted online by the ski resorts themselves. Weather conditions can change quickly in the mountains. Ski resorts usually update their websites in the morning; it is recommended to inform yourself there before departure. Portals such as bergfex.de.