The Salzkammergut is a wide area spreading over Salzburg, Styria and mainly over Upper Austria. It is located in the Alps and pre-Alp region of Austria. The Dachstein Massif and the Totes Gebirge (Dead Mountains) border in the south and east and the Höllengebirge Mountains, the Scharfberg Mountain and the Traunstein Mountain in the north of this area. The name is rooted to the Salt mining traditions in Hallstadt, Bad Ischl and Altausee. It used to be the main trade good in the late bronze time, making it a cradle of Austrian Culture and still to this day, salt is still a very important economic factor in this region. Apart of mining, the area of the Salzkammergut is more famous for its scenic beauty, its wonderful clean basin lakes, formed through ice-age glaciers and its skiing resorts. The development of the Salzkammergut as a tourist resort started in the late 19th century, when the Austrian Aristocracy spotted this picturesque area as a perfect recreation possibility. The discovery of salt-baths as a cure for many diseases and the fresh clean air dragged people to this area. Especially Bad Ischl was a meeting point to the high society at this time, due the fact that the imperial family themselves erected a summer resident. Nowadays the Salzkammergut is a popular tourism target to people from around the world. It opens a lot of activities, like swimming, sailing, hiking, climbing, skiing, snowboarding and many more to it's visitors. Especially the lakes, like Lake Altausee, Lake Wolfgangsee, Lake Hallstadt, Lake Mondsee and Lake Traunsee with their perfect water quality are very attractive In the wintertime the Salzkammergut offers a wide range of skiing resorts and wonderful skiing tracks for snowboarders, skiers and cross county skiers.