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- Jan 31, 2009
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I went to Norway to spend a couple of days hiking alone in an area known as Hardangervidda.
Abit of background info on the area:
Its a national park consisting of a mountain plateau with an average height of about 1200 meters. It is the largest such plateau in Europe, a massive 2500 square miles (!), with a cold year-round alpine climate and is the site of one of Norway's largest glaciers. Much of the plateau is protected as part of Hardangervidda National Park.
The whole area is above the treeline making it very exposed to the elements.
On the drive up you could tell that fall has hit the region. The trees were a beautiful yellow and red.
The whole way up consisted of roads like this...I drove from a city called Kristiansand located about 265 km away. It took almost 3.45 hours to cover the distance, as the roads were windy and narrow. And that was under favourable weather conditions. I can imagine what a nightmare it would be with snow and fog.
I had set out a bit late, so halfways there i could see that i wouldnt be able to make it before nightfall. I considered pushing on and hiking the first few km in the dark, but i opted against it as it was totally unfamiliar terrain. Half an hour before nightfall i parked the car, and headed about 100 meters away to a nice secluded spot near a lake, where i set up camp.
Next morning i woke up and found the weather had changed completely. Its was foggy and the temps had dropped considerably. I packed up and drove the remaining hour to the Haukeliseter mountain lodge, where the trail head starts.
The trail starts out with a very steep climb and after i couple of 100 meters i immediately knew that i wasnt as fit as i thought i was. I could feel my thigh-muscles burning under the heavy weight of the pack.
The norwegians have a mountain code, which is directed toward hikers safety in the mountains. The first point describes how you should be fit and ready before undertaking a trip. My lack of physical prep would ultimately cause me to cut my trip short. The list can be read here for those who are interested: http://www.visitnorway.com/en/Articles/Theme/The-Mountains/Mountain-guide/The-Norwegian-Mountain-Code/
After a couple of hours hiking i stopped by a lake for lunch. I had brought a taste of India and Greece in the form of Naan bread and stuffed grape-leaves. Good eating at 1125 meters altitude :thumbup:
Conditions were windy so i pulled out my hardshell to shield me from the cold. The area is totally barren from trees, making it very exposed with almost no shelter from the elements. I had brought an extra set of thermal underwear, a balaclava, hardshell pants and a down jacket for camp. You need to be prepared when heading out in the mountains as the weather can change in a heartbeat.
Only thing id forgotten were my gaiters. In my hurry to hit the trail, id left them in the car
.
After a couple of hours hiking i could feel my left knee starting to ache from the many descents and ascents. The terrain was very rocky with numerous streams and bogs that had to be crossed. I recognized my knee-pain from another strenous hike in sweden about 6 months earlier. I decided it would be stupid to push on, so i found a nice level spot where i set up tent and i could rest my knee.
The view from inside the tent:
It was pretty windy and i was worried the wind might pick up throughout the night, so i made sure the tent was staked and guyed out tight and the i placed some rocks on the stakes so they wouldnt wiggle out during the night. I placed the tent so the opening was towards east, where i could catch the suns morning rays and also so the tent-opening was opposite the prevailing western wind.
I saw a helicopter buzzing around in the area several times. It was probably flying supplies to the few manned huts deep in the mountains.
I had set up camp near one of the many thousands of small streams running down the mountain sides. I always try to be close to a water-supply when setting up camp.
All of a sudden the overcast cleared and the sun came out. The temps immediately rised and put my pants and socks out to dry. With the sun out and the fog clearing the view was amazing!
My tent for size in right side of the pic
I think being stranded here in a survival situation would be a real bitch. Its cold, wet and windy. There are no trees to make a shelter or firewood to make a fire. The landscape is wide open allowing the winds to accelerate to frightening speeds and when it rains the streams become raging rivers in a short time. Snow is common even during the short summer.
Sneaking up on wildlife with a spear or sling is almost impossible. The area houses Europes largest wild reindeer herds, but in the time i was there i didnt spot a single one. Saw loads of scat and tracks but no reindeer. I saw some gamebirds and caught a glimpse of a red fox. That was it.
My knife choice for the trip was the BM Presidio. I opted for a folder as i didnt need a fixed blade for such a barren landscape. All it did was open bags of food. To be honest it didnt do anything my SAK couldnt have done just as well. I had first decided to take the ZT0200, but decided it was overkill. I considered the F1, BK14 and the other fixed blades in my collection, but i felt like trying something new. The Presidio made the cut that day.
There were these blue berries ALL over the place. At first i thought it was blueberries but when i opened them, they didnt look right. Any one know what they are? Arctic flora isnt my strong side.
Along the BM Presidio for size:
Next morning after a quiet night i decided to make apple pancakes. Making good food is important to the morale when in the wild, especially when hiking alone. They tasted great with jam on them. :thumbup:
These spiders were all over the place too...What the hell were they doing there in such a barren place? What did they eat? And how did they survive the harsh alpine winter? I spend a good 30 mins thinking about them...
I also found the remains of what appeared to be a lemming or mole on a rock. It must have been a bird of prey that had eaten it and then regurgitated the bones and fur as only birds of prey do. You can make out the claws on the pic.
To be continued...
Abit of background info on the area:
Its a national park consisting of a mountain plateau with an average height of about 1200 meters. It is the largest such plateau in Europe, a massive 2500 square miles (!), with a cold year-round alpine climate and is the site of one of Norway's largest glaciers. Much of the plateau is protected as part of Hardangervidda National Park.
The whole area is above the treeline making it very exposed to the elements.
On the drive up you could tell that fall has hit the region. The trees were a beautiful yellow and red.
The whole way up consisted of roads like this...I drove from a city called Kristiansand located about 265 km away. It took almost 3.45 hours to cover the distance, as the roads were windy and narrow. And that was under favourable weather conditions. I can imagine what a nightmare it would be with snow and fog.
I had set out a bit late, so halfways there i could see that i wouldnt be able to make it before nightfall. I considered pushing on and hiking the first few km in the dark, but i opted against it as it was totally unfamiliar terrain. Half an hour before nightfall i parked the car, and headed about 100 meters away to a nice secluded spot near a lake, where i set up camp.
Next morning i woke up and found the weather had changed completely. Its was foggy and the temps had dropped considerably. I packed up and drove the remaining hour to the Haukeliseter mountain lodge, where the trail head starts.
The trail starts out with a very steep climb and after i couple of 100 meters i immediately knew that i wasnt as fit as i thought i was. I could feel my thigh-muscles burning under the heavy weight of the pack.
The norwegians have a mountain code, which is directed toward hikers safety in the mountains. The first point describes how you should be fit and ready before undertaking a trip. My lack of physical prep would ultimately cause me to cut my trip short. The list can be read here for those who are interested: http://www.visitnorway.com/en/Articles/Theme/The-Mountains/Mountain-guide/The-Norwegian-Mountain-Code/
After a couple of hours hiking i stopped by a lake for lunch. I had brought a taste of India and Greece in the form of Naan bread and stuffed grape-leaves. Good eating at 1125 meters altitude :thumbup:
Conditions were windy so i pulled out my hardshell to shield me from the cold. The area is totally barren from trees, making it very exposed with almost no shelter from the elements. I had brought an extra set of thermal underwear, a balaclava, hardshell pants and a down jacket for camp. You need to be prepared when heading out in the mountains as the weather can change in a heartbeat.
Only thing id forgotten were my gaiters. In my hurry to hit the trail, id left them in the car
.
After a couple of hours hiking i could feel my left knee starting to ache from the many descents and ascents. The terrain was very rocky with numerous streams and bogs that had to be crossed. I recognized my knee-pain from another strenous hike in sweden about 6 months earlier. I decided it would be stupid to push on, so i found a nice level spot where i set up tent and i could rest my knee.
The view from inside the tent:
It was pretty windy and i was worried the wind might pick up throughout the night, so i made sure the tent was staked and guyed out tight and the i placed some rocks on the stakes so they wouldnt wiggle out during the night. I placed the tent so the opening was towards east, where i could catch the suns morning rays and also so the tent-opening was opposite the prevailing western wind.
I saw a helicopter buzzing around in the area several times. It was probably flying supplies to the few manned huts deep in the mountains.
I had set up camp near one of the many thousands of small streams running down the mountain sides. I always try to be close to a water-supply when setting up camp.
All of a sudden the overcast cleared and the sun came out. The temps immediately rised and put my pants and socks out to dry. With the sun out and the fog clearing the view was amazing!
My tent for size in right side of the pic
I think being stranded here in a survival situation would be a real bitch. Its cold, wet and windy. There are no trees to make a shelter or firewood to make a fire. The landscape is wide open allowing the winds to accelerate to frightening speeds and when it rains the streams become raging rivers in a short time. Snow is common even during the short summer.
Sneaking up on wildlife with a spear or sling is almost impossible. The area houses Europes largest wild reindeer herds, but in the time i was there i didnt spot a single one. Saw loads of scat and tracks but no reindeer. I saw some gamebirds and caught a glimpse of a red fox. That was it.
My knife choice for the trip was the BM Presidio. I opted for a folder as i didnt need a fixed blade for such a barren landscape. All it did was open bags of food. To be honest it didnt do anything my SAK couldnt have done just as well. I had first decided to take the ZT0200, but decided it was overkill. I considered the F1, BK14 and the other fixed blades in my collection, but i felt like trying something new. The Presidio made the cut that day.
There were these blue berries ALL over the place. At first i thought it was blueberries but when i opened them, they didnt look right. Any one know what they are? Arctic flora isnt my strong side.
Along the BM Presidio for size:
Next morning after a quiet night i decided to make apple pancakes. Making good food is important to the morale when in the wild, especially when hiking alone. They tasted great with jam on them. :thumbup:
These spiders were all over the place too...What the hell were they doing there in such a barren place? What did they eat? And how did they survive the harsh alpine winter? I spend a good 30 mins thinking about them...
I also found the remains of what appeared to be a lemming or mole on a rock. It must have been a bird of prey that had eaten it and then regurgitated the bones and fur as only birds of prey do. You can make out the claws on the pic.
To be continued...
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