As part of the outdoor education programme here at UiA we undertake many trips to various locations all over Norway. In order to prepare ourselves, my class undertook an overnight stay in Jegersberg, a large forested hiking area situated on the doorstep of the University’s campus (See map bellow). The main objective of the trip was to test our sleeping equipment in cold climates however mild and wet conditions tested more the waterproofness of our gear instead.
Jegersberg in relation to Kristiansand
Thankfully, Norway’s unique Recreation Act allowed us to pitch camp extremely close to home so we had a back up for if things got grim. It states that one should not camp “so close to an inhabited house (cabin) that it disturbs the occupants” or “no closer than 150 metres” to any residency. (Outdoor Recreation Act, 1957) Other restrictions are in place such as the prohibition of pitching on cultivated land as well as limits on the duration of the stay. However, with these few exceptions, anyone is at liberty to camp almost anywhere in Norway so long as they take respect and care of their surroundings.
When deciding on where to pitch, my tent mates and I paid attention to elevation, slope aspect, wetness of ground and tree cover. Luckily in Jegersberg there are many nice sheltered spots to camp and even nearby public toilets scattered around the area. A large tarp also made a great shelter for the whole group which generally boosted moral in the wet conditions.
After pitching, we split into groups of nationality and each group presented a game that had to be cognitive, dynamic and most importantly fun. This was the main source of staying warm throughout the duration of the day and for me proved that with a little initiative and imagination, it is easy to stay upbeat and warm. For me this was also the most enjoyable aspect of the day and I learnt many new team building games. Other factors that contributed to staying warm was of course having a fire as well as doing a night time activity just before bed – we went on a long walk.
Since arriving in Norway, I have had to dedicate one jacket to constantly smelling of smoke. This is because I seem to have a fire at least once a week, unsurprisingly as having a fire seems integral to Norwegian culture. To date, I have found the best fire type to be a foundation/platform type where logs are layed parallel to one another to provide insulation and a base from the ground. It is useful also to use bark from birch trees to start the fire.
Typical day at Uni
The activities continued into the evening when we participated in a ready, steady, cook sort of competition. We were presented with a selection of various vegetables, meats and carbs, set with the task of cooking the most tasty meal as possible. The idea behind this being that it is easy to make a delicious and nutritious meal in a short period of time. When spending a lot of energy, it is paramount to supply the body with the energy it needs. Carbohydrates and fats primarily provide this energy, however it is also important to obtain protein, vitamins, minerals, fibre and water.
For the cooking we had to use a storm kitchen, otherwise known as a “Trangia”. Advantages of using this include its multiple use as a frying pan, pots, kettle or colander. Due to its nifty set up, the trangai is also reasonably well sheltered from the environment. Its bulky and heaviness and dangerousness when used with red spirit is its downfall however.
With full bellies and after a night time hike it was time to go to bed. I unfortunately learnt nothing of sleeping in the cold that night but definitely came away with some wacky new games ill use in future instructing as well as a brighter attitude to healthy camp cooking.
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Outdoor Recreation Act 1957. Available https://www.regjeringen.no/en/dokumenter/outdoor-recreation-act/id172932/ (Accessed 28/02/18)