boscomantico wrote:
demanding spots (blind transitions), which can be slightly dangerous, but it’s pure adrenaline.
Are referring to the above quote? 
Yes check out some of the spots he mentioned. Although how accurate is the 45 mins ride? Although it depends what you find in those other areas.
Just looked and google says 53 min w/o traffic for St Ulrich and Obereggen is 30 mins w/o traffic. Neither one gave public transport as an option although there must be something.
I will try to do Bolzano and Valgardena later in December.
Are there any issues with Bolzano LIPB? I read the Jan/April 2016 trip reports.
Would anyone be interested in meeting up?
My earlier option was Annecy (off topic in this thread) and do Grand Bornand (again) or Las Cluzas but Annecy is expensive for Sat/Sun movements and I fancy trying the Italian location anyway. But Annecy does offer IFR whereas Bolzano is IFR only with a special crew authorisation. OTOH while Annecy often has a cloud layer, Bolzano should be better because it is south of the Alps.
My TKS install will be delayed. CAV were supposed to deliver min-Nov 16 but are now saying mid-Jan 2017 and since my Annual expires end of Jan 2017 if there is any delay on this, we will delay it by a year. But anyway it means I can do some ski trips in the earlier part of January. The alternative I have is to do the annual+engine swap after xmas, but one cannot do high altitude flights for many hours afterwards, otherwise the piston rings won’t bed in properly. And one cannot fly UK to the Alps (practically) at 75-100% power…
Hi Peter, I went to Bolzano earlier this year. The airport is GA friendly and absolutely no issue. We got in VFR.
There is a VOR/DME IAP but it is of little use as it will bring you to a hill rather than the beginning of the runway 
On the way out I flew the ALESE5A SID in nice VMC conditions. I would never do it in IMC.
I’ve been skiing in the Dolomites many times and I think it’s one of the most scenic skiing areas of Europe.
I’ve spent a fair fraction of my leisure time in the Dolomites over the last 15 years or so (motorcycling)… Possibly my favorite area in the world to play. Should you want to venture slightly away from Val Gardena, I feel almost more at home in Arabba at the Evaldo than I feel at home. Highly recommended, say hello to Michael and Cristina. I’ll be in Germany over the holidays, but would probably prefer to be on the south side of the mountains!
lenthamem,
just for your info, all IFR procedures at LIPB are for authorized operators only, as per the AIP.
But it looks like the AFIS doesn’t care or enquire. Also, as always, the regulations are poorly worded. What does authorized mean in this context? And by whom? (There are more details in the AIP, but the basic general question is not answered…).
What would be a good IFR alternate for Bolzano, knowing the likely local conditions and transport options? There is for example Brescia LIPO or Verona LIPX but both are quite some distance away. OTOH I would expect there to be bus routes…
Hi @boscomantico , I was using the Jeppesen charts and only LOC RWY 01 states that authorized crews can perform that approach.
The SID’s an STAR’s don’t mention any restriction. The ATCO just gave my my clearance which included the SID.
I remember I was monitoring the minimum altitudes from the initial climb chart (10-3) while flying radial 195 outbound. You need huge cojones to fly it in actual IMC with a non-deiced SEP
LIPX is of course more convenient, as it’s right beside the highway leading up to Trento and Bolzano. But like many places in Italy, they might not let you park if you haven’t “reserved” a spot beforehand (silly as it is), which you normally won’t do if you don’t really expect to land there. LIPO is PPR as well, but probably a bit more more relaxed about parking as they have almost no business.
But OTOH, if Bolzano is socked in, Verona and Brescia will likely be so too, and your best alternate in that case might be Innsbruck (who won’t let you park in winter… ).
@lenthamen: sure, but one is supposed to read the AIP too, not just the charts. Anyway, they don’t seem to enforce this.
During my twin IR training I made few approaches to LIPB under hood – it was relaxing to know that guy at RHS can actually see what’s going on outside
