The Valluga Face in a kinder, softer moment
Photo courtesy St. Anton am Arlberg Tourism

Many head to St. Anton purely for the teeth-whitening lure of 9,400-foot Valluga and its scattering of expert-only, off-piste terrain. Accessible from either the Schindlergrat chair or the last leg of the Valluga cable car (running all the way from the village in the valley below), these steep gullies can be classified in any number of ways; as exhilarating, terrifying, or sheer madness—depending on your frame of mind.

There might be more intimidating runs in the world, but when it comes to monster powder runs, few can out-deep Valluga. Here you'll thunder your way through some towering fields of moguls, most notably down the expert-only Schindlerkar gulley or the Mattun run, both a right turn off the Schindlergrat chair. The only drawback of Valluga's steepest pitches are their south-facing aspect, causing the snow to melt rapidly and leaving you with ice and slush to complete the trickiest ride of your life.