Lyngen Alps - Northern Lights and Salmon Sauce
March 2009
by Guy
I think we knew that we really were going to be sailing in the Arctic winter as we dug 3 feet of snow off the boat. Still, otherwise, just the same as summer really: except 3 more clothing layers, ski goggles for the helmsman and regular clearing the decks of snow and ice. Scottish sailors don’t know they’re born!
Anyone
for yachting…?
The whole purpose of this (Martin, take note…) was of course to sail into the islands and fjords off the north coast of Norway and enjoy top notch skiing from summit to beach.
So on our first night, with our friendly Norwegian skipper, Arne, we sailed out of Tromsø, under the soaring road bridge and past the Arctic Cathedral and on between snowy slopes, most of which appeared to have streetlights at the bottom. This not withstanding we were treated to our first and best display of the northern lights, streaking across the sky and vaguely shimmering between the clouds: a good compensation for cold feet!
The next day we sailed north to our first island, Vanøya, and in doing so crossed the 70th parallel. We disembarked in warm sunshine onto powder snow on the jetty and continued on this marvellous substance for the rest of the day. We didn’t quite get to the top as we were concerned about avalanche danger, but the descent was on superb powder.
The next two days saw us skiing on two other islands, with the weather being somewhat variable (occasional blizzards and high winds). Nevertheless, we did bag our first summit, Trolltind, even if NATO had been there first with its huge concrete communications tower. The snow was nearly always good, especially in the trees…
…
Sun, sea, snow.
On the Wednesday morning we set off for the mainland and after that the weather just got better and better. Our second peak was Storehaugen (ca.1200m), which was a straight up and down, but had superb views north and just the most wonderful snow, all the way down; and views of the Lyngen peninsula and fjord shimmering in the low afternoon sun.
Meanwhile, back in the boat, Arne was keeping us well fed… every night was a new culinary delight including smoked salmon and special sauce, freshly baked cod and (unexpected in Norway) Chicken Tikka Masala. Thursday was our biggest day – an ascent of Sorbmegeiser (ca.1300m). The weather was even better than the day before and the snow lay before us like a huge, rolling, down duvet (Tog 1000).
Heaven
- Fluffy white stuff!
After cresting a minor ridge we were able to descend slightly and follow another up trail (always reassuring and definitely saves work) and topped out at 3.00pm. The descent was mixed to start with, but lower down a quick traverse to the left took us to several hundred metres of steeply rolling powder slopes with the westering sun shimmering in the fjord below us. Back in the boat at nightfall we decided not to move on that night and to put all our sea miles in the next day.
The final day dawned bluer than ever and we set off up the fjord in full sail with a cracking wind behind, surfing the waves under the 1000m mountain wall.
Lyngenfjord
Rounding the peninsula the wind evaporated and we motored across glassy seas to the gentler island of Reinøya. Here we skied through a ghost village in dazzling sun and through the woods to a viewpoint overlooking Lyngen. There we decided to call it a week as we basked in the sun and watched the eagles circle overhead. A quick ski through the trees and fields took us back to the boat and we puttered back to Tromsø with the alpenglow illuminating the mountains and even a brief display of the northern lights as we entered the home straights.
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See more photos and a short video of the crew in the Lyngen Alps.