The Most Extreme Routes of the World

n mountain skiing, as well as in life, the moment comes at times when foolhardily it is desirable to be beyond the ordinary frames of routine. And then the skier or snowboarder approaches the beginning of one of “black” descends, and reckless trembling of heart paints the grey monotony of everyday life in all paints of a rainbow. What are the most abrupt descents of the world and where to find them? The answer can be found on this page.

1. La Chavanette, Avoriaz, France

The Swiss wall – It’s a name that does not say anything to the usual skier. However everybody who ever stood on the very brink of this steep descent of 200 meters, gets shivers merely from the hissing sounds of this name. «Only for professionals» – says the tablet at the beginning of the descent. The beginners, who are not frightened of the warning signs, will be stopped by the steep abyss, so abrupt that the skier who is standing on it is not able to see that there are only continuous potholes passed on a virgin soil and deep snow waiting for him ahead. And if the slope is smoothed out to an ice condition, it is impossible to survive on it.

2. Delirium Dive, Sunshine Village, Canada

Delirium Dive is the most abrupt descent of the Goat Eye Mountain. This is the favorite place of the reckless American skiers, whose adrenaline is warmed up not only by steepness, but also by a high danger of avalanches. The avalanche patrol insists on providing the skiers with avalanche beacons and on giving them shovel and a tester before the skiers leave on a route. Without them it is impossible to get on the elevator. Besides that, there is no possibility to rent equipment on the base of the resort; skilled skiers come here with their own equipment.

3. Grand Couloir, Courchevel, France

The well-known resort of Courchevel already became the talk of the town on news sites about the whims of the Russian oligarchs. And nevertheless the aim of going there is not only to get a cigarette lighted from 500 euro denominations and to squander brilliants. From the elevator station La Saulire starts the most difficult part of descent in the Big Couloir. If it hasn’t snowed for a week or two, the several first turns can be considered as a survival test, but further the route extends and the second half of the descent does not require any extreme skills.

4. Corbet’s Couloir, Jackson Hole, Wyoming, USA

Corbet’s Couloir is the descent, which skilled skiers and snowboarders should overcome at least once a life. The new elevator on the mountain Rendezvous will get any beginner here. Many go for a ride here – to the top point and downwards – on the elevator for several times, before they dare to undertake a reckless descent. However, the slope itself, the angle of which does not exceed 40 degrees at 15-metre width, is not too terrifying. The main thing is to overcome yourself and jump at the very beginning of descent. There are two ways either to jump at the left, then having flown by 3-4 meters to displace weight forward and to join the sharp turn, passing by the big rock, or to make a six-meter jump over the rocks.

5. Backside of the Valluga, St. Anton, Austria

To appear top of the most extreme ski zone of Austria is possible, only having passed the qualification test. The slope has a small angle of inclination and is usually covered with a fine snow, however the comfort of descent is deceptive – after all it ends with an abyss. It is enough to miss the left turn because of fear or inexperience and the adventure will end on the rocks – with 700 meters lower the slope.

6. Tortin, Verbier, Switzerland

The sensory acuity here depends on the condition of a route and the height of a snow cover. When there is much snow, the extremeness of descent may not be noticed. However when the slope is smoothed out, the farther skier flies, the higher are the hillocks and more terrifying is the descent. If the route is smoothed out to an ice condition, its passing turns to a deadly attraction.

First Impressions of Florence

Dome of the Florence Cathedral

Rome’s heyday was back in the days of emperors and gladiators. While many of the current structures in Rome were constructed around the time of the Renaissance, most of that talent and money to create those structures came not from Rome but from the north of Italy, in particular Florence. While Florence’s history does trace back to the Romans, it earned its place on the map as the center of the Renaissance. This is the city of Michelangelo, Galileo, Dante, Machiavelli, the Medici Family, and hundreds of other artists. Compared to Rome, Florence is a relatively modern city.

The moment I got off the train I was able to sense a difference between Florence and Rome. Florence is much smaller. The pace here seems slower. The people and the stores seem a bit more…..classy. There isn’t as much graffitti. While it clearly makes a living off of tourism, it doesn’t seem nearly as overrun with tourists as Rome.

Putting the 'art' back into street art

After finding a place to stay, as is my normal routine when I arrive in a new city, I set off with my pocket camera to get a feel for the place. While I was able to walk to most of the attractions in Rome, it would often take a while and at the end of the day my feet would be killing me. Walking around Florence is easy. You can get to all the major attractions in just a few minutes time. While there is car traffic, you get a feel that the city hasn’t changed all that much in the last several hundred years.

The biggest feature of the city is the Florence Cathedral. Its reddish/orange dome dominates the city skyline. It is said to be the 3rd largest church in the world after St. Peter’s in Rome and St. Paul’s in London. It is however much older than either of those churches with construction having begun in the 13th century, as opposed to the 16th and 17th century for St. Peter’s and St. Paul’s. The interior is downright bland compared to any of the major basilicas in Rome. Given how many artists came out of Florence, I expected it to be filled with art. The most notable artwork in the building is the painting on the dome which shows a scene from the last judgment.

Rub the snout for luck

From there it was a quick walk to the Piazza della Signoria where you really get the feel of being in a Renaissance city. The clock tower, the coats of arms and the sculptures, including a replica of David, thrust you back into the 16th century. Even though I’m a big fan of ancient Roman history, I got a bigger thrill being here than I did anywhere in Rome.

A few blocks further and I was at the New Market where they have the famous bronze statue of the pig. You can rub his snout for good luck, which given how shiny it is compared the rest of the body, it gets rubbed quite a bit.

There are two food items I was told to try while I was in Florence: Florentine steak and gelato. I’d had plenty of gelato in Rome and elsewhere, so I didn’t think it could be all that different in Florence, and it isn’t. The only thing I noticed is that the gelaterias have giant mounds of the stuff which look like something Richard Dreyfuss would have built in Close Encounters of the Third Kind. I did order and eat a Florentine steak, which I learned is just another word for “porterhouse”. Nonetheless, it was one of the better steaks I’ve ever had and it was HUGE. I’m now sort of curious to find out how a steak became associated with the city.

Tomorrow I’ll be seeing the sites properly with more time and taking photos. The next few days I plan on taking day trips to Pisa and Sienna. From there I’ll figure out how to get to San Marino and then Venice. My first impression of Florence are very positive. I can see why so many people have fallen in love with the city and have been so vocal about it on Twitter.