photos by Whit Richardson

Austrian Arlberg I Haute Savoie/ Haute Tarentoise I Les Trois Vallees/Haute Savoie

Austrian Arlberg
Descend into the history, heart and soul of skiing. Oft copied and never equaled , the Arlberg is the birthplace of modern skiing. High mountains and soft hills are covered each winter by a deep blanket of legendary snow. The sense of warmth of the classic Tirolean ski village must be experienced to be believed. Above the villages lie hundreds of miles of marked pistes. Thorough exploraiton can take a lifetime.

Nestled in the heart of the Tirol, a breathtaking mountainous province in Western Austria, the Arlberg region is unparalleled for the variety and beauty of its ski terrain. The milestones of modern skiing and ski life were marked here. The Arlberg - Kandahar, the first alpine combined ski race was held here in 1908. In 1910 Johannes Schneider, then a ski guide at the Hotel Post in St. Anton began his study of ski theory. In 1920 his Arlberg Technique was born and revolutionized the sport of skiing the world over. Ultimately it was brought to America by Sepp Ruschp and his Arlberg Ski School at Mt. Mansfield (now Stowe in Vermont).

Attempts to recreate the color and character of skiing in the Arlberg have been vigorously pursued the word over with little success. At best a hotel here and a restaurant there have captured the spirit but nowhere has anyone integrated the hotels, the villages and the regional antiquity into anything approximating the original.

Austrian innkeeping is legendary. They have set the standard that the world looks up to, not for decades or even centuries, but millennia. The hotels and hostelries of At. Anton, Stuben and Lech are the most delightful you will find in any ski experience.

The Arlberg ski system (it is a disservice to call it a ski area!) offers lifts and runs in the hundreds and acres in the many thousands. The difference between this terrain and North American areas is that every acre is skiable in the Arlberg. Add to this a 5000 foot lift served vertical drop and the result is ecstasy!

Haute Savoie/Haute Tarentoise
We begin this journey in Chamonix, the birthplace of alpinism. Tucked beneath the snowy summits of Mont Blanc 13,000 feet above, Chamonix is one of the most effervescent mountain towns on the planet. The Aiguilles, or 'nnedles" soar above the village to their pointy summits, making for a startling backdrop to the villagers scrambling around town with their baguettes and bundles of local cheeses and bottles of wine. There are a number of fabulous ski stations here with different exposures and elevations ensuring that there is always good snow to be had.

Just over Mont Blanc, on its southern side, we find Courmayeur which along with la Thuile, our next destination, lies at the headwaters of the Val d'Aosta which drain into the Mediterranean Sea only a couple of hundred kilometers away. The south Face of Mont Blanc must be seen to be comprehended - and even then it requires a stretch of the imagination. Himalayan in proportions, its ice and granite ramparts cascade over 12,000 feet to the lush meadows of the Val Veni and the lively trattorias at the base of the ski area.

The Val d'Aosta is unique and needs to be understood. For millennia the region of the Val d'Aosta was one of the main access routes between northern and southern Europe. Celtic people entered the area between the fifth and third centuries B.C, the Romans marched through leaving roads and bridges that are still visible today, and during the Middle Ages pilgrims on their way to both the Middle East and Rome found their way through this small but important valley. This ski adventure takes you through a region of the Italian Alps that remains extremely rich with old traditions and customs.

Sheltered by the towering peaks of Europe's highest peak, Mont Blanc, the Matterhorn and Monte Rosa, the reaches of the Val d'Aosta remain entirely mountainous. In the valley itself exists a unique culture, complete with battling cows, (an old Aosta tradition), Roman ruins and a hundred different castles. Glaciers, Gothic sculptures, Baroque village churches, numerous fortresses, spectacular views and incredibly varied ski resorts like Gressoney, Champoluc, Courmayeur and the little known Alagna ("Freeride Paradise") also add to the mix. The food is hearty and the local inhabitants speak French, Italian and a bit of Patois, a dialect whose origins lie in Provence.

Some call this region the "Rome of the Alps"since the Val d'Aosta has a milder, sunnier climate than the resorts on the other side of the peaks. Opposite the Val d'Aosta lie the towns of the Valais in Switzerland, and the Mont Blanc Massif in France. To the south of the valley, the Gran Paradiso National Park forms an entirely different mountain range that offers an opportunity to enjoy some of the most remote, high altitude hiking in the alps with an opportunity to witness an abundance of wildlife.

Originally, the Gran Paradiso National Park existed as a hunting preserve for the French speaking Dukes of Aosta. The preserve was later donated by King Vittorio Emanuele III, who gave his own hunting reserve to the state to become Italy's first national park. Today, the park encompasses approximately one sixth of the regional territory and hosts over 4,000 steinbock, or big horned sheep. In addition to steinbock, the Gran Paradiso provides home for a number of protected species such as marmot, chamois and ibex. Some hikers have even enjoyed glimpes of the rare ermine, ptarmigan and golden eagle. This area is slowly becoming an extensive heli-ski destination.

Since the region of the Val d'Aosta and the accompanying Gran Paradiso exist as Italy's most sparsely populated area, the soaring peaks, hidden valleys, expansive glaciers still wait to be discovered and enjoyed.

Les Trois Vallees/Haute Savoie
Lets put this in perspective, the late Ski Country Magazine once made an interesting calculation. You can take the six largest ski areas in the United States and fit them inside the Trois Vallees and still have 10,000 acres left over! And with all the lifts providing access to virtually every point in the valley, the region is so vast that intrepid skiers can head off into the hinterlands and ski for thousands of vertical feet without ever seeing a lift, and in some cases without seeing another skier. If you are someone who feels comforted by lifts within sight, you will have your fill. If you are the type of skier who wants to feel you are alone in the winter wilderness, the Trois Vallées has plenty to offer.

Skiing just doesn't get any better served than that found in this region. When you gaze at the mountains from any valley, what you can see you can ski-and it is most likely lift-served to some degree. Mountain restaurants are plentiful and the food is as good as anyone imagines when they conjure up French cooking. Make sure to test the tasty local specialties such as tartiflette, fondue and raclette.

The geopolitical boundaries of the Savoie have migrated continually since the Romans "civilized" it approximately two thousand years ago. Originally Sapaudia, anthropologists can trace hominid inhabitation here back 70,000 years.

In its "modern"context the Savoie was the domain of the House of Savoy. This, the oldest ruling house in Europe, was founded around 1000 by Humbert the Whitehanded. It was developed by the Dukes of Savoy and was made a sovereign state between the Kingdom of France and the Holy Roman Empire. In the early 1800's the Dukes were clever enough to establish themselves as the Kings of Sardinia at which point the Savoie became a province of the Sardinian States.

The Savoie has always had a colorful history. One such example is a brief occupation by the Burgundians who, occupants of what now is western Switzerland, were chased over the high country into Savoie by the Huns in the latter 5th century. Described, thus, "the Burgundians are brave soldiers and good, but heavy and course people; they consume a lot of garlic and smell mightily since they are in the habit of greasing their hair with rancid butter". Better them.

A frequent target of invasion by France, the Savoie was finally annexed by France during the French Revolution. The region was subsequently returned to Sardinia. The Dukes of Savoy, always looking out for a good career, move became the Kings of Italy in 1860 and the Savoie was given to France once and for all. Approved by plebiscite by the Savoyards, the transfer emerged as two French departments: the Savoie and Haute-Savoie.

The departmental seat of the Haute-Savoie is Annecy but modern mountain lovers will always focus on the small herding villages that once dotted the alpine landscape and have now been converted into perhaps the most sophisticated ski system in the world.