Assignment 4 – 2nd self-organised trip, Hovden to Berdalen 2.3. – 4.3.

In the beginning of march we went on our second self-organised ski trip which lead us from Hovden to Berdalen in a 3-day journey. The area we went to includes mountainous terrain above the limit of vegetation as well as a forested valley leading to Berdalen which is located ~15 kilometres south of Hovden.

The group met before to discuss the route, time plan, food and to organise equipment and print out maps. In addition to the printed maps I bought one in the DNT office where we also asked about the route characteristics. As we planned to do a hut-to-hut tour we didn’t have to bring tents, but we brought an emergency bivibag, snowshovels and avalancheprobes.

On Friday we started to Hovden where the whole group met. Coincidentally most of the class chose the same route but we planned and implemented the tour divided into two groups. Our group (12 people) started a bit later and it took us a while to find the right starting point and get on the track. The first lap included 10 kilometres distance and 150 metres of height mainly on the last kilometre. We mainly followed a prepared track and used the maps as orientation. At one point we struggled a little bit to fin the right way as tracks where differently marked on different maps and a sign we found at a junction. The last kilometre was really tough as we had to climb up a hill in a starting snowstorm with heavy wind, bad view and icy snowflakes blowing in our faces. Finally, everyone arrived at the first hut called Tjornbrotbu. There we spend the night together with the other group so in total with 20 people in a hut for 10 which was a logistic and organisational feat.

The next morning, we split up our group and started a little bit earlier with 5 people on the second leg of 14 kilometres. It was very cloudy on that day which made it hard to see contours and features as well as to asses the snow composition. We followed a marked winter route whilst checking our position in short intervals as orientation in cloudy weather conditions in winter mountains can be quiet tricky. Moreover, our skiing abilities where challenged as the snow conditions changed constantly from really soft to icy and contours were not visible. Rotating the leading position we managed to ski appropriate pace and expected to arrive at the second hut at a decent time in the afternoon. However, the indication of the route suddenly stopped above the valley where the cabin was supposed to be so had to make our own way downhill and uphill through the woods. Nevertheless, we arrived at Berdalsbu in the late afternoon and started to prepare the cabin for the night.

On Sunday our last leg consisted of 6 kilometres slightly downhill through the woods to Berdalen. We completed the short distance together as a big group (12) in a decent time and arrived at the Bus in the early afternoon. On that day we were pleased with sunny weather and good snow conditions which helped to practice our downhill skills and was a fun ending of the trip.

Although it was just a short trip of moderate distance it produced a couple of learning outcomes concerning organisation, group dynamics, orientation and skiing abilities.

The first thing I personally learned from that trip was that organising and implementing a ski tour with a group of twelve people is challenging and requires a different approach than in a smaller group. Starting from logistics over equipment and time estimation to different levels of abilities in the group – many things have to be taken into consideration that effect the trip. This is closely connected to the aspect of group dynamics as a larger amount of people makes decisions and processes more complex. Especially on the first day the group had to form itself as it was a new constellation. Minor discrepancies appeared during orientation or concerning breaks and pace and people got annoyed of the leading person when we once took the wrong track. In general, it was challenging to deal with several different opinions and requirements as everyone also had made individual experiences during the first self-organised trip. After splitting into two smaller groups on the second day the group cohesion was higher as we already worked together before and the social interaction was well-functioning. This decision as well as the night together in Berdalsbu influenced the group dynamic positively so that the bug group worked better together on the last day than in the beginning of the trip.

Another learning outcome of this trip was the experience of navigating in the winter in cloudy and snowy weather conditions in comparison to the sunny days on our first trip. Finding features and assessing contours as well as identifying lakes was harder as the snowy mountains and sky were melting together to a complete white surrounding. Despite the marking it was therefore a good possibility to practice orientation as we were identifying route and position on the map in short intervals. In addition, we earned another impression of how to estimate pace and duration considering distance, height, weather, conditions and group constellation. Navigating as well as skiing took more time than on the first trip due to the difficult snow and weather conditions.

This aspect also influenced the extension of our skiing ability as we had to deal with icy and changing snow. On the first day we could practice our uphill-techniques including kickturns and herringbone especially on the last icy hill. We experienced downhill skiing in both icy and fresh snow conditions and improved our confidence concerning skiing with a heavy backpack.

All in all, we had to face new challenging situations concerning organisation, social interaction, weather and cross-country skiing on this trip. Moreover, we could practice the organisation and implementation of a ski tour form hut to hut as well as navigation and skiing techniques. Besides we had a lot of fun together and grew as a group during these days.