One week in the Austrian Alps
Outdoor adventures, quiet moments, and culinary feasts.
As our time in Vienna was nearing it’s close, we knew we couldn’t be done with Austria quite yet. As two people who love being outdoors, we felt it only right to take a break from city living and to continue our Austrian adventure into the Alps. While we had high expectations for the Austrian countryside, we had no idea just how magical our week in the tiny village of Au would be!
This post is going to be mostly pictures. I think they’ll do a better job at telling our Austrian Alps story than my words…
We truly stumbled upon Au, a tiny village outside of the small town Abtenau. All we knew is that we wanted to be in nature for the week, ideally close to skiing options. We started poking around Airbnb and chose our apartment, or gasthaus as they call it, because the price was right and the area looked rightish (we didn’t really know). How lucky were we! It was a little farm village heaven, right in the middle of a valley surrounded by gorgeous mountains.
We only had one week, so we knew we had to take full advantage of our short time in the mountains. The goal was to wake up early to adventure before heading back to work in the afternoon. Said adventures included hikes, tobogganing, skiing, exploring a nearby fairytale town, and snowshoeing. Let us begin with the hiking…
We did 3 different hikes throughout the week, the first of which was a quick 5 minute drive from our home. We didn’t see another soul the whole time.
The next was in a neighboring town, Gosau, where we hiked from one frozen lake to another. This one, while not crazy long (about 5 miles), turned out to be quite challenging because the trail was almost completely covered in thick ice. Well worth it for the most peaceful resting point by lake #2 where we were completely alone and all we could hear was each other’s breaths and the snow dripping off the trees.
And our final hike, more of a neighborhood stroll, where we wandered out of our apartment and onto a trail to a waterfall…
Downtown in Abtenau there is a very small ski hill called Karkogel. While there wasn’t quite enough snow to entice us to ski, the hill also offers tobogganing and how could we refuse? One afternoon, after our waterfall hike, we headed to Karkogel to try it out. We were expecting a quick crash course on how to maneuver this sled that would soon carry us down an icy, slushy, twisty, steep, 3-mile run, but instead the folks at the equipment rental shop simply handed us the sleds and helmets and bid us good luck with a smile. Safe to say we were a bit nervous as we approached the top in the gondola, but we gained confidence as rapidly as we descended downhill and ended up going down another 3 times…with a quick pitstop at the lodge at the top for a well deserved vino n beer before our last run.
While I was ready to pivot to tobogganing for the rest of the week, we had been pretty set on skiing and didn’t want to give up on that dream. We ended up venturing to two different mountains close by in the Ski Amadé region that were a much bigger than Karkogel and thus had more (man-made) snow. Leo, a snowboarder of ~25 years, even decided to try skiing with me instead of boarding!! He picked it up infuriatingly fast and was quickly much better than me. Classic.
On Friday we decided to take the day off and venture to Hallstatt, a tiny village on a lake about 30 minutes away, known for it’s picturesque, fairytale beauty. We were a little skeptical because we had heard it can be quite touristy (~700 local residents, ~10,000 visitors a day during peak season 🤯), but we decided to take the risk given it was off-season and during the week.
It lived up to the hype. In both senses. It was ridiculously beautiful and charming, and while it wasn’t too crowded while we were there, it was also covered in tchotchke shops and signs reminding tourists “We live here! Please be quiet!” giving us a pretty clear picture of what it might be like during busy season. Once a small village built around a salt mine, now a village upheld yet marred by tourism. We were a bit saddened and conflicted by it. Here we were, two tourists, thinking about how much more magical it must have been before it was discovered by tourists, but also feeling thankful we got to experience it, but also wishing no one else had found it, but also understanding that the town and local people now depend on tourism, but also getting the sense that the locals didn’t want us there, but but but. All the things. Such are the conflicting feelings of traveling and exploring “off-the-beaten-paths” turned tourist magnets.
Perhaps the most unexpected adventure during this week was after Hallstatt, when we ventured to Krippenstein, about 15 minutes away. We thought it was going to be a quick gondola ride up to a pretty hike, but when we arrived at the base, we proceeded to load onto a very large gondola packed full of folks decked out in ski gear. We started to question what we were getting into. Luckily we had rented snow shoes earlier that morning, just in case, and I had packed a pair of joggers to change into, but Leo was in jeans and his peacoat…just to set the scene for ya. The gondola ride ended up being 20ish minutes and very high off the ground. I wish I had taken a picture but I was too busy closing my eyes and deep breathing through my nose while clutching Leo. Not my favorite turns out!! Google Krippenstein gondola and you’ll get the vibe. When we finally reached the top and walked out (a bit shakily on my part), we were on top of a mountain and greeted by a windy wintery wonderland!! Surprised, excited, and cold, we proceeded to do a snowshoe trek, complete with a breathtaking view of Hallstatt from above.
It was a magical, restorative week, chock-full of nature and adventuring…and also large quantities of Austrian food. Another huge highlight. Traditional food was basically the only option where we were and we weren’t complaining. The warm and heavy meals went quite nicely with our outdoor adventures, and we came to discover that the restaurants were using all local ingredients! An added bonus! We ate trout from the rivers, deer from the mountains, and drank schnapps made out of pine from the forests. Our favorite spot was a little gasthaus across the icy valley from our apartment in Au, Jausenstation Pension Wandalm. We loved it because we were generally the only people there, it was warm and cozy, the food was local and delicious, and the woman who ran it made us feel so welcome while not speaking any English. We did a lot of gesturing with our hands, smiling, and laughing, and turns out, that’s a great way to make friends! We promised we’d return one day soon.
We’ve now been in Berlin for just about two weeks and will be here until mid March. Quiiite a different scene lemme tell ya. More on that later. This weekend we head out on a quick trip to Poznań, Poland to see where Leo’s people came from! Bye for now!
<> Piper
I’m crying! I’m dying! Everything about this week looks so magical. Your post and your pictures capture it beautifully. I needed this vicarious experience tonight❤️
Don't feel bad, Leo skied for years before taking up boarding, learning from a master. What a beautiful week! See you soon!