On Aug.26 we drove out of the Sognefjord region over the mountains to the Elveseter hotel near Lom. We stayed there two nights while we rafted the Sjoa River before heading farther north to Alesund.
The weather was not good on the 26th when we were on the pass at 4,600 feet.
At this elevation the mountains are generally rounded off as they were buried under continental glaciers.
Descending from the passes there are some more water features.
Starting the 27th we had good weather for the rest of our time in Norway. After the rafting we drove to the Galdhøpiggen ski area we had expected to ski. We parked at the Juvass Lodge and walked along the lake to the ski area.
Here Galdhøpiggen’s glacier ends in the lake.
Overview of Galdhøpiggen surface lift:
It’s after 7PM so only the top lift towers are illuminated.
I walked over for a closer look.
At this point I realized that the clean white areas were tarps.
You can see that in the two weeks since the area closed the open snow/ice has receded below the level of the tarp covered snow.
There’s nice scenery driving down from Galdhøpiggen.
That mountain hut lodging had an artistic dining room so we dropped in for a drink.
The most impressive mountain scenery was on the Stryn summer road, which we drove on the 28th on the way to Alesund. It’s very narrow and lined with what we called “Viking guard rails.”
Lakes colored by glacial silt:
Around 3:30PM the afternoon sun dazzled in the streams and lakes.
Finally the Stryn ski area comes into view.
Looking up the chairlift:
We noticed someone on the lodge balcony. It was Idar, the caretaker who was eager to chat with a couple of ski nutcases for about an hour.
Stryn has a ski season similar to Beartooth Basin in Montana, usually opening at the start of June. It gets a lot of snow and Idar says the snowpack can approach the third floor balcony as we see at Mammoth. Occasionally they will bring skiers up on a snowcat in May before the road is plowed.
The lean in Norway 2018 season (that was the big year we enjoyed in the Alps) closed July 8. One recent big season did not have the road plowed until July 10 and skiing lasted to mid-August. The pics show terrain steeper and rockier than Galdhøpiggen, and the base is only 3,700 feet vs. 6,000.
The other summer areas Fonna and Galdhøpiggen are dominated by race camps but Stryn appeals more to freeriders with extensive slackcountry options as described in Jimmy Petterson’s book. Note the freeride gorilla mural on the lodge wall.
Scenery was still impressive descending west from Stryn ski area.
In our ski investigation we called Fonna as well. It’s near Bergen in Norway’s wettest climate. This means lots of snow but the guy we talked to there said they had only 15 days of sun this summer season. He said it’s usually rainy or foggy at Fonna.
We drove by a few winter ski areas too. I think Hemsedal between Oslo and the Sognefjord is Norway’s largest.
Some resort lodging is at far right and the town we drove through had several ski shops.
Sandane and Sogn looked like more local joints.
The weather was not good on the 26th when we were on the pass at 4,600 feet.
At this elevation the mountains are generally rounded off as they were buried under continental glaciers.
Descending from the passes there are some more water features.
Starting the 27th we had good weather for the rest of our time in Norway. After the rafting we drove to the Galdhøpiggen ski area we had expected to ski. We parked at the Juvass Lodge and walked along the lake to the ski area.
Here Galdhøpiggen’s glacier ends in the lake.
Overview of Galdhøpiggen surface lift:
It’s after 7PM so only the top lift towers are illuminated.
I walked over for a closer look.
At this point I realized that the clean white areas were tarps.
You can see that in the two weeks since the area closed the open snow/ice has receded below the level of the tarp covered snow.
There’s nice scenery driving down from Galdhøpiggen.
That mountain hut lodging had an artistic dining room so we dropped in for a drink.
The most impressive mountain scenery was on the Stryn summer road, which we drove on the 28th on the way to Alesund. It’s very narrow and lined with what we called “Viking guard rails.”
Lakes colored by glacial silt:
Around 3:30PM the afternoon sun dazzled in the streams and lakes.
Finally the Stryn ski area comes into view.
Looking up the chairlift:
We noticed someone on the lodge balcony. It was Idar, the caretaker who was eager to chat with a couple of ski nutcases for about an hour.
Stryn has a ski season similar to Beartooth Basin in Montana, usually opening at the start of June. It gets a lot of snow and Idar says the snowpack can approach the third floor balcony as we see at Mammoth. Occasionally they will bring skiers up on a snowcat in May before the road is plowed.
The lean in Norway 2018 season (that was the big year we enjoyed in the Alps) closed July 8. One recent big season did not have the road plowed until July 10 and skiing lasted to mid-August. The pics show terrain steeper and rockier than Galdhøpiggen, and the base is only 3,700 feet vs. 6,000.
The other summer areas Fonna and Galdhøpiggen are dominated by race camps but Stryn appeals more to freeriders with extensive slackcountry options as described in Jimmy Petterson’s book. Note the freeride gorilla mural on the lodge wall.
Scenery was still impressive descending west from Stryn ski area.
In our ski investigation we called Fonna as well. It’s near Bergen in Norway’s wettest climate. This means lots of snow but the guy we talked to there said they had only 15 days of sun this summer season. He said it’s usually rainy or foggy at Fonna.
We drove by a few winter ski areas too. I think Hemsedal between Oslo and the Sognefjord is Norway’s largest.
Some resort lodging is at far right and the town we drove through had several ski shops.
Sandane and Sogn looked like more local joints.
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