The Zillertal is one of the most important tourist regions in Austria. But it is much more than just a meeting place for holidaymakers who love snow and mountains. The 422 square kilometer high mountain nature park Zillertal Alps is home to impressive glaciers, colorful mountain meadows and mighty peaks as well as an impressive variety of fauna and flora. For scientific teams from all over the world, this region has been a hotspot for exciting research projects for decades. Ski icon and audience favorite Hermann Maier will appear in the new “Universum” production “Hermann Maier: My Home – The Zillertal Alps” on Tuesday, October 22nd, 2024, at 8:15 p.m. on ORF 2 and on ORF ON, the most exciting and at the same time most beautiful Explore parts of this enchanting valley.
Director Andrea Albrecht lets him hike through the unique “Glocke” gorge forest with soil ecologist Julia Seeber. One of the special features of this landscape area is the emerald green earthworm. It changes color as if by magic as soon as it comes into broad daylight.
A flagship project in the Zillertal is the reintroduction of the Alpine ibex. It was already considered extinct, but today around 150 animals live here in the wild again. One reason for this is the successful release of ibexes into the wild at almost 3,000 meters altitude. Hermann Maier plays a crucial role in the spectacular release of the Alpine ibex.
For the Olympic champion and world champion, such days of filming are still an exciting challenge, even after a total of seven “Universum” productions. “It takes an incredible amount of time, I think that’s very special for this show,” says Maier. “Especially when taking photos of animals, it doesn’t just happen ‘in a jiffy’ and the fox stands there, but you need common sense and patience. This show lives from the pictures, the great people and of course the animals.”
Adaptation strategies in the Alpine animal world show that the rising global temperatures are not leaving their mark on the flora and fauna in the Zillertal. Not only do marmots like to migrate to higher altitudes in hot weather, rock ptarmigan also have to learn to deal with the changed living conditions. The nature park’s scientifically supported ptarmigan monitoring program, in which Hermann Maier was also able to take part, provides exciting findings. The ski legend is impressed by the so-called “mountain harvesters”. These natural meadows are a biotope of biodiversity. Hermann Maier not only hunts for butterflies, but also shows great interest in researching them. “A production like this is so interesting simply because you are working with scientists who really only deal with this topic and are, of course, specialists in this field. And you learn a lot and you can then pass on one thing or another,” explains Hermann Maier enthusiastically.
The Zillertal is best known among tourists for its ice and snow – probably also due to the legendary television series “Piefke Saga” from the 1990s. The total of 85 glaciers, including the Hintertux Glacier, are not just ideal for winter sports. Well hidden, about 30 meters below the ski slope, is the Ice Palace – a natural ice cave. Hermann Maier accompanies the renowned and award-winning glaciologist Andrea Fischer deep into this wonder of nature.
During his hike through the Zillertal, the television favorite also meets mountaineering legend Peter Habeler. The Zillertal native knows the mountain peaks in this region like no other. But he also sees the climate-related changes in the Zillertal. “For me, the mountains have always been the center of my life,” explains Habeler. “The older you get, the more important nature becomes. Of course, I used to go for the steep walls and the summits in as short a time as possible. Now nature is more and more important to me because it brings peace.” Hermann Maier and Peter Habeler find this peace when climbing one of the most striking mountains in the Zillertal, the Olperer.
The documentary by Tyrolean filmmaker Andrea Albrecht impressively shows how fauna and flora can still exist in times of mass tourism and climate change. “Even as a native of Tyrol, I was amazed at what the Zillertal has to offer beyond the usual clichés. When I was researching the script, I realized that tourism and nature don’t have to be contradictory,” says Albrecht.
The documentary was created as a co-production by Interspot Film and ORF, supported by TV Fund Austria, Cine Tirol and VAM in collaboration with the Tux-Finkenberg Tourism Association and the Mayrhofen Tourism Association.
Details about the “Universum” production “Hermann Maier: My Home – The Zillertal Alps”, which was produced in accordance with the criteria of the Austrian Ecolabel for Green Producing, are available at presse.ORF.at.