From where I was staying in the village of Aigen, it was less than a half-hour drive through the village of Donnersbach ("Thunder Creek") to Planneralm on the left or Riesneralm on the right, which I was planning to ski the following day.

It always helps to tout a superlative and Planneralm claims to be the highest lift-served ski area in the region of Steiermark with its summit at 2,200 meters/7,200 feet. Because of its favorable location, they're able to get away without snowmaking: 100% natural snow, which is advertised in a poster at the base:

Basically a 1.5-mile-wide bowl with three lifts and a vertical drop of 2,000 feet:

The offpiste there had stiffened up a bit since the last snowfall so I stayed on the groomers doing high-speed laps most of the day. The natural snow felt fantastic, especially where it had been warmed up by the sun.





Skier's left had photogenic trees on the lower half:




The pride of the ski area is the 1973 Gläserboden t-bar:

... which culminates in a convincingly steep stretch at the top:




Traversing across the ridge:

Looking out over the BC backside of the ski area -- you can see a set of tracks down the middle:

Around 2 pm, I stopped for a late lunch at this cute hut:

Vegetarian spätzle with a side salad, a Weihanstephaner beer, and the obligatory apple strudel: 17 euros/$19. An excellent deal and my most expensive meal of the entire week.

An outstanding day: Planneralm absolutely lived up to expectations.