Join me as I traveled more than 6,000 miles from home (specifically an 11-hour flight, followed by a two-and-a-half hour car ride) to the tiny Austrian town of St. Anton – to work out. The event was the eighth edition of the Mountain Yoga Festival. My travel companion, Ada, was my when-in-California instructor in this discipline. And this “studio” was cozily ensconced within the Alps.
Explanation: I enjoy yoga, but a yogi I am not. However, the appeal of experiencing four days of yoga and hiking under the guidance of some of the fitness world’s best, within surroundings straight fromThe Sound of Musicand joined by an international group of 250 like-minded, multi-level participants was irresistible.
Made-on-the-mountain moment: My initial reward for making this around-the-world trek was discovered atop a peak. With yoga mats secured onto our backpacks, Ada and I made an around-the-corner walk from our hotel, boarded a gondola from the valley to Galzig – a mountain in this Tyrolean region of the Lechtal Alps – and from there we hiked. After gradually ascending the hillside trail with a group of about 20 others to an elevation of approximately 2,200 feet, it was at the highest point of our climb that we unfurled the mats, lay upon them and with eyes shut, absorbed every element of our environs – a soft breeze brushing our faces, the gentle rhythm of distant cow bells and the soft rays of a temporarily obscured sun.
Listed in the festival program as Wanderung und Yoga (Hiking and Yoga), this soft-adventure expedition was guided by Geli, certified hiking guide, and Sigrid, yoga and meditation instructor. After asking if there were any injuries of which she should be aware, Sigrid began in her signature calming tone, “Close your eyes and don’t worry. I’ll take care of you.” And she did – of us all. We proceeded to move into assorted positions including cat-cow (I admit to an inner chuckle having passed grass-grazing bovines in route). And, as if on cue, it was during savasana – the meditative resting pose at the session’s end – that the sun fully emerged.
The route to Gampen, the mountain restaurant lunch stop, was step after step of made-in-Austria memories – from forever vistas and flowing streams to fields with horses, donkeys and more cows. Our reward was a hardy meal designed to satisfy any exercise-induced appetite – vegetable curry over rice and a Radler (an international favorite, it’s a 50:50 mixture of beer and a citrus-flavored soft drink) – enjoyed at the eatery’s on-top-of-the-world’s sun splashed terrace.
Willkommen (Welcome): An evening earlier – the festival’s first – the entire group of wellness devotees attended the official opening. We started with the simple gesture of hands over hearts, followed by a 10-to-15-minute sampling of a variety of each instructors’ discipline. Every day began with morning meditation in a floor-to-ceiling, window-surrounded studio that showcased the mountains. And hiking, guided or unassisted, was offered throughout. Here, it was possible to follow a custom-made curriculum, do almost everything or do very little.
Picture perfect: Ada and I followed a straight-from-the-agenda/personalized program mix. The wisdom of traveling with my yoga instructor was continually underscored, but especially a couple of days into the festival when we again used gondola transport to our own plein air workspace – a grassy, level slope for an impromptu private session. There, the two of us moved from one pose to another of restorative yoga, which Ada adapted to my specific body needs generated from a combo of jet lag, mountain hiking and not my norm of concentrated calisthenics. A simultaneous perk was a mental recharge exclusive to the Alpine air.
Signature setting: St. Anton set the stage for renewal. Known as the “Cradle of Alpine skiing,” the town long ago solidified this reputation having pioneered the world’s first T-bar, first gondola, first ski school and significant ski equipment development – an impressive history detailed in the village’s Museum St. Anton am Arlberg (est. 1980). So committed has the town been to the sport that if born there, residents can apply to become members of the prestigious Ski Club Arlberg, which has produced more than 80 Olympic gold medalists. Though home to only 2,300 locals, it greets more than 11,000 guests each day during ski season and has been a traditional tourist attraction for more than 140 years. It is this sport that helped the area evolve from a poor farming region to the sophisticated destination it is today.
Easily walkable and seasonally punctuated by overflowing flower boxes, scattered outdoor cafes and store after store of end-of-season sale offers, this end-of-August/early-September festival seemed perfectly timed.
Every St. Anton hotel was locally run, making attention to detail a significant goal of each lodging’s commitment to its guests. Our selection, Ullrhaus, opened in July 2021, and reflected that clean, crisp, new-car-like freshness. An almost unheard of novelty for Americans, it was the kind of hotel where you could fully open the windows and patio doors for fresh air and in-room glass water bottles were empty because faucet water was not only drinkable, it was straight from the Alps.
Chef Michael Gfall was not only good, he was exceptional with each night’s dinner an imaginative feast. Sitting on our terrace, I listened to sounds typical of a mountain village – hooves of horses drawing carriages, hiking poles tapping the pavement and cyclists whizzing past – and I listened to my body, noting its sense of renewal.
In the end: Three days of mountain hiking (highlight: a 4:45 a.m. sunrise trek), indoor and outdoor yoga sessions and health-inspired workshops filled everyone’s dance card from the opening through the ending ceremony. Finishing much in the same way it began – a compilation of fitness-based specialties showcasing each instructors’ style – at its completion we stood in concentric circles, initially standing toe-to-toe and then with one’s hand placed on another’s back; and we connected. “Namaste,” a recognition of gratitude and respect, was the last word.
At departure I commented on the event, even its flawless not-too-hot, not-too-cold weather, to Iris, a festival organizer. She responded with a German phrase: “When angels travel, the sun shines.”
Angels and yogis . . . perhaps.
Mountain Yoga Festival St. Anton – Ninth edition, September 5-8, 2024
www.mountainyogafestivalstanton.at
