Sauerland Ski Lift Association Closes After 53 Years

After more than half a century, an era comes to an end

The Sauerland Ski Lift Association is ceasing operations after 53 years – a decision made last year. For decades, the association has provided important impetus for winter sports in the region: from providing guest information in the early years to intensive exchanges between lift operators on technical developments in more recent times.

Since 2003, the Sauerland Winter Sports Arena has taken on some of these tasks. In the early years, the focus was on applying for funding; today, disseminating snow information to guests throughout Germany and beyond is a central task.

To ensure that the valuable exchange between lift operators continues in the future, a technology working group is now being established at the Sauerland Winter Sports Arena, which will meet at least once a year.

Despite this, the hilly region of Sauerland, between Cologne and Kassel, proves that altitude isn’t everything when it comes to wintersports.

There’s a ski region an hour’s drive east of Cologne and Düsseldorf that not many people have heard of, not even Germans. Start to tell them about this self-styled ‘largest snow paradise north of the Alps’, and they’ll look at you as if you were mad. But it is there, in Sauerland, with a dozen different venues (biggest names Willingen and Winterberg) and over 100 pistes. And yet its peaks rarely reach higher than 800 metres.

Sauerland’s lower altitude means that it is warmer, but also that its snow is far less reliable, although snow cannons work hard to supplement what nature donates. Accordingly it’s a destination for shorter stays and last-minute decisions, and for people who want to mix skiing with other activities for a broader-based stay. It is also a great deal cheaper, with a day pass at Winterberg (more than 50 ski lifts) costing €20, half the price of a pass in the Alps.

Specialities here are toboggan runs, cross country routes and floodlit skiing to accommodate locals who want to ski after work, and there’s a big après- ski scene, particularly in the mountain hut on Ettelsberg. The weekends can get particularly busy with Dutch visitors, for whom Sauerland is no secret.