International (Europe/Japan/Southern Hemisphere) Sellaronda, has anyone skied it?

[Started at 53]

I am looking for info on the Sellaronda area (Dolomiti Superski) in Italy. Anyone have any experience skiing that area? If so I would like to pick your brain/memories a bit.

 

[BS Slarver]

Oh yeah, It's awesome.
We based our stay out of Canazei village at the base of the Sella.
New York direct to Milan on United Emirates was a no brainer and skied our tails off for 10 days.
So may cool ski features we've never see anywhere else including Australia, Germany and Canada and the states.

Not to mention the pasta, pizza and prosciutto .

 

[Started at 53]

@Catskill carver
Cool, did you ski the big loop/circle? If so, which did you like better, clockwise or anti-clockwise?

Over there it is blues and reds. What were the slopes like on the US scale?

 

[BS Slarver]

We did ski the Ronda, most of it anyway both clockwise and anti clockwise. As we are easily sidetracked we found ourselves venturing off the beat and path as a new lift or run always caught our eye and honestly that was the best part.
Additionally we had our son, 14 at the time and he was always wanting to see what was around the next bend.

I distinctly recall one morning getting in the van and driving a bit, and I strongly recommend a car for your adventure. Most people drive or take a bus to the tram station. I don't think there was a base lodge anywhere we went, just the tram stations. It's only when you get to the alpine that you arrive at a lodge or complex. It's not uncommon to see 2 or 3 generations of family's with strollers and coolers boarding the trams.
Anyway..... we found a small sign with just a skier icon on it. Following the sign, it brought us to an unassuming base area. We parked the van and hopped on the lift - all of which was included on the superski pass. It was only after taking the lift out of the base area that we had arrived at an area the size of Alta and snowbird combined, mostly intermediate, some beginner, not so much advanced just MASSIVE in overall in size and barely noted on the map.

Shoot me a PM - if you would like a superski map I can pop one in the mail to you. All I ask is that you don't drool on it and send it back when your done.

Disclaimer: our innkeeper explained when we arrived
" we have meters too much snow this year" ..... that helped.
Some regions we wanted to visit by car , we couldn't due to road closures and avalanches.
One could only hope your so lucky to have such conditions.

 

[TonyC]

We had our eye on this area last January, but there was almost no natural snow. However http://www.weathertoski.co.uk/ says the Dolomites have the biggest snowmaking operation in the Alps. Thus we considered a day there anyway after Venice on the way back to Austria, but the weather was not good. Since the scenery is a big part of the attraction, we skipped it.

Catskill carver was indeed lucky as the snow in the Dolomites is quite erratic. https://www.weathertoski.co.uk/european-resorts-a-z/selva-val-gardena-italy/ Our experience in some of the Austrian resorts tells me that high snowmaking dependence is not a deal breaker if there are other aspects that attract you. Snowmaking can be much more comprehensive over there than in the American West, supposedly 1,000km of snowmaking trails in the Sella Ronda resorts. I would still like to see SOME natural snow cover (as we had in Austria) to improve surface conditions even if there's not enough to ski off piste.

 

[newfydog]

A cool day, one nice alpine town after another, but really, not very good skiing. Lots of short lifts to mediocre crowded runs. The day we did the full loop the best run was when we went a bit off route to do the full Val Gardina downhill course. Nice concept, circle the dolomites on skis, but not something to do more than once.

 

[Prickly Jones]

Yeah, it's not really a skiing experience per se.

 

[fatbob]

Lots of info, photos and some videos here

http://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?t=127302&start=1680

Snowheads go every year the same week if you wanted to hop on that trip (might not be the cosy romantic experience you may be looking for) but plenty of people know the area well and are more than happy to answer questions.

 

[Choucas]

It's usually very crowded on the pistes on the Sella Ronda circuit, often with long lift lines, and not the most interesting skiing. There's so much very good skiing to be had in the Dolomites, other than being able to say that you did it, it's not the best use of your skiing time. Canazei is a good base from which to explore. Corvara and Arabba too. Val Gardena less so because it's located on the western end of the lift system, though there is some stellar skiing to be had in Val Gardena.

 

[Cheizz]

I would look at the Sella Ronda (CW or CCW) as a highway to different parts of Val Gardena, Val di Fassa, Arabba and Alta Badia (the four regions that make up that circle of ski runs). Get off it as soon as you can: great runs and very quiet.

For more specific info on that region, PM me (been there several times).

 

[Started at 53]

Thanks all

We are looking to the ‘18-‘19 ski season as we have things pretty planned out for this season and I need another season under my skis to be ready for all that intermediate terrain

I was kind of testing to see if the terrain would be too much for me by that time. Double Blues would likely be past my skill level.

@fatbob
Not really a romantic setting I am looking for, more so a cool experience and something out of the ordinary. We skied the Dolomites this year and loved it although it was a bit late and not a large mountain. As for the food, it was amazing.

@TonyC
We are not off piste skiers, so as long as the trails/groomers have snow we are happy as can be.

@Catskill carver
Thanks for the offer of your map, but I would not trust myself to not drool on it Kidding aside, there is a fantastic FATMAPS like 3D app offered on the Dolomiti Superski website I downloaded with unbelievable tools for route planning from any point to point area on the circuit. And your device has enough memory, you can download the high definition images. Mine does

And being I spend a lot of idle time at 36000’ (Kinda like right now), I like stuff to play around with and waste time.

 

[TonyC]

That second week in Austria was 90% groomer skiing but still very enjoyable. But it was most enjoyable at the Saalbach complex where snow surfaces were best and there wasn't much on-slope congestion. Sella Ronda is sounding more like SkiWelt but with much better scenery. That's worth 2-3 days in my book but perhaps not a whole week unless the snow is good like Catskill carver saw.

Many of these big places have marked "circuits" that you can follow around the entire complex in a day. It's better to study a trail map in advance and divide into day-size segments that you can ski more thoroughly, as we did for both SkiWelt and Saalbach. We only had one day at Kitzbuhel, so skied that in one direction from Kirchberg to Pass Thurn, then took buses back to our starting point.

 

[BS Slarver]

My observations from Sella Ronda

When you look at the photo from @newfydog It's clear the locals love the piste, on the left of the photo you see no one skiing in the fluff or crude. It's as if being just off the groomed is criminal. @Started at 53, that is a great place to work on your skills even if it's on beginner or intermediate terrain.

Granted we had exceptional conditions but I'm constantly amazed how many people, especially the Italians won't venture from the groomed.
It was most evident with the SL ski selections that everyone was on even beginners doing wedge turns.

 

[dlague]

@Catskill carver
Cool, did you ski the big loop/circle? If so, which did you like better, clockwise or anti-clockwise?

Over there it is blues and reds. What were the slopes like on the US scale?

My son was stationed in Germany and took a trip there. He did the loop - I will have to ask him about the terrain.

 

[Cheizz]

Going off the groomed, marked runs simply is off-piste, backcountry. In Europe, regular insurance doesn't cover that. There is no such thing as 'off-piste within the boundary'. THat's why most Europeans stay on the groomed runs.
So, going off isn't actually criminal, but uninsured, not necessarily cleared (avalanche, rocks, etc.) or patrolled. That's why people mostly don't go there unless they have the means, gear and knowledge to take care of themselves if something happens (i.e. avalanche beacon, shovel, robe, knowledge).

 

[BS Slarver]

To clarity my point and as the photo shows, all the skiers tend to bunch together, there is not one skier to the left of the lift ?
IMHO - most skiers I observed moved in single file and only on groomed portions of the runs leaving some really good snow.... let's just call it, the side of the trail not necessarily off piste.

 

[Started at 53]

That photo looks like moguls to me, but I could be mistaken

 

[Cheizz]

That photo looks like moguls to me, but I could be mistaken

They are moguls. But what has been said before: The Sella Ronda 'loop' is not that special in itself. Get off it to find the best runs and some peace and quiet (and pasta, always look for pasta)... Just use the Sella Ronda as a highway, not as a goal in itself. My opinion.

 

[fatbob]

[QUOTE="Cheizz, post: 147032, member: ]That's why people mostly don't go there unless they have the means, gear and knowledge to take care of themselves if something happens (i.e. avalanche beacon, shovel, robe, knowledge).[/QUOTE]

The robe is particularly important if you are going to be an off-piste jedi

The Italians are particularly conservative re piste skiing but it is a country where the caribineri will lock you up if you you endanger others while skiing offpiste.

 

[Prickly Jones]

It is actually illegal to ski offpiste in some parts of this country, though "illegal" is always open to interpretation here. Also, at the Sella Ronda, you may find the offpiste is just a thin layer of blown-in manmade snow over rocks or grass. I can't think of a major resort anywhere in the world more dependent on manmade cover. They do it well, don't get me wrong, but it's not known for offpiste for a reason.