Section 03. Jotunheimen

February 27, 2026

Day 09. Prestesteinshytte to Skogadalsboen. 17 km. 6.5 hours. 200m up. 740 m down. The weather was better than the forecast and the mountains to the south of the cabin, Fanneråki and Steindalsnosi, both over 2000m, were looking sharp. There was a huge glacier which flowed down from them and would once have ended in the Prestestein Lake but now stopped far up the mountainside. We were lethargic in getting started and making sure the cabin was as we found it and did not really set off until 1000. Initially we skied the kilometre and a half back along the Riksvei 55 road along our tracks from last night until we intercepted them and the tracks from the 3 Norwegians, whom Stuart now referred to as the “Heroes of Telemark” on account of their skiing prowess. We decided to follow their tracks along the undulating shoreline on the east shore of Prestesteinvatnet. It was very easy going and the glide was perfect.

At the end of the lake we could look up to the east to see the white glaciers and black cliffs of the Smørstabb massif with its sharp mountains and razor sharp aretes, where glaciers had been working on each side of the mountain eroding the hard rock. From here we had a difficult choice. Either continue following their tracks to the south as that is where they looked like they were going and then down Vetle Utledalen or continue east over a ridge and go down a valley to the east of Vetle Utledalen. The former was certainly shorter than the latter which involved a further climb. However the former was also avalanche prone in certain conditions and not recommended by the DNT who mark the latter route as the official winter way. I had been down the latter on skis twice before but never the former. However the Heroes of Telemark certainly knew what they were doing and we decided to follow them into the lion’s den.

We crossed Rundhaugstjorne to the inflow at the SE corner and then continued over a series of small tarns in flat country until a vista opened up in front of us. There was a nice easy descent into the bowl at the top of the valley and the sun was out so we could see the formations and even texture of the snow and prepare for them as we approached rather than hitting them blindly. There must have been poor visibility yesterday when the others went this way as they were quite cautious. Ahead we could see the hill rise and we would have to climb this to reach the official track and it did not look enticing.

However the route the others took down the valley did look enticing and it gave us confidence to take it. There was always the possibility though it would end in an unforeseen hazard and we would have to climb back. We set off swinging from side to side as we zig-zagged down this great funnel with the sides getting closer and closer. It was a magical descent and the sun was out still, long after the weather forecast said it would disappear. Once the funnel stopped and the sides grew closer together I could look up and see, especially on the east side that there would be terrible avalanche conditions here in the right conditions.

From the end of the funnel the descent now entered something like a giant version of the Cresta bobsleigh run. It zig-zagged down with steep rock walls and banks of snow on each side in a slot which twisted down the valley in a ravine. Snow completely filled the bottom of the slot and it was easy to ski. I could see the altitude dropping quickly and we were nearing the flat swamp at the bottom of the valley where the two routes met up again. It was all going well until the route stopped at a drop of some 30 metres down to the rocky ravine below. There was no way it could be skied and had I been on my own I would have been so anxious I might have climbed back again and gone the official route, and that would have been 3 hours at least. Luckily I was with Stuart who had a lot of mountaineering experience and he said it would be quite straightforward – which inspired confidence. We took our skis off and put them on the packs and then stepped forth onto the west side wall of the ravine which was banked up with snow at about 40 degrees. However at one point it was 50 degrees for 30 metres and we had to downclimb facing the snow and kicking steps until we reached the lower section of the easier Cresta Run again. There were already some footprints and steps across this snowface, probably from the Heroes of Telemark which made our life easier. A fall or a slip would have meant a speedy descent into the sluggish stream at the bottom which was quite shallow but rocky. Luckily there was no incident and it was skis back on for a last ski down the chute until we spilled onto the open valley floor and the other route. The other route had just been marked with a line of twigs, thrust into the ground from a passing snow scooter, and we could follow them to Skogadalsboen cabin. We stopped here for a rest for 5 km from the cabin. I noticed some fresh wolverine tracks here.

Initially the marked route was fantastic and we sped along eating up 2 kilometres gliding nicely  However, the route now descended more quickly into the upper birch and juniper forest and it was too steep to ski. We zig-zagged back and forth in the forest endlessly, which had its problems. The snow was rotten and occasionally if I strayed too close to a tree or bush the snow collapsed under me and I sank down half a meter or more. Getting out of this slot was fiendishly hard work. I fell about 5 times and Stuart slightly less before we reached a flat area where three large valleys all met. By this time I had big skins on to try and give me some more control.

The final 2 kilometres were perhaps the hardest of the day and the route through the forest took the summer path. It was deep rotten snow but luckily the Heroes of Telemark and a few scooters had packed a path. It was almost raining, and the snow was soggy and fast, so it was difficult to control the skis. I have walked along this path in the summer and it is a lush, verdant delight, rich in wild flowers but today it was a slog. Up a little, steeply down through overhanding trees, sharp turns – there were hazards lurking everywhere and we were slow and cautious. Eventually in the light sleet we reached the main lodge. It was closed and will open soon, so we carried on to the self service cabin a little beyond. It was open and already warm as the Heroes of Telemark had left that morning.

We found a room and unpacked into it. Just then Renee and Peter Metcalf arrived, a couple from Montana. They had come down from Olavsbu self service cabin. They also found the forest section hard. With Renee, Stuart and myself dragged a huge pile of cut wood down the slope on a tarpaulin which we found in the wood shed 50 metres away. We then melted 3 large pans of water from snow and settled down for the evening at 1800. It had been a hard 3 days for Stuart and Myself and we planned a day off here tomorrow, especially as the forecast was not good. It was another nice pleasant, convivial cabin evening beside the immense stove which pumped out heat as we told tales and stories from our past. By 2130 we blew the candles out and went to bed.

Day 10. Skogadalsboen weather day. 0 km. 0 hours. 0m up. 0 m down. It was warm and overcast in the morning. When I went out I was shocked to see it was a light drizzle. There was not even the hint of sleet so it must have been plus 5. It was unheard of in early March. Luckily Stuart and Myself have the day off and we unenviably watched Renee and Peter Metcalf pack up and head off. I had a day catching up on the much neglected blog while Stuart had a book to finish. We gently loaded the large stove as it was too easy to overheat the place and then sat on the upholstered bench in front of the tables and started.

I just could not write and had a long sleep in the morning. I felt a little groggy and Stuart said he had a small headache. It was perhaps the effects of our efforts over the last few days and the hot, well-sealed and insulated stuffy room. After we ventilated the place I felt better and spent the rest of the day writing while the drizzle came and went and with it some much needed snow. There were enough provisions in the cupboard to keep us well fed for a while. The afternoon was lazy with a bit more snoozing on the upholstered bench, and then we were sure no one else was coming, we started dinner with something from the huts provisions. This evening we had pasta and reconstituted chicken.

After basking in the warmth of the cabin’s living room with the enormous stove all evening. I went out at about 2130 to see the weather before bed. The stars were out and it was feeling a bit colder which bode better for tomorrow. Suddenly I saw another light too low to be a star and then I realised it was on the hillside about 400 metres away. There were two of them. I knew it would be an unfortunate team who were battling through the terrible conditions to reach the hut. It took them an hour to reach us with some shouting and flashing of lamps. When they arrived they were exhausted having spent the last 5 hours wading through waist high snow. They said their day was going well until the last 2 kilometres when the “Wheels fell off”. We had already prepared a room by lighting the stove in it and were waiting with hot drinks when they appeared. They were two English lads from the Home Counties. They told us terrible tales about reaching the cabin after a tolerable day when they encountered first a boulder field with a layer of soft snow on it and then the birch woods with its deep unskiable sugary snow. I was quite fearful of what we would encounter the next morning. The “wheels fell off team” were quite bewildered and shellshocked at their experience and we left them up as they sorted themselves out and went to bed at 2300.

Day 11. Skogadalsboen to Fondsbu. 24 km. 10.5 hours. 920m up. 690 m down. Stuart was up at once as soon as the alarm went off at 0630. We had a quick breakfast, where I had a can of stew and Stuart some porridge. We packed hurriedly, fearful of the long day we might encounter. As we were about to leave Wheels Fell Off appeared from their room after a well deserved rest and quite unsure about what to do next. We chatted a bit and then set off at 0800.

Initially the snow up to the bridge, just 300 metres away, was good and the frozen snow held our weight. However, at the bridge there was no snow at all covering it. We crossed the bare boards and then started on the snow up the other side, which was much less firm and our skis started to sink in the snow. We climbed up a small rise where the summer and winter paths diverge. The summer path threaded a line through the trees climbing diagonally, while the winter ski path headed down across an open frozen meadow and then headed over to the Urdals River before climbing up a more open spur before the two met again after a kilometre. All the ski tracks from the Hero of Telemark, Renee and Peter, and the footsteps off Wheels Came off, with huge deep holes a metre deep, went up the more difficult but more intuitive summer path. We were in a quandary, follow the summer path where the others went or drop down a bit and break a new trail. We chose the former as the least of two evils. The former was proven, while anything could happen with the unmarked latter.

For the next two hours we crept forward at a snail’s pace in some of the most difficult terrain I have ever skied in. It was an immense struggle to move forward and up and in some areas we gained 10 metres in 15 minutes. Our skis either disappeared into half a metre of snow where they became entangled in birch branches, or slithered across the slippery glazed surface causing us to fall forwards and crash into the snow. The resultant effort to get up was so severe we started to make sure we never fell, even if that meant fussing over a step for 5 minutes. Very slowly we made progress up the icy trail which was punctuated every half meter with huge footprints where the ski skins surface was in mid air, not providing any traction. In the end it took us 2 hours to battle a hard won kilometre and reach the boulder field.

I thought our worries would be over now but they were not. It was a large boulder field with stones the size of cars jumbled across it. I have skied up and down here 5 times over the last 20 years and normally most of the boulders are submerged under a large snowfield. However in this year of lower snowfall the boulders just had a smattering of snow on them. There was a difficult route through them which took a further hour to gain less than a kilometre. It was bad enough going up, but coming down would be exceptionally difficult and fraught and I could understand why the Wheels Fell Off for the English Team. Usually there is a route through the boulder marked by sticks a snow scooter driver has placed, however this year a snow scooter would just get stuck, impaled on a boulder or wedged in a slot and could only be extracted by helicopter. Some 3 hours after leaving the hut we had covered 1.8 kilometres and used an enormous amount of energy to do it. It was already 1100 and we still had a long way to go. Heading the other way, as Wheels Fell Off did, I could see it was a terrible trap they skied into, oblivious to the forthcoming hazards and so close to the cabin.

Once out of the boulders the wind suddenly picked up and there were some very strong gusts. Spindrift was flying everywhere in the force 9-10 blasts and this also made us worried in case it should worsen. Stuart set off and broke a trail, as the other tracks had largely vanished. Luckily the wind did not increase and we managed to battle into it for the next 2.5 hours to gain just another 7 km to reach the pass. However it was now 1330 hours and we still had 13 km to go which was worrying. It was a great shame the weather here was difficult as there were no views, either back to the lofty giants of Hurrungane behind us or the massive Uranostind and Falketind in front. I knew these spectacular mountains and was hoping it would be a highlight for Stuart, but instead it was the exceptionally difficult conditions and terrible weather for which Urdalen will be remembered. Although once we were out of the boulders the snow conditions did improve as the snow under the ski was firm with the below zero temperatures. As we reached the pass, Urdalsbandet at about 1460 metres, the wind was a good gale yet there were a couple of ravens in the spindrift filled air who were just playing in the wind, as if showing off their acrobatic prowess to us. We did not stop at the pass as it was too windy to do anything but started down the other side, gingerly making slow wide turns as the light was very flat and we could not make out the undulations in the snow. When we finished the descent we were on the relative calm of Urdalsvartnet some 150 metres lower than the pass. We stopped here for a snack.

The snow was now excellent with a firm base and a dusting of new snow on top. It gave us a great glide with our smaller skins on and we flew down this lake, climbed a small rise to reach Kvitevatnet and flew down this too to the SE corner. At last things were going well. However I felt tired due to the exertions in the forest and boulderfield. There was the odd patch of blue sky occasionally, the first for days, as we glided east over undulations and across smaller tarns until we reached Sløtatjernet tarn at the end of this easier passage. Slowly the ground started to descend as we stood on our skis and travelled down into a lower side valley. It was covered in snow, but too difficult to make anything out. Stuart was in front and at one stage he went over a small drift and disappeared into a heap 2 metres lower. I felt sorry just for the effort in getting up at this stage in a long day.

The descent eventually took us down into Mjølkedalen, a higher valley which led down a wide open U shaped descent down to the cluster of cabins at the east end of Bygdin Lake, 1036m. It was a descent I had been dreading all day as I had been down some 5-6 times, sometimes without even falling. However I felt tired and the flat light falling this time was inevitable and the thought of getting up made me fearful and cautious. In the end it was not that bad and there was a great view down Bygdin Lake and even over to Galdeberget Mountain, my last 2000 metre top some 20 years ago. We made cautious swings from side to side down the U shaped funnel dropping some 10-15 metres with each one. I knew if I did a ski turn I would fall, so instead I came to a halt and did a step turn before starting the next descending traverse. After some 25 turns we at last neared the bottom and could then traverse to the north in the direction of the closed Eidsbugarden hotel. We passed Asmund Vinjes historic cabin and then Fondsbu came into view some 500 metres away. Stuart is very hardy and never one to complain, but said his knees were sore after that taxing descent. At last after some 10.5 hours we reached Fondsbu as dusk was finishing.

We went in and were given a small room with bunk beds. Supper was going to start in half an hour so we quickly changed out of our stinking, damp ski clothes into our evening attire and went through. The host, the renowned  Solbourg, was greeting everyone as they entered. When she saw me she exclaimed in delight and we had a warm hug. I have known Solbourg for 25 years and she looked after me once 15 years ago when I was at a low ebb on my Norge På Langs ski trip in 2009 when I helped her prepare for the lodges opening in early February. It was great to see her again. That evening Stuart and myself sat with 2 other British and were served the most sensational high quality meal of a rich tomato/ministone soup, venison stew and brown goats cheese ice cream. It was delicious simple honest food for which Fondsbu is famous. I thought about writing afterwards but was totally exhausted after the meal and went to bed early at 2100.

Day 12. Fondsbu to Tyinkrysset. 23 km. 6 hours. 240m up. 470 m down. The intention had been to ski the 33 kilometres to Sulebu today. However after yesterday neither of us was up for it. Luckily we could split it and we still had a few spare days in reserve. So instead we decided to go just 23 kilometres to Tyinkrysset and we then managed to arrange a small apartment there usually rented to skiers. The forecast was not good with a wind increasing from force 1 to force 7 in the course of the day with heavy snowfall later. However, on the positive side the temperatures were at last dropping below zero degrees. After a sumptuous breakfast of more high quality ingredients we packed up and were ready to pay by 0900. However there were a few people I had met previously including 3 Dutch from about 10 years ago, and of course Solbourg so we did not leave until nearer 1000. As we put our skis on, the Norwegian pennant hung unmoving from the flagpole. We passed a few parked weasels made by Bombardier used for ferrying clients about and nearly 60 years old. They were from another era, We then started up the shallow hill to cross over to the large lake at Tyinholmen. We skied on the road which was completely covered and used by the weasels to take up to 10 passengers at a time to the bus stop at the end of the road.

The ski was fantastic. At last the conditions were good and we got a great glide with our smaller skins on. We sauntered up the hill and then down to Tyinholmen on the other side. It was all relatively shallow and quite fast and we covered the 4 kilometres in well under an hour. At Tyinholmen the forecast wind started to pick up and soon spindrift was starting to pepper us, flowing directly towards us. We thought about skiing the 14 kilometres down the lake, but it would be boring so instead decided to continue on the slightly undulating road for the next 15 kilometres. It was an easy ski but occasionally the gusts heading towards us were intense and buffeted us about. I was fearful the wind would increase to a force 8 or even 10 and then progress would have become very difficult, but it topped out at force 7 for the whole section. We skied well and fast, delighted to make such easy progress after a difficult week. We passed many characterful cabins along the shore of the lake, all of which had to conform to stringent conditions such as a grass roof. It was a lovely ski and before we knew it we had skied the 19 kilometres and reached the junction with the big road and the incongruous apartment block which did not conform to any planning permissions it seemed.

It was not far to Tyinkrysset now but the ski route was very difficult in these conditions and in this light. It was steeper than yesterday’s descent and was made difficult with increasing birchwoods as we descended further. Luckily there was an alternative and that was the main road which we had just arrived at. We decided to walk the 4 kilometres down the Riksveg 53 road rather than tangle with the forest and steep slopes. Within the hour we had reached Tyinkrysset and then walked to the lovely apartment at the bottom of the ski piste. It was the piste we would climb tomorrow.

The apartment had 2 bedrooms, a kitchen/living room, bathroom with washing machine and even a small sauna. It was also close to the local shop for food. We settled in and then went shopping, getting fish and potatoes for dinner and granola for breakfast. It was simple and easy. Back at the apartment in the chalet style building we filled the washing machine with all the dubious clothing and then I wrote the blog for the rest of the day. Stuart cooked the potatoes, carrots and cod for supper which was delicious with butter. Despite the 23 kilometres it had been an easy day and we arrived early enough to enjoy some downtime rather than arriving exhausted after a struggle.

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