Big Mountain Ski Tours in the Stubai Valley

Half a dozen huge adventures on some of the most legendary peaks in Austria!

Charlie Boscoe

Images

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Skinning up the Pfaffenferner Glacier.

by Charlie Boscoe

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Looking back down the Pfaffenferner from the Pfaffenjoch.

by Charlie Boscoe

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Looking down on the Gaisskarferner lift and pistes.

by Charlie Boscoe

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Midway up the Pfaffenferner Glacier.

by Charlie Boscoe

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A happy but cold (!) team beneath the final summit tower.

by Charlie Boscoe

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Beginning the skin up the Pfaffenferner Glacier.

by Charlie Boscoe

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Crevasses opening up on the Sulzenauferner Glacier as summer approaches.

by Charlie Boscoe

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Almost at the Serlesjöchl

by Charlie Boscoe

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Looking back on the ascent route from the Serlesjöchl

by Charlie Boscoe

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The first few turns in the couloir

by Al Schulkins

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Great snow in the middle section of the line

by Al Schulkins

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Looking down the lower half of the couloir

by Al Schulkins

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Scrambling up the ridge to the couloir entrance

by Charlie Boscoe

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Beautiful views on the final traverse back to Maria Waldrast

by Charlie Boscoe

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That moment of anticipation....

by Charlie Boscoe

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Starting the ski down from the summit.

by Charlie Boscoe

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Bootpacking the final steps to the summit.

by Charlie Boscoe

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Mellow skiing midway down the descent.

by Charlie Boscoe

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On the steep upper face.

by Charlie Boscoe

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Looking up at the upper section of Serles.

by Charlie Boscoe

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As good as it gets!

by Charlie Boscoe

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Great tree skiing low down on the route

by Charlie Boscoe

Description

Home to some of the biggest and best ski terrain in the Eastern Alps, the Stubai Valley has a well-earned reputation as one of Austria's premier ski destinations. There are 3 major ski resorts in the valley itself - Elfer, Schlick 2000 and Stubai Gletscher - and hundreds of popular ski tours as well.

Schlick 2000 is an utterly brilliant ski area, best known for its legendary tree skiing, and for the wonderful ski tours which can be accessed from it. These 2 guidebooks should tell you everything you need to know about the area - https://fatmap.com/guidebooks/6840/the-top-10-freeride-lines-at-axamer-lizum-and-schlick-2000 and https://fatmap.com/guidebooks/6843/6-of-the-best-ski-tours-from-axamer-lizum-and-schlick-2000.

Stubai Gletscher lies right at the end of the eponymous valley, and is the access point for one of the best multi-day ski tours in the Alps; the Stubai Alps Traverse - https://fatmap.com/guidebooks/37/big-mountains-big-views:-the-stubai-alps-ski-traverse.

In this guidebook we're focusing more on day tours, all of which can be done without needing to stay in any huts. Some of them make use of chairlifts, but others - such as the 2 routes on Innsbruck's most famous peak, Serles - are all human-powered, and feel all the more adventurous for it.

The Stubai Tourist Board recently dreamed up the "Stubai Seven Summits" challenge, the goal of which is to climb 7 of the highest and best known peaks in the Valley. In this guidebook you'll find details on how to ski 3 of them, including Stubai's highest peak - Zuckerhütl, and its most famous, the aforementioned Serles. There's also 2 routes accessed from the Schlick 2000 lift system - a huge and atmospheric couloir, plus a cruisy journey into a wide and often powder-filled bowl. In addition there are details of how to climb Habicht - a high and mighty peak which is visible from much of the Tirol's other mountains and is another of the "Stubai Seven". If, having skied Habicht, Zuckerhütl and Serles, you're still keen to complete the Seven Summits, then here's how you get them done in the summer months - https://fatmap.com/guidebooks/170/the-stubai-valley-seven-summits.

So there's your year sorted; high mountain ski tours in winter and spring, adventurous hiking in summer - all without leaving the Stubai Valley!

Adventures

Zuckerhütl

A wonderful, varied and scenic tour to the highest peak in the Stubai range.

Habicht

A long tour which takes you onto one of the Tirol's most famous peaks.

Serles

An exciting and varied route up the peak which dominates the Innsbruck skyline.