The Guide - Snow Report 21st Nov - Accommodation Engelberg | Ski Lodge Engelberg

RIDER: Victor Hallengren

Well, we had a good week.

In the house, we had the pleasure of hosting Olle Regner and Sandra Lahnsteiner, both professional skiers, who came here for some relaxing days and for shooting a new catalog for J.Lindeberg sports. In addition to these friends of the house we also made some new acquaintances, Erik Ehrner – a ski guide with a small group of six happy campers who came down looking for some powder. They were not disappointed, to say the least.

We took the time to have a small chat with Erik after his days here. Simply because it is so much fun making new friends and getting to know why they came here, to us in the Engelberg Valley. Erik has been skiing since the age of 3 and is a certified Canadian Ski Guide, CSGA. He has a friendly and humble personality and enjoys a good piste as much as he seeks powder when there is good snow to be skied. He is also a “guide ambassador” for Mammut and cruises around on a pair of DPS skis. (Seems like a good guy? Yes, we agree)

Why did you become a Canadian ski guide?
What does THAT do on the CV? Haha no, joking aside, to me it was double-bottomed. One reason is that I want to give others the opportunity to do what I do and to go where I go. Simply because I’ve realized, over the years, that people’s reactions are more about this being a luxury for the wretched ones and that being able to do this really is not a matter of normal. That is why I want more people to be able to access it, for the pure fun of it.

The other reason is pure competence, I want to know what I’m doing on the mountain.

What kind of ski guide would you describe yourself as?

Depending on how you define it, I’m probably a blend of powder and leisure. Basically, I’m a certified Canadian Ski Guide, CSGA, which has no Swedish equivalent (yet). It means focusing on so-called mechanized skiing, ie cat skiing, and helicopter skiing. Because most skiers can handle cat skiing or a helicopter ride, this means: to be able to lead people down untouched terrain, no matter how you got up. Personally though, I now prefer skitouring.

Snow report Engelberg – What is your experience of the snow on the mountain this weekend?

The snow as such was amazing. Almost without wind impact and cold the first days, sometimes thigh deep. By contrast, the layer underneath was a bit more of a concern. As it was the first major dump of the year, it was not so stable underneath. I saw that many did Steinberg, which I immediately rejected because I haven’t been skiing it before the snow came. When the first dump comes, especially on a glacier, of course, smaller cracks of fairly unstable snow bridges are covered and many people feel false safety: “If they go there, it must be good and safe.” I was much more concerned that someone would fall down a crevasse than to end up in an avalanche. As there were still so few skiers on the mountain, we started to bet on the most easily accessible first, which proved to be a good idea. Without effort, we could get February snow right outside the piste, for example next to the lift on Titlis. Not so steep, but very effective. Laub, of course, was completely unthinkable, given what happened last week and that we had no previous local knowledge.

Tip from Erik, if you’re in Engelberg: “A small thing that’s easy to forget is how to handle all the non-skiing guests. When an Asian group wants to take a picture of you and your friends, do an act instead of being annoyed. They will be so happy if they can borrow a stick and be photographed with it. Enjoy yourself for a while and it will be so much fun. Become an ambassador for skiing – not the unfriendly skier they met one time.”

If you want to know more about Erik, who is working for Arctic Elements Heliskiing (Sweden) and Active Ski Travel (Sweden) and has his own Company – Powder Mountain Consulting – go ahead and give him a shout.

Hard Facts:

Snow depth Mountain (Slope, 3.020m): 215 cm
Snow depth Location (1.050m): 20 cm
Snow condition: Hard, powder
Latest snowfall: Sunday 19th
Avalanche alert level: Moderate

Snowdrift: https://www.slf.ch/en/avalanche-bulletin-and-snow-situation.html