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Winter brings snow and cold: winter sports enthusiasts rejoice

First lifts running on the first weekend of Advent - cross-country ski trails already groomed

A picture-perfect start to the season is on the horizon. Winter is making its presence felt unusually early with snow and frost, ensuring that skiers, snowboarders, tobogganists and cross-country skiers will be making the most of the first pistes and trails in the Sauerland winter sports arena at the weekend. At least 100 kilometres of cross-country ski trails will be prepared. Skiing and tobogganing facilities will initially be available in four ski resorts.

Alpine skiing

Fresh snow and a now well-frozen ground are making lift operators and winter sports fans happy. The beginning of the week brought around 30 centimetres of fresh snow. Temperatures then began to drop, making effective snowmaking possible. With permafrost and temperatures as low as minus 6 degrees at night, the snow guns run very efficiently and therefore save energy.

The first lifts in the Winterberg ski lift carousel should be running from Friday. At least four interconnected ski lifts will be active between Rauher Busch and Poppenberg. More will be added in the course of successful snow production. The ski area will then be open every day.
The Neuastenberg ski village plans to open its core area on Saturday. This includes two ski lifts and two toboggan lifts. Tickets are available at reduced pre-season prices. The operators will announce on their website at short notice whether the ski area will initially only be open at weekends or whether lifts will also run during the week.

  • The Bödefeld-Hunau ski area plans to run the conveyor belt for tobogganists and skiers from 9 a.m. to 4.30 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. The lower piste area is open on natural snow.
    The Schlossberg/Küstelberg ski area reports 30 centimetres of natural snow and good tobogganing conditions. The toboggan run is prepared for children at the weekend. The operators are also trying to put the small ski lift into operation, but this is not yet certain.
    In Willingen-Usseln, the Emmet ski lift will be running on Saturday and Sunday. The operators have produced snow and will be open from 10 am to 5 pm.
    In the Willingen ski area on the Ettelsberg, there will be a small toboggan run with a conveyor belt on the village meadow.


    The huts and hire shops are open on the open pistes.

    Cross-country skiing

    The first offers for Nordic winter fans have been available since Tuesday. By Thursday morning, the offer should have grown to at least 100 kilometres.

    The club members in the Girkhausen cross-country ski area were particularly quick. There are now more than 30 kilometres of trails there.
    At Winterberg Bremberg and also at Kuhlenberg, cross-country skiers will find several laps with a total of 50 kilometres.
    The Wunderthausen ski club: was already active on Tuesday evening. Around 20 kilometres of trails have been prepared on the Pastorenwiese between Hallenberg and Bad Berleburg.

  • On Tuesday afternoon, those responsible in Willingen groomed the Hochheide and Lüttekefeld cross-country ski trails with a total length of around 15 kilometres.


    The conditions are mostly good. After the snowfall at the beginning of the week, there is up to 30 centimetres of snow on the mountains. After a drop in temperature, frost is now making the ground firm. This is a solid foundation on which the cross-country ski trails are holding up well. If the snow conditions allow, the operators want to expand the offer.

    Winter hiking

    Hikers can experience a fairytale winter landscape these days. The heavy snowfalls at the beginning of the week are over. Permafrost and light snowfall in places are providing wonderful winter experiences. Not all huts are open yet. But there are plenty of opportunities to stop for a bite to eat.

    Further prospects

    The weather services are reporting stable wintry weather conditions. There should be permafrost on the mountains, with light snowfall on the horizon. These are good conditions for growing winter sports activities.

    In view of the cold temperatures in all areas of the two ski mountains, the Willingen ski resort wants to concentrate on effective snow production in order to be able to open on the second weekend in Advent.
    The Schlossberg/Küstelberg ski area wants to continue producing snow in order to be able to run one or two lifts on the second weekend in December.

  • The Eschenberg lifts in Winterberg-Niedersfeld are also considering opening on the weekend of the third Advent.

  • The Altastenberg ski carousel is planning to open as soon as the new lifts are completed. This should be the case by Christmas at the latest.