Day 25. Haukeliseter to Hellevassbu
Posted by: James on January 25, 2009Distance 26km | Time 9hrs | Ascent 670m | Descent 560m
I finished an enormous and delicious buffet breakfast at Haukeliseter and was ready to go at 0830. Indeed it was at last getting lighter in the mornings and I could now plan to leave at 0800 in future. I said my goodbyes to the friendly staff who were around and set off.
The weather was very misty but the forecast was great so I was optimistic as I set off up the steep hill for a good hours climb. Haukeliseter quickly disappeared into the mist below me and above me was the familiar whiteness broken by the odd boulder or snow drift.
It was a long hot slog up the steep slope covered in shin deep snow. When I reached the first lake the sun tried to break through but didn’t really until I reached the second lake. Now Vesle Nup loomed above me and gave me my bearings. I climbed some thickly covered slopes to the west of it to finish the 400 metre climb.
At last I was basking in the sun. The view to the south down to the valley I had just climbed was obscured by low mist. Beyond it rose some mountain tops of the previous section in the Setersheiene. To the north of me was the crystal clear undulating plateau of the Hardangervidda with the nunatak of Nups Egga directly in front. It was a wonderful view under dark blue heavens.
Although the sun was out it was bitterly cold in the shade. My eyebrows were covered in frost and my jacket hood was thick with ice crystals. It reckoned it was about minus 15. Still to have the view it was worth paying the price of having eyelashes freeze together momentarily when blinking.
The climb up had taken 3.5 hours. This was much longer than I expected. It was mostly due to ploughing up through deep snow. Still I was about to be rewarded with a wonderful 5 hour ski through sunny easy terrain. The snow was loose powder and my skis flowed over the top of it quite easily sinking only to my ankles.
I followed an easy line of lakes and shallow open valleys from Mannevatn lake, over Armotsvatn lake and all the way up to Simletindvatn lake. I passed numerous fox tracks and also the tracks of hare, lemming and ptarmigan. Generally lemmings stay under the snow pack in winter in a network of grassy tunnels but occasionally they venture onto the surface.
There were a few small private huts enroute owned by locals who still reserve the right to fish the lakes, mostly for Arctic Char, a trout type fish with red markings and meat.
This ski was the best ski I have had so far on the trip. The snow was great but it was the views which clinched it. With the clear skies I could also plan out a km in advance where I wanted to go to avoid knolls and deep drifts instead of the usual 50 metres.
In the morning I was worried I would not make the hut so slow was my progress, but I made up good time across these lakes in the afternoon moving at about 3 km an hour. Just as I reached Simletindvatn the mist came down again but now I knew I would make it to the cabin. I noticed the temperature was falling further and my legs covered just with a single layer of GoreTex felt cold.
The last 4 km were in the mist but they presented little problem as I was used to it. At least there was no wind. Soon out of the whiteness the cabin appeared. Luckily I did not have to dig much snow away from the door. There was a reliable thermometer outside. It read minus 24.
Inside the cabin had many rooms. Sensibly the kitchen was large enough to exist in and small enough for the stove to heat effectively. It was initially minus 13 inside but in a couple of hours it was up to plus 30 and my frostily clothes were drying beautifully. I felt very comfortable as I chose supper from the larder.
It had been a magnificent day. Perhaps the best yet. Cold and clear wins every time over mild and misty. It had been a long day also and I was relieved I had made it to the cabin to luxuriate in, rather than camping short of the cabin. Tomorrow’s ski to Litlos cabin is considerably shorter.