When we thought the exertions of the ascent to Sylvkallen were already behind us and we were enjoying the wonderful descent, Bernd, our mountain guide, had a nice surprise in store in the form of a rather rough counter-climb. But it was worth the effort! The subsequent descent led us to a bizarre scene with meter-high snowballs that had rolled down the slope. It was as if trolls had tried to build a snowman. After lunch, a short boat trip and a hot shower, we still had enough time to visit the small village of Sæbø and stock up on provisions in the village store for tomorrow's queen stage. This village is located at the picturesque fork in the Hjorundfjord, where the Norangsfjord continues to the west and the Storfjord to the south.
Day 3
The royal stage didn't start very promisingly. When we put on our skins after a short but rather expensive cab ride, it was just starting to rain. At some point, the rain turned into snow - the Norwegian weather showed its nasty side. We were therefore close to giving ourselves the last 300 meters of altitude to the 1542-meter-high Skårasalen and taking the next pass directly into the magnificent couloir. This leads over 1200 impressive meters of altitude straight down to the fjord. Just at this moment, the cloud cover tore open - completely unexpectedly - and revealed the view to the summit. We took heart and took the final ascent under our skins. The view and two fascinating ice sculptures made up for the effort. The aforementioned couloir called Little Skårasalen, which is anything but small, then gave us a seemingly endless descent in perfect conditions: Perhaps the highlight of our week of touring. Arriving at the bottom via a scree slope, our floating vacation apartment was already waiting for us, to which we crossed by rubber dinghy today due to the lack of a landing stage. The weather was now spring-like and we enjoyed a cold beer and a delicious lunch, as we do every day. Hours later - we had now arrived in Bjørke, at the very back of the Storfjorden - our spirits were revived and some of us were inspired to play a game of water polo in the village's own 12.5-meter indoor pool.
Day 4
The local electricity company not only sponsored the construction of the indoor swimming pool, but also the track in the forest that gave us access to the slope the next morning. A 1412-metre-high mountain called Dukhornet was on the agenda. Somehow everything went a little easier on the ascent today. Perhaps we were already feeling the effects of our training - or maybe you simply recover better at sea level. The huge cornice below the summit instilled a little respect in those of us who were afraid of heights. After overcoming this, however, we enjoyed another fantastic descent in powder snow and perfect weather conditions. For once, everyone pulled themselves together and we conjured up some beautiful tracks in the snow, which were also impressive in retrospect. The slalom through the bushes in knee-deep slush further down was a challenge of a special kind.
Day 5
No matter what has been said about the weather in this travel report so far: the Norwegian weather forecast had always predicted exactly the opposite. So on Thursday, we had no choice but to set the alarm clock early and see whether a tour made sense or not. This time the decision was clear: today, Thursday, is our wellness day. After half an hour of whistling and shouting, a temporarily lost group member rejoined us and we set off in the direction of Ytre-Trandal. After a few kilometers of sailing, there was a sudden rush on deck - whales! Quite far away and not the largest of specimens - but we actually saw whales. Nobody had expected that.
In Ytre-Trandal, a man called Crazy Frank had set up a kind of eyrie with a bar and terrace above his own small harbor, where he caters to crowds of guests in summer. First, however, we spent many relaxing hours in a secluded spot right by the fjord, where we enjoyed a bubble bath, sauna and Norwegian salmon sandwiches (with scrambled eggs) à discrétion. Our guide Bernd put on a show with a backflip into the freezing cold water of the Hjorund Fjord, estimated at four degrees. Others did the same, but less spectacularly. After so much show, it was time for a beer again - in other words, another beer, which Crazy Frank served us on his sun terrace. Crazy Frank didn't seem all that crazy to us - but he had some interesting stories to tell: for example, the tragic story of his brother, who was buried by an avalanche during a rescue operation and was only rescued alive after many hours, but with permanent damage.
Day 6
The next morning, we bridged the distance to the first snow with Frank's tractor and his cattle trailer - certainly another highlight of our trip, but one that was again associated with considerable costs (those Norwegians are very enterprising people). To our surprise, our skipper also had the tractor well under control. But then the fun was over. We put on our skins one last time and set off in the direction of Blåbretinden (1476 m). Unfortunately, the weather got worse and worse. Snow started to fall, fog rolled in and the fun factor dropped - for some of us to absolute zero. But not for the first time this week, Peter helped us decide what to do next. Suddenly the sun broke through again and we could at least see our hands in front of our eyes again. After a nourishing final ascent, we were even able to enjoy something like a view again. We enjoyed the last deep snow descent to the full. The lower we descended, the better the view became and the more melancholy mingled with the excitement. Others were responsible for the stunts this time - but the avalanche cones were really difficult to ski.
After the obligatory lunch, we sailed back to Ålesund and looked back on the best images from our trip. Throughout the week, we were all alone on the mountain, our ship was the only one of its kind in the entire fjord. The nature was impressive, wild and beautiful. We enjoyed a fantastic week of touring in every respect and would probably all like to return to this place one day. Despite the somewhat more cramped conditions than we are used to in the cabins, the atmosphere was always great and collegiality was very important.
