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Riksgransen |
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Europe offers more lift-served powder skiing than anywhere else in the world. Ski journalists Vanessa Webb and Pat Sharples, authors of The Top 50 Ski and Snowboard Resorts in Europe, pick the five best places to lay down fresh tracks. Click to view Top 5 EU Powder Ski Resorts.
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Best for Heliskiing (Riksgransen, Sweden) |
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 Powder hounds the world over should put heliskiing in the midnight sun in Riksgransen, Sweden, in their ‘list of things to do before you die’. The heliskiing here is out of this world - you will never, ever, forget it. In the first winter months Riksgransen is in complete darkness.
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Only in February are there sufficient daylight hours to kick off the season. The hours of sunshine gradually increase until midsummer’s day, when the sun never goes down. It’s pretty difficult to sleep when the sun’s pouring through the window but there is a preferable alternative – you can get your skis or board out and head up the mountain to ride the powder at midnight.
During this part of the season, lifts are open 10pm–1am. The lack of traditional resort features in Riksgransen discourages most of the tourists, and attracts only the most serious of freeriders such as yourself. |
Finding Powder |
To get the most out of Riksgransen’s amazing mountains you definitely need a guide and a helicopter. Expect to be dropped off in areas that man has never touched. Or at least it will look that way.
There are numerous peaks within reach by helicopter and as many as five can be attempted in a day. Alpine Madness is the company to heliski with, the Riksgransen hotel will sort it all out for you.
If you are lucky you might get a trip with Krister and his avalanche-trained dog. The dog kept up with us down some steep faces in 2 metres of powder. Impressive.
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 If you can’t quite afford a chopper every day of your trip panic ye not, the whole mountain is geared towards freeride and there are loads of really accessible steeps, cliffs and shoots. A good route to explore is called Lilla Ölturen, or ‘The Little Trip for a Beer’ (there’s a nice place for a beer at the end). You start from the summit of Riksgransen and head down to the bottom of the Norweigian Björnfjell railway station. You should take a guide to show you the best spots to find untracked powder.
If you embark on a half-hour trek from the top lift station you can get to the fantastic Mörkhåla snow bowl.
Book off-piste guiding and heliski trips at the Riksgransen Hotel (0046 (0)980 400 80, info@riksgransen.nu, www.riksgransen.nu).
The freestyle scene in Riksgransen is pretty big too. Dedicated freestylers are up on the hill each day spending hours building huge gap jumps and crazy hips.
Jon Olsson (X Games gold medallist) is often in the park working hard and helping all the up-andcoming rippers. There is a half pipe and a quarter pipe that are used for the Swedish Snowboard Cup and for all the freestyle camps that are held here.
The Scandinavian Big Mountain Championships (SBMC) are also held in Riksgransen. It is one of the oldest extreme competitions in the world, and has now reached its 16th year. |
Where should I stay? Eat? Drink? |
The answer is simple… the Riksgransen Hotel. This is the resort; there is nothing else. It contains the shops, restaurants, spa, bars and nightclub. At least you don’t have far to stumble back from the club to your room. And it’s quite refreshing to be surrounded purely by serious freeriders.
The famous ice hotel (and the world’s biggest igloo) is in Jukkasjärvi, about half an hour from Kiruna, the closest airport to Riksgransen. We definitely recommend a little stop off on the way there or the way back, for a quick drink in the Absolut Ice Bar, and maybe a night stop for the full experience. |
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| Prices: Get your credit card out! |
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