April 24, 2011, Sueldenspitz (Ortler)

As forecast, the cloudy conditions of yesterday were just a minor interruption in the high pressure weather pattern.  We loaded all the extra safety gear in our sacks and headed up for our final peak of the Ortler part of our holiday.  Even with the extra weight and need for ski crampons, we made good time, probably due to the past nine days of "what does not kill us, makes us stronger."   We enjoyed watching the weekend day trippers heading up from Sulden ski area, as we contemplated where to find the best route down from Sueldenspitz.

Having skied this summit a few times before during the past few years, we were able to find untracked powder from yesterday before reaching the familiar smooth corn again.    Back in Sulden, Rob and I enjoyed a coffee and apfel struedel, since the bus was not due for an hour.  Meanwhile, Grego was arranging a taxi to take us the 25km to Mals with more frequent public transport, brilliant!   For 10 euros apiece we saved a couple hours, waiting time and direct service over local transport stopping every few kilometers.

Always looking for adventure, I decided to try hitch hiking from Nauders where we had another hour long wait for a bus.  A German couple gave me a ride in their campervan (not VW) complete with Powder Magazine and Alpine ski touring guidebooks in the library.  We arrived back to Innsbruck in time for a shower, dinner, and story sharing with Wolfgang.