Valdres, July 5-11

Bitihorn from Skaletstølen

July 5th - Arrival
We left home in the late morning to make the 3 hour drive up into the mountains where we are planning to spend a week. During this week we plan to hike up Norways highest mountain peak and Tor Idar is planning to participate in a bike race circling the Jotunheimen mountains. We are only taking Lucy with us, Topsy is staying home with the girls who are taking care of everything at home.

Stopped as usual to stretch our legs about half way at the river stone carvings from the stone age. There was a lot of water in the river and Lucy found its rushing scary.

Just past Fagernes we unloaded Tor Idar and his bike. He was planning to bike up to Skarstølen, the cabin at Vinstervatn as training before the race; also the race will be going along this stretch. Meanwhile I stopped by for a quick chat with MaryAnn and Nils, and to get the cabin key and some drinking water. Got a little carried away talking and so Tor Idar arrived before me. A sharp wind was blowing and there is little shelter, the cabin being above the tree line. He took refuge in a wood shed, with the wind whistling through the cracks. Needless to say he was less than pleased at my late arrival. However, once inside the cabin, he changed to warm and dry clothes, fired up the stove, and cooked some coffee and peace was restored.

July 6th – Galdhøpiggen

Galdhøpiggen is Norway's highest peak – 2469 m above sea level. In fact you won't find a higher peak in Europe north of the Alps. There is a summer ski senter at about 1800 meters, and from the ski lodge you can climb the last 600 meters in 7,5 km. Because you have to cross a bit of glacier you have to go with a guide. Everyone gathered outside the lodge at 10am. The guides handed out harnesses, the harnesses for children had to be specially fitted, dogs were recommended to be harnessed as well.

Lucy all harnessed up and ready to go.

Then off we went at our own pace until we reached the edge of the glacier. When everyone was gathered we were attached to ropes, about 2 m apart in 3 long lines (there were 91 hikers today). Children were always placed between 2 adults and each line was headed by an experienced glacier guide.


So we stomped along over the snow. Not very exciting, though we saw a couple of deep holes, there were no cracks or anything. The last km up to the cabin on the summit we went at our own pace, climbing over boulders and up a snowy bank until we reached the cabin on the summit shrouded in mist.



Apparently it was built by stonemasons from Nepal. It had a bit of an eastern look about it. Up here you could buy hot dogs and coffee, bottled water and t-shirts. We sat inside and drank hot chocolate. Lucy, tied in the entry didn't like when people wanted to pet her: “watch out! I'll bite!” she kept saying.


Pulling hard over the snow.

At the appointed time (2 pm) we all met at the glacier again, where the ropes lay as we had left them when we unhooked ourselves. The snow was much mushier now, in the middle of the day and this time we did have to jump over cracks. I got my foot caught in a crevice under the snow and held up the whole line until I was able to get loose.


Issoleie (glacier buttercup)

All in all the hike took 6 hours. Back at the lodge we had a plate of spaggetti bolognese with salad before heading back to the Skarstølen. We had gotten quite sweaty on the hike and Tor Idar jumped strait into the lake to wash . Brrrrr. As for me, I heated water before washing in the cabin.

July 7th + 8th – Resting up

We've spent the last 2 days resting up. We've been getting lots of sleep: going to bed at 9pm and getting up at 6am, then a morning nap from 10 to noon. The rest of the day is spent walking along the road or the shores of the lake with Lucy, reading, playing cards, preparing meals and once a day heating water to wash dishes. One afternoon we drove down to MaryAnn and Nils so that Tor Idar could check on the weather report for the pending bike race.



Skarstølen is a great place for dogs. It is on a toungue of land reaching out into the lake, Vinstervatn. So on 2 sides it is surrounded by water and the third is fenced to keep grazing animals out as the grass is cut for hay. Thus Lucy has a large area on which she can run freely, and we don't have to worry about what she is up to. At the very tip there is a large stone that I like to sit on to look out over the lake and the surrounding landscape and listen to the waves lapping on the shore. It is the most relaxing thing.

July 9th + 10th – Tour de Jotunheimen bike race

Friday dawned warm and sunny, with a north wind. After lunch we drove the 2,5 hours to Lærdalsøyri where the race starts. After the short cut from Østre Slidre to Vestre Slidre, we continued up the Vestre Slidre valley into Vang and then over the Filefjell mountain pass and through several tunnels until suddenly we were in West Norway (the land of Fjords). On the way we passed 3 stave churches and several bits of the old king highway though the mountains which has been preserved. Parts of could only be traveled with pack animals. Lærdalsøyri at the end of the Lærdals fjord, contains a lovely old-town, and the Wild Salmon Center. We were hungry when we arrived and Tor Idar needed to fill up on decent food – I was thinking burger so after unloading him and his gear I went in search of something to eat. Pretty soon I came upon a fast food joint run by a polish couple where I got a hamburger and a serving of chicken nuggets and fries, plus drinks. In the registration area people were napping at the side of their bikes in preparation for biking through the night. The race starts at 9pm for most classes and ends the next afternoon. The slowest class starts at 6pm. I wanted to leave before the slowest class started at 6 pm so at 5:45 I wished Tor Idar good luck and set off back to Skarstølen.

The race started in Lærdal from the Wild Salmon Center

I decided to take the scenic route and bypass the tunnels. It was narrow, with cliffs overhanging the road on one side and a rushing river on the other, and passing right by the Borgund Stave Church, Norway's best preserved, impressive with it's dragons sticking out from all corners. Back at Skarstølen, no sooner had I let her out of the car than Lucy went racing across the grass, glad to stretch her limbs after 5 hours in the back of the car. As I was unpacking I saw what I first took to be a little rabbit hopping around near the wood shed. Then I realized that it must be a baby hare. It was so cute, all fuzzy brown, but disappeared under the shed before I could get a picture. That explained why Lucy was always sniffing around the wood shed.

It was after 8pm when I got back and 10:30 before I was ready to sleep. I slept fitfully, wondering how Tor Idar was doing, and how long it would take him to get to the various rest stations. I had expected he would be in Fagernes by 3am and at Beitostølen by 5am, so that I would meet him up at the main road between 5 and 6. We were expecting that he would take 18 to 20 hours to do the whole trip over 3 mountain passes, through 3 valleys, and along the fjord, however at 2am I was awakened by an sms saying that he was in Fagernes. In under 5 hours! I couldn't believe how fast he had gone. Couldn't sleep after that. Realized I had to rethink the whole time schedule. I lit some candles, boiled water for the coffee I was bringing Tor Idar, and sat and read until he called from Beitostølen at 3:30. I drove up to the end of the road with a backpack full of drinks, bars and gels by 4 am. The weather had changed: there were dark clouds overhead, and rain in the air, and the wind had turned to the south. I watched several bicyclists creeping slowly up the hill, their lights coming every closer until they passed me. They all looked disgustingly cheerfull after 200 km on the seat of a bike! About 4:15 Tor Idar came. He filled his bottles, drank the coffee and jumped back on his bike as a larger group came up behind, thinking to continue in their company. I went back to bed at the cabin and slept for another 3 hours – awakening when the sun broke through the clouds and shone in the window onto my face.


4:15 am, the guy in the yellow jacket is Tor Idar coming up Valdresflya,

the second mountain pass of the race.

I figured I had about 3 hours before I had to leave for Sogndal to see Tor Idar finish, because I figured that with the time he had made during the night he would probably finish in 16 hours, ie about 1pm. My departure was delayed however. Coming back from walking Lucy I discovered cows from a neighboring summer farm on our peninsula. Lucy had met them on a previous walk and was afraid of them, in fact once when we had let her off leash she saw them in the distance and ran toward them, ignoring our call to come. We ran down the hill and started up the road toward where the cows were whistling all the while. Suddenly Lucy comes from behind us. My guess is that the cows shook there horns at her and that she then lost her nerve and came back the way she had gone, up the hill and then followed our trail. Anyway, I figured she'd be no help at all chasing them so I locked her into the cabin and then set about chasing the cows back out. They were all excited about their naughtiness, kicking up their heels like little calfs with their udders swinging, and completely ignored the gate that I opened for them. They ran up to the fence near the road. There's a gate there as well which I opened. At this point 4 or 5 of the heifers headed back down to the lake shore (heels kicking), but the older cows decided that the game was up and began going out through the gate. The bell cow stood undecided for a bit, but then also went through the gate. When the heifers saw that they came wandering up as well. I didn't have to run down to the lake to get them.

The cows are back outside the fence. 

Anyway, by this time 10 am had come and gone. I started packing a lunch for the trip to Sogndal. Just as I was leaving at 11 am, Tor Idar phoned from the Sogn mountain hut, the top of the third and highest mountain pass he had to pass. From there he had only about 85 more km. I figured it would take him a couple of hours, but he thought it would take longer. I left then, driving the same way back to Lærdal (to avvoid the bicyclists) and then on to the Ferry over to Sogndal.

Ferry across Sognefjord between Lærdal and Sogndal

Tor Idar had arrived about 15 minutes before. His total time was 17:42. He told me about the trip on the way home. The group he was with when he had passed Filefjell, the first mountain pass had started a chain and that is why they got to Fagerness so fast. Chain biking is extremely efficient over long distances, which are not too steep. He lost the chain in Fagernes though. From Beitostølen, just before he met me, it rained and they had a headwind which lasted for the entire second half of the race. Actually the last 140 km they had wonderful sunshine, but because of the headwind, coming down from the Sogn mountain hut took not the 2 hours it normally would have, but a full 3:50. In fact it is said that because of this wind, this years Tour de Jotunheimen was the toughest ever.

The finish line in the town center of Sogndal



July 11th – Departure

Tor Idar in Sogndal after the race, sore but still smiling

When we got back to Skarstølen we pretty much went straight to bed. Tor Idar could hardly walk. He had had legg cramps during much of the drive. Getting into the horizontal position was pure bliss. I hadn't had that much sleep either last night so I packed it in pretty early too.
This morning after breakfast we cleaned the cabin. Lucy was very quiet and when we looked out to see what she was up to we found her lying in the grass with a lemming that she had caught. It was damaged, and she didn't know what to do with it, so Tor Idar put it out of it's misery and threw it in the outhouse.

We got home about 2 pm. Tor Idar spoke to his mother on the way home and she couldn't get over how wonderful the girls were, so polite, and grown up, and affectionate. My motherly heart swelled! The girls had done a great job. The house was clean and tidy. All the animals were doing fine. Topsy was happy to see us and a little fat. The plants needed watering, but I expected them too. It is good to be home again. In a couple days we are going back to Sogndal for an orienteering event.