I reserved two days of snowboarding, with the idea of extending it by one additional day, if the snow conditions were excellent.
Here is a map of Ski Arlberg Ski Resort:
Sunday, December 22, 2024 - Renting Snowboards
After
lunch, we boarded the hotel's shuttle for a short ride to Nasserein,
where we stopped by Alber Sport to pick up our rented snowboards.
We
first tried out various snowboard boots and Alex found that the K2
Maysis (10.5", 28.5 cm) fit his feet well. These same boots also worked
for me (Alex and I have the same shoe size), but Alber Sport did not
have any additional boots in this size. I had to rent a larger boot
(11', 29cm) which was too large (and my foot moved around too much).
For snowboards, Alex selected a Burton Custom 168W (wide) version for better float on powder. I selected a similarly sized Capita Defenders of Awesome 163W snowboard. We also selected large helmets and picked our storage lockers (our hotel provided us with free locker access).
Both of our snowboards were set up with standard bindings.
My snowboard was configured for the following duck stance:
- +15 degrees (angled forward) for front foot
- -9 degrees (angled backward) in a classic duck stance.
- +18 degrees for forward foot
- -6 degrees on backfoot
After
we dropped off our boards in locker #142, we talked to Inna who was
also finishing up her rental of cross-country skis She was planning to
cross-country the next day and stored her gear in accompanying locker
#143. The lockers can be opened with the St. Anton Ski Pass (once
registered in the system).
Monday, December 23, 2024 - First Day Snowboarding
We
arrived at Nasserein at around 08:30 and had our lockers opened. We put
on our snowboard boots and helmets. I noticed that my snowboard boots
were too big, and decided to try to change them later that day (which I
did).
We boarded the Nasserein Gondola
(there was a very long line of mostly skiers queued up. It was not very
orderly, but we managed to get on and arrive.
Here is a GoPro Hero11 video that I recorded on the first run down the mountain.
The weather started sunny and beautiful and not overly cold.
We
boarded the Kapallbahn chair lift and snowboarded multiple times down
nearby trails. The mountain had light powder and we had an enjoyable
time snowboarding down.
For lunch, we stopped at the Gampen Lodge/Restaurant.
It's a very quaint, modern lodge with excellent facilities. We found a
table and dropped off our wet gear (sharing it with another party). We
ordered the following items:
- Boris: Wiener Schnitzel with Fries, Pretzel, Hot Chocolate with Cream, Sparkling Water
- Alex: Wiener Schnitzel with Fries, Hot Chocolate with Cream, Sparkling Water
The schnitzel was excellent and the hot chocolate hit the spot! The pretzel was not bad either. For the amount of food and drinks, the overall cost was a very reasonable 60 euros.
After
lunch, we tried snowboarding on a different part of the mountain. By
this time, the weather turned cloudy, with very low visibility and
blistering winds. Riding the chairlifts was less enjoyable and seeing
the moguls was more difficult.
My left foot
started to hurt (probably due to the oversized snowboarding boot that I
used). I had to overtighten it multiple times, as my foot slid around in
it.
At around 14:00 we stopped by at the Gampen Lodge again for Hot Chocolate (to
warm up). We rode the Nasserein Gondola back down, as the visibility
was very poor. We stopped by Alber Sport, to drop off our snowboards and
boots. Luckily, the shop had a smaller boot for me and I swapped out my
oversized snowboarding boots! After storing all the gear in the locker,
we returned to the nearby shuttle/bus stop.
We
met up with Inna (who had returned from her cross-country skiing
adventure) and waited for the hotel shuttle to pick us up. At 13:30, the
shuttle came by, and we were back in our hotel, resting.
Tuesday, December 24, 2024 - Second Day Snowboarding
We arrived at Nasserein
at around 08:45 and had our lockers opened. We put on our snowboard
boots and helmets. Finally, my snowboard boots were correctly sized!
We boarded the Nasserein Gondola (there was a very short line and quite unexpected for Christmas Eve!)
Here are a couple of GoPro Hero11 videos I recorded on this awesome day:
Here is another GoPro Hero11 video:
The weather was a bit cloudy with light snow coming down.
We
did not expect such a deep coverage of powder. The snow forecast called
for 4 inches of snow, but it seemed that a couple of feet of fresh
powder was there on the tracks.
It was awesome! An epic powder day!
We boarded the Kapallbahn
chair lift and snowboarded multiple times down nearby trails. We were
thrilled to have the chance to snowboard on such fantastic, fresh
powder.
For lunch, we stopped at the
Gampen Lodge/Restaurant. We found a table and dropped off our wet gear
(sharing it with another party).
My Telesin G3 carbon selfie stick (used to hold the GoPro Hero11 Black mini)
had jammed during previous runs and I tried to clear the jam,
eventually succeeding. I also charged the GoPro Hero11, whose battery
had died).
At the Gamden Lodge, we ordered the following items.
- Boris: Spaghetti Bolognese, Espresso, Sparkling Water, Chocolate
- Alex: Beef Soup, Latte, Sparkling Water
My Spaghetti Bolognese portion was huge and it was so delicious! I really enjoyed it! Alex liked his soup so much, he returned for a 2nd helping.
We
continued to snowboard after lunch for a few more runs. We stopped by
for a light snack at the Gampen Lodge, where I ordered another espresso
and chocolate (while Alex had a latte).
As my
feet were tired and my left foot was hurting, we decided to end the day
and rode the Nasserein Gondola back down to the village. We returned our
snowboards, boots, and helmets and boarded the hotel shuttle to our
hotel.
We were surprised to discover Christmas
Presents from both the hotel (chocolates and a bottle of wine) and from
Inna. It was very kind and thoughtful!
Snowboarding St. Anton Report
Highlights
- Epic Powder Day on Tuesday, December 24
- Light powder day on Monday, December 23
Lowlights
- Alber Sport did not have the correct size snowboard boot for me
- Due to the oversized boot, I developed numbing in my left foot
Links
- Ski Arlberg (ski resort)
- Alber Sport (ski/snowboard rental, ski lockers)
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