Day 45. Rondvassbu to Doralseter
Posted by: James on February 14, 2009Distance 16km | Time 4.5hrs | Ascent 180m | Descent 290m
Rondvassbu lodge off course provided a traditional breakfast including pickled herring. I had more than my fill and then set off at 0830. It was overcast with the odd snowflake and mist on the mountaintops. It was also windstill and only minus 6.
I went straight onto Rondvatnet lake and skiied the 4 km up the length of it. The lake is long and narrow lying in a deep slot between some of the biggest mountains in Rondane. Huge ice formations dripped from crags where streams had frozen since November.
At the north end of the lake there was some open water where the stream flowed in. Beyond it was a valley full of piles of moraine debris. The snow was sparse in places here, especially on the north facing side of these moraine mounds.
I weaved a path between the mounds, glancing over my shoulder from time to time to admire the magnificent north face of Rondeslottet. It was a 700 metre nearly vertical wall cut by ice filled gullies.
I soon reached a gentle watershed and started down to the Doralen valley through more mounds of snow covered morraine. Through the mist I could just make out the very wild valleys and corries on the north side of the Smiubelgen massif.
As I reached Doralen I skirted an area called Skranglhaugen. This remarkable area was recently a delta in an inland lake. The lake was caused by a glacier damming it further down the valley. Masses of sediment was deposited here. There were also a lot of ice bergs in this lake which grounded here. The sediments were deposited around the icebergs. When the glacial dam melted and the lake vanished, the icebergs remained trapped in the sediments. They melted slowly and where they lay the left a large depression in the sediments. Some 10,000 years later these depressions or craters form a large pockmarked area. As a skier I avoided it.
When I reached the Doralen river I had to cross it. It had carved a deep steep slot into the sediment from the surrounding terrace. It was difficult to drop into this steep slot down the 25 metre deep banks but nigh on impossible to climb out of it in knee deep snow on the other side. The whole crossing of 100 metres took nearly an hour.
Once up on the terrace on the north side it was a simple km ski through sparse birch to the self-service cabin. This area was sparse in snow as it lay in a rain shadow from virtually all directions.
I could see the exposed ground was thick with lichen and reindeer moss. Rondane is a very important area for wild reindeer and a major calving place in May.
The cabin was large but had some small bedrooms and a small easy to heat kitchen. It did not take long to get settled. As I was ensconsed 4 others arrived with 2 dogs. It was the first time I was not on my own in a self-service cabin for ages and I was grateful for the company. They were young but very knowledgable.
We chatted into the evening with the stove going and candles making an easy atmosphere. Eventually at 2200 I had to excuse myself to write this before I got too tired.
It had been a good day. Not many kilometres on the clock but I am set up for the long day tomorrow to Grimsbu. I have changed my plans and will now go along the north side of the Glomma river to Roros rather than the south side. This is because the snow in Avdal Vestfjell could be very deep and uncompacted, especially in the forests there.