Every year the DNT is organising a summer camp in the high mountains. The tentcamp lies near the Leirvassbu, one of the biggest serviced huts in Norway. The camp is made up of multiple sleeping tents on wooden platforms and a couple of extra tents for different things. Also with a sauna tent next to the lake. We were 12 participants and 8 tourleaders, between 22 and 30 years.
Day 1
We had a lot of rain/snow in our camp during the night, but we woke up with a sunny view over the snowcovered mountains. The plan for today was to hike up one of the 2000m peaks near the camp. It started as an easy hike on the trail, but higher up there was some scrambling in the fresh snow. The weather was clear, but a bit cold at the top. (ca. -2C/28F) We were walking back to the camp and preparing a nice dinner in the Tipi. In the cold evening, there was an opportunity to finish up the evening in the sauna.
Day 2
Today we split up into two groups. One stayed at the camp and had a cooking class over the campfire, while the other wanted to go up “Kyrkja”. The mountain stands out quite a lot from our perspective. The weather wasn’t the best, so we were only a small group setting for the peak. The route started on a well-used trail, and we were making good progress. After leaving the trail, we were traversing some easy talus fields. We had a small break to catch some views into another valley, just before ascending into the clouds. The last meters to the top were a mildly exposed scramble, which was fine because you couldn’t see more than 10 meters. We had a long break on the top with some snacks and hot drinks. We were all looking forward to the sauna in the evening, while descending through the clouds.
Day 3
The plan for today was a small glacier experience. We used mountain bikes to ride ca.7km to the start of the hike and then hiked another hour to the glacier. After putting on the equipment, we walked up to some holes in the glacier, where we could try out some ice climbing. Those holes are up to 20-25m deep (65-80ft). It is really interesting how those glaciers look inside. The weather wasn’t really good, with a lot of drizzle and fog. We went back to our bikes in the early afternoon and rode back to the camp. In the evening, the weather cleared up, but strong winds came up during the night.
Day 4
Today started with some small courses about navigation with a map and compass, first aid, and different equipment and materials to use when you are on a trip. After a lunch break, we paddled across the Leirvassvatnet to do some bouldering on the stones there. We enjoyed the nice weather also with some freshly prepared pancakes. We paddled back and spent the evening packing before having s’mores together at the campfire.
Day 5
This was the pack-up day, when we all took down the tents and carried everything up to the hut/containers near the hut. The weather challenged us a little bit, with the heaviest rain and wind we had all week. We had a small summary about the camp in the hut while warming up, before most of us took the bus back to Oslo or drove back home.
It was a very nice week in the mountains, and it is always nice to meet people who share the same hobby and have the same weather resilience. 🙂