Cross-country skiing week: Haukeliseter to Hovden

Our group, consisting of in total six people (Johanna, Janna, Frankie, Tom, Zoë and Maike) chose to go on a 45 kilometer cross-country ski tour from Haukeliseter to Hovden. This self-organised trip took place from the 19th till the 23rd of February, as we planned to complete the tour in four days. The area in which the field trip (i.e. cross-country ski tour) took place can be described as mountainous, coarse and remote. The first day we travelled from Kristiansand to Hovden, where we had to transfer to a bus up North to Haukeliseter. Around 15:30 the bus arrived in Haukeliseter (ski-area + DNT), and we as a group of six got assigned a room with four bunk beds and the necessary utilities (i.e. some pots and a stove, both a water tap and the toilets were outside). As soon as we unpacked we all went out for a short ski around the area, as we wanted to make an assessment of what to expect from the route. After the two hour ski we went inside again, sat down together to eat and make a plan for the days to come. Considering the group organisation, we all would discuss the different possibilities concerning distance to cover each day; potential camping spots; our bailout plan in case of emergency and what food to eat when (we all brought our own breakfast and lunch, but would prepare dinner together). Moreover, Zoë and Johanna went to the DNT counter at Haukeliseter to get information on the route, avalanche proneness of the area, and the weather condition up in the mountains. After collecting all the information, we would use a small notebook to write down the forecasted weather conditions and wind directions for the coming days. The next morning we collectively decided to get up at 7:00 to give each of us some time to pack our bags, prepare lunch for the day and eat breakfast. Around 9:00 we were all set and ready to go. The weather that day was cloudy, and we did not see the sunrise until later that afternoon, when the sun would break through the clouds, giving us some warmth during the ski. Direction wise, we would head South-East for the whole day.

Lunch break on day one

The initial plan was to ski 10K, yet we arrived earlier at our camping spot (i.e. a lake called Inglesvatn) than expected (around 15:00). Hence we decided to ski further to the next lake (Langevatn) where we arrived at 16:45. Yet as soon as we skied down the hill we figured it would be too cold for camping down there (i.e. wind), so we skied back up and found a more sheltered spot to pitch our tents; less wind, and further away from avalanche-prone hills. Before we would set up camp we had to make sure to flatten the snow with our skis to prepare a tent-proof area. After flattening the snow we would pitch our tents, and use both winterpegs, skis and snow on the outside of the tents to protect them from damage. Setting up camp would always be our priority before losing daylight; it would keep us warm, light would make arranging and unpacking our backpacks easier and it would safe time for later. As soon as we set up camp, we would normally cook straight away (i.e. around 18/19:00). For our first camping night at Langevatn we had rice and (pre-cut and spiced) vegetables, boiled in instant-tomato soup and water (for extra texture and nutrition). After dinner we boiled water (i.e. snow) for the next morning, and got into our sleeping bags quite early as it would maintain our body heat after having had a good meal. That night it was supposedly around -12 degrees Celsius, thus we had to dress properly in order to stay warm and dry. Personally I would wear two pairs of woolen socks, my merino top and leggings, my fleece, down jacket, ski-trousers, hat, buff, thin gloves and my hardshell jacket to use as a pillow. On day three we woke up around 7:00 again, ate warm porridge in our sleeping bags and quickly packed up after that. However we faced some difficulties when packing up i.e. backpacks covered in snow due to severe winds during the night. Luckily we could easily dispose of the snow layer, so it did not slow down our packing process too much in the end.Around 9:45 we left our camping spot, planning to cross Langevatn to then continue up to Holmevatnhytta (DNT hut).

At Holmevatnhytta

We would arrive at the hut around lunch time with severe winds blowing at the downside of the mountain. After having had a long lunch break at the hut we left again around 14:00, planning to reach the second DNT hut (Sloares) by dawn/sunset. We managed to cross the Holmavatn lake (5K traverse) in one hour and 15 minutes due to less severe winds and the sun that would give us some warmth. Then we got into the valley close to the Sloares hut around 16:30. The sun started to set so we collectively decided to camp in the valley (or as Zoë called it: a “bealach”). Our reason for deciding to camp was first and foremost to experience extreme cold in a tent two night in a row after having skied for three full days. In the valley we found a good camping spot on the edge of a lake, sheltered away from the wind and any avalanche prone hills.  As we set up camp and the sun disappeared behind the hills, we all experienced how quickly it cooled down. Hence reason for us to start cooking after we properly pitched our tents and unpacked our backpacks (19:00, it was dark by then and freezing cold). Our dinner for that night was instant pasta; wam, nutritious and filling. We had to eat it quickly as it would cool down instantly. One of the many things that I personally learned during this extremely cold night is the importance of a warm and filling meal, warm clothes and having set up camp before sunset. That night it was presumably around -20/-25 degree Celsius, with clear skies and no wind. I slept worse compared to the night before; mostly because of cold feet and lower legs, feet warmers did not really work, and my core was warm but also sweaty and “cold” at the same time. The next morning we once again woke up at 7:00, had breakfast in our sleeping bags, which really helps you to keep warm for longer, especially in extremely cold temperatures. We packed and left rather quickly after that, due to instant frozen toes, fingers, hair and (yes…) boogies. Another difficulty we faced was the lack of fresh water, as we did not boil enough the night before (it was too cold to stay outside for a long time). Due to that we all experienced some degree of dehydration, which made us feel a bit unwell. However, as we would follow the day’s plan, we would only have to ski 3K to reach the Sloares hut, where we would have a ‘rest-day’ as we got one day ahead of ourselves (we almost did 20K the first leg!).

Sloares

Around 11:00 we arrived at the hut as planned, got inside and sorted out who was going to get wood, water and unpack the bags. Organising our stay at the hut ran really smoothly as we would all immediately engage in the tasks at hand. Zoë got water, me and Frankie gathered wood, Janna would start lighting the fire and Jo and Tom took care of the bags and skies. The rest of the day we spent exploring the surrounding hills by foot, saw a herd of reindeers and prepared for our last skiing day. After dinner which we cooked in the hut we all agreed on waking up again at 7:00 to make as much of our last day as possible. As agreed, the next morning we woke up early, ready to go as we already waxed our skies the night before (i.e. we only used green wax; temperatures were still below -10, and we would mainly go downhill that day). At 9:00 we left the hut for the last 13K leg to Hovden (heading SE); skies were clear, sun later came out and there was no wind. The first hour was a gentle ascent for all of us, after that we had to climb up a steep hill in order to reach the highest point (as we would descent into the valley after that). The climb up was tough but we got rewarded with a spectacular view into the valley as soon as we reached the top.

Skiing down into Hovden

We started the descent after having had lunch on top (in the sun, sheltered away by top-winds); mainly prepared tracks, some steep bits off-piste when we had to come down-hill, and smooth powder snow down until Hovden, which was great fun and perfect for practicing turns. We arrived back down in Hovden earlier than expected, which left us in a perfectly good mood after four days of tour skiing. We all worked really well together, and I must say that I am glad that we decided to split up in smaller groups for this self-organised trip, as it made organisation, skiing and orienteering much easier.