The Albonabahn and Stuben

I was born in Stuben on June 24, 1890. I have nothing special to say about my youth. But the great experience for me was the first skiers on the Arlberg back then: Viktor Sohm, Professor Karl Gruber, Dr. Madlener and engineer Adolf Walther. I followed in their footsteps on my days off. If I saw the athletes from a distance on a slope, I would run over and watch them. If the skis were outside the hostel, I might have shyly picked them up, but I would never have dared to strap them to my feet ...

Hannes Schneider (1930)

After the construction of the Arlberg railroad between 1880 and 1884, Stuben was a lively place and the economy was revitalized, the inhabitants experienced hard times in the years following the opening of the railroad. The road over the Arlberg was hardly used, which is why only a few people found their way to the village. The upswing in tourism finally brought a turnaround, without which the village would probably have been relocated sooner or later. In the picture: Ski pioneers in Stuben (around 1908)

St. Anton has long enjoyed a reputation as a famous winter sports resort, while idyllic Stuben has a strong attraction for skiers. And to praise St. Christoph and Zürs as a base for learners and experienced skiers and snowboarders of all ages and genders would be like >carrying snow to the Valluga in winter<.

Fritz Kurz (1913)

In the first decade of the 20th century, most peaks in the Arlberg region were climbed on skis for the first time. This also applies to the Kaltenberg, which Karl Gruber, Gustav Aubin and Wilfried von Seidlitz reached on March 6, 1904 after a ski tour through the Maroital starting from St. Christoph. Viktor Sohm, who was unable to accompany the three ski tourers due to an injury sustained while ski jumping, discovered the later common approach to the Kaltenberg from Stuben via the Albonaalpe a year later. The ski touring area around Stuben was described in numerous ski guides, especially in the interwar period.

Every visitor is pleasantly surprised by the amenities the hut offers. The central heating - the whole house is warm - is particularly pleasant for winter mountaineers. 24 very good beds and just as many good mattress dormitories invite you to rest after a tough trip. The fact that the former construction hut has been converted into another dormitory means that 80 visitors, or even more in an emergency, can be comfortably accommodated.

Paul Bantlin (1930)

The construction of the Kaltenberghütte in particular brought the catchment area of today's Albonbabahn into the spotlight. This can be traced back to an initiative by the Reutlingen section of the Alpine Club, which developed an increased interest in establishing a branch in the Arlberg region in the 1920s. In October 1926, the section leased a building site from the town of Bludenz, on which a hut with a material ropeway was subsequently built above the Albonaalpe and the Bludenzer Alpe. The "snowshoe hut" was inaugurated in April 1929.

The founder of the Skischule Stuben was none other than the youngest brother of ski pioneer Hannes Schneider, namely Friedrich Schneider. He founded this institution promoting winter sports with three ski instructors in 1924. When he moved to Zürs in 1928, where he then ran the ski school for decades, Albert Walch took over the Stuben ski school.

Franz Josef Mathies (2005)

Founded 100 years ago, the ski school in Stuben am Arlberg played a significant role in the development of skiing in the village. Guests learned the Arlberg technique taught at the time on the slopes all around. Advanced participants were able to undertake longer ski tours.

In 1949, a small T-bar lift was installed on the Gitzibühel, initiated by ski school director Adolf Walch and Emil Walch from the Mondschein inn. The lift was called a pendulum lift, which could pull three people at a time from the Rut up to the level of the later access road to the Hubertushof, the difference in altitude was around 60 meters. The first operator was Egon Begnini. In 1953, Adolf Walch built a reversible lift on his own initiative in Oberer Anger, which was replaced by a surface lift in 1956 and is still in operation today.

Hans Thöni (2005)

After Austria's first T-bar lift was put into operation in Zürs in 1937, the age of technical lifts began in Stuben in the post-war years. These offered new opportunities, especially for the ski school. The T-bar lift built in 1956 - still known today as the "Walchlift" - was taken over by Stubner Bergbahnen in 1986.

The residents of Stuben wanted to open up the magnificent ski slopes of the Albona. On a wonderful April day in 1955, the main initiator and innkeeper Emil Walch set off with the then mayor Karl Brändle, technical advisor Sepp Bildstein and the ski school directors Friedrich Schneider and Adolf Walch to carry out an initial route study on the Albona. The fantastic firn descent strengthened the determination of these courageous men to open up this wonderful, extensive ski area to as many ski enthusiasts as possible ...

Festschrift 30 Jahre Albonabahn (1986)

The boom of the 1950s encouraged the leading tourism experts in Stuben in their plans to build an Albonabahn. Most of the town's residents took part in the idea of founding a company.

In order to open up the Albona and Kaltenberg slopes, which have been popular with ski tourists for years, Albonabahn Gesellschaft m. b. H. in Stuben a. A. is planning to build a chairlift from Stuben to the Albona ridge in two sections. The lift is to be built as a single chairlift and will primarily be used for winter sports. The route, whose starting point is behind the church in Stuben, runs from there in a south-westerly direction to the middle station and from there in an approximately southerly direction to the mountain station on the Albonagrat. The altitude of the valley station is 1410 m, the middle station 1846 m and the mountain station on the Albonagrat 2364 m.

Announcement of the negotiation of the railroad permit (March 6, 1957)

After the Albonabahn company was founded in July 1956, planning for the construction progressed. However, it was not possible to start operations at Christmas 1956 due to the excessive ground clearance. Only the joint venture with the newly built Muttersbergbahn in Bludenz made it possible to start operating the Albonabahn in April 1957.

Picture: Construction work at the mountain station

We were able to open on April 13, 1957, which was a Saturday, practically at the end of the season. Back then and for a long time afterwards, we skied until Whitsun if the snow conditions were right.

Erich Berthold (former operations manager)

The first operations manager of the Albonabahn was the chief fitter from the company Girak, which was responsible for the project. He was later succeeded by Erich Berthold. In April 1957, Emil Walch had already applied for a business license for the Albonabahn to operate a restaurant at the middle and mountain stations. A year later, he resigned as managing director for health reasons. This was taken over by Mayor Karl Brändle, whose position as Chairman of the Supervisory Board was transferred to Hans Steiner. In October 1962, he submitted a request that the Albonabahn should also be operated in summer. This was implemented for the first time in 1963.

Picture: Busy activity at the middle station (around 1965)

Projects to increase capacity have been on the table for two years, as the transport capacity of 320 passengers per hour no longer meets the actual demand and is not expected to generate a return on investment. In the spring months of March, April and May, at least 2-3 times the frequency could be achieved with a modern system and with the same number of staff.

Old mayor and managing director Karl Brändle in a letter to the then president of the state parliament Dr. Martin Purtscher (1976)

After the problems of the expensive avalanche barriers, which would also have affected a large part of the popular ski area, had been resolved, the way was open for an economic renovation of the Albonabahn in 1978. On the initiative of Karl Brändle, the involvement of all the cable car companies around the Arlberg was implemented in 1976 and the Albonabahn was thus given viable financing. The Stubner Fremdenverkehrsgesellschaft was founded with the participation of St. Anton, Lech and Zürs. Mayor Erich Brunner from Klösterle, who had already been managing director of the Sonnenkopfbahn since 1975, was appointed as the new managing director.

In the picture: Winter operations in Stuben (around 1965)

When the Valfagehrbahn opened, Erich Moosbrugger, Robert Pfefferkorn and I went down the steep slope once. We stopped at the top, then Pfefferkorn said to me: "Erich, you'll see, now things are looking up in Stuben."

Erich Brunner, former managing director and mayor (1940-2018)

The solid economic foundation made it possible to make new investments. In 1980, a long-held wish was realized with the construction of the Valfagehrbahn detachable triple chairlift, connecting the Albona with the St. Anton ski area. In 1983, section I of the Albona itself was converted into a double chairlift, followed two years later by section II. In the course of this, the ski area was extended to include the Albona ridge lift. By moving earth, the lift routes could be designed in such a way that the problem of ground clearance could now also be solved. With the construction of the new Valfagehrbahn in 2005, capacities were expanded considerably.

Picture: Albona I double chairlift (built in 1983)

The "Woodstock of Snowboarding" offers 1000 vertical meters of treeless north-facing slopes instead of groomed pistes, fine food from the communal kitchen instead of nouvelle cuisine and heartfelt hugs instead of prize money.

Paul Gruber (founder of the Longboard Classic)

Founded in 1999 by Paul Gruber, the Longboard Classic is the biggest longboard and old-school snowboard event in the world. The event, which takes place at the end of the winter season, has earned a legendary reputation in the scene for a quarter of a century. Hundreds of fans from all over the world make the pilgrimage to Stuben am Arlberg to experience the Woodstock of snowboarding. Nowhere else is the spirit of snowboarding celebrated more authentically than here. Every year, over 400 enthusiastic snowboarders set off from the Albonagrat over 1,000 vertical meters to Stuben.

Picture: Participants of the Longboard Classic Stuben (2018)

The Albona is characterized by very long runs where you can make a lot of vertical meters. The snow is usually very good due to the north-facing aspect. If you want to go even further, you can also head out on your own with touring skis.

Nadine Wallner (two-time freeride world champion)

The Arlberg enjoys an international reputation as an off-piste ski area. The Albona also contributes to this, as the treeless northern slopes provide ideal freeride terrain.

Picture: Freerider Nadine Wallner in the Albona ski area

Thanks to the Flexenbahn and Trittkopfbahnen I and II as well as the Albonabahn II, since the start of the 2016/17 season all ski resorts on the Arlberg have been accessible on skis. And what's more: with 305 connected ski slope kilometers and 85 state-of-the-art lifts and cable cars, Ski Arlberg is the largest connected ski area in Austria and one of the five largest ski areas in the world.

A new era began on the Albona in December 2016 with the commissioning of the Albonabahn II monocable gondola lift. This now runs from the valley station in the Alpe Rauz area to the Albonasattel. The Flexenbahn was opened at the same time, making Rauz an important hub in the Arlberg ski area.

In the picture: Albona II mountain station

The newly built monocable gondola lift with gondolas for up to eight people forms the new Arlberg West Portal with the first entrance to the extensive ski area. The West Portal is very centrally located in the ski area. From here, the Arlberg's most famous resorts, St. Anton and Lech, can be reached almost equally quickly via the various lifts.

Dr. Walther Thöny, CEO of Arlberger Bergbahnen

After 40 years, the history of the Albonabahn I double chairlift came to an end in summer 2023. It was dismantled and replaced by a modern monocable gondola lift. This is intended for transporting guests up and down the mountain and is designed for a transport capacity of 1,600 people per hour.

Picture: Preparing for commissioning