Meteorological Station, Krkonoše Giant Mountains, Sněžka, Czech Republic

Nordic skiing was introduced during the same time when in 1880 Dr. Krause from Hirschberg (Jelenia Gora) bought some Norwegian skis in Stettin (Szczecin). A pair of them, the first recorded skis in the Krkonoše mountains, ended up at the Peterbaude (Petrovka). The locals however didn't know their purpose, and it wasn't until Fridtjof Nansens "Paa ski over Grønland" (The First Crossing of Greenland) was translated into German in 1891 that skiing became popular. At the same year the first ski manufacture of Austria–Hungary was established in Jungbuch (Mladé Buky) by master carpenter Franz Baudisch. The first crossing of the main ridge was done in 1892/93. Skiing as a popular sport was mainly brought forward by forest wardeners, teachers and industrialists and business people who provided money to create and maintain the needed infrastructure and sponsored equipment for poorer people and schools.
Around 1900 a number of sports clubs were founded in the Krkonoše mountains. The leading role of the region back then was emphasised by the fact that 5 of the 12 founding clubs of the Austrian Ski Federation (ÖSV) were located in this part of the Bohemia, that the office of the ÖSV was located in Hohenelbe (Vrchlabí) for the first three years (afterwards it moved to Vienna and finally Innsbruck) and that the first president of the ÖSV was Guido Rotter, a local from the mountains. The clubs on the Silesian side were part of the German Ski Association (DSV). After the breakup of Austro-Hungary and the creation of Czechoslovakia the German clubs of the Bohemian side of the Giant mountains joined the newly founded HDW, an association for all German winter sports clubs in Czechoslovakia, whereas the small Czech minority joined the Svaz lyžařů, an association for all Czech winter sports clubs.
The towns and villages of the Krkonoše mountains became a popular venue for national and international competitions, its athletes ranked among the best of the era. The first German Nordic combined champion was a local, the competition itself was staged in Schreiberhau (Szklarska Poręba). Schreiberhau also hosted several luge championships. Martin Tietze and his sister Friedel from neighbouring Brückenberg (Karpacz) won the European luge championchips many times. The first Rendezvous race, predecessor of today's Nordic Ski Championchips, was hosted by Johannisbad, the majority of the competitions were won by HDW athletes.
After the expulsion of the German population the athletes settled in West and East Germany. They again won several national titles and became pillars of the respective ski associations.