Running a hotel is a strange business. You just about get ready to start the summer season. The hotel DIY is done, the kitchen is ready, the furniture is on the terrace and the sun is shining down in its wonderful Carinthian style. So it should be time to relax in the sun with a cold drink and wait for lots of lovely bikers to arrive and enjoy the place with you. But no! Instead you have to be thinking about how to attract an equal number of equally lovely winter sports types once the temperatures drop and the whole place turns white!

Winter is a more difficult season for us – we are both lizards at heart and enjoy the long hot days of June and July. And although we can aesthetically appreciate the crisp clear days of winter sunshine and admire the ease with which Austria and Austrians don their winter clothing and produce a whole different range of adventures and treats for their winter guests, we are not experienced at winter sports ourselves and cannot talk with the same authority to winter guests as we can about our beloved biking.

But having established a firm customer base for the summer (not that we won’t keep on trying to improve that of course!), the time has come to turn our efforts to developing a winter client list too. Last winter we experimented with sub-leasing the place to a Hungarian ski group concern, who effectively took over the place, brought their own staff and just got on with it. On paper it sounded a good solution. These folk had an existing customer base and all we had to do was act as caretakers. In the event however it was clear that without the same sense of ownership and interest, their staff were not committed to providing an acceptable standard of service. Plus once again we noted that people in large groups behave very differently to people in smaller numbers – what would be entirely unacceptable behaviour in a small group situation becomes apparently normal when there is a large group to hide behind and sadly the damage and disturbance caused far outweighed the advantages of the arrangement we had made.

So for Winter 2012-13 we have decided to bite the bullet and set off on another marketing adventure to improve take up of the many pleasures on offer in a Carinthian Winter. To be successful we need to add some serious expertise to the Team Hochalmspitze portfolio, so in our inimitable way we have set about recruiting a few of our friends and colleagues to the cause!

Many of you will know our friend Leigh Bateman – our international frequent flyer biker friend, who has helped out at both Motorcyclelive and Motorbeurs this year. Leigh is also an experienced and avid skier, so his brains are being very purposefully picked! A more recent recruit to Team Hochalmspitze is David O’Mahony – our much fêted ‘Master Tiler’, who is helping us look at the potential of the Irish winter sports market.

And now we want to get you all involved too! We need your advice, your insight, into what we can offer to attract people to stay with us in January, February and March next year. Obviously we are not directly on the ski slopes, which is what many people want, especially those for whom skiing is an art form and a real passion. But from other areas we know that there are plenty of people who are happy to drive 30 minutes to an hour in search of their adventure and one of the big advantages we have here is the number and range of smaller resorts that you can get to very easily by car. (Remember that road clearing is NOT a problem here – nothing stops moving because of the snow!). In addition we can direct people to a range of other winter activities that go on all around us, ice climbing of course is a key one in this valley, but there is so much more available and within reach:  snowshoeing, dog-sledding, ice diving, skating, cross country skiing to name but a few, (and a few more in pics below) plus of course a whole host of winter festivals to enjoy.

So get your thinking caps on – what can we do to make sure that the famous Hochalmspitze hospitality extends into the winter season too. Ideas on an E Mail, via Facebook, Twitter, anything you fancy really, would be very welcome. Also suggestions where and how we might advertise – anyone know of any good exhibitions we could turn up to for instance?

Looking forward to hearing from you!

We are back home, Sandra has gone to work and I have just edited the photos.  We got there Friday in time to help set up, and it started that evening at six.   Think it went very well with lots of genuine interest.   We were the only stand of the type, and think this made a difference.   Different type of crowd as well.   More people who have been riding for a while, and more people who have always wanted to do a trip into Europe.   Spoke to some people who own bike parts and clothing shops in the area, gave them some brochures and they said they will try to keep in touch.  We also spoke to a couple of people who organize the tours for there biker groups.  These seem very promising.   Some interest in coming with Sandra and me in August too.   You will know better than me what percentage actually follow up on the interest, but I think this was well work the effort.

And here some telling comment from a guest and friend who visited the show.

I met your lovely mad thing this weekend, she does you both proud, and she was doing a first rate job of pulling the punters into the stall.

We can only assume he was referring to Jane! ‘Our lovely mad thing’ will be well chuffed with that.

BMAD 12

BMAD 12

BMAD 12

Few more photos on our Facebook page – mostly bikes of course!

Thanks a million you three – you are really great mates and Team Hochalmspitze is lucky to have you! See you soon. xx

Hello my deprived readers – fear not, there is going to be another year of entertaining bulletins from the land of the failed house painter (thank you Mark – always acknowledge your sources, and he does appreciate the publicity).  I was here in March and have to confess that Mark was the recipient of the first bit of this year’s Misadventures.  You will be able to tell where I have been a bit idle and copied most of my email to my Little Brother because there is the usual z/y thing going on as I take on the German keyboard.  In England at the moment, and back to normal re the spelling, but more of that anon, as Ros and John like getting their pound of flesh (thank you Shakespeare) and expect these articles to be full of  things about them and Austria and bikers.  Self, self, self.

March, as the eagle-eyed amongst you will have spotted, is a bit early as the season proper does not start until May when the main bike roads stand some chance of opening, weather permitting.  However, I have lots of pre-season news as there was slightly more prep to do this year before the season kicks off and guests start infesting the place again.

John, in a move which had my son asking if was taking lessons from me (no, John is capable of this all on his own initiative!) thought it would be a good idea to build Gowers’ Towers in much the same way that knights of old went off looking for dragons to slay to impress their Fair Ladies.  Ros was delighted at the prospect but the prospect was the easy bit.  The task was to take the bedsit in the basement that they have been camping in for several years, merge it with the “workshop” (junk room) that John had created and which had rather more floorspace than the bedsit, and create palatial accommodation for his Fair Lady. (Editor’s note 1 – not to be confused in anyway with singing East End flower girls or even slightly more upmarket versions by GB Shaw!)

Fantastic idea and brilliantly executed (I can say that now it’s done) John, and Ros is delighted at the end result.  The work comprised: clearing the workshop and knocking out the window for French doors so that at a later stage a balcony can be created over the back garden for those early evening G&Ts (Editor’s Note 2 – Chilled White Wine for me, please!) as the sun sets – not that there is time when you would want to sit out and it’s too cold the rest of the time!  Sorry to burst that particular bubble you two!

The workshop is now the living room with a proper kitchen at the front end, leading round to Ros’s office (desk in the corner where the original kitchen sink unit and microwave used to be) and a proper bathroom with a bath!! (I am with Ros on the subject of baths being very different animals from showers and absolutely necessary for restoring calm and sanity to even the worst of days – candles are an added extra which could become essential in very short order.  In my view).  Outside the bathroom, Ros has sanctioned a modest workspace for John to play model trains – sorry craft precision models of historically important steam engines.  And past that is the new bedroom.  Not sharing more detail on that. (Editor’s Note 3 – whilst Jane is right in her description of the office/bathroom/model train area/bedroom description, 1 set of French Doors doth not a living room & kitchen make! Lots more work to yet!)

Well, just a bit, since I know you all appreciate the detail.  Ros has some fabulous bedlinen (when it’s shiny and silky and has embroidery, the thread count  becomes irrelevant: it’s a girl thing) which is now fit to take it’s place in the new bedroom because it’s been washed.  As has every other thing which John left in the drawers while he was busy knocking down walls, building new ones etc.  Apparently, it didn’t occur to him that moving all that out of the area before he began building in earnest would be a Good Idea which might save someone (me) a lot of work later down the line.  So twelve machine loads later…………….

So, you are now wondering why my son would be asking about the lessons from me thing.  As projects go, Gowers’ Towers is a big undertaking all on it’s own.  Walls down, walls up, electrics, plumbing, plastering, tiling etc.  Add to that the decision to take up the stair (3 flights) and landing (3) carpets in the guest accommodation building and replace them with tiles.  And bear in mind that John spent chunks of time on his own over the winter doing those little maintenance bits and bobs which have to be done as well.  Oh yes, and that the two cold rooms had to be stripped, cleaned, all shelves dismantled and the whole lot painted and put back together again.  And Ros was booked in for the first of her foot ops (only one to go Ros!) in April and you can see that busy might not quite cover it.  I used to decide, every year, 3 days before Christmas that I would decorate a room (thank you Jeanne) before going to collect my parents for the duration – this was up there with that and then some.

The universe does, however, provide.  And it did, in spades.  Michelle and Robert took their Land Rover over at the beginning of March and spent 7 days lifting carpets (the easy bit) and then scraping off the well-glued on underlay (a pig of a job for which they cannot be praised highly enough – you guys are the best, not least because it meant I didn’t have to do any of it!)  And yes, I know John, you cannot get the staff.  Well, you can, but ………….

I arrived with Vernon (whole paragraphs all to Vernon will follow, patience dear reader is a virtue) a week or so after that marathon effort.  We did some basic clearing up in the kitchen areas and I threw myself into taking out the cold room shelving.  Two weeks later, in an idle moment, it occurred to me that either photographing it (actually that was John’s slightly acerbic idea) before I started or numbering the shelves and brackets might have been a good idea.  Bit late, sorry John, enjoy the jigsaw puzzle  – look at the positive, it’s good for the brain to have something different to do from the routine pouring pints and BBQs.

As it was John’s birthday a couple of days after I arrived, we had an evening off and had a party – 20odd (and some were very odd) turned up for that.  Excellent evening and Vernon did the honours with the food with some assistance from yours truly. And the next day, in that hair of the dog way which always seems a good idea at the time, we went off to Gmund for a wine tasting.

Monika and Achim had come from Graz for the birthday bash and stayed over with a couple of friends so there were 8 of us.  I will return to M&A in chapter 2  this one has enough to cover as it is.  But it will be worth the wait.

And it was a very good tasting, all 4 hours of it, though events bz that stage are largelz guesswork since we were all standing bz the end (Editor’s Note 4 – well mostly all, mostly standing, most of the time!) but that is all I can vouch for.  Somehow we got up the rather steep and winding road to the castle and had dinner with lots of water in mz case.  I then nodded off in mz plate (thank you for the photos Ros………always a good look and one which needs to be captured for posterity if only to obviate the need for replay, replay, replay) but was woken at regular intervals by the other diners who didn’t think I should be showing them up (pas possible – as Mr Sarkoyz’s compatriots would saz – in mz view!) like that.  This would be those companions who had started the dining experience with lots of verz loud shhhhhhhhing and the word “Kinder”!  said in one of those comic stage whispers which could probablz be heard on floors above and below the one we were on but which had the (possiblz) desired effect of making families leave the room verz soon after we were seated.  Result.

In the interests of global warming and saving the planet we did not spit out anz of the wine we were tasting which means as there were 8 of us and 10 emptz bottles lined up on the table bz the time we had finished, we all had just over a bottle each.  And verz nice most of it was too, if zou discount the one that smelt like the contents of the large bowl of bottles and jars we rescued from the cellar last week and which had opportunelz been under the leakage (fixed now!) from the cloakrooms off reception.  Not nice at all.

The other entertaining fact was that this was an event organised bz the Bank Manager, Peter. Those of you who have been keeping up will recall that Ros and John’s bank manager is a bit different to those one encounters in England these days.  He operates his bank as if he was a proper manager and has conversations with customers which result in things like “of course zou can extend the overdraft and it will onlz be at 1% and zou can paz it back during zour open season rather than trzing to find the monez when zou are shut in the winter……”.  Verz civiliyed. Wears open necked shirts, shorts and sandles in season and has long hair in a pony tail.  In his spare time he runs a little wine shop and goes off round vinyards (someone has to) looking for cheeky little numbers for his thirsty clients. (Editor’s Note 5 – the more observant & less sloshed amongst you will note Peter has had his hair cut – last year!)

For the tasting he had chosen a t-shirt with a galleon emblayoned on the front and the words “Flogging Mollz” in large Gothic script.  I think I did well to remember most of that, given the rather trying circumstances.

Palm Sundaz the next day so bz the time I surfaced (about 0930ish and without a headache – there is no justice as one or two others pointed out somewhat acidly I thought) the main street was thronged (well, what passes for thronging in this part of the world – about 10 people all at once in case zou need the full picture) with people striding purposefullz to church clutching home-made bunches of  spring flowers.  And as I speak thez are all striding back again still clutching the bunches of flowers.

Daz off followed, rumour had it as we had lots of leftovers from John’s partz on Fridaz night.  Verz sunnz but wind up a bit again.  Vernon and I went walkabout – there is a new czcle path being constructed along the river which winds into Gmünd – apparentlz Wolfgang of the Donkez Park has sold his length of riverbank (a long stretch) to the local council so it could do this.  Ros sazs he got serious amounts of monez for that, so I can see whz he would – I just hope the Anti Stress Bank (mz favourite perch bz the river, with a book on those quiet hours I sometimes get given for good behaviour) survives.  Should do because it literallz juts out over the river, but we shall see.

OK, enough for this chapter.  There is lots more, including blow by blow accounts of tiling, bike rides and food (Vernon!).

Watch this space folks.

Jane

Just had an E Mail from the Company that owns the Großglockner, the Nockalmstraße & the Goldeckstraße with the following info.

Großglockner opens tomorrow – Saturday 28th April

Nockalmstraße opens Tuesday May 1st

Goldeckstraße opens Saturday 5th May

We also know the Maltahochalmstraße opens Tuesday May 1st.

National Park Card also comes into effect on Tuesday May 1st.

John will undoubtedly have some new video/photos soon!

Many of you will already have met our friend and partner-in-biker-fun, Mike Molony and his lovely wife Brenda, seen in the featured photo last September on the Großglockner ride out during their 2011 Europen Tour (staying with us for 5 nights of it of course!) If you don’t know Mike, we recommend you have a look at his Paek Rider website now! Mike has been sharing our stand at #Motorcyclelive for the last 2 years. (this year 24th November to 2nd December!)

After a successful tour last year, and selling out the same tour this year, (looking forward to seeing you in September if you are one of that lucky group!), we are very pleased to hear that he has set up a further tour, this time featuring some of the great riding and sights to be found in the Czech Republic and our wonderful part of the Austrian Alps! The tour is in July 2012 (17th to 29th) and is bound to generate a lot of interest, so we recommend you get in fast! Full details below!

Peak Rider Czech-Austria 2012

Czech & Austria 2012 Itinerary

Season Opening Special – Friday May 11th from 19:00 – Vernon’s Beer-Battered Fish & Chips. Great with a glass of Guinness of course!

Vegetarian/Vegan option available.

Download details here. Fish & Chips EN

At this time of year we get lots and lots of enquiries from potential guests asking us when is the best time to come, when will the passes open, is there snow in July? Our answers are almost always the same – any time is a good time, the passes open as soon as the roads are clear of snow (nothing to do with current weather conditions but rather how much snow has fallen over the winter and what the risk of avalanche is) and you can have snow any day of the year at the top of the mountain, but once Spring comes snowfall rarely lasts long and is always quickly cleared away. Plus the weather conditions (and online reports) are so localised that if its not possible to cross one particular pass, its almost always possible to find another that is open and raring to go!

But having lived here a while we know that the very best times to ride are usually early and late in the season, when the roads are practically empty, the best places to stop and stare often just for you alone and the alpine spring flowers or autumn colours add an extra special something to the experience.

This year our local high roads are planning to open as follows:

Grossglockner High Alpine Road – Friday April 27th

Nockalm Road – Saturday April 28th

Malta High Alpine Road – Tuesday May 1st.

Tuesday May 1st is also the day the National Park Kärnten Card come into force and from then on, until the 26th October, our guests can ride these roads, plus the Villacher Alpine Road (which remains open all winter as there is a ski area at the top, but is tolled from May 1st onwards) for FREE!

And to make things even better, we have 2 special Spring Offers to throw into the mix!

• Book for any 3 nights Half Board between April 27th and May 25th and get the 4th night free PLUS a free beer or wine with every evening meal or
  
• Book for Ascension weekend (May 17th to 20th) and get 3 nights for just €130 Half Board.

As many of you know, the Hochalmspitze Team has grown a little this year and we will now have Vernon Last in the kitchen (from May 10th onwards).

This has several advantages for you, dear guest. Firstly it means you get to eat Vernon’s great food, enjoy his special themed nights (Fish & Chip Supper, Curry Night, Italian Night, Chinese Buffet etc etc). Second you will have more cake offered to you than you can ever eat!

And thirdly it means John will have far more time to lead ride-outs, plan new and exciting routes to explore and generally have fun on the bike, which will make him happy, which will make me happy, which just adds to the whole Hochalmspitze Experience for us all! So if there is somewhere you would like John to guide you to, now is the time to put in that request!

All of which makes an early trip down, just TOO good to miss! We look forward to seeing you soon!

Those of you already following us on the social media channels will be aware that we have an exciting new addition to our staff team for 2012. Our new chef, Vernon Last, has been visiting us over the last couple of week in preparation for starting work in mid May. He already has us hooked on his wonderful cakes and freshly baked bread and has some great ideas for the summer menus – but be assured some of your old favourites will be in there too! In fact we had to make sure he could cook Hunter’s Chicken before we could also announce the return to Malta of the lovely Rosalie Hutton as our waitress – she said she wouldn’t come unless that was going to be on the menu! Thankfully Vernon’s version is just as good as John’s and she is certain to join us in mid June! Add Jane to that mix and you know the Hochalmspitze Team will be ready to welcome you to our wonderful part of the world!

Just to tempt you further, we know the Grossglockner High Alpine Road and the Nockalmstrasse are set to re-open slightly earlier than normal, on the 27th & 28th April respectively, so those of you who want to take advantage of the early summer sunshine, the empty roads and the alpine flower meadows had better get booked in quick! John’s bike is already back on the road, so he will be riding both those roads on their opening days and posting the videos too! Watch out for some great early booker deals to be released this week! Look forward to seeing you!

Just in case some of you doubting souls are thinking that we are waiting for others to start the work here are a few photos of work so far.  There will be plenty left though so the more the merrier.