“This work, preparing the trails with the piste groomer, is actually my hobby. When I am in my guesthouse there are always people who want things from me. Up here preparing the cross-country skiing trails I am alone. When I head out in the piste groomer I know that for two hours nobody is going to bother me. Sometimes I will see roe deer, maybe a stag. You can see where they have been by looking at the tracks. It’s a good way to get away from it all and appreciate the beauty of nature.

Here in Kartitsch we don’t have a big ski resort. There is just one piste, which is serviced by the longest draglift in Austria. Back then when the lift opened it was a sensation, but these days people don’t really like using draglifts. Times change. We sat down together a few years ago and talked about what we could do to attract more visitors. We have had a high-altitude cross-country skiing trail here for 15 years and now also offer more winter hiking trails than before.

One piste and one lift – that’s nothing special. What is special is that we have a plateau in the middle of the forest with seven or eight kilometres of beautiful flat terrain at 2,000 metres above sea level. That’s something that makes Kartitsch unique.”

Heinz Bodner, Owner of a mountain hut, taxi company and ski resort

Heinz Bodner was 19 years old when he turned down an offer to work as a cook in a fine dining restaurant in Salzburg and decided to stay in his home village of Kartitsch. These days he runs a mountain hut, a taxi company and a ski resort as well as preparing the cross-country skiing trail. Together with other locals he has worked hard to make Kartitsch a popular winter hiking destination.