Take a hat

A hat full of Snow View from the Haitzingalm The Haitzingalm Fresh snow and sunshine, a magic combination. Time for elevenses and the first visit to the Haitzingalm this season. I was rather too anxious to get my caffeine fix however. I took the direct route which involved negotiating some bumps. I'm afraid I took off and did a head plant in front of the restaurant. Anyway, the Owner Lady recognised me and gave me a nice welcoming Gruss Gott. The coffee was just right, a Verlangerter which is a larger, watered down, version of an Expresso. So, fully refreshed, I headed off again. However, I did not realise that during my little embarrassment with the bump, snow had been forced between my helmet liner and the shell. This had melted while I was in the restaurant so the final  indignity I suffered was a cold shower as I put my helmet on. But hey, could be worse, I could be Christmas Shopping! Down the track on H4

TW recently gave me a Kindle e-reader. I was not sure if I would take to it but now would not be without it. Anyway, I said I was going to take it to the swimming pool. TW’s advice (order) to me was that I should put the e-reader inside a conventional paperback when I use it. “Nobody will know you have a Kindle so it will not get stolen”. So, after my first swimming session, I settled down in one of the comfortable loungers alongside the pool to read and I was soon deeply engrossed in my current book by Bill Bryson. However I thought I detected some strange looks, particularly from one bikini clad lady. After a few checks about my person I realised what the problem was! My advice, as a result of this experience, is that if you are going to camouflage your Kindle behind a paperback, just make sure that the paperback is the right way up! 

Skiing above the clouds in the warm December sun.    The village of Bad Hofgastein down below is in cloud Heading down on the Blue run H3 to the Middle Station Wild and windy at the top of H2 A warm wind from the South disturbed the snow at the top and made the cable car swing. The Fohn wind is not a welcome visitor to the valley. People tend to get a bit cranky. Skiing down to the Hamburger Alm No crowds up here on H5. Just some school groups out today along with some Scandinavian exiles from Bad Gastein so that left me plenty of space. The Aeroplanstadl prepares Not all the Huts are open yet. The Aeroplanstadl is getting ready. Hopefully they are preparing this winters batch of Apple Strudel! Winter in the Angertal - 13th December Looking across Angertal to the Schlossalm I suppose in December there is risk that there will be no snow. What is certain is that there will be very few people! It was lucky 13th for us today. Visibility was good, snow was suf

Dreams do come true! H2 in Bad Hofgastein - man on the run - again The Maurachalm - an Austrian Chocolate Box After a few days lifting my heels on the cross-country loop it was time to get up the mountain. There is no rocket that goes up to say the lifts are opening, its a matter of spotting an updated web page. So, I staggered out this morning with my ski's over my shoulder just a bit concerned that it was all a hoax or perhaps a dream. After all, it had been several days since the last snow. The first sign that the opening was real came when two others, ski suited and booted, arrived at the bus stop to join me. Would the ski buses be running? The appointed hour arrived, no bus! Happily it was only a few minutes late - the Austrians at the bus stop gave out a Gott sei Dank (Thank God), they obviously shared my uncertainty. The clincher was that my shiny new lift pass worked at the lift station - the game was definitely on for another season.

A trip to the German Capital By the dome- Transparent Government and Nice Cakes! It’s difficult to believe that just over twenty years ago there was a concrete wall separating the two halves of Berlin.  Today, the fact that it was put there to stop the inhabitants of the socialist East escaping to the West defies belief. Anyway, we defied the strike by the public sector workers and headed off to Berlin for a few days. As usual we were on a budget so our Airport transfer from Tegel into the centre was made, in the rush hour, by bus and then two S-bahn underground trains.  Good value though at 2E30 for a zone AB ticket. These were the first of many trips on Berlin's Public Transport. The automatic ticket machines give quite a number of options. On subsequent days we opted for a day ticket, go anywhere for a little over 6 Euros which isn’t bad. Our expert advisers told us that the area around Nikolaiviertel was a good place to stay so we booked an Apartment within a stone’

Cornwall in November 2011 Welcome Pack - On the table There was a time when you were lucky to get two hotplates and a fridge when you went self-catering. Today, its rather different and our Carbis Bay Apartment had all the equipment you would ever need, and then some.  It even had an Ipad, whatever that is? The Welcome Pack wasn’t bad either. Not sure about scones with clotted cream but the Cornish Fairings were very tasty. View from the balcony

Blue skies over St Ives in November The Harbour in St. Ives November is a good month to visit this part of the world. The traffic is lighter, the prices are lower and the town is much quieter than in the season. The only downside might be the weather. So far, so good, forecast rain did not materialise Portreath and the Mining Trails on Monday Portreath Harbour Mining Trails Well, Monday morning brought cloud. Headed off to Portreath along the coast via Hayle and Godrevy. Met up with TW and TMIL in the Atlantic Cafe for a swift Coffee. Portreath used to be quite industrial and looked a bit sad today. The harbour was used for shipping the tin and copper from the local mines. Its the sort of place that could be really nice with a bit of investment. Imagine there are some great walks along the cliffs and some decent beaches. Anyway, for me it was off on the Mining Trails towards Pool where I picked up NCN 3 for the run home to Carbis Bay via Cambourne. Nice little ride!

The hills are alive! Last of the Autumn rides - in Austria After making best use of the fabulous weather in Austria it’s time to head home. The day has arrived to get the train back to Munich and the flight back to Heathrow. Waiting for a train in Bad Hofgastein Oh well, never mind, back in time to join a Wednesday ride in the Chiltern Hills. The English hills might not be quite so ‘alive’ as the Austrian Mountains but the Chilterns can cause a bit of pain and suffering. The climbs can still be pretty steep although mercifully somewhat shorter. Marlow to Chinnor and back We started with a coffee in Bergers before heading off to Chinnor and a nice Lunch at the village centre. On the way we took in Sprigs Holly Lane, now that is a lively hill! Not so high but can be steep View from the ridge For the run home it was a climb up Aston Hill on the A40 and then on past the Turville Windmill and down to Fingest. The beeches were Golden, the sun was often hidden by c