Aims of the trip:

Practice and improve, ”veieleding”, navigation and route finding skills, avalanche awareness and snow profiles, snowhole and emergency shelter techniques in a winter environment.

 

Day 1:

Took the bus from Kristiansand to Berdalsbu Hovden and arrived at around 12.30 to meet the rest of the group, Len and Tim. Winter equipment (snow probes & saw) and maps of the area were given out here. We were then split into 2 groups to avoid blindly following 22 people. Len showed us where we were going on the map and delegated a ‘leader’ who would guide us through the first part of the tour.

We were skiing to Berdalsbu (hytte) DNT hut which was 6km away and decided that we should ski at a steady pace as we had heavy packs. I really enjoyed the first part of the track, the weather conditions were really good and i had a lot of energy. The first leader was really good and we stayed together as a group with regular 5 minute breaks. After we reached around the half way mark we stopped for a lunch break and a new leader was chosen. As we got higher up in the area the snow became a lot deeper and the air was much colder, there were a few of steep areas which were hard with the weight on my back but i still felt good and had enough energy. During the last but of the journey my waterproof trousers ripped and i became really wet, unfortunately i took no spare waterproofs with me so had to try and repair them in the evening.

We arrived at the DNT hut at around 3.30/4pm, Len explained to us the DNT hut system and how we should leave the hut in a better condition that we arrived and how we pay etc. After half an hour to rest and have something warm to drink we split into our snow hole groups and took approximately 1km around the area searching for  good snow hole spots. To do this, the snow probe had to be fully inserted 3m both vertically and diagonally into the area to check the depth of it.

We found a few good areas but they had a lot of ice, this would make it more difficult for us to shovel the area. After each group found a few good areas i returned to the hut for dinner and slept.

 

Day 2:

10am we ski’d down towards the snow hole areas, approximately 500m from the hut, a good area was found where we could fit 3 snow holes close together. The snow hole groups were made smaller and there were 3 of us in my group (me, Will and Luke). Len explained that when building the holes, we should create an entrance high enough to be able to stand up in nd then we could fill it in at the to make it smaller. Using the Snow saw we took turns to cutout large blocks from the entrance, this was really hard work and i struggled to cut the blocks really big. Although the weather was really good today it was important to wear waterproofs and keep as warm and dry as possible. Whilst Will and Luke were making the entrance, Miriam and I found a suitable place on the flat area to build somewhere we could cook. We made a cooking platform with a wall for wind protection and a built up circle for a fire.

Digging the snow was really hard work so we made sure to have regular breaks between us. After a few hours the entrance was deep enough in the snow and we could start to make the sleeping platforms. The best way to do this was to dig from hip height so that it was easy for us to access but so that the cold air would be mainly caught in the lower area in the walk way. Our original idea was to build 2 sleeping platforms, one on each side. The 1st platform needed to be the length of the tallest person, i found it easier to directly use the shovel rather than cutting blocks with the saw, however the blocks were useful for filling in the entrance afterwards. It was important that the roof of the hole was smoothed out with the shovel – this was so that no water droplets could collect in the night causing us to get wet, we did this next with the shovel. 

Once we started building the next platform on the other side, it seemed that the first one would be big enough for the 3 of us and this would be warmer too. Following this we decided to use the small platform on the other side for our bags and equipment etc. It was a long day and a lot of hard work, we finished by digging out the floor a little to allow more room for standing and filled in the large entrance so that less wind could come in. We finished the hole at around 5pm and then spent time building a small wall outside the entrance to again, prevent more wind. In the evening we built a fire to dry off some of our clothes and had dinner. To keep warm in the night i filled my bottle with boiling water to put in my sleeping bag. During the night i was really comfortable and the temperature was good as i slept with 2 sleeping bags and a bivvy sac.

 

 

Day 3:

We woke up around 8am as we had to be ready for 9.30 and we all slept quite well. Getting out of the sleeping bag was the hardest thing ever and today was much colder than yesterday! We made breakfast and lunch in the snow hole and packed a day pack ready for our day our today. At 9.30 most people were ready to go so we set off at a steady pace (after waxing the ski’s to the temperature). The aim was to ski up the mountain approximately 3km. We started off at a good pace and the group stayed together really well, we had one person leading each to a different point on the map, as the direction was really steep we had to zig-zag our way up to avoid becoming exhausted, this was still really hard work. The weather conditions were quite bad at the beginning, the wind was strong and it was snowing a lot. After skiing around 45 minutes people were really starting to struggle, i was mostly at the back and i was finding it a lot of hard work to keep up all the time. The leader had now changed and he was quite far ahead of us at the back, at some points we could’t see the guys at the front due to the snow storm – this was dangerous as if something happened to one of us, the others at the front wouldn’t have known anything about it. Once we got another 500m the people at the front of the group decided to stop and wait for everyone. When we reached them we said that we should all try to stay together more even though it meant some people going slower than what they would like to it was better that we went at a pace everyone could follow. The higher up we got the stronger the wind was getting and the snow storm was so bad that we couldn’t see further than 10m. Going against the wind made it even harder to ski and really reduced the tempo of the group. After around 1 and a half hours we wanted to take a lunch break. To do this we had to find a good spot where we weren’t going to freeze, we found a place with high snow, everyone took out their snow shovels and began to dig down in front of the area so that we could sit somewhere wind sheltered – this took around 25 minutes. The conditions were so bad that we were only able to sit still for 5 – 10 minutes and even in this time everything was becoming incredibly wet and people were freezing. The best thing to do was have a quick snack and start to move back down to the beginning area. 

After our quick break, Len set us a task in groups of 4 where one person (alternate) was given a point of interest they had to reach within a distance of around 20m using the map, the rest of the group were to ski to the place following only the instructions from the guide e.g. more to your right or left etc. This was as to imagine we were lost in a complete white out situation where we could see no further than 10m, this was quite scary as you had no idea what was ahead or how far your were away from anything but the guide did a good job of directing the group to a place safely. At this point i was finding it too difficult to read the map whilst concentrating on keeping warm, and skiing in the conditions. My gloves had started to freeze and i had no feeling left in my hands.

When we started to head back down the mountain it was even more important that we stayed together this time. We had to zig-zag down the same was that we came up because it was too dangerous to ski down directly. We made a rule that you were not aloud to take your next line down until the person in front of you took theirs – this was important now as we really had to stay together in the terrible condition. It took us around 1 hour to get to the bottom and at this point everyone was really exhausted as it was difficult to not fall when going down hill in such deep snow.

We arrived back at the hut and we were able to stay there for around an hour to dry off our clothes and get warm as pst of us had frozen on the trip. It was a good chance to fill our thermos’ with hot water ready for the night in the snow hole again. We got back to the snow hole at 5pm and i got straight into my sleeping bag because it was so cold. I stayed in my sleeping bag for the rest of the night even when cooking dinner and didn’t leave until it was time in the morning.

Day 4:

When we woke up this morning we found that we were completely buried in our snow hole from the storm. From inside it was really hard to feel what the conditions were like outside because it was so quiet and wind sheltered. Will started to try digging his way out of the hole but there was about 3 or 4 metres of snow fallen in the night! It now became clear to us that building the wall outside our shelter was a bad idea because it meant all the snow had just been collecting in-between the two making it even deeper. When digging his way out, Will was forced to throw the snow inside the hole, Luke and I tried our best to help by piling the new snow up against the back, but there wasn’t much we could do as the entrance was only big enough for one person at a time. Once Will was out he went to the other snow holes to help dig them out from the outside. We packed up our stuff and tried to get off as soon as possible as the snow storm was getting worse. The three of had left our ski’s standing up a few metres away from the snow hole and it was impossible to see them now! The snow was up to my waist! It was really difficult and stressful now to get to and dig out the ski’s, next time we will make sure we bring them closer, even trying to walk to the others was really hard and it was impossible to see further than a metre or 2 even with the ski goggles on. 

We left the area as soon as possible and made sure we all really stayed together now as the conditions were 100x more challenging and we had our full packs on our backs. The plan for tonight was to build emergency shelters individually and that would be our place to sleep tonight, i was really dreading this as i was already completely freezing and everything was wet. The lower down the we got throughout the day the conditions became less extreme, we did a few emergency drills to practice our winter navigation again in an open area. Taking turns, half of the group were blindfolded and told to ski forwards.. seemed simple! It was incredible to see the directions people were walking in! Almost everyone drift to the left or right and were lead completely off a straight course with a few people even walking around in a circle! This was a good way of appreciating how our vision affects our direction and the aim was to imagine how difficult it is to follow what we think is a straight course when we cannot see ahead.

We finally reached our shelter area at around 2pm. Len told us to imagine we were in a dangerous storm and that we needed to get out underground in 20 minutes to get out of it. Using my shovel i found an area at the bottom of a small hill to provide wind protection will digging. I started to dig down at quick as i could and when i got 1m down i reached the ground so was forced to stop. As i could get any further down i started digging to the side where there was a lot of ice so it was tough work. After 20 minutes i had managed to make a space big enough for me to lay down with the top half of my body covered, i laid my ski’s over the open area and piled snow on top of the ski’s to provide extra shelter and now there was just enough room for me to get in and out but to be protected from the wind.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We took turns to look at everyone’s emergency shelters and then Len gave us the good news that we would be heading home today instead of tomorrow! Due to the conditions it wouldn’t have been safe for us to sleep in the individual shelters. This was great news for me as i was ready to go home and i was far to cold to stay one more night. We continued to ski another 1-2km back to Berdalsbu where we began the trip, here we packed our things in the buses/cars and it was time to go home!

 

Learning outcomes:

So far, this has been the trip which i have learnt the most from about myself and preparation. I feel that i was really well prepared for the conditions that came, i did everything i could to feel warm in the snow hole even though it meant carrying a lot of stuff to the area and working really hard when building the snow hole, it was worth it. The thing i found most difficult on this trip was to navigate using the map and compass during the snow storm, once i became freezing i gave up and relied on someone else to lead us the correct way. Although i knew that this wasn’t the right thing to do at the time i was not feeling so good and was more focused on my skiing and keeping warm. To avoid this in the future i know that i have to improve on my map reading skills which will make it less of a challenge for me to read/concentrate whilst in bad conditions, i will also make sure i have my map more prepared before setting off on a trip e.g. having the map securely in the map case and having it attached and accessible somewhere close for when i need to use it.

It was really beneficial for me to take part in the ‘white out’ exercises (leading a group to a point with just signalling left and right and trying to ski forwards blindfolded), although we had bad conditions on the last two days, these exercises allowed me to understand the effects of extreme weather on my leading and navigation and what is necessary to lead groups safely when this is the case.