Event: LRNSC ski tour in
Rondane, March 2008
Date first posted on eCommunity - 19
August 2007
London Region Nordic Ski Club has organised a
week's ski tour from 9
to 16 March 2008 in Rondane, one of Norway's best touring areas. The
tour is open not only to London club members but also to paid-up
members of other British clubs affiliated to Snowsport GB.
ITINERARY
The group will fly from London Heathrow to Oslo Gardermoen on Sunday
9 March and travel onward by special coach to Mysuseter Fjellstue, a
little hotel on the edge of the Rondane National Park. After a night
here they will make a circuit to the east, staying in DNT huts at
Eldåbu (2 nights), Bjørnhollia (1 night) and Rondvassbu (2 nights).
They will return to Mysuseter Fjellstue for the last night. (They
can leave un-needed kit at Mysuseter - at their own risk - while on
tour. Everything else will need to be carried in a backpack) On
Sunday 16 March they will return by special coach to Oslo Gardermoen
and fly back to Heathrow.
ACCOMMODATION
Eldåbu is a small place with just 18 beds. It is unstaffed. Although
it has stocks of firewood and food, group members will all need to
pitch in with cooking, fetching snow for water, and general
housekeeping.
The huts at Bjørnhollia and Rondvassbu are staffed, and serve hot
meals. They also sell draught beer. Bjørnhollia is big: it has 90
beds. It's a nice old place with lots of character. Rondvassbu is
even bigger, with 128 beds. It is in a very scenic location by a
long frozen lake that cuts right through the centre of the mountain
range.
SKIING DISTANCES
There is some scope to vary the daily skiing distances, by taking
short-cuts or adding extra loops. But the approximate basic
distances are as follows:
Mysuseter – Eldåbu 21km
(Some of this, perhaps 10km, will be on machine-prepared sections of
the Troll Loipe.)
Eldåbu – Bjørnhollia 18km
Bjørnhollia – Rondvassbu 12km
On the static day at Rondvassbu there is a choice of valley-tours as
well as some fairly easy hills to climb (and some that are not so
easy).
Rondvassbu – Mysuseter 10km
(The basic route follows a machine-prepared loipe. There should be
time in the afternoon for a pack-free tour on the Kringsæter fells.)
EQUIPMENT NEEDED
You need to have your own metal-edged ski equipment. Local hire is
not possible. The most appropriate ski for this tour will be a
general Nordic mountain touring ski, with a Nordic camber and only
moderate side-cut. The route does not cover enough steep ground to
justify a soft-cambered ski with pronounced side-cut. However
climbing skins are recommended – just in case the snowpack surface
is glazed. A sheet sleeping bag is needed for all the overnight
stops.
PACKAGE AND PRICE
The logistics are being handled by XCuk Limited, which is bonded
with CAA and IATA. Their package includes flights, road transfers to
and from Mysuseter, seven nights accommodation in dormitories and
all meals from dinner on the first night to breakfast on the last
morning. Drinks and purchase of personal items are not included. No
leadership or instruction is included, so you'll need to be a
reasonable skier.
The price is £735 per person, and includes DNT membership (deduct
£40 if you are already a member). Flights from Manchester and
Aberdeen are possible, subject to availability, for a supplement of
£60. LRNSC needs a minimum of six participants to make the trip
viable.
For a booking form and a copy of the XCuk booking conditions,
contact me, Stuart Montgomery (LRNSC's touring member) at
s.a.montgomery@btinternet.com.
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