Ligita, our snowboard loving plant based cook, shares her thoughts on spending her first ever Summer in the Austrian Alps...
'For quite a few winters my passion for snowboarding drew me to the mountains, but once the summers came I headed for the coast.
Not last year….
Living in the Austrian Alps in summer is extremely special. Wildlife around this area of the Hohe Tauren National Park thrives. Flowers blossom and there are thousands of butterflies, including the rare Apollo butterfly, originally from Russia, but with a small population here in the Alps.
Each month of the summer different plants and flowers bloom here at 1800mm which is the height of our base at MoaAlm Mountain Retreat. I love cooking, so naturally I always look for edible plants. It was interesting for me to note that Nettles that normally grow in the Springtime at sea level, appear around the mountain pastures of Kals Am Grossglockner, much later in May. The berries which usually sprout in August, are still growing here until October! First we had delicious but tiny Alpine strawberries, then Blueberries, Cranberries, wild Raspberries, and lastly, the Red Currants.
Living on the edge of the Hohe Tauern National Park means that we become the neighbours with wildlife. We learn how to share the same space without interfering, without harming and respecting each life form. My favourite animal is probably the Marmot. When they sense danger they emit an extremely high pitched scream. The sound to the human ear is really funny. They are quite clumsy animals, but they move fast and tease our dogs Szuka and Zora by popping out of different holes!
MoaAlm Mountain Retreat is tucked away from all the busy life. It’s literally the end of the road. Here, life is tranquil, simple and mindful. Mountains make you humble. Our guests are astonished by the beauty of this place. Being in nature, having a stress free life, not rushing and being mindful contributes to your well-being. Our summer activities consist of mainly hiking and Yoga. There is the chance to go mountain biking, paragliding or just simply sipping your tea with a freshly made plant based cake while in the hot tub watching stunning sunsets'
If you want to escape the crowds and enjoy the remoteness of this area of the Austrian Alps thus summer then check out our hike and yoga holidays. We are looking forward to continued summers in the mountains.