Trekking Norway Part I: Hiking Hardangervidda
Hiking across mountainous and glacial terrain in Hardangervidda, Norway's largest National Park.
It felt like we spent the whole night packing. Sure enough, one o'clock was bedtime, and our alarms were set for 06:00. We yawned our way to the train, our legs getting used to the weight of our newly adjusted backpacks. Previously we packed for one day – now we were prepped for three. We packed more food and switched our previous sleeping bags with warmer and thicker ones.
After a two-hour train ride, we have reached our remote destination: Finse. Finse is a mountain village on the edge of the Hordaland municipality, centred around the train station. We disembarked from the train with our full hiking bags and walked into the Finse lodge.
Once inside, we encountered slabs of butter, crusted in salt, and the sweet smell of freshly baked bread. Apparently, today was the official opening of the hiking routes, and to celebrate, they donated snacks to the happy hikers.
“Maybe we eat first,” Oda winked at me. I eagerly obliged.
Finse train station has served as a middle ground to the cross country train passing from Bergen to Oslo since 1908.
We tore the soft buns open and lumped the butter onto the bread. Paired with a strong French press coffee, it was the best way to start our hiking trip. Oda and I used this time to scour the map and calculate our route for the day. We would have to push hard today and tomorrow to finish on our third and last day.
We met one of the locals at the coffee table. He was a resident tour guide that took people up onto the Finse glacier. He pointed at the natural wonder on the other side of the Finsevatnet lake. Apparently, glacial excursions are exceptionally high risk, and it’s hard to judge if a hole in the snow is thirty centimetres or thirty metres deep!
Once our stomachs were full and our bladders cleared, we swung our bags and set off through the Finse village to begin our three-day excursion. As was our norm, we stopped after twenty-minutes to do a stretch and drink some water. I looked out on the Finse valley and marvelled at this alien-scape. It’s so different from the harsh, semi-arid landscapes I am used to breathing in from South Africa.
The Hardangerjøkulen glacier, Norway’s 6th largest glacier and up to 380m thick.
The rugged landscape of Hardangervidda
Finse is part of an ancient and dramatic landscape. This area is widely studied by climatologists, glaciologists and geologists from around the world. The village of Finse sits next to the Finsevatnet lake, and beyond that is the Hardangerjøkulen glacier. This is Norway’s 6th largest glacier. It is about 380 metres thick at some parts, although it has been waning due to global warming.
All of this sits on the mountain plateau called the ‘Hardangervidda’. It is the largest plateau of its kind in the whole of Europe and spans to southern-central Norway. The Hardangervidda covers about 6,500 km2 and includes the counties of Hordaland and Buskerud, which is where Oda and I would be hiking
Large sections of this beautiful, ancient plateau are protected as part of the Hardangervidda National Park. It is a barren landscape and devoid of trees. The emptiness is interrupted by rock pools, rivers, lakes and fjords.
For our first part of our journey, we hike from Hordaland to Buskerud. We start in Finse from an altitude of 1 222 metres above sea level. We slowly descend through the snowy terrain carved by glaciers to Geiteryggen, a cabin in Buskerud county. This 16km hike wanders across snow, stones, and eventually breaks out onto a grassy terrain near to Geiterygghytta.
This glacier is also famous because it appears in Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back as icy plant Hoth.
The hike from Finse to Geiteryggen crosses diverse landscapes.
Hiking in snow for the first time
Oda moved with ease. Her climbing fitness gave her the dexterity of a cat. She would fluidly navigate river crossings, snow and steep tock deposits from landslides.
I, on the other hand, took on a rather clumsy, new-born like stride and regularly relied on all my limbs to help mount and dismount tough places.
“You're kind of like a young Bambi!” Oda laughed, referring to my inexperience in crossing snowy terrain. She expertly slid down the snowy escarpment, whereas I awkwardly wobbled down the slopes, my heavy hiking gear upsetting my balance. But Oda kindly guided me through it, often in jest, but she helped me find my footing on this alien terrain.
Some highland fjords along the way along the Hardangervidda plateau.
Arriving at Geiterygghytta Cabins
Geiterygghytta is a safe haven for passing travellers. The only way to reach it is on foot. Oda and I had been walking for what felt like an eternity before finally passing through the Geiterygghytta gates.
It felt strange to be greeted by civilization, and so many people. The inside of the large hut was crowded with tired faces and people rubbing their feet. I was one of them.
Upon my arrival, I discovered that I had grown three lovely blisters during my hike today. If this continued, I would need more blister plasters.
Geiterygghytta provides a haven for anyone on foot in these mountains.
As we sat at our table, chickens were pecking at crumbs around our feet. The grass swarmed with these flightless birds. The sun was still high, even though it was seven in the evening. Oda and I looked at each other. We were both still restless. Even though Geiterygghytta provided a safe place to spend the night, we were here to get wild.
Even though my feet were swollen with blisters, I wanted to push on a little bit further.
In a few minutes, we had packed up all our belongings. I applied my plasters and tried to squeeze my feet back into my Asics, but with no luck. Barefoot it would have to be.
Hiking barefoot along Norway's fjords
My feet itched. The sting of the cold is still fresh. Every snowy patch had a stony finish, and I winced every time my tender feet stepped onto the rocks.
I didn’t know how long I could go on for, or how long we had been going for. All my brain power was spent concentrating on my path, and where to place my next step. It became meditative.
As soon as the sun touched down on the uneven horizon, my feet began feeling like lumps of lead.
“I am not taking another step,” I cautioned Oda. I stubbornly decided this was to be our camping spot. Oda happily obliged. We began setting up our tent.
Oda is the experienced one, and I am a quick learner. We had our charming tent up in no time. The spot was relatively flat and cosy. We were perched on a soft tundra which should be comfortable to sleep on. It wasn’t until the sun’s levelling rays hit an all-time low that I realized we had settled on a web of spider nests. The dying light revealed the veins of the spiderwebs clinging onto the soft grass.
For the first time, I was too tired to care about my eight-legged bunkmates. And Oda was too tired for chocolate. I ate a peanut butter sandwich and fell asleep, hoping my feet would be better the following day.
