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Tags: Film Festival Travel / Australia / Skiing / Vermont Travel / Japan / → All Tags

Baby, It's Cold Outside, Especially at the Backcountry Film Festival

Experience the Australian Alps from the comfort of a movie theater

Film, at its best, has the ability to transport us to a different time, place or state of mind. The great leisure of cinematic travel is that you do so parked in a plush theater chair for two or so hours, with a jumbo pack of Milk Duds and Red Vines by your side. The Fifth Annual Backcountry Film Festival aims to take theatergoers on a tour of wintry locations the world over, from Vermont to Japan.

Your lift ticket to mountainous and blistering-cold regions comes in the form of films shot in the backcountry of different nations, including unlikely places such as Australia. It's a little-known fact that there is snowboarding along with surfing down under.

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Tags: Ski Travel / California / California Travel / Skiing / Free Stuff / → All Tags

Mammoth Mountain Opens Early, Free Skiing For All!

Skiing in Southern California sounds like a horrible oxymoron, or a poorly conceived of joke. But it's true, Golden State foreigners: There's snow to be found around our usually heat-stricken climes, namely at Mammoth Mountain.

In recent years we've heard reports of poor snowfall and late season starts in some California skiing regions, Lake Tahoe in particular. That isn't the case at Mammoth in 2009, though; the mountain was hit with two-to-six feet of snow ahead of schedule, according to a report from the Los Angeles Examiner, boding well for ski bunnies itching to hit the slopes early. The Examiner states that Mammoth's current "26 inches of snow is the highest October total since the 2004-05 season," with "warm temperatures approaching 60 degrees" around the mountain. Now that's oxymoronic.

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Tags: Ski Travel / Skiing / Ski Resorts / Snowboarding / Sports Travel / Active Travel / → All Tags

The Ski Season Is Already Underway In Colorado

Many people are still putting the final touches on their jack-o-lanterns, but it’s already time to break out the skis from the storage unit. Winter has arrived extra early in some parts of Colorado this year. Last week a baseball playoff game was canceled due to a little snow and sleet, and the Loveland Ski Area fired up the lifts for the first time this season on October 7. It’s been cold enough and they've had the snow-making machines running at full force to get everything ready for the beginning of the season.

The resort is about 50 miles outside Denver and this is the first time they’ve opened this early in about 40 years—guess there’s no trouble with global warming up on the slopes. Unless some other ski resort sneakily opened their facility without any fanfare, Loveland is the first ski resort to open in North America this year.

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Tags: Global Warming / Mount Everest / Explorers Club / North Pole / South Pole / Skiing / Eric Larsen / Ecotourism / Science / Mountain Climbing / → All Tags

Three Poles in 365 Days: Polar Explorer Plans Chilly Trip for Global Warming Awareness

A polar explorer named Eric Larsen is about to embark on an ambitious adventure that will bring him to the North Pole, South Pole, and summit of Mount Everest, the world's tallest mountain, all within 365 days. The Save the Poles Expedition, as he's calling it, is designed to bring awareness to the problem of global warming by traveling to the most notorious frozen places on earth, reporting the latest climate data, and using the platform to advocate strategies for reducing carbon emissions.

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Tags: Skiing / Australia Travel / Mount Buller / Ski-Resorts-in-Summer / → All Tags

Winter Down Under Starts Early at Mount Buller

Winter is coming to Australia, but that's definitely no reason to avoid planning a Down Under trip, especially not with the crazy off-season airfare sales going on. Half the country's still warm in winter anyway, and if you're a snow enthusiast, then you'll be pleasantly surprised at the ski resorts in the states of New South Wales and Victoria.

This year in particular looks fantastic for the Victorian snowfields. The Mount Buller resort region has already had a weekend opening for skiers, making it the earliest start to the season in history, and five weeks ahead of the usual schedule.

The official season (along with all the appropriate celebrations) will launch on June 6, 2009, with a big festival over that weekend. The fact that the resort website mentions free hot chocolate during the opening weekend is enough to entice us, without hearing how snowfalls should make for some excellent skiing and snowboarding this winter.

You can reach Mt Buller most easily from Melbourne - it's a three and a half hour drive, or a bit longer on the bus, in the Alpine National Park. We like it because it's not quite as corny as going to the snow in the Snowy Mountains further north.

Related Stories:
· Mt Buller Ski Resort [Official Resort]
· Buller to Open for Skiing After Cold Snap Snowfall [The Age]
· Australia Travel: Sand, Surf and … Snow? [Jaunted]

[Photo: Mariyath]

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Skiing Is Just The Beginning At Big Sky

If you’re trying to fill up that US map on the back of the Winnebago with state stickers, you should head to Montana this winter. Besides getting to say you’ve been to Montana, there’s some pretty good skiing at the Big Sky Resort. The resort is only a 45-minute rental car disaster away from the Gallatin Airport in Bozeman. There’s daily service on most of the major airlines, and a couple of smaller ones as well, so you should be all set.

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Tags: Ski Resorts / Skiing / Active Travel / Winter Travel / → All Tags

Austrian Slopes Have Us Forgetting About Switzerland

Over Switzerland? We reckon skiing in Austria is just as good, and often not as pricey. Sure, there's a bit less Swiss chocolate but the Austrians still know how to give you a good time going down a mountain.

The Arlberg region in the southwest is one of the most well-known resort areas with half a dozen choices for skiers including St. Anton and St. Cristoph--perfect spots if you feel you need some saintly blessing. If you get there before January 30, low season prices let you ski for three full days for €110 ($147).

Closer to Salzburg in central Austria, Krippenstein is not for beginners but we love the name too much not to recommend it. It's famous for some spectacular off-piste possibilities with huge vertical drops and is home to the Freesports Arena. Three days here run just €86.20 ($115).

If snowboarding is the way you prefer to glide then Hippach is a good spot for you. Close to Innsbruck in the south, Hippach has 45 ski lifts and reliable snow cover--and quite a bit of local fame among snowboarders. A part of the massive Zillertal ski area, you can shred Hippach as well as many other peaks in the region on a Zillertal SuperSkiPass; four full days are €133 ($177).

And before you waste pre-trip time worrying about global warming, don't forget that Austria has put giant blankets on some of its peaks to prevent premature melting.

Related Stories:
· Ski Arlberg [Official Site]
· Krippenstein Skiing [Official Site]
· Zillertal, including Hippach [Official Site]
· Austria's Melting Peaks [Jaunted]

[Photo: rossjamesparker]

Tags: Healthy Travel / Winter Travel / Skiing / Adventure Sports / Winter Festivals / → All Tags

Penguin Plunges Keep Burlington Fit

Don't know about you all, but we've spent the past week in heavy denial that the holidays are over. It's just so depressing--not only the whole back-to-work thing, but transitioning from two weeks of festive eating and drinking into a time when we're all supposed to be dieting and getting fit. Ugh.

So while we're certainly not about to stop writing about chili half smokes and 22,000-pound cakes, we'll at least make an effort to cover some healthy places too.

So where are these healthy destinations? According to the CDC, Burlington, Vermont is the healthiest city in America. Despite its proximity to the Ben and Jerry's factory, a full 92 percent of Burlingtonians are supposedly in good health. So what are all these hippies doing to stay so healthy, and how can we get in on it?

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Tags: Crime / New Year's Eve / Skiing / → All Tags

Aspen Defuses New Year's Bomb Threat

God save our aging, semi-retired celebs! After four homemade "gasoline bombs" disguised as holiday gifts were found in Aspen, police there say they found the body of the would-be bomber, a convicted con man who apparently shot himself before his New Year's plot could unfold.

The explosives were found at two banks and in a nearby alley along with notes demanding $60,000, leading police to seal off a 16-block section of downtown, shuttering restaurants and bars gearing up for a huge night. Celebrations in the celeb-stuffed ski village ground to a halt, and the professionally planned fireworks show was also canceled.

Locals say the suspect, James Blanning Jr., was upset that he hadn't cashed in on the town's transformation from mining outpost to celebrity ski haven, though we'd classify his apparent expertise in grandstanding and dramatic plots as straight out of Aspen resident Don Johnson's playbook.

Related Stories:
· Bomb Plot Interrupts New Year’s in Aspen [NYT]
· You, Me And Some Skis [Jaunted]
· All She Wants For Christmas... [Jaunted]

[Photo: non no yes]

Tags: Celeb Travel / Skiing / Kate Hudson / Goldie Hawn / → All Tags

You, Me And Some Skis

Kate Hudson and mom Goldie Hawn were spotted shopping in the celeb haven of Aspen on Sunday while Kate's son Ryder was actually checking out the slopes. With 65 inches of snow at Aspen Highlands and a 58-inch base at Snowmass, it's good to see someone's taking advantage of high quality pre-season skiing!

Kate and former husband Chris Robinson were married in Aspen back in 2000, and her mom and Kurt Russell are part-time residents, along with Michael Douglas, Kevin Costner, Jack Nicholson and Don "How's my stubble?" Johnson.

Even more celebs swing by for occasional visits: Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon dropped in this Christmas and Paris Hilton and new BFF Brittany hit the town this weekend.

Related Stories:
· All She Wants For Christmas... [Jaunted]
· Skiing coverage [Jaunted]
· Celeb Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: PopSugar]

Tags: Ski Travel / Skiing / Winter Travel / Switzerland Travel / → All Tags

Switzerland Skiing Has A Sell-Out Season

Skiing in Switzerland has usually struck us as a bit stereotypical--not to mention expensive--but if the statistics are right, well, we might be wrong.

Apparently this winter, the economic meltdown has not managed to melt the Swiss snow at all. Quite the opposite, in fact: There have been unusually heavy snow falls across the Swiss Alps, and they've produced the best skiing conditions in a long time. And despite the credit crunch, bookings are just as high as last year, and many thousands of skiers are headed to Switzerland for their winter vacation.

But not wanting to sound too cheerful, the Swiss Tourism Board has a gloomy explanation: A spokesperson said she thought tourists were still flocking in because they have "a greater need now to escape from everyday life." Or it could just be that plenty of people love skiing, right?

Related Stories:
· Snowfall Buries Skiers' Credit Crunch Fears [Reuters]
· Easy-to-Reach Skiing: Elm, Switzerland [Jaunted]
· Switzerland Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Kecko]

Tags: Pre-season Skiing / Skiing / Outdoor Travel / Winter Travel / → All Tags

Five Resorts Already Worth Visiting

With Thanksgiving, holiday parties and family commitments all piling up at the end of the year, we usually don't get a chance to strap on our skis and boards until well into January. But while snow's been causing airport hell lately, it's also been dumping on resorts across North America. So in honor of a sleepy week coming up--and those vacation days you still haven't used--here are five places worth checking out before the new year rolls around.

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