Day 46. Doralseter to Grimsbu
Posted by: James on February 15, 2009Distance 34km | Time 8.5hrs | Ascent 300m | Descent 700m
With the encouragement of the other 4 in the cabin we all got up at 0600. It was very dark outside and about minus 10. By the time I managed to do the washing up, breakfast and pack it was 0730 and I was ready to go. It was light now but the sun had yet to rise.
I skied down the tracks the other 4 had made yesterday for 3 km until they veered north. As I skied here the sun came up in a blaze of purple announcing its intentions for the day. I now followed the stony moorland for another 5 km.
There was very little snow here. Apparently the rainfall here is less than half a metre a year and it is the driest place in Norway.
I decided to take a chance as what snow there was supported my weight quite easily. I cut through the gap between the hills of Storkringla and Veslekringla. It would save an hour but if the snow became loose and deep it could cost me many hours. There were some very old ski tracks which though filled in and blown over were firm underneath.
The gamble paid off and I enjoyed a very fine ski through the upper pine forest. The light was superb and the green pines were almost luminous against the sunny white background. After a good hour of skiing in this high pine forest the old ski tracks became more obvious and plentiful. They led me down to a bridge over the river Grimsa, as it flowed through a gorge encrusted with ice formations.
After the bridge there was a short section of mature pine forest for a good km to reach the small farming settlement of Fallet. This was a very pretty hamlet. Ponies wandered in the snowy fields and all the barns, houses and cabins were adorned in reindeer and moose antlers.
It was a quick km to the main road. I looked for an alternative but there was none and the snow in the forest was prohibitively deep and soft. I therefore skied along the quiet main road for 4 km until the old wooden farm buildings at Sletti. Just beyond a road branched off to the right which I took.
This road was wonderful. It was partly cleared but there was an abundance of snow along it. It was lined by sunny pine forests. There were tracks of moose and fox every where. I stopped for lunch here and tried the self timer on the phone camera. After lunch I continued this on this wonderful forest track to the farming hamlet by the river Folla and Folldal church.
There were some people about and they told me the best way to Grimsbu was to cross the river and main road and head up the hill on the north side of the valley to near Moseng. Here I would find a prepared ski trail which contoured around the hill for 10 km before descending to Grimsbu. It sounded good advice.
The climb to Moseng was hot but only a half hour. Once there I found the wide ski trail. It was perfect. I followed it through a magnificent pine forest above old farms. To the south of the valley were the high rounded mountains of Avdal Vestfjell some 30 km away. It was a very idyllic run, but I noticed on the uphill sections I was tiring. Again moose and fox tracks were everywhere.
Folldal, which was the main valley I was now following, was once a copper mining centre. Operations continued here for a couple of centuries and the place is covered in museums from this pioneer period. All mining here has stopped now because it is not economic.
After about 7 km contouring across the hillside the ski trail started a very pleasant and somewhat exhilarating descent down to Grimsbu for 3 km. I had the luxury of being able to snowplough at will to slow my speed round blind corners in the forest. Soon Grimsbu was before me.
Grimsbu was a bit of an eyesore really. It was a small rustic wooden motel with a caravan park. What it lacked in aesthetics it made up for in friendliness. I got a nice cheap room with shower and a fry up of chicken. What was really useful was the local knowledge about the route to Roros.
There had very recently been a famous dog sled race along the valley called the Femundslopet. 40 teams with about 12 dogs per team had just completed a 400 km race. I could follow their tracks and some prepared ski trails to the next overnighting place of Savalen tomorrow. Thereafter there was an abundance of trails through quiet hamlets north of the Glomma river all the way to Roros.
Today had been one of the best days of the tour so far. I think I am still luxuriating in the newness of the pine forests and the interesting things their in, including the quaint cabins and traditional farms.