“Make sure you have enough warm clothing.”, “Expect to get wet through and be blasted by the wind”, and more worrying for me given I had skied an average of 1 day a year for the last 6 years, “I hope you have been been practicing skiing off-piste in poor visibility and flat light”. These were the words of Jonny Baird, our guide for the week, in his first evening briefing.
Martin and I had arrived in Tromsø the previous day. It is on an island nestled in relative shelter of the intricate and convoluted coastline of northern Norway. Being within the Arctic Circle, even at the end of April the days were long with the sun rising at around 3.30am and setting at 10.30pm. That morning we’d headed out for a run, just as it started snowing, with the outward leg directly into the wind. That bracing experience over, I picked some rental skis (from Tromsø Outdoor) and we caught a taxi to the nearby Tromsø Alpinpark, the only lift-accessed ski area in the region, to get our ski legs back. There were just a couple of drag lifts open, but one of them was long enough to pull us up into the clouds. The skiing was fun – on a clear day it would have been really enjoyable – and given Jonny’s words later that evening, I was really glad we made the effort to go there.
Our group consisted of six clients with a guide, Jonny, a ski instructor, Izzy, and a cook and general all round good guy, Sam. We were all syaing in a house on the island of Kvaløya (close to Tromsø) and the plan was to drive to whichever area would offer the best combination of weather and snow conditions. As the week progressed I began to appreciate just how well situated Tromsø is for accessing the surrounding area, and the skill and experience required to pick the best location. The heat map below shows where we skied and how the tours were spread around the city.
Kvaløya is the island north-west of Tromsø. You can see our run and the Alpinpark near to Tromsø. Starting in the north and going clockwise, the routes are Gamneshumpan (Day 4), Ullstinden (Day 2), Faferfjellet (Day 1), Kvannfjellet and Mortenhalsskolten (Day 3), Gratinden Mast (Day 5), and Finnkollen (Day 6). The Lyngen Alps, a famous ski area, are on the north-south peninsula on the east side of the map.
Jonny, who is Scottish, closed off his briefing with the comment that we should dress for Scotland in winter, and whilst we did experience some Scottish conditions (rain and heavy snow) we also were lucky to have a perfect bluebird day and skiing that included a full range of skiing conditions. The scenery was spectacular, even on the cloudy days, and if you love adventure and being in the mountains, I’d highly recommend skiing there and Off Piste Performance, who organised the trip.
Faferfjellet
After a storm and fresh snow the avalanche risk was high enough that Jonny wanted to avoid any steep (greater than 30 degree) slopes. As in the latter part of the week it became much warmer so the avalanche risk remained high, which restricted Jonny’s options, but nevertheless we managed to have six very different and varied ski days.
Izzy and I.
On the skiers’ summit taking off our skins. There was deep fresh snow on the descent but I quickly felt my thighs burning as I fought to keep the ski tips out of the heavy snow but not be in the back seat. That wasn’t the first time on the trip when I felt I was skiing like a beginner.
That evening the skies cleared and we had a beautiful view of Tromsø and the surrounding hills from our house. Our objective for the next day, Ullstinden, is the left most mountain on the horizon.
Ullstinden
The weather was perfect and when we reached the carpark we could see that, in contrast to the previous day, we were not going to be alone on the mountain.
The higher of the two peaks and our objective is the one in the background. The snow on the descent from the summit was in good condition and was a lot of fun to ski.
It was hot skinning uphill in the sun. We were overtaken on the first part of the climb by some younger Norwegians who stopped here to strip off. Perhaps predictably we ended up reaching the summit before them.
Jonny, not looking the slightest bit hot.
There was a holiday atmosphere on the summit with everyone relaxing and eating their lunch. One of the groups had created a comfortable bench by digging a platform in the snow and topping it with with some upturned skis.
There was a spectacular view of the Lyngen Alps from the summit. Although not that far from us as the crow flies it would have been a long drive to the Lyngen Peninsula so it wasn’t somewhere we could visit on this trip.
Kvannfjellet
The weather was turning but it looked like we would have another day of skiing in the sun. Unfortunately the snow at our first destination of the day, Kvannfjellet, turned out to be breakable crust.
We ended up turning around on the shoulder on the ridge. The crust was hard to ski. So much so that even Izzy was reduced to a snow plough. Such a pity because from a distance it looked nice.
Mortenhalsskolten
After the early turnaround Jonny decided a nearby mountain with a different aspect may be in condition. He was right.
Skinning up.
We climbed the upper section in the sun which unfortunately went behind the clouds just as we started the ski back down.
Christine… who took a several of the photos that I used in this post.
The view from the summit. The snow on the descent was nice but in the flat light it was hard to let the speed pick and and really go for it.
Gamneshumpan
The weather warmed up and the snow closer to the ocean had melted giving us some route-finding excitement in the initial part of this tour.
The rest of us ended up crossing this little stream at a snow bridge higher up.
It was a lot of fun on the ski down weaving our way through the trees and linking up the patches of snow on the lower section of the descent.
Gratinden Mast
It was a wet and drizzly morning so only the super-keen of us went out. Not surprisingly, we didn’t see anyone else but the wet snow on the way down skied surprisingly well.
Christine and Izzy. It really did look and feel like Scotland in winter at the start of this tour!
Transition at our target for the day, a giant radio mast. It came at the right time as our clothes were getting damp and we were starting to feel cold. Jonny warned us not to shelter from the wind by standing close to the mast as falling icicles are a serious hazard.
On the drive back to Tromsø we passed the remains of the Tirpitz, a German battleship sunk by RAF bombers in November 1944. It’s a sobering sight, with only some scraps of the hull and some bomb craters now being visible.
Finnkollen
This was our final day of skiing, and as the forecast was mixed Jonny picked a route that we could follow to a summit if the weather cleared up. Like all of this planning over the course of the week this was a good call.
On the summit. It was windy and a bit of someone’s kit – luckily nothing critical – was whisked way into the clouds by a gust.
The sun came out and the visibility improved as we descended, and we were rewarded with turns in beautiful fresh snow. (Photo: Christine)
It was so good that we skinned back to the summit for another lap. It was a fantastic way to end the week. (Photo: Christine)
Accommodation and other logistics
We were all staying in a rented house close to Tromsø. When I was looking into skiing in Norway I had heard about tours where one stays on a boat and sails between locations. This sounds like, and probably is, an amazing experience. However, having now been on a trip to the region, I think a house is the way to go.
Roads run along nearly all of the coastline and with the unpredictable nature of the weather, being able to drive to a broad range of locations is ideal. The longest drive that we did was no more than an hour. The house also enabled us to have a nice common area to relax in, a sauna and easy access to the town. (On the rainy day Jonny and I went to the climbing gym in Tromsø.)
One thing I particularly liked was that the long hours of daylight meant that we did not have the normal early starts that are part of ski touring in the Alps. We generally left the house at around 9am.
From our living room we had a beautiful view across the water to the island on which Tromsø is located.
The local beer is called Isbjørn, Ice Bear.
We were really well looked after by Sam who did all the shopping and cooking as well as joining us on a couple of the ski days.
As we flew out of Tromsø to Olso, we had a great view of village where our house was located, which is at the end of bridge. It was possible to skin up the hill above the house and ski down, but unfortunately we never had the chance to do that. Always good to have something left for next time…
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