Anyone still riding?

Europe had a bad start but a great finish to the season. Hintertux is open all year and it looks like the middle of February up there right now.


I was in Oslo for closing weekend but the video below was shot a few weeks after that. I think a lot of places had to close with lots of snow due to staff and planning but theres plenty fun to be had for those who want to hike.


This weekend is the Riksgränsen Banked Slalom. A huge chunk of the snowboard industry goes up there in May every year to ride in the midnight sun, party and hit massive quarterpipes. Some years there is even powder. It's really far north, just on the border between Sweden and Norway, near Narvik and Lofoten where there is some great freeriding at this time of year.

snowyc said:

Can you say a bit more about riding there in summer? I did Hintertux at the end of October 22 and it was really bad. Not much open and very bumpy from late morning.

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Yeah, September to November it can be as cold as winter but minus the snow. ICY.
I've been there a lot in summer. During the lockdown a few years ago I spent a month sleeping in my car in the car park and riding every day. For a summer glacier it has a lot of terrain where most places just have a few runs, slalom gates for ski training and if you are lucky, a park. The snow is usually classic summer: slightly hard in the morning, softening up to full on slush by the afternoon. I have had pow days in summer too. 10-40cm overnight is not totally uncommon and while not ultra-light blower pow all day it is still great for the first few hours at least. There is good, accessible off-piste but it is a glacier so crevasses are a real threat. I've had to ollie a few big surprise cracks that gave me pause for thought. There should hopefully be a lot of terrain open this summer due to late season snowfall. It really still looks like winter up there.
There is a big cafe/restaurant with a huge deck at 2600m that has cheap gulasch or other soup for vegetarians and reasonably priced beer. Summer is nice because you can ride in the morning then spend the afternoon in shorts, mountain biking, hiking, bathing in the waterfall, skateboarding in the car park or just relaxing in the sun (usually). The main business is ski teams training who each book a lane of slalom gates, otherwise there aren't that many people around and half of them are hikers. Queues are not a thing. I love it as I get the all-round nature mountain experience without the crowds, plus the alpine meadows and forests in their summer clothing are really beautiful. I can highly recommend it!