tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59239533614297576222024-03-14T00:10:13.543-07:00S U P E R M A R M O TSUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.comBlogger25125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-17296704923170945062011-02-03T13:15:00.001-08:002011-02-03T13:32:18.590-08:00Olympic Peninsula<div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWrbreR7msEak8QIIEe3hwXrYlOa704YA_J9qJZogcASJu04UAWIyHw_hs8drNY-XDxVF35u8N2vY77_aCZeehbD4EwnpHAY0gtDIswN_dNZYMqmV8Us6vWct9UU3F7K_frItaG1wIhRFG/s1600/IMG_1462.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWrbreR7msEak8QIIEe3hwXrYlOa704YA_J9qJZogcASJu04UAWIyHw_hs8drNY-XDxVF35u8N2vY77_aCZeehbD4EwnpHAY0gtDIswN_dNZYMqmV8Us6vWct9UU3F7K_frItaG1wIhRFG/s320/IMG_1462.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569576099883979954" /></a><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjazW0q6pVz33HeRe6ok_ae0s4dtdzpwKWQGYVuKG35db9UdZL38QnfhEsLiZoxg8N4HYobL54Ko7wLmXCz5l8DY4yoUzI09vc9fh-OIKDSGi2niOrs1dh3E9U5GoQKLqd1hht68bCnMx-M/s1600/IMG_7258.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjazW0q6pVz33HeRe6ok_ae0s4dtdzpwKWQGYVuKG35db9UdZL38QnfhEsLiZoxg8N4HYobL54Ko7wLmXCz5l8DY4yoUzI09vc9fh-OIKDSGi2niOrs1dh3E9U5GoQKLqd1hht68bCnMx-M/s320/IMG_7258.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569576085731507106" /></a>SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-39915789178260735462011-01-19T17:46:00.001-08:002011-01-19T17:58:21.137-08:00Back in the PAC NW!I'm home for the winter and man am I stoked about it! Mark came up from Berkeley for a week of skiing around New Years and we made a little tour de Washington by hitting Crystal, Alpental and Baker. We were super lucky with freezing cold (ca 0-15F) bluebird days the whole time, and the snow was awesome and stable too.<div><br /></div><div>We used up all our weather karma showing off for Mark, and pretty soon after the shit hit the fan as a series of strong storms came rolling in. At first things were good as we picked up some snow even in the lowlands, but the later storms went in too far to our north putting us in the warm sector and dousing us with 50F sideways rain for several days. I hung out at my parents' house in Snoqualmie to watch the flooding -- always a good time!</div><div><br /></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFGpuHeFt5PBYzPgz1DCXgbozlbiSIlKYIHGBuw0o6pIoaZo0TiSde7vM_1hqIS5KGkLHR3crfc-H9hMnARRDpImCW485OnbEJ7u7C4Mob3Tenuluxoetr2LyX6XXtgT_N_-iN4pKozmID/s320/DSC02617.JPG" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564080084545927474" /><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Me on Shucksan Ar</i>m</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0xX-VvLIvywe9Tc8zI0HAqGXt8MswexCbx34rlPpkHq7e0sAww4N-Xkbd_2SwFi2VR9Nr313KVdSy3kSPpoZYefprNJnAehkAV6cPt_uY4vkD7YqA0PxO71_uveTRO4NONJZMgHdBm5Q3/s320/DSC02620-2+%25281%2529.JPG" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 310px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564074988499407826" /><div style="text-align: center;"><i>The nice steep pow just below :-)</i> </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVYQ4XJ-OEgjV89l4gZUZdtlxNRSHesKInzfUqNWOPxgkc_HL7-CIStn-iZ8wVITjIwNefWBIuJussRW41y3Yx8h_qzI-mVdGowlia1wBWNhPorMjj2r-qZQZaKavSeaQxXEChBA83EKbX/s320/DSC02627-1.JPG" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564074981464421154" /><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Mark ripping with Shucksy in the background</i>.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLsWuEi57Jrh_UVsK6KVBt_pgETmEMF7Uf5btmKn7edvr0nGnu5ebgdBNuQHaCM_qYomrzPtU2Hx6E4TfDABGBhRK_OmkQSrxuSwwSLgY4aW5DM3NHN9IUkJrtYhuhwvgXxEZDpIqYwDGd/s320/DSCN1413_stitch.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 137px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564080087156615394" /><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Middle Fork Snoqualmie River</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFQFTHz7_rw-2mL-8xz92xlGm59NhiGrg1GzN_Cvne9sWZEiZE-FkfSpLdiyl70fdeAQZgSJY60lRiQHGwd9H7pA6uPb6eh4P6uyE62yZmD4VdSHoDKhhBcXGTXe6Pzy4pjqJFmBLGCYDK/s320/DSCN1419-1.JPG" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564074996873511570" /><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Twin Peaks!!</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><div><div><br /></div></div></div>SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-51512326129164064272010-04-08T08:00:00.002-07:002010-04-08T10:25:03.309-07:00Påske!So we cruise around the last switchback in the road at 10:20pm. We're 3.5 hours out of Oslo but perhaps more importantly we're twenty minutes late for the last departure. It's okay though because they waited for us. We dump our gear and Gregers squeals off to park the car. Then we throw our skis to the man on the roof to be tied down, and we jump inside. A snowcat. A sweet, WW2-era, growling, burping and farting snowcat. We sit, crammed in like sardines in the darkness with a bunch of random people that hopped off a last minute bus. Our driver jumps off the roof to reveal himself a 20-something skibumsy type with a sweet dialect. Well, that's my impression until he demands the one-way price of 250 nok, at which point i decide he sounds rather petty and redneck, and that he probably isn't that good a skier anyway.<br /><br />We spend the next 20km sucking in diesel fumes and staring out foggy windows into the flood-lit arctic landscape. (In other words it is very white.) Oh shit I bumped my head on the roof and now I am sitting in some norwegian girl's lap. I like this snowcat. It's fast.<br /><br />And so begins the easter holiday in Norway.<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK5D-K0vrF2Hjytws0_jMbmY5TZvnKMsujy303-FvMebMhwYYf-Q-0sDjCc4c128rlVOwTwxFF8bwTC0-VWJ1t74L6jwdhmxXAmkmN1IlvZOkXxNmefKWkIZM_BnMeby6bFH7ua8TeyszX/s1600/IMG_1247.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK5D-K0vrF2Hjytws0_jMbmY5TZvnKMsujy303-FvMebMhwYYf-Q-0sDjCc4c128rlVOwTwxFF8bwTC0-VWJ1t74L6jwdhmxXAmkmN1IlvZOkXxNmefKWkIZM_BnMeby6bFH7ua8TeyszX/s320/IMG_1247.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457807502040600258" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">sha-shwing!</span><br /><br /></div>Last year I took an eleven day trip to Sunnmørsalpene, but this year the trip would be split into two segments: one trip to a ski hut high in Jotunheimen national park for some 'toppturing', and the second to Gregers' new and improved camping trailer in the Hemsedal for fluffy BC skiing and wild easter partying.<br /><br /><br />But anyway back to the sweet snowcat. We were willing to pay the price because the alternative method of transportation to the ski hut would be to ski 20km of completely flat, white, nothingness. And besides, cross country skis are for bitches. We're going touring. Like, UP the mountain. And then down again. Fast. And steep. Right kids? No? The avy danger is epicly high and the snow settles in lound thunder-like whumping sounds in all directions when we ski on it? Damn. Okay then how about that 30 degree slope over there.<br /><br />Actually the tame skiing ended up being quite enjoyable, and the food at the hut was delicious. Oh and it was sunny. And Karin came from Stockholm. Good times:<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHqalbdI0Oh7bz90RtPGjfnuyLHglXqxUNK1TIGZ_RJOtOBEa5xi5g2Ls50JZK3CkwadC-F5td5FmTTHNp_sKtWlvsJC-gkDJY0ZZ9ZcNmlPs9q081x6zT7nRWqobQTcm4_YbzIsJShybB/s1600/IMG_1036.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHqalbdI0Oh7bz90RtPGjfnuyLHglXqxUNK1TIGZ_RJOtOBEa5xi5g2Ls50JZK3CkwadC-F5td5FmTTHNp_sKtWlvsJC-gkDJY0ZZ9ZcNmlPs9q081x6zT7nRWqobQTcm4_YbzIsJShybB/s320/IMG_1036.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457799140898906754" border="0" /></a><br />Catherine, Eivind, Karin<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY6yvDJAO8uxcWbMfZgyf_8pLzkQaDb9ZFo7SmgoEsGGzZBjA5ka_yIrETV-Tedseb5M8VUm5EAfka-F35kMQTk8blgTAEZJZ2NkmUrRXJCsRMX1HcPuFclzUPi2LZhRwK7JVgqKgMHcFV/s1600/IMG_1215.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY6yvDJAO8uxcWbMfZgyf_8pLzkQaDb9ZFo7SmgoEsGGzZBjA5ka_yIrETV-Tedseb5M8VUm5EAfka-F35kMQTk8blgTAEZJZ2NkmUrRXJCsRMX1HcPuFclzUPi2LZhRwK7JVgqKgMHcFV/s320/IMG_1215.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457799152128739842" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Karin<br /><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzmLK93H_WA9y-iFtKk-ol8ev3v5fu9tENrvAIYgHfnbTrUnCCcoon3jp9Fwu73t7ULh-mBhvpKPw2AH1TcgAl6xh9Pe6Qyj_pM3Uj5CWDw88ZPOyDx_pqJLVmDWsswZji_7NRu47ZEgtN/s1600/IMG_1096.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzmLK93H_WA9y-iFtKk-ol8ev3v5fu9tENrvAIYgHfnbTrUnCCcoon3jp9Fwu73t7ULh-mBhvpKPw2AH1TcgAl6xh9Pe6Qyj_pM3Uj5CWDw88ZPOyDx_pqJLVmDWsswZji_7NRu47ZEgtN/s320/IMG_1096.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457799146393437058" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Gregers</span><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO7-O9qtLYxRcytSLO5Dir61ASDLw2j6ULbsuncih0tSo7MCKJGEOQehOZfZXxVyG1igsL-WPN7dKlkfGAHrJvzV_fWlzuG9Sf1wBsIHSZv0mEb9aLw6RE1QvfKxfF0669lg0PRmnkrihb/s1600/IMG_1191.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO7-O9qtLYxRcytSLO5Dir61ASDLw2j6ULbsuncih0tSo7MCKJGEOQehOZfZXxVyG1igsL-WPN7dKlkfGAHrJvzV_fWlzuG9Sf1wBsIHSZv0mEb9aLw6RE1QvfKxfF0669lg0PRmnkrihb/s320/IMG_1191.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457799145112594466" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">some douche bag...<br /><br /></span></div>The next part of the trip would basically be a sausage-fest trip to Hemsedal for a long weekend. We lucked out here since there had actually been a pretty good powder dump, so we skied powder every day. There was beer, there was skiing, and by god was there trailer trash partying at the 'ice bar' on the veranda of a neighboring 'spikertelt' (I missed it because I was skiing but apparently there had been a strip contest earlier in the day to the norwegian national song!)<br /><br />One of the days I got separated from the others since I had to return to the trailer for my avalanche beacon, and so I had to be creative in finding ski partners. My first trick was to just wait at the top of the lift until I found people going where I wanted to go, and this worked quickly the first time when I found two 40-something dads who had been allowed by their families ONE trip down Reiderskaret for the day. It was absolutely fantastic with steep, untracked fluffy in the chute and then open trees lower down. I was so keen on another trip that I returned to the top of the mountain to wait for more people that were going down there. No one came, and I was freezing my ass of but just just as I was about to bail I received a message from a Finnish girl I had met the night before that her and three of her friends were heading up right then.<br /><br /><br />We got another trip in and when we got to the taxi at the bottom I recognized Gregers' skis and André's board. Halla! Apparently they had gone on some ill-advised recon mission that ended up with Gregers literally towing André's snowboarding ass across 4km of flats. Shitty.<br /><br />But there was good to come out of it: Gregers had spotted a couloir that cut through the cliffs on the other side of the mountain, so we had a mission for the next day.<br /><br />We found the top of it and Gregers dropped in first. It sounded pretty icy at the top, and he took it slow, and then Andrew followed. And me next.<br /><br />From the middle of the chute there was a rock band below and then a small gap that passed through on the left. But there was also a pretty good layer of snow that hadn't slid yet so gregers cut some of it off to let it slide down ahead of us (as opposed to 'accompanying' us.) Then it was a fun little point and a bumpy ride out across the avy debris before crossing a flat and then dropping down into some really fantastic tree-skiing back to the road. Really nice day, and one of the cooler runs we have done in Hemsedal.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglX6LzESAtohrbhTtEK2Bq2dU8bCC6oW6Hwj9VygS_fMZfahXb54HAQOJrvaR05raSJMg76DGuI8GaqHIUrGnitsePjsBQF-kgw5GHli0fE_PWNUB1gmoKtLNYc4r1blnKUJ88aeXalJcW/s1600/P1040232.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglX6LzESAtohrbhTtEK2Bq2dU8bCC6oW6Hwj9VygS_fMZfahXb54HAQOJrvaR05raSJMg76DGuI8GaqHIUrGnitsePjsBQF-kgw5GHli0fE_PWNUB1gmoKtLNYc4r1blnKUJ88aeXalJcW/s320/P1040232.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457807515664769122" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Gregers, Andrew<br /><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg6dlmmHRQAz7R9pCzhzp7rVadCQhJD-8hY027h9dLjUcEQVY_z6CZQ6eGchnpRsW0121w2U7sMVQPhgp-nc3UHxaqVT-hyNYywG9MAnaqAbZyp38IxVSlcSwRAy2OSX42MGhFS65P9gFV/s1600/P1040243.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg6dlmmHRQAz7R9pCzhzp7rVadCQhJD-8hY027h9dLjUcEQVY_z6CZQ6eGchnpRsW0121w2U7sMVQPhgp-nc3UHxaqVT-hyNYywG9MAnaqAbZyp38IxVSlcSwRAy2OSX42MGhFS65P9gFV/s320/P1040243.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457807496665070962" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Gregers</span></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4SJwN4gzaeWVx9LuT4CVV8gAmuCJ-TY_utNXheVzfwU40SatY6iLQe4JezGQQBt7nxCwhzg_43hvNPAUofj8UpGoxXF6IhVesEOjcZZBCG4uRXGZDRNthJeuLSAz5LuYBz03pjQ3PaK02/s1600/IMAG0189.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4SJwN4gzaeWVx9LuT4CVV8gAmuCJ-TY_utNXheVzfwU40SatY6iLQe4JezGQQBt7nxCwhzg_43hvNPAUofj8UpGoxXF6IhVesEOjcZZBCG4uRXGZDRNthJeuLSAz5LuYBz03pjQ3PaK02/s320/IMAG0189.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457807520540136130" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Satisfied, and wearing the hat that Gregers' girlfriend knitted for me </span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">as a thank you for smuggling gear into the country for her.</span><br /></div>SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-27921530383384943992010-04-05T15:33:00.000-07:002010-04-05T16:37:28.041-07:00Spikertelt!!!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTDC2diTww90NkALopOd5sWkTfEpSrFNTKnrrJPqbOjvqP8G3gAlPuVXOz71p4jWQ6EqlAN00OO0OPTZ3A2BgtBgO8YletuGtMmKBQW3vtDbOtUo-t-UBFNj84ykzcC8FcigwioX3S-VdL/s1600/P1040230.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTDC2diTww90NkALopOd5sWkTfEpSrFNTKnrrJPqbOjvqP8G3gAlPuVXOz71p4jWQ6EqlAN00OO0OPTZ3A2BgtBgO8YletuGtMmKBQW3vtDbOtUo-t-UBFNj84ykzcC8FcigwioX3S-VdL/s400/P1040230.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456785734747189762" border="0" /></a><br />god bless norway!SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-20288763229166217102009-08-19T11:47:00.000-07:002009-08-19T12:38:55.709-07:00Krepsival<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHtkj_oBBfbXgws4U4fz74r9OTE8ES-NP_696EV3iqdovAG-5J98X3udAn4enr_tg1gFIEeglCVtRF3A7_Hlau5G16vRohuOjzdOKZ5kqf4_oQhoKjnbGwcoK_x7v-6hM77GiqmCjyZ2w6/s1600-h/P1040022.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHtkj_oBBfbXgws4U4fz74r9OTE8ES-NP_696EV3iqdovAG-5J98X3udAn4enr_tg1gFIEeglCVtRF3A7_Hlau5G16vRohuOjzdOKZ5kqf4_oQhoKjnbGwcoK_x7v-6hM77GiqmCjyZ2w6/s400/P1040022.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5371759911904524498" border="0" /></a>Spent last weekend at Michael's cabin in Nordmarka (the woods immediately north of Oslo.) The occasion was Krepsival--Ane and Michael's second-annual crawdad-fishin' extravaganza--and Claire san's departure back to the world of microbrews and thai food. I met Ane at her apartment on Friday and we hopped on the secret train that plunges straight into the woods from the city. We took it for about an hour, and then hopped off to meet our friends who would drive us the rest of the way to the cabin.<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfu3MI2aW7MG4367qXxRiSEn-FuvGfaUpLQvBVwOAtt00wMAVTw5748LgjXZ8CNdz7wPObGxrlz8WvauyQVSoqVPHmc2UYxZNlZCEhEv5aCDSCBGISn0ml20VOSjRvoh6BM7_scJMnWj-W/s1600-h/IMG_9588.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 232px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfu3MI2aW7MG4367qXxRiSEn-FuvGfaUpLQvBVwOAtt00wMAVTw5748LgjXZ8CNdz7wPObGxrlz8WvauyQVSoqVPHmc2UYxZNlZCEhEv5aCDSCBGISn0ml20VOSjRvoh6BM7_scJMnWj-W/s400/IMG_9588.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5371758687032302498" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Gjerdingen from the water.<br /></span></div><br />The cabin is on a penninsula in a lake, and the plan was to set out pots with bait on Friday afternoon and then collect the poor little bastard crawdads that got stuck in them in two shifts: one in the middle of the night and once the next morning. I bailed on the night shift in favor of cozy sleeping, and went instead the next morning. It had begun to rain (again) but it was actually kind of nice.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivSfZL1IHGYeJWfUKHpx0vwemkab4W1IzROHD8Pi4cxPobWizrc1QGSgjrR1LSWwy0Drn7J7u-xNSvKuSZ6JKSQ3XqtqGJFHcUEyzUxbkDm-LB3ewybON8rQaGwG12mbw3F9GKBPKhgDQG/s1600-h/IMG_9643.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivSfZL1IHGYeJWfUKHpx0vwemkab4W1IzROHD8Pi4cxPobWizrc1QGSgjrR1LSWwy0Drn7J7u-xNSvKuSZ6JKSQ3XqtqGJFHcUEyzUxbkDm-LB3ewybON8rQaGwG12mbw3F9GKBPKhgDQG/s400/IMG_9643.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5371758691232953490" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIKZX0db6Xsl4fogKi2Ect6wtFXE0mBkDvfgqX1o0QoOFo7KnEkbhkzYwBlaL7J711kpbrrCW-tuSb4hvWVHo_mzXfMC4Dii74BI9YdXesvg-zp3MgG7FSc7Im6bgUYeKAcBu0xxUt3Fjz/s1600-h/IMG_9651.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIKZX0db6Xsl4fogKi2Ect6wtFXE0mBkDvfgqX1o0QoOFo7KnEkbhkzYwBlaL7J711kpbrrCW-tuSb4hvWVHo_mzXfMC4Dii74BI9YdXesvg-zp3MgG7FSc7Im6bgUYeKAcBu0xxUt3Fjz/s400/IMG_9651.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5371758712595401106" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">celebrating the catch with a gruppebilde</span><br /></div><br />After bringing in our catch we retired to the kitchen. Claire and I made delicious butternut squash curry soup while Michael headed up the job of boiling our 110 new little friends. Afterwards it was lunch, naptime, cocktail hour and then the crawdad feast and general merriment.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnbU8uwq6vlL0G0j7_d_rnqt3mbgKK08Wi2yJDLdR5IbPfwwYciJ-p3quB8nfzuNNdlftY0UJeu7Bs4vYiaU35D1ouQ6AWfYpWQ_jktAISLOgE5Z_cfTBoEuIGJZQELG0njxCTEzSwrpkF/s1600-h/IMG_9690.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnbU8uwq6vlL0G0j7_d_rnqt3mbgKK08Wi2yJDLdR5IbPfwwYciJ-p3quB8nfzuNNdlftY0UJeu7Bs4vYiaU35D1ouQ6AWfYpWQ_jktAISLOgE5Z_cfTBoEuIGJZQELG0njxCTEzSwrpkF/s400/IMG_9690.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5371758709119993026" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMt8pRaqWg1JlBkhg7PNaIyl-14mK1b9KozEILafOiRiNWT59DSJ5Qh2CkNMbnkMK542PqZOqzV9MyX0DpAOn6qQKZzypRiByklfw7bAxuT7suNypoWD7VXplTxp-66DoCoWKlIOwLGWe9/s1600-h/IMG_9704.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMt8pRaqWg1JlBkhg7PNaIyl-14mK1b9KozEILafOiRiNWT59DSJ5Qh2CkNMbnkMK542PqZOqzV9MyX0DpAOn6qQKZzypRiByklfw7bAxuT7suNypoWD7VXplTxp-66DoCoWKlIOwLGWe9/s400/IMG_9704.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5371758698908931378" border="0" /></a><br /></div>On Sunday we went hiking/sheep chasing and then ate more delicious food before heading back to the city.SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-41540178708066687882009-08-05T11:26:00.000-07:002009-08-06T04:08:38.796-07:00Sveits<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgenDKpudsZ-VbxpgDWJbnwx-DIa4cd5WbZjhwQ_zcmtYtMEZ-SfTUSlJn3s3OGPVc09Eer3ySTIZM9nl2O35RG37d0sxPiAG1p0yPo9ENyWuUaXhwZEKpo794GgpXXwudcNXCQPv6FLqEL/s1600-h/P1030794.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgenDKpudsZ-VbxpgDWJbnwx-DIa4cd5WbZjhwQ_zcmtYtMEZ-SfTUSlJn3s3OGPVc09Eer3ySTIZM9nl2O35RG37d0sxPiAG1p0yPo9ENyWuUaXhwZEKpo794GgpXXwudcNXCQPv6FLqEL/s320/P1030794.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366580860462542242" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Sunset on Piz Palü and Bellavista</span><br /></div><br />My friend Casey suggested we meet up for some mountaineering in Switzerland this summer, and I jumped at the opportunity to see the Alps. Jeannie jumped even faster though, and had agreed to coming within 45 seconds of my asking her. What a sucker.<br /><br />So the two of us met up at the Zürich airport and then hopped the train to Lucerne to meet Casey and his mystery woman Megan. It was really good to see Jeannie. She is a pretty special friend in that we don't actually talk that often when we're apart, but when we see each other after long periods it is easy to immediately feel comfortable and pick up as before.<br /><br />We found Casey and Megan (who I liked immediately as I realized she was a fellow hedonist,) and hopped another train to Grindlewald, which is right below the north face of the Eiger. We had cleverly stocked up on swiss cheese, chocolate and wine at the store and we spent the train ride enjoying these as we gawked at the scenery and joked about how the Swiss must spend millions a year buying all of that aquamarine dye for their lakes.<br /><br />Grindlewald is out of control Swiss. The Eiger, the bimmeling cows, the meadows and cutesy houses, the smiling yet cheese-induced-hypertensive locals...it's almost too much. But we settled into a hostel for a few days of meadow-prancing, fondue-eating, and cable-car riding there and in/around Lauterbrunnen. We also went for some 'hikes', which usually just ended with us taking a beer in some mountain hut. This area is ridiculously beautiful, and I liked the way the plump little locals were always smiling even with hoards of Asian tourists walking around in lines. They really didn't seem to have a care in the world, and I don't know if I would either with all of the cheese and mountains they are blessed with.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmvQT-hLSSYjVqQExFHPWaExgyNzqHnFA6dbtCYwp5LSc72Pnt0XGeABgO0M5OzIMreLgoAP3_DPDyJNTLgsdsSjWhiXrbpCo3F_ZM4rF-GCLOHVspFeY8v9B74i-K7o4fjoSYka4_A1N7/s1600-h/P1030750.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmvQT-hLSSYjVqQExFHPWaExgyNzqHnFA6dbtCYwp5LSc72Pnt0XGeABgO0M5OzIMreLgoAP3_DPDyJNTLgsdsSjWhiXrbpCo3F_ZM4rF-GCLOHVspFeY8v9B74i-K7o4fjoSYka4_A1N7/s320/P1030750.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366580849961107042" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">The Euro-mountain-experience</span><br /><br /></div>After Grindlewald we hopped on the train again to head all the way around the country and to the very Southeast. We had decided to try our pudgy little hands at some alpine mountaineering in the Bernina group. This landed us a night in St. Moritz, which seems like a pretty ridiculous town. The day afterward though we cruised up to Pontresina and started our hike up toward Bernina to spend the first night in the Boval hut.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNz1d7sLvA_fXefGVXCq-1PMkNhGwyLcakJJwAF4tBFh_yobtH3NcJ22FuVLvGezzGQpUtvZmkL2aTt8CzWKljZMj8luDCwD_iPH39xbYTSqXuKfbVzW3actNiyzZMz91CEyQslziZviRO/s1600-h/stitchy+mcstitchenheimer+2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 113px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNz1d7sLvA_fXefGVXCq-1PMkNhGwyLcakJJwAF4tBFh_yobtH3NcJ22FuVLvGezzGQpUtvZmkL2aTt8CzWKljZMj8luDCwD_iPH39xbYTSqXuKfbVzW3actNiyzZMz91CEyQslziZviRO/s400/stitchy+mcstitchenheimer+2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366582416304046786" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">180 degree pano from the Boval Hut, thanks to <a href="http://cgear-oslo.blogspot.com/">Claire</a> for stitchin'er up for me!</span><br /><br /></div>And what a hut it was, with amazing views of Piz Morteratsch, Bernina, Bellavista, Palü and the confluence of two large valley glaciers. Oh, and as soon as we showed up they had beer and a 5-course meal made. I think I could get used to this euro-mountaineering afterall.<br /><br />The trick is the wake up times. When you show up at the hut the hut-keepers ask in a very friendly way, 'so, what are you climbing tomorrow?' I got suckered into answering this every time, ready to talk about the cool routes we had planned, how sweet the mountains were, etc. But when you tell them which mountain they just nod and say 'breakfast is at 3:00am then.' And me who thought they wanted conversation...<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;">So the next day we stumbled out of bed and started scrambling up toward Piz Morteratsch. There was a big group from the Swiss alpine club advanced mountaineering course that was also on the route, and they had a different style of climbing. Namely, they roped up for everything. The rock section on Morteratsch wasn't that hard (about class three) but all of the Swiss roped up for the entire thing. This was a bit weird, and caused Jeannie and I to doubt a bit why we weren't roped up. Casey insisted that we didn't need to be, and that it was actually more dangerous to simul climb those bits, so we decided against it. It was the right decision on this route too, as the rock had excellent holds and was not as difficult as it looked. We then climbed around a ridge and up to the summit of Piz Morteratsch, which has one of the cooler views I have ever seen. Amazing glaciated peaks all around, and the elegant snow ridge that we had planned to climb on Bernina.<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEaJd5EY_9a_7teK0tqPgRrDQjgs1jCZ5940rvmsiQt4UESW_ik3kbP0oE9RwmHOOcdpmzEBALKIvuPJF_c3BreZ00_EcRDAXI5Ah4RTtJAr6eNkryO0jPKMnuBJQpr5jGWZoFB6QEBecB/s1600-h/P1030820.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEaJd5EY_9a_7teK0tqPgRrDQjgs1jCZ5940rvmsiQt4UESW_ik3kbP0oE9RwmHOOcdpmzEBALKIvuPJF_c3BreZ00_EcRDAXI5Ah4RTtJAr6eNkryO0jPKMnuBJQpr5jGWZoFB6QEBecB/s320/P1030820.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366581979050329490" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiArs_C0OldqllzzpFVTP2JrltAbQS6GVGgrU1l0fNN-_KbazxpczhCn8zUjZpgyVJu-1EOna6Y0Kw4Q5AKnjvAu0hJ_sKdVzkJhcE0HZERLmJzadcHhQ0pqCNGgMuNiNmx_fLbiekFZnLk/s1600-h/P1030798.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiArs_C0OldqllzzpFVTP2JrltAbQS6GVGgrU1l0fNN-_KbazxpczhCn8zUjZpgyVJu-1EOna6Y0Kw4Q5AKnjvAu0hJ_sKdVzkJhcE0HZERLmJzadcHhQ0pqCNGgMuNiNmx_fLbiekFZnLk/s320/P1030798.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366580868227894610" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Nearing the top of the rock section on Morteratsch</span><br /></div><br />At the top we were visited by some seriously awesome Flemish Belgians, who were such a fun contrast to the more business-like Swiss mountaineering style. They announced their summit arrival with hoots and hollers, shook out hands and engaged us in conversation about delicious beer, the worthless french-speaking Belgians, and Belgium's little-known status as a world mountaineering center.<br /><br />Going down to the hut we had to climb down a waterfall/rock step on a rusty chain, and this may have actually been the crux of the route. We were rewarded though at the hut with beer, and then a leisurly afternoon gawking at Piz Roseg and trying to figure out how the hell we were supposed to climb it the next day. Jeannie was not feeling all that well, and decided that she wouldn't be joining. Later the Swiss guide walked up and talked to us, and he was actually a really awesome and nice guy who gave us a lot of good information.<br /><br />So Casey and I set out alone at 3:45, a half hour behind the Swiss (show offs.) We had to cross the two large glaciers and then climb up to the rock section, but we made a wrong turn in the darkness and ended up too high above the first glacier. We continued on though, because we could see the Swiss team crossing it and they were still up the valley from us. This turned out to be a big route-finding blunder and ended up putting us almost two hours behind the Swiss team. At this point were were considering bailing on Roseg given the difficult route and forecast for thunderstorms, but at the last minute we found the route and decided to make a run for it.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA2DapVPx2EBtXmsoi_rrENUCwk9Ateo-jAkU6aHef2aU4Ny47NF-OLmqAMBh0QuBet4Gtc6hQ6gj1J0lJOqwq6koDCNDMxgt-KPCfuC30H3-ket4urIFhIuof2rZuBzi8sg0h5AjrV6ru/s1600-h/P1030840.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA2DapVPx2EBtXmsoi_rrENUCwk9Ateo-jAkU6aHef2aU4Ny47NF-OLmqAMBh0QuBet4Gtc6hQ6gj1J0lJOqwq6koDCNDMxgt-KPCfuC30H3-ket4urIFhIuof2rZuBzi8sg0h5AjrV6ru/s320/P1030840.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366580843536350930" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Our route on Piz Roseg</span><br /><br /></div>We hoofed it across the two glaciers and actually managed to catch up to the Swiss at the base of the rock section. This section was really cool, as it was challenging without being too scary. It was also my first time using a running belay, and I really enjoyed this efficient style of climbing. The rock section would traverse two towers and then join the hanging glacier above, and we got had some airy moments as the wind picked up. We also got off route for a bit and had to belay a couple of sections that were about 5.6 (fun with mountaineering boots and howling wind :-)<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKKJeIDMW8B7dJ5zkOsuoMn6Bxpo67EAzTlnIgRjAGXZ1FdpMkGlvcYbMxnjQV6KFwHuc8Kq3WmD2aFzy0wYAebr18YtWhy-SHxmgw1zBfXW2CFvLumhyphenhyphenXG7tt6vVRZVSIuQLO_ftqLVBn/s1600-h/P1030846.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKKJeIDMW8B7dJ5zkOsuoMn6Bxpo67EAzTlnIgRjAGXZ1FdpMkGlvcYbMxnjQV6KFwHuc8Kq3WmD2aFzy0wYAebr18YtWhy-SHxmgw1zBfXW2CFvLumhyphenhyphenXG7tt6vVRZVSIuQLO_ftqLVBn/s320/P1030846.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366581992878368066" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Casey starting up the rock section on Roseg<br /><br /></span></div>It was a relief to finally gain the glacier above, but as we started up and neared the snow-saddle we knew we had a problem. The wind became more and more intense as we climbed higher, and as soon as we got to the saddle it was strong enough to literally throw both off us off out feet several times. It was a struggle to even walk and when we got blown down we would immediately anchor in with our ice axes. I had never felt wind this strong in my life (not even in the 80-90mph storms back home.)<br /><br />There was no way I was going to continue the route in these conditions, as above us it narrowed to a knife-edge snow ridge with a HUGE drop off the side the wind was blowing toward. I really believe that if we had gone up there our chances of being blown off and to serious injury or death would have been upwards of 50%. FTS. So we called it good and bailed out down the normal route. This dropped down a steep glacier and then couloir to a very long traverse of several glaciers on the way to a different hut where Jeannie would meet us. What a slog. I was pretty beat by the time we made it to the hut, but Jeannie showed up and bought the two tired and shut-down mountain climbers beers for our efforts. And she kept us entertained with tales of the cow-chasing, cable car crossing and meadow napping that had filled her day.<br /><br />By this time I had gotten a little bit smarter about the workings of Swiss Mountain huts, and managed to corner and flirt with the hut-keep girl for a while in my quest for Swiss citizenship. I was also a little more strategic with the 'what are you climbing tomorrow' question and bought us some time with a 5:30 breakfast. Sweet.<br /><br />So in the morning we set off up the glacier again with Jeannie, to see what we could see. We thought to climb a peak at the top which we believe to be the border with Italy, and that would be a good enough day for us. Once on the summit we made an elaborate show of dancing around and touching the downhill side of the summit, joking about how we couldn't wait to get home and mark off Italy on our facebook stuff-white-people-like where i've been maps. (Later we would see another map and realize that we were on the wrong mountain entirely. Douche bags.)<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9LUJ8c-3n6DH_DrMj2dYZnKxcsVTtym5VSVfUOqFna3Ckng8qM9Jp4NdE0MhLYlFUJQlgaKZl_iVHNbeZw-3J_XxKNpUZUFhsOpXPcHHGhJdMGLgaNpkxmHslxIcFBsNsI39HLJk2LRtV/s1600-h/P1030906.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9LUJ8c-3n6DH_DrMj2dYZnKxcsVTtym5VSVfUOqFna3Ckng8qM9Jp4NdE0MhLYlFUJQlgaKZl_iVHNbeZw-3J_XxKNpUZUFhsOpXPcHHGhJdMGLgaNpkxmHslxIcFBsNsI39HLJk2LRtV/s320/P1030906.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366582005693380034" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRlUHkVuThMNfL75YNrfwJ8g6WQ1efLwOFPbV6nvaZ7gTGtIS9qgKg02HElVijHVeEWP1qatxxo9NartvUVc4j1qCf-A4DUdhx9HsoGvf8yv4K0FPk8Lojo2gj7KC3XAdnyFUUJXu37gZF/s1600-h/P1030917.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRlUHkVuThMNfL75YNrfwJ8g6WQ1efLwOFPbV6nvaZ7gTGtIS9qgKg02HElVijHVeEWP1qatxxo9NartvUVc4j1qCf-A4DUdhx9HsoGvf8yv4K0FPk8Lojo2gj7KC3XAdnyFUUJXu37gZF/s320/P1030917.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366582000273765330" border="0" /></a><br />We spent the rest of the afternoon hiking down from the mountain and back to the other hut. This took some time as we had to stop and swim in a beautiful glacial lake. Turns out I am a bit out of practice with polar bear swimming though, as I made some pretty funny noises getting in and out of that thing. We then crossed the river on the cable car and hiked up the moraine and back to the hut from two nights before. And this time it was packed, but that didn't stop them from busting out some really delicious food for dinner.<br /><br />The next day we had a long hike out to Pontresina, which was made more fun by the bimmeling cows and later game of spot-the-Italians. In town we marched our little butts into a pizzaria before heading off to meet pick megan up from her horse tour. While waiting for her we sipped wine by the rushing river and reflected on how Switzerland is pretty much the best country ever and the kids who are born there are all lucky little shits.<br /><br />The next day we parted ways and Jeannie and I headed to Zürich. We spent several hours walking on the beautiful lakefront before heading to the airport where we had decided to crash before flying out early in the morning.SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-25331360045745679162009-06-29T09:26:00.000-07:002009-06-29T09:45:07.410-07:00Sweet weekend.<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Yeah</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">so</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">it</span>'s <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">been</span> a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">good</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">few</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">days</span>. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">The</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">girls</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">went</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">away</span> for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">the</span> weekend <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">on</span> an <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">estrogen</span>-fest to Ane's cabin. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Rid</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">of</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">them</span>, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">we</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">were</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">clear</span> to have <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">fun</span>.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_21">It</span> has <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_22">been</span> hot <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_23">as</span> hell <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_24">here</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_25">this</span> last <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_26">week</span>, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_27">so</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_28">Friday</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_29">we</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_30">took</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_31">the</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_32">ferry</span> to an <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_33">island</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_34">in</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_35">the</span> Oslofjord and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_36">grilled</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_37">on</span> a rock <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_38">until</span> late. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_39">Then</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_40">Saturday</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_41">Gregers</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_42">had</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_43">us</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_44">out</span> to his <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_45">parents</span>' house to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_46">lay</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_47">in</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_48">the</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_49">sun</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_50">on</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_51">the</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_52">dock</span> and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_53">swim</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_54">in</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_55">the</span> fjord all <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_56">day</span>. Man, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_57">that</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_58">was</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_59">awesome</span>.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_60">Then</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_61">we</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_62">headed</span> to Andreas' <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_63">barbeque</span>, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_64">from</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_65">which</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_66">we</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_67">migrated</span> to a bar to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_68">crash</span> a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_69">bachelorette</span> party. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_70">It</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_71">was</span> a total <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_72">no</span>-man's-land <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_73">though</span>, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_74">so</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_75">we</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_76">got</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_77">the</span> hell <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_78">out</span>!<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_79">Sunday</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_80">was</span> spent <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_81">lazing</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_82">around</span>, and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_83">then</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_84">we</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_85">watched</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_86">the</span> USA-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_87">Brazil</span> final.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_88">So</span> summer is <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_89">going</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_90">pretty</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_91">well</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_92">so</span> far.SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-53008192791763045932009-05-28T12:34:00.000-07:002009-05-29T01:33:29.676-07:00Lofoten<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZhjVEGHZUWi1PW9Eu4wGuX4LVyO0qugNixTDYVIq1kewviLA0J-1ARBWWef6xmyGEOxhH-lMAqNxKdLvEyId342LeSPI3kfr0fAyDS8CeagXf2-ISuWw6EnujxbyJ3idY_XhltgSuztlA/s1600-h/IMG_6945.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340980199815921874" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZhjVEGHZUWi1PW9Eu4wGuX4LVyO0qugNixTDYVIq1kewviLA0J-1ARBWWef6xmyGEOxhH-lMAqNxKdLvEyId342LeSPI3kfr0fAyDS8CeagXf2-ISuWw6EnujxbyJ3idY_XhltgSuztlA/s400/IMG_6945.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />My sister Shari is here on a visit, and we decided to go to Arctic Norway to see the Lofoten Islands. I did a few rounds of begging and propagandaing in the preceding months trying to recruit more travel partners (Shari and I travel well together but we did get a little tired of each other after South America.) It really came down to dredging the bottom of the barrel, but I managed to rope the aforementioned fresh-off-the-boat Americans into the trip. Okay just kidding, they are really fun.<br /><br />So we landed in Bodø, some 200km north of the Arctic Circle, Wednesday evening. It's kind of a hole of a town, but definitely has some interesting features (read, skate parks and weird, empty carnivals sans meat-on-a-stick.) It's also surrounded by cool mountains, which is always a plus. We rented a cheap cabin in a cow-shit-laden field by the water and took a nap before walking into town. We ended up at a cool fisherman's pub filled with old people and took a few beers. We enjoyed ourselves, and so did the table full of beered up fisher-types next to us as they poked fun in norwegian at all of the tourists who only come to Bodø to hop the ferry to Lofoten.<br /><br />The next day we made good on their stereotype and hopped the ferry the shit out of there. We didn't really plan our escape well though, and ended up a little short on food. Especially because we forgot about the holiday and when we landed on the island the only store was closed. There were some other touristy types on the boat that decided to go door to door asking for food, but we decided we weren't that hungry and ate an improvised iceberg lettuce and granola salad.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXYAcQAhlWQ9yFArvhy-VED3MZ45DBxLpgIeIox9uyJ3hxZVbRr3kLn_5ti4MXa1swpqtc0a23YoEovgWggVfqWT1yqvkc7IaKYHozADE_7r3yaR2Of2MNVbbwphKMsqAweXyhLxMVjguJ/s1600-h/IMG_6861.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340980190850328962" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXYAcQAhlWQ9yFArvhy-VED3MZ45DBxLpgIeIox9uyJ3hxZVbRr3kLn_5ti4MXa1swpqtc0a23YoEovgWggVfqWT1yqvkc7IaKYHozADE_7r3yaR2Of2MNVbbwphKMsqAweXyhLxMVjguJ/s400/IMG_6861.JPG" border="0" /></a>We spent the next couple of days hiking around and camped on a hill overlooking just about everything that is good in life. It was a really cool feeling to look up and down the chain of islands. Such a ridiculous landscape and feeling of isolation the way they come jutting straight out of the sea. Paradise.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAIEZse9fnP57B8euJ7nVHzCvIcLnQk54tMauTGYIWqatRSS1T0as1doA0k1BIIjHJPV4GxZYl1H-0J57IgCObu7F4RMqcADYRsPaTDQ-m4zNAVxSujGy4zkDxL_EavXCTdTpqvY0_tl9n/s1600-h/P1030569.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340980207109715522" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAIEZse9fnP57B8euJ7nVHzCvIcLnQk54tMauTGYIWqatRSS1T0as1doA0k1BIIjHJPV4GxZYl1H-0J57IgCObu7F4RMqcADYRsPaTDQ-m4zNAVxSujGy4zkDxL_EavXCTdTpqvY0_tl9n/s400/P1030569.JPG" border="0" /></a>I got a number for a kayak rental company and knew immediately upon talking to the guy that he was cool. I talked him way down on the prices, and an hour later he and his crazy British Columbia ski-bum friend picked us up in a SWEET old jeep. We took the kayaks out for an amazing paddle in the fjord and when we got back the guy showed us kayak-ski-touring videos and pics from his ski guiding in Morocco. He then got us a good deal on a fisherman's cabin with the best view ever.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLk3O73azLyXapjifBF-mZh-YkfQHr3GoFCRN_6ANhzt6tKR5tZJftTJbebRlu0MRtg9qSzDIKIXL0e3QHgNr8ZC626KeAZ-cT-AJ5SrFwjeNvsp8FW60_XOpE23PafTFrBptOYPJfEJH6/s1600-h/IMG_6943.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340980738907483602" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLk3O73azLyXapjifBF-mZh-YkfQHr3GoFCRN_6ANhzt6tKR5tZJftTJbebRlu0MRtg9qSzDIKIXL0e3QHgNr8ZC626KeAZ-cT-AJ5SrFwjeNvsp8FW60_XOpE23PafTFrBptOYPJfEJH6/s400/IMG_6943.JPG" border="0" /></a>The next day we rented a car and cruised north to see what we could see. It didn't take long before I was slamming the brakes though as we came across a perfect white sand beach surrounded by mountains. Sick. We would find two more later that day before driving through a tunnel and popping out in a field by the beach right as the sun was at its lowest. The lighting was amazing, and we went for a walk along the sea just to soak it in.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg81ApZo2gecw9UtD5_LcgNCz-CHom9L7HsTlh49kdQRGY73jfo7kVnCMkdz4eXMk3-k_s3mGIhQ0WWBS58i7F9pzskGnh09ZZ0J4OEz-LvXM878khn7nzExX85bevHNOBdCeJUmWH5MJcb/s1600-h/IMG_7074_a.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340980203640670338" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg81ApZo2gecw9UtD5_LcgNCz-CHom9L7HsTlh49kdQRGY73jfo7kVnCMkdz4eXMk3-k_s3mGIhQ0WWBS58i7F9pzskGnh09ZZ0J4OEz-LvXM878khn7nzExX85bevHNOBdCeJUmWH5MJcb/s400/IMG_7074_a.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRqZpjHhnpI_MZmOaE6y8tScSY9ktUnMZKuAoipCcFZg8O5cefGDm-k2wIP8n2mq1YITgRh1DrjRZFrRFaT8Kwyy1muRiRp-ilZM-oSNzEphoj-80-Q7H4TTeGAEZN2Gq7ojlRX9HrhHPE/s1600-h/P1030669.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340980749919162338" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 300px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRqZpjHhnpI_MZmOaE6y8tScSY9ktUnMZKuAoipCcFZg8O5cefGDm-k2wIP8n2mq1YITgRh1DrjRZFrRFaT8Kwyy1muRiRp-ilZM-oSNzEphoj-80-Q7H4TTeGAEZN2Gq7ojlRX9HrhHPE/s400/P1030669.JPG" border="0" /></a>We camped right on the beach that night before driving back down to the same fisherman's cabin we stayed in before, but this time not before stocking up on good food and wine. Shari made us a delicious cod dinner and we played some cards.<br /><br />The next day we took the bus up the length of the islands and to the airport outside of Narvik, where we pitched our classy little tents in the gravel and moose droppings across the road.SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-42255626708688680272009-05-11T09:27:00.000-07:002009-05-11T10:05:12.692-07:00Hyttetur på Hvaler<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkKhQon-wJr-G-gsGLkbL4w2OLQJx93BT1GPQYAUJo8T3YwMD4a0eR-cWCIowf2LuPDCGKzNOpSs-QvsD9QgcSzvfQ_L-Z1xVWbDkkKo6Zbkdf7XcSChdHvrvjTcLTUEofrpqaAoWp78h_/s1600-h/P1030468.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkKhQon-wJr-G-gsGLkbL4w2OLQJx93BT1GPQYAUJo8T3YwMD4a0eR-cWCIowf2LuPDCGKzNOpSs-QvsD9QgcSzvfQ_L-Z1xVWbDkkKo6Zbkdf7XcSChdHvrvjTcLTUEofrpqaAoWp78h_/s400/P1030468.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334611659348553298" border="0" /></a><br />Spent the weekend with Ane, Martin and the two fresh-off-the-boat Americans Claire and Zac. It has been really fun to hang out with those kids again. I took the ferry across the Oslofjord to meet the others, and we cruised down to Ane's cabin at Hvaler. It's a bunch of small islands in the Oslofjord, linked up by a winding road. The landscape is really unique, with smooth rocks, woods and little inlets of saltwater.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">The cabin is perched on the top of a big rock, with a nice deck looking over one of the inlets. They are in the process of remodelling the place, and I think Ane and her dad must make a pretty good team (she is studying to be an architect and he is a craftsman who builds sailboats/kayaks.)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj89VU4ARcjBQF-2TS3s4_dUPArT2L6UAAg3VDurIpDD2JwJWTlBPpu1PPWhqLy8Wkn1gkNBOM5dqWMV_2HUM-O03r8WJFSz9BAtCZvrN8NLYFTC5xk8c6Jqe7Nsh5tQdx8Io8IHQFyU5u3/s1600-h/P1030501.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj89VU4ARcjBQF-2TS3s4_dUPArT2L6UAAg3VDurIpDD2JwJWTlBPpu1PPWhqLy8Wkn1gkNBOM5dqWMV_2HUM-O03r8WJFSz9BAtCZvrN8NLYFTC5xk8c6Jqe7Nsh5tQdx8Io8IHQFyU5u3/s400/P1030501.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334611674641636018" border="0" /></a>Anyway, we did what lazy cabin dwellers are supposed to do: barbequed, drank beers/talked shit and went on walks and row boat tours. Good times.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI4cOxXf80jZou9fytzppvSsntUSihG_UiO7EbmGlm8mBHxoMlBDCcOAx5OagmvHzXRvmXfN9yygZcmnOxseJEp94SZ_1GSM3kGpnKphafiEjhxyf-DMZ0yzLew0M9UpGEO4DkUiF1dlOB/s1600-h/P1030497.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI4cOxXf80jZou9fytzppvSsntUSihG_UiO7EbmGlm8mBHxoMlBDCcOAx5OagmvHzXRvmXfN9yygZcmnOxseJEp94SZ_1GSM3kGpnKphafiEjhxyf-DMZ0yzLew0M9UpGEO4DkUiF1dlOB/s400/P1030497.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334611668238396722" border="0" /></a><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2k072pa81OpvanwkcxL7GW088B3EgzZ4kRGNywHz7aVgsDPTfTfc-O1-aFASNRNvQMQih9WBuGUUb-mBx52e1U6B4hYr_60zB5MEr0WasLrTww30eTEWwzAIsjKFaEhny1JMykfXigE4Z/s1600-h/P1030473.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2k072pa81OpvanwkcxL7GW088B3EgzZ4kRGNywHz7aVgsDPTfTfc-O1-aFASNRNvQMQih9WBuGUUb-mBx52e1U6B4hYr_60zB5MEr0WasLrTww30eTEWwzAIsjKFaEhny1JMykfXigE4Z/s400/P1030473.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334611664705541634" border="0" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;">'You've gotta be f---ing kidding me, are those swans?'</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjfwweieNLWfAgQAbccJE_4rV2q6z4XASjWcy96WD2PoFi4l7Xp3PZVc99KreX6Wf0whyphenhyphenH_vM0qB818KLi7uRAythVTb6E7Ko0nrIyu_gQhWyD4VRLXqZPxM0yIIOtV2OdY1gAiGZ7t9K2/s1600-h/P1030479.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 158px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjfwweieNLWfAgQAbccJE_4rV2q6z4XASjWcy96WD2PoFi4l7Xp3PZVc99KreX6Wf0whyphenhyphenH_vM0qB818KLi7uRAythVTb6E7Ko0nrIyu_gQhWyD4VRLXqZPxM0yIIOtV2OdY1gAiGZ7t9K2/s400/P1030479.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334612955464211010" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">They were. What the hell is this place?</span><br /><br /><br /></div>SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-86023247080750610362009-04-26T12:55:00.000-07:002009-05-11T13:33:37.675-07:00Bjøberg Renna and the Bat CaveHaven't posted in a while, so I'll start a few weeks back and then catch up. I was really sick the week after easter and missed three days of work. But when Gregers called me midweek and asked if I was game for Hemsedal I managed to cough up a phlegmy 'uh, okay' before passing out again. Ane provided me with some illegally imported, heavy-duty-American-drugs on Friday (i.e. Nyquil/Dayquil; Norwegians are prudes) and I was set. Pop the green ones at night, the red ones in the morning and you're ready for most anything.<br /><br />Conditions were a lot more springy since the days are getting so long, and we opted for touring both days. Saturday we decided to go up and ski Bjøberg Renna (=couloir) which was near the tour we did a couple of weeks before. We got a late start and the snow had become freakishly soft, but we managed a combination of skiing and steep postholing up the couloir. I was coughing up some pretty fancy stuff by the time we got to the top though, so we decided to just ski the thing and skip the summit.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9W-Y7pQqz9zJtWdO9idGFKjUVYw9mXw7r9lFPd_tthHfsfESjhH0Q_hhDO7m7GI20dqLI7Fw3Z-1XgVe2LnO3D2RAA5wsrtTB3Ja-cSQnCF_0IjcNVicvhfiN6JzCfaERr5BG-lA8YdLB/s1600-h/IMG_7269.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 266px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9W-Y7pQqz9zJtWdO9idGFKjUVYw9mXw7r9lFPd_tthHfsfESjhH0Q_hhDO7m7GI20dqLI7Fw3Z-1XgVe2LnO3D2RAA5wsrtTB3Ja-cSQnCF_0IjcNVicvhfiN6JzCfaERr5BG-lA8YdLB/s400/IMG_7269.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5333008154209096690" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">In between coughing fits on the way up.</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBGLdUlLZwssmg9EN4MjcHpTDv6Ap161wHEa_ZfyeYDP10eNmYR1qFcP1T6TJDrXxuZASNBMBCtdRyOxPSMolx7Qs2lfpUOfrzchNpE9-2Vnf9-rPZc7Ja2kj9eMgARPNhOV4fgy_GP3Eu/s1600-h/IMG_7293.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBGLdUlLZwssmg9EN4MjcHpTDv6Ap161wHEa_ZfyeYDP10eNmYR1qFcP1T6TJDrXxuZASNBMBCtdRyOxPSMolx7Qs2lfpUOfrzchNpE9-2Vnf9-rPZc7Ja2kj9eMgARPNhOV4fgy_GP3Eu/s400/IMG_7293.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5333008161747161298" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Gregers skiing down.</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;">On Sunday I was feeling quite a bit more lively and we decided to go for a really cool one that we have been staring/drooling at all winter. It's called the 'Bat Cave' and is a crazy narrow, crooked, several hundred foot long, 50 degree couloir that you can see from the 'trailer park' where Gregers has his camping wagon. It's sexy. From below it doesn't even look possible to climb--just a hockey-stick-shaped crack in the cliff--but the guidebook said it was skiable so we decided to go check it out. So we skied up through the woods, crossing several sets of moose tracks and then finding our way to the base.<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtBQOV5IVhY9aqG7qzcshc8wtQ4B5Q72U1hHaLsXvJM5Jl-qHzbXUKnw8ImUy0z4jLMypQQhxB6yn8Fildlp0N-GJGgfFdBy9SpMIPO9YSi8aCIhYyXpCuypkN3PLWEbwQCftk2kf4mr52/s1600-h/IMG_6947.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 360px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtBQOV5IVhY9aqG7qzcshc8wtQ4B5Q72U1hHaLsXvJM5Jl-qHzbXUKnw8ImUy0z4jLMypQQhxB6yn8Fildlp0N-GJGgfFdBy9SpMIPO9YSi8aCIhYyXpCuypkN3PLWEbwQCftk2kf4mr52/s400/IMG_6947.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332998773378271394" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">We climbed up Batcave on the left and skied down the one on the right.</span><br /></div><br /><br />We traded our skis for crampons/ice axe and started up. It was a pretty cool feeling to climb up such a tight couloir, with the tall cliff sides and narrow band of snow. At the bottom we were also getting really excited about skiing the thing. Conditions were hard and frozen, but not too icy and it felt like we could get an edge in with the skis. But as we made it up to the middle we had to rethink our plan, since there had been water flowing over the snow and the middle/upper parts had a few millimeters of water ice glaze over the hard snow. Not good, since any fall could quickly become disasterous as you accelerated on the ice layer. Oh, and the runout was long and do to the crooked shape of the couloir, a little 'bumpy'. Anyway, the real deal breaker for skiing down came a little bit higher. Right at the Steepest part, above the worst run out, the 'snow' narrowed to a 4-foot-wide pile of solid water ice from some water dripping off the sides. We just laughed and said F.T.S.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXdBX1gXTWCMT622TG8r_fmBvAR0aC36_H-zwIpD4xhtzeyLRPDKglt7U02fnzoYAZdIMRS2hutTn4iEEgb26pBHk-G6lebEtTj2egahNXqMDf4rLmsMPpWutLKTcPb9aNsM-fNSXua9fv/s1600-h/IMG_7358.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXdBX1gXTWCMT622TG8r_fmBvAR0aC36_H-zwIpD4xhtzeyLRPDKglt7U02fnzoYAZdIMRS2hutTn4iEEgb26pBHk-G6lebEtTj2egahNXqMDf4rLmsMPpWutLKTcPb9aNsM-fNSXua9fv/s400/IMG_7358.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332998780577540498" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnmmfzxoJCOONF25rapKY8Jq4oaSprGnr5yztfzSavBvIc1RRsafwpoYACYXwonvFxhu_Fd6Q6LO_rYbQdJlYWaq3XAdzZQJv1QzX8pQoW2AIYaj0pA3vtWPSIamsQpfv_pBok7P1q1300/s1600-h/IMG_7373.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnmmfzxoJCOONF25rapKY8Jq4oaSprGnr5yztfzSavBvIc1RRsafwpoYACYXwonvFxhu_Fd6Q6LO_rYbQdJlYWaq3XAdzZQJv1QzX8pQoW2AIYaj0pA3vtWPSIamsQpfv_pBok7P1q1300/s400/IMG_7373.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332998780066710866" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;">We climbed over ice and the rest of the way to the top, where we popped out on a flat rock in the sun. Fancy. Ate lunch there and watched two skiers come down a steep face above us. It was in the sun and looked really nice and soft, so we decided to ski around the back side to the summit and then drop it on the way down. Turned out to be lovely, with smooth Spring corn and some fun features to play on. To get back down we skied the next couloir over from Bat Cave, which was tamer (low-mid 40's?) and with a safer runout. The snow was hard there too but it didn't have any water ice over it and was enjoyable, if a bit loud, to ski.<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj51IEdEjE9WCmWgfLU8NCLKA_4iw7JPsRSLXwXim03cKMb8OzcICNboJ4fAxPyyHWO0To9W5hJPgx-Jq-2yt5oaVjAD0h9kRm9FSSepj8xx4k1k3oeALAVouP2tW1fWRNY8rtVrDvtMheM/s1600-h/IMG_7380.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj51IEdEjE9WCmWgfLU8NCLKA_4iw7JPsRSLXwXim03cKMb8OzcICNboJ4fAxPyyHWO0To9W5hJPgx-Jq-2yt5oaVjAD0h9kRm9FSSepj8xx4k1k3oeALAVouP2tW1fWRNY8rtVrDvtMheM/s400/IMG_7380.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5333003408185735874" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Hey, let's go up there... Skied next to the left edge at the top and then traversed over to play with the little cornice...</span><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY4xqouNTx7Hw2gk6RYDs113xKN3iSdp5qtHT9M2GHCwf0T1XVdlWADKm9Vr_R5JNJtHUCSfA_PLc10SZnQsqvf88o_wKRTL4jRVEkSvGVTl4RysJcQw8YkXaUT244F7b6I9iAb6urGR3k/s1600-h/IMG_7409.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY4xqouNTx7Hw2gk6RYDs113xKN3iSdp5qtHT9M2GHCwf0T1XVdlWADKm9Vr_R5JNJtHUCSfA_PLc10SZnQsqvf88o_wKRTL4jRVEkSvGVTl4RysJcQw8YkXaUT244F7b6I9iAb6urGR3k/s400/IMG_7409.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332998788785376370" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Lovely Corn.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZeU8imem6Kb_Ih0cMudIqjikxHK8Jiz0WLi_lHauL-GXXY2N_nkuVt9jx8COPgT8ai11IZFDNAOQP_guArKZ1OxglSO5SJzhvsffmzecykNnaY7tC6rPPBo9i6uIv4HsXfobA9Q9tWjLo/s1600-h/IMG_7423.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZeU8imem6Kb_Ih0cMudIqjikxHK8Jiz0WLi_lHauL-GXXY2N_nkuVt9jx8COPgT8ai11IZFDNAOQP_guArKZ1OxglSO5SJzhvsffmzecykNnaY7tC6rPPBo9i6uIv4HsXfobA9Q9tWjLo/s400/IMG_7423.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5333003416176289010" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Clear for landing?<br /><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0UCSOH_K4GgmCK1fOpbXIHDJL1a4RzkbLJcNyNUL0EOv8Lz-v1nDV0MKjACbCS3ECIylt8gXYZhZRDxsUOFlQalSATC_lX7KyvTnewcqH0Kd4AwtHLxJfqIVdpaQqRMF2S0p2eAGcwRNj/s1600-h/IMG_7428.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0UCSOH_K4GgmCK1fOpbXIHDJL1a4RzkbLJcNyNUL0EOv8Lz-v1nDV0MKjACbCS3ECIylt8gXYZhZRDxsUOFlQalSATC_lX7KyvTnewcqH0Kd4AwtHLxJfqIVdpaQqRMF2S0p2eAGcwRNj/s400/IMG_7428.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5333003417333928642" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Nope. hahahaha</span><br /></div>SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-59208624691191431342009-04-15T10:34:00.000-07:002009-04-15T10:58:10.140-07:00My little shantyI have moved into the little house on Nøtterøy (nuts island, haha.) It can really only described as, well, 'cute'. Will only be living here for two months though since the owners want it for guests in the summertime.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyIoZHyHIbUXUiTetf0UjUnbkM4SpPKTLfGyE-sfIf9HziwYKOxPozlKD7Z3Z4Q5DSH4gJbDTIwB0uv3LtUs_-58QS3EJISeQCN_Iusj47-XwPB6ab32wNwvFoyWwLEDlKt8byESn-mDKQ/s1600-h/P1030438.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyIoZHyHIbUXUiTetf0UjUnbkM4SpPKTLfGyE-sfIf9HziwYKOxPozlKD7Z3Z4Q5DSH4gJbDTIwB0uv3LtUs_-58QS3EJISeQCN_Iusj47-XwPB6ab32wNwvFoyWwLEDlKt8byESn-mDKQ/s400/P1030438.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324977228131733874" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2sn4zBDBlcQCr1CZpLESGX0JTwqj1N_iZMJsb4JnnnAqAg52AKm4yvgV8SdW506bj6CEcH745j-4BuGFf_FaHwiuu2ATzEOJWHA-wAt6h5anziTTzZO2kgx_cN950H9TVDh6OFKXtEiO_/s1600-h/P1030442.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2sn4zBDBlcQCr1CZpLESGX0JTwqj1N_iZMJsb4JnnnAqAg52AKm4yvgV8SdW506bj6CEcH745j-4BuGFf_FaHwiuu2ATzEOJWHA-wAt6h5anziTTzZO2kgx_cN950H9TVDh6OFKXtEiO_/s400/P1030442.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324977234934208290" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">That little window looks out over the Oslo Fjord<br /></span></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT6tmP0De1qpCZAYOkxDEhgn-k-REOP8N4X9-Y6lOtked_s6FWJBtImAItavR9yIu15sLKyo-YnLwT4Y4xWuIUfI6Fx108UxJkNKtn0sfSvZi6NaMUTDlSjC0_02uktYZhXP3JpTw0-Td8/s1600-h/P1030440.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT6tmP0De1qpCZAYOkxDEhgn-k-REOP8N4X9-Y6lOtked_s6FWJBtImAItavR9yIu15sLKyo-YnLwT4Y4xWuIUfI6Fx108UxJkNKtn0sfSvZi6NaMUTDlSjC0_02uktYZhXP3JpTw0-Td8/s400/P1030440.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324977234176127922" border="0" /></a><br />This will be so much nicer during the week for my job, since it's only 5k's away on a bike trail vs. 1.5 hours on the train from Oslo. To keep the Oslo connection though I have made an agreement with Gregers whereby I can rent the extra room in his apartment for really cheap and stay there a couple of nights a week.SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-77508738097979679472009-04-14T14:20:00.000-07:002009-04-14T14:55:14.093-07:00And because I have nothing better to do with my time......here are some more skiing pictures :-) From that tour up Bjøberg a couple weekends ago. It was really a nice one because it was fresh, light powder combined with low avy danger so we got to ski some pretty steep stuff. fast :-)<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhesJPPOLJDJ2oY54D9fZqJ6xJBR0sSMHMJD3YlYwazEyBh7CUy4FXjJvGj4_1Of3TpXoLXAz4BYivaGa2K1PC9tVEXlJmhsAQpsYg7ZT4ls4KBKBitKHtTgHHi-cp9LpqSjibie9KmQX18/s1600-h/640_58515.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhesJPPOLJDJ2oY54D9fZqJ6xJBR0sSMHMJD3YlYwazEyBh7CUy4FXjJvGj4_1Of3TpXoLXAz4BYivaGa2K1PC9tVEXlJmhsAQpsYg7ZT4ls4KBKBitKHtTgHHi-cp9LpqSjibie9KmQX18/s400/640_58515.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324662640400184946" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-style: italic;">pretty typical landscape once you get high up around hemsedal: endless, white possibilities and nice snow, but not so spikey.</span><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDAoGDUq14XIE-AIXmbCeeWH0oePuo2kAkMX8Fo6IQQTZRrzvTqHJsl90ZPJtPkzKNDFl_-c7Lx4PwMmfB6sPQQ3oGRnbvT9vv1TIwPRFHy3bR6XrE3LiZpbHYN4e2adZRD2rwBZhcQnxy/s1600-h/640_58518.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDAoGDUq14XIE-AIXmbCeeWH0oePuo2kAkMX8Fo6IQQTZRrzvTqHJsl90ZPJtPkzKNDFl_-c7Lx4PwMmfB6sPQQ3oGRnbvT9vv1TIwPRFHy3bR6XrE3LiZpbHYN4e2adZRD2rwBZhcQnxy/s400/640_58518.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324662656646483522" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">gregers</span><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg06_4L2N4HB_d_ff24reUvQG3XKBRtXWfgSC13sVi1kARTR_cjKiuI-FUvviKpgsXvDR12B_IcKw9EKuEZPl_og6bgH4pu-8BvpRP86ekEfGBWTEXV79aQVtFbrMtW_5pzQvTAZEpX-xBY/s1600-h/n657685848_866038_2887.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg06_4L2N4HB_d_ff24reUvQG3XKBRtXWfgSC13sVi1kARTR_cjKiuI-FUvviKpgsXvDR12B_IcKw9EKuEZPl_og6bgH4pu-8BvpRP86ekEfGBWTEXV79aQVtFbrMtW_5pzQvTAZEpX-xBY/s400/n657685848_866038_2887.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324662661230212258" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">and me nearing the bottom.<br /></span></div>SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-46041830835175772792009-04-12T07:02:00.000-07:002009-04-13T11:13:11.370-07:00Sunnmørsalpene<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDlE7hW62p70O-aY-2Geih6jOaotF2YBKwEx6sBJZ1dfaScgYSCdu0MKPNPtIRtvuV8uKhJ06tFXuOrXT-uw35MsBgzM8yc1D2kVl1NyS7_UdzZOXPTxLOIReDSl_T2fyKiJSg9Tf6zCXr/s1600-h/IMG_1808.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDlE7hW62p70O-aY-2Geih6jOaotF2YBKwEx6sBJZ1dfaScgYSCdu0MKPNPtIRtvuV8uKhJ06tFXuOrXT-uw35MsBgzM8yc1D2kVl1NyS7_UdzZOXPTxLOIReDSl_T2fyKiJSg9Tf6zCXr/s400/IMG_1808.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323843699890771202" border="0" /></a>Just in from an incredibly good week skitouring in the Sunnmøre alps region of Norway. We were 13 people altogether and we stayed in cabins right on the Hjørundfjord in a tiny and extremely scenic village called Sæbø. It was mostly stormy weather and avalanche city while we were there, but we got out skiing every day except one and managed to get to the top of several peaks and find some enjoyable skiing on the way down. Some highlights:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Company:</span> a really fun mix of people, only one of which I knew from before. My brain is a little tired after the mix of languages, accents and dialects that were flying around. We had several extremes of the Norwegian dialects represented with Tommy from the South, Marianne from the far North, the Oslo people, and the spicy local dialect. And then we had the Swedish girl, the Icelandic guy who understood Norwegian but spoke mostly New York English, Andrew the South African/Norwegian, Glen the Englishman/Norwegian and of course me. Kind of cool that with such a mix everyone still understood (almost) everything.<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM9nMFekvqK2b1Oks_w0JGYAztpppqmwDq-W2yhC3Y5bSV1ZnL_KnkteMgvWuW2JQ7fdPzuoqjofhiSZL1i0aWMGIyXBKszIIvfCjbbjvhtNOy4QiHviussPKSYW_R-SW7oMYzmrCvGViV/s1600-h/IMG_1810.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM9nMFekvqK2b1Oks_w0JGYAztpppqmwDq-W2yhC3Y5bSV1ZnL_KnkteMgvWuW2JQ7fdPzuoqjofhiSZL1i0aWMGIyXBKszIIvfCjbbjvhtNOy4QiHviussPKSYW_R-SW7oMYzmrCvGViV/s400/IMG_1810.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323843704815120434" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Our failed attempt at a timed, group, jump shot...</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Avalanches:</span> There were a lot of them. Several times a day there would be loud rumbling as they crashed down the mountains. I witnessed three large ones, including two that plunged over a 1000ft cliff above our cabins. Really incredible to witness from safe places!<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZyAdrpfIzElApj9XfMO5oqseF5YlXvN8fKZfPhjgUu8mPOeF53NscYZZvX7mErdtS92epi4-mtIMGDBIbXsDF6e90eoVb-rabul5QXKPUbDCo0KrKVk5aS5-r-rGpvOm-LcospQYpekiE/s1600-h/P1030386.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZyAdrpfIzElApj9XfMO5oqseF5YlXvN8fKZfPhjgUu8mPOeF53NscYZZvX7mErdtS92epi4-mtIMGDBIbXsDF6e90eoVb-rabul5QXKPUbDCo0KrKVk5aS5-r-rGpvOm-LcospQYpekiE/s400/P1030386.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323847164672648002" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">We didn't see this one go but the aftermath was pretty cool when we got to the summit.<br /><br /></span></div>We were very careful about where we skied. By sticking to the right aspects, not skiing under large cornices or avy-prone slopes, and even staying off certain (really cool, damnit) mountains altogether, I feel like we skied with very low avalanche risk the whole time. We had to laugh on the second to last day though, because <span style="font-style: italic;">while</span> we were digging a pit test on our mountain a huge avalanche crashed down to the valley floor from the mountain just across from us. It was on a completely different aspect though--the one that had been windloaded--and we knew to avoid slopes of that aspect anyway.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The most Norwegian day ever:</span> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitkjZbcEkgJaUtcXRFudcZdAS2JK1gpSb-6cuqy_UjNWrjwdazs4KRd3FyYywlC0c6XqbENr0F6S6wkIWn3K67AQePKsSAfKmS2TrNuGSWiZ6fpugkXXfvYXS6GfBePwWcyX_9pG0sp1yJ/s1600-h/P1030331.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitkjZbcEkgJaUtcXRFudcZdAS2JK1gpSb-6cuqy_UjNWrjwdazs4KRd3FyYywlC0c6XqbENr0F6S6wkIWn3K67AQePKsSAfKmS2TrNuGSWiZ6fpugkXXfvYXS6GfBePwWcyX_9pG0sp1yJ/s400/P1030331.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323843707171615298" border="0" /></a>We spent the day skiing to and from the summit of a very nice mountain jutting right out of the fjord. Afterward we were stretched out on the porch of one of the cabins with beers when Marianne asked if anyone wanted to go on a boat/fishing tour in the fjord. I was a bit skeptical as she disappeared down to the dock, but half an hour later she came back and non-chalantly announced that she had found a nice older couple with a boat that would take us out and show us around. I guess that North-Norwegian dialect really works for charming one's way onto boats. What a little sjark-hore.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;">Another half hour and were were standing on the deck of a fishing boat in the rain, surrounded by crazy sweet mountains and fishing for cod. Hallvard caught two (the smug bastard) and we took them home to make 'Mølja', which sounded maybe a little <span style="font-style: italic;">too</span> Norwegian but turned out to be pretty good once I got over my prejudices about eating boiled liver sauce and fish eggs.<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivYyJRRId-Ao0DMcufAdLXYkkpxuPZwYdnHgWDknt2gmXbXnFINdJuf5QtyMQfknbPmGAF8roM4orhJvTasskyK9ut1PWm1t506iL4vSf2XP62l_1ODx6HWH1LGm3k1GtaNygo7wAEDlgF/s1600-h/P1030353.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivYyJRRId-Ao0DMcufAdLXYkkpxuPZwYdnHgWDknt2gmXbXnFINdJuf5QtyMQfknbPmGAF8roM4orhJvTasskyK9ut1PWm1t506iL4vSf2XP62l_1ODx6HWH1LGm3k1GtaNygo7wAEDlgF/s400/P1030353.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323843718784072274" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Tommy enjoying the rainy boat/fishing tour</span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Birthday tour:</span> My birthday was on Wednesday. It turned out to be sunny weather, and we set out for what would definitely be my favorite tour of the trip. The views were shit-your-pants-amazing in all directions, and from the top we stood straight above the fjord and could see out to the Atlantic. Well, that's what I'm told anyway--I could hardly be bothered to turn and look that way with all of the sexy, pointy, glaciated mountains to be gawked at in the other directions.<br /><br />The happy birthday song was sung enthusiastically at me in Norwegian and English on the top before being treated to a really fun and fast line 3500 ft down to the car. Later the sneaky devils busted out cake and Norwegian moonshine and more singing and general merriment ensued. A damn satisfying birthday for sure :-)<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Ålesund:</span> Thursday was bad weather and I went with three of the guys to check out the city of Ålesund. It was an hour and a half and a ferry ride away from Sæbø, but is by no means far from its share of sexy mountains. It's also one of the coolest looking cities I have ever been to, with nice buildings, pedestrian streets and restaurants all surrounded by beautiful, snowy mountains that stick right out of the fjords. So, uh, why don't I live in Ålesund??<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjob8wa0mJKbtUXju8tlJdK8a34nlsLV4E1vQyvIZ38IeWbvx0N_Ez6F7q45jbYAHpPeFDbeFHQJoILFlsVkDTcnsl6vMccBgFALAAbkYMMGraSmPG7-ghP5aDpW5VpR0T9D7ZAL2L1yV41/s1600-h/P1030414.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjob8wa0mJKbtUXju8tlJdK8a34nlsLV4E1vQyvIZ38IeWbvx0N_Ez6F7q45jbYAHpPeFDbeFHQJoILFlsVkDTcnsl6vMccBgFALAAbkYMMGraSmPG7-ghP5aDpW5VpR0T9D7ZAL2L1yV41/s400/P1030414.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323847177105644834" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">And if you turn around you see a fjord and snow-capped spikes :-)</span><br /></div><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Bygdafest!</span> Our social little North-Norwegian came to the rescue again with the tip that there would be a special, once a year 'after ski' for easter ski tourers. It was across and up the fjord where there were no roads, but a boat had been arranged to get skiers there and back for the party. So at 9:30 we shuffled down to the dock and hopped on. I didn't really know what to expect, but it turned out to be a blast! There was one large building with tables, and people had come by boat from all around for the once-a-year party. All of the smiling faces we had seen skiing down the mountains earlier in the week were there, plus a good crowd of locals of all ages. Oh, and lots of beer, singing/accordian/guitar and dancing.<br /><br />Here are a few more pics and I'll put the rest on facebook.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihv27Zlx_jJ0t0NRJlOrS-wPubKrpg_D953lESNIylnher-oOGNJDnM_OXyLyvgybBOdkdyYxa8jcwPPNbKSpOXxUBLUI3nC5CxmM96q8SsNeG1xwBEphWDhG8Vd-lF7jLqJi39Z5ppmH5/s1600-h/P1030402.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihv27Zlx_jJ0t0NRJlOrS-wPubKrpg_D953lESNIylnher-oOGNJDnM_OXyLyvgybBOdkdyYxa8jcwPPNbKSpOXxUBLUI3nC5CxmM96q8SsNeG1xwBEphWDhG8Vd-lF7jLqJi39Z5ppmH5/s400/P1030402.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323847171655846018" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Hege approaching the summit.<br /><br /></span> </div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiybFNxQq_DivQvDcoy7RUoI6SSK-kkJp9dSe293_pILqARS9xBKs_4-E3d4ea1aIsZqz_PyR7NG7bKkuXViB0BZtKkU4tetoRitOAF_9e-TEGfTi0jUxiuW-ONecthahFq2ykT6g0RHG3z/s1600-h/P1030281.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiybFNxQq_DivQvDcoy7RUoI6SSK-kkJp9dSe293_pILqARS9xBKs_4-E3d4ea1aIsZqz_PyR7NG7bKkuXViB0BZtKkU4tetoRitOAF_9e-TEGfTi0jUxiuW-ONecthahFq2ykT6g0RHG3z/s400/P1030281.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323850185097433314" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Nice weather eh?</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFS42MikxU-OxgdtDJKAFUU-VTND5cBngy7lSyI2xjmvGLuKkOCq4XiLYqucuJfzn8cg5cdPVKKzodL65ElYXc11z9_vKpbgCjRRgt4wtDsyX73lLnfQ1n2ESJUoela2ooO9DaM7xqxB5z/s1600-h/P1030379.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFS42MikxU-OxgdtDJKAFUU-VTND5cBngy7lSyI2xjmvGLuKkOCq4XiLYqucuJfzn8cg5cdPVKKzodL65ElYXc11z9_vKpbgCjRRgt4wtDsyX73lLnfQ1n2ESJUoela2ooO9DaM7xqxB5z/s400/P1030379.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323851655052068610" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Fjord og Fjell :-)</span><br /><br /><br /></div>SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-78507180463228329182009-03-29T13:45:00.000-07:002009-03-29T14:27:19.808-07:00Okay, so I am really quite a boring person......I went back to Hemsedal again this weekend.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjspOs1qFU2IClzlJe-BUBg8RaPRu3k7UxsaBdJ-eUpKu3gJ-tpkyqf4wpoH9dFFL3cLuW7QcKe0fv18hS_yHKshtNeaJ3Pe4TgOS7TIdOdpuDlDf8kHZIVz2OMW61kSsur0uvS3n_KhwcT/s1600-h/IMG_6583.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjspOs1qFU2IClzlJe-BUBg8RaPRu3k7UxsaBdJ-eUpKu3gJ-tpkyqf4wpoH9dFFL3cLuW7QcKe0fv18hS_yHKshtNeaJ3Pe4TgOS7TIdOdpuDlDf8kHZIVz2OMW61kSsur0uvS3n_KhwcT/s400/IMG_6583.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318716639149596738" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPYHGDEDaAlb4FSS0XIfslYvoGG6I1rEng9tWejqg2JZltvkyVPVGtz9BPgyaVgZ9WVY26nQG4Nh6l_cCdbfc9wshFp9Le3geoc2q-dXbLcpDwO63eW5bd07DGhahQvhsgRWcoA6ykPKgH/s1600-h/IMG_6574.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPYHGDEDaAlb4FSS0XIfslYvoGG6I1rEng9tWejqg2JZltvkyVPVGtz9BPgyaVgZ9WVY26nQG4Nh6l_cCdbfc9wshFp9Le3geoc2q-dXbLcpDwO63eW5bd07DGhahQvhsgRWcoA6ykPKgH/s400/IMG_6574.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318716636405472402" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Some douche bag trying to make a Black Diamond ad or something</span><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx55XBJ526-kbxwSy-7f0E-5N0HRc4q2odBZbIgoVnZphtuQOALxwPiQFP5najlc2HbIXi83f9uJd1xKxbO7PCbNFRD8lHmcFv7x7EAzpomf-xRafaBKhHeO1turJjgC6IysBcEgja-Dlr/s1600-h/P1030236.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx55XBJ526-kbxwSy-7f0E-5N0HRc4q2odBZbIgoVnZphtuQOALxwPiQFP5najlc2HbIXi83f9uJd1xKxbO7PCbNFRD8lHmcFv7x7EAzpomf-xRafaBKhHeO1turJjgC6IysBcEgja-Dlr/s400/P1030236.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318716628883926338" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">skiing over to watch the hemsedal freeride comp</span><br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">On Saturday we skied up high until it was tracked out in bounds, and then enjoyed ourselves skiing some trees in the lower backcountry. It was pretty fun stuff. On one run we tried a sneaky line and ended up having to hike back up a bit when it terminated in a frozen waterfall.<br /><br />Gregers hurt his back doing a drop later though so we decided to call it a day and go watch the Hemsedal Freeride competition. It is really crazy to watch the pros while you are actually there. You definitely 'feel the excitement' more than when watching a big line ski film. One guy didn't land a big cliff drop right and had to be evacuated with a busted shoulder.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWgpdw4267a8SK6bsKUAQhLyH10AcNIt7Ou77jtmNtTUVRd1wMG_Mp57M-ILt5dqqwZYu1ctHDzPOXUks4SyLn5P23lRNyzToBC9bV4CtGVIsa5Jh2SpYbm3VHD9f2PQC9NSKoWzc1oGYC/s1600-h/IMG_6603.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWgpdw4267a8SK6bsKUAQhLyH10AcNIt7Ou77jtmNtTUVRd1wMG_Mp57M-ILt5dqqwZYu1ctHDzPOXUks4SyLn5P23lRNyzToBC9bV4CtGVIsa5Jh2SpYbm3VHD9f2PQC9NSKoWzc1oGYC/s400/IMG_6603.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318716649230083634" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">spectators</span><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7LHhmP1nZ70x7_H3hlszXXv0dqecXmwaylmyGCODF3zntEcO8NXAs4hwDSXQ_hjRB4_AqWpDvcmDvBBrXnSUfCghJGIihI1lhepQe6s31S0CfbWkrLxc-MHmdWOT0UauKKplIPyPkODJP/s1600-h/IMG_6605.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7LHhmP1nZ70x7_H3hlszXXv0dqecXmwaylmyGCODF3zntEcO8NXAs4hwDSXQ_hjRB4_AqWpDvcmDvBBrXnSUfCghJGIihI1lhepQe6s31S0CfbWkrLxc-MHmdWOT0UauKKplIPyPkODJP/s400/IMG_6605.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318716655964966962" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">This wasn't one of the competitors, but no doubt some sneaky Norwegian that poached the line while it had an audience. The real competitors dropped those cliffs on the right, including the biggest one.<br /></span></div><br />Gregers' back was feeling fine today so we decided to go touring. Driving down the road it was ridiculous how many options we had, with perfect snowy mountains on all sides. We found one cool one and stopped the car. Then just as we were about to step into our skis two older guys came cruising down and tipped us about an even cooler mountain just around the corner. We opted for that, and had an EXCELLENT day of it. Will post a bit more and photos when I get them from Gregers.SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-46906796090850276052009-03-15T15:12:00.000-07:002009-04-26T12:53:33.541-07:00Hemsedal DeuceWent back to Hemsedal this weekend with the same guys plus Norway's own 'powder expert' Jens, who happens to ski some really nice tele even in manky conditions.<br /><br />On Saturday we went touring to the top of Skogshorn, which was fun. I love that in this country you can just park your car <span style="font-style: italic;">above</span> treeline and ski nothing but open, sexy slopes the whole day.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCF8ZgncX3kikkKJykCQkjBoTKLJoTutPqGeiUoIh8CfPaQEY7BgdaC7IGN-ikAcHDhWAFRIq3IbpfyKZ85yddbRzzkPQs1eSks_-_M6NTcNxhhUH95ChWBSOam-Q4h24ROZg-7zi-47W0/s1600-h/IMG_6282.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCF8ZgncX3kikkKJykCQkjBoTKLJoTutPqGeiUoIh8CfPaQEY7BgdaC7IGN-ikAcHDhWAFRIq3IbpfyKZ85yddbRzzkPQs1eSks_-_M6NTcNxhhUH95ChWBSOam-Q4h24ROZg-7zi-47W0/s320/IMG_6282.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5313548896092352370" border="0" /></a>Gregers</div><br />It was perfect weather until we got to the top, where is was blowing wind like hell and freezing cold. Fog moved in right after I got there so I only got to enjoy the view for a minute.<br /><br />On the way down I didn't pay enough respect the variability of the snow, and ended up breaking my face. I was gleefully skiing a line that had been good snow up high, but then suddenly became breakable crust and I crossed a tip. The fall wasn't anything too spectacular, but my pole somehow managed to hit and break my front tooth in half (karma for the earlier comment about park rats?) Anyway, shit, this is probably going to be expensive...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMEKARG2zG3YCLsidRfyfOHFa21ngUGgpguIZRoClynizeCiJ5s5SU5dBGGSkZSULW49fPeV-hA03gwdQSLdI8KbrRJQ5yxzhyphenhyphencTtTGJuiuIpPkk5TfZ_qP2rNcMT2s_1LydvUFrE3gEel/s1600-h/IMG_6309.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMEKARG2zG3YCLsidRfyfOHFa21ngUGgpguIZRoClynizeCiJ5s5SU5dBGGSkZSULW49fPeV-hA03gwdQSLdI8KbrRJQ5yxzhyphenhyphencTtTGJuiuIpPkk5TfZ_qP2rNcMT2s_1LydvUFrE3gEel/s320/IMG_6309.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5313549298687651714" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Today we skied on the 'Lillematterhorn', which would have been a lot more epic if so many others hadn't thought of it first. We then skied the same chute as last time and finished with some steep runs in the Hemsedal ski area. Didn't take many pictures today so I'll post a few from last time.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR3FDyDidKWUizBDRzojIE6ZBRYILH3kyv-f_nnLGyUIlPK_-xPINoD4HXrW-5Iu-vkzWcZcmzjoelsmzoTkNFKaFfJEEvWUDnVX4iT4QQ8vK0FuvIcam41xgxWiplLFXkkz-jYre2o38b/s1600-h/IMG_5943.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 243px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR3FDyDidKWUizBDRzojIE6ZBRYILH3kyv-f_nnLGyUIlPK_-xPINoD4HXrW-5Iu-vkzWcZcmzjoelsmzoTkNFKaFfJEEvWUDnVX4iT4QQ8vK0FuvIcam41xgxWiplLFXkkz-jYre2o38b/s320/IMG_5943.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5313548316571769794" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">I think this is me trying a grab...hahaha.</span><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDdPrNDPrj_gvPiyatpaSVDkcYfHdl8-IOgTBR-Ai6XoUoTrXTspZ3_XAXKAcu2ntJpnZpynCc6tdRYTcUN563R9yU4-CjYMddW2cInPN_AmebCWTf9KRaa4Ngj-lozUhc1OIr6iUHrEb2/s1600-h/IMG_5876.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDdPrNDPrj_gvPiyatpaSVDkcYfHdl8-IOgTBR-Ai6XoUoTrXTspZ3_XAXKAcu2ntJpnZpynCc6tdRYTcUN563R9yU4-CjYMddW2cInPN_AmebCWTf9KRaa4Ngj-lozUhc1OIr6iUHrEb2/s320/IMG_5876.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5313548093915253346" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Bent is much cooler.</span><br /><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZm3xeshQl-ItxDmCrW8yorQ2uajMUj0Mwe7Er6WrVWf66lhB42tC5IPpC8HSYSWFtb-do2q8wweUREigjydeYojujOam06OROXQdWSG_wHbmU8MAHeIIdNWyQPla1olFcFmt0PAs28gMs/s1600-h/IMG_5867.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZm3xeshQl-ItxDmCrW8yorQ2uajMUj0Mwe7Er6WrVWf66lhB42tC5IPpC8HSYSWFtb-do2q8wweUREigjydeYojujOam06OROXQdWSG_wHbmU8MAHeIIdNWyQPla1olFcFmt0PAs28gMs/s320/IMG_5867.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5313547827495841330" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">and me, liking this Norway business</span><br /></div>SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-71156738106009558292009-03-09T08:14:00.000-07:002009-03-09T08:56:49.450-07:00The Real Fjords<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMsE3-K1AWFg4mHHBNG3RwPLiRPd4wY96YglJezjuv8irlmY5af7dZieRgnBfMSaTGSghRS5DO-6jJSV0ms0DUmogaQYKcMX8UeoI_wR3YKN95rkbWIvTuBUy0oRtx8SQTO1SCBRDimN0-/s1600-h/P1030140.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMsE3-K1AWFg4mHHBNG3RwPLiRPd4wY96YglJezjuv8irlmY5af7dZieRgnBfMSaTGSghRS5DO-6jJSV0ms0DUmogaQYKcMX8UeoI_wR3YKN95rkbWIvTuBUy0oRtx8SQTO1SCBRDimN0-/s320/P1030140.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311209083513850434" border="0" /></a><br />Silje invited me to her hometown this weekend since she and a friend were driving out to pick up some furniture. Spent the weekend gawking at fjords, eating salmon and xc skiing.<br /><br />That must have been an incredible place to grow up. Innvik has only 200 people, and from Silje's parents' house you just look out across the fjord to big, snow-capped mountains. The largest glacier in Europe is just around the corner, but I didn't get to see much of it because of the snow.<br /><br />Damn, too bad there aren't any jobs for me in places like that!<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyiYEQ7O51Gg2AnIaNgIItbQbmSugjaZf_rBUcSCy4Quire4NXbfDVK1d7Ejci_EfSIBfQ3iSs5YvUd9GbBz61_GT8I1L9ajWYhrGEQAgKXBWSbFg4AfCDagEnGatJ-Ay3aF8tuKFObFkh/s1600-h/P1030145.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyiYEQ7O51Gg2AnIaNgIItbQbmSugjaZf_rBUcSCy4Quire4NXbfDVK1d7Ejci_EfSIBfQ3iSs5YvUd9GbBz61_GT8I1L9ajWYhrGEQAgKXBWSbFg4AfCDagEnGatJ-Ay3aF8tuKFObFkh/s320/P1030145.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311209539425657554" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Maria and Silje on the ferry</span><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1_Upk9ztj1VWXCKkXQ10akbuU09omqmFt_K2auOYyrLoP0bNqADc1sRWeb7Ps1_zNgjIObj3YTwfCZ34V9T9lkQ2a49wbYIUNeZNn15nPULEzTOAyZJPT_cNH-GI6M9rwHAeMMlE5fLLb/s1600-h/P1030178.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1_Upk9ztj1VWXCKkXQ10akbuU09omqmFt_K2auOYyrLoP0bNqADc1sRWeb7Ps1_zNgjIObj3YTwfCZ34V9T9lkQ2a49wbYIUNeZNn15nPULEzTOAyZJPT_cNH-GI6M9rwHAeMMlE5fLLb/s320/P1030178.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311210711144038946" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Some douche-bag we found while skiing in the wind.</span><br /></div><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWqw0qKBGjtx1TzRLWwIF1sqOpB6Dx9NCdjmykYXdJLeNEAXJA9rdM0TKTAwTlPpWLIQWvbV2eMJx4InTUFRcKNr06MiUcSlkpj-kPeYGGApg6CYOG6NhwqQZPyZIuvgD-sntYcvFJo-eE/s1600-h/P1030186.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWqw0qKBGjtx1TzRLWwIF1sqOpB6Dx9NCdjmykYXdJLeNEAXJA9rdM0TKTAwTlPpWLIQWvbV2eMJx4InTUFRcKNr06MiUcSlkpj-kPeYGGApg6CYOG6NhwqQZPyZIuvgD-sntYcvFJo-eE/s320/P1030186.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311211175805414450" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_1tuW9MFC1hAoOlQIDjNdPDVayxdh6gtxzbIxVJ2dpCAkRl1N_gGlObNs__5nstLRLk17ZajUD1jdzY-AJqyIhrvgLp4YOjropKZPq5M2z9Dl8dCf2O-8mVGPrmL4M8LgGkNbsnxTRP2s/s1600-h/P1030169.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_1tuW9MFC1hAoOlQIDjNdPDVayxdh6gtxzbIxVJ2dpCAkRl1N_gGlObNs__5nstLRLk17ZajUD1jdzY-AJqyIhrvgLp4YOjropKZPq5M2z9Dl8dCf2O-8mVGPrmL4M8LgGkNbsnxTRP2s/s320/P1030169.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5311210475327369026" border="0" /></a><br /></div>SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-15393970189888621732009-03-05T12:59:00.000-08:002009-05-29T07:32:29.908-07:00MovingI took a job as a 'Project Engineer' in wind energy modelling. It's right up my alley as far as what I wanted to do. It's also in a nice office with big windows looking out over the fjord.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs2tNPuyNXqypEWi1vhYr5-uY5WP-UxCTTnLY6ppEjOPT5E4eh9dKvOIkpnjRrlSjyzD8DaBrG0wL2I6z0XYiONKcsb2YGt4D1UeiGJCI_tN82pN1vaKnAgyAeqWUfCCbxcmeck-mt01Cw/s1600-h/P1030045.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs2tNPuyNXqypEWi1vhYr5-uY5WP-UxCTTnLY6ppEjOPT5E4eh9dKvOIkpnjRrlSjyzD8DaBrG0wL2I6z0XYiONKcsb2YGt4D1UeiGJCI_tN82pN1vaKnAgyAeqWUfCCbxcmeck-mt01Cw/s320/P1030045.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5309816948661092770" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">The view out my office window.</span><br /><br /><br /></div>It is in a smaller town 1.5 hours out the fjord from Oslo, so I am going to move there when I get back from Sunnmøre (!!!) in mid April. I just made a really sweet agreement today, where I am going to rent and live in a cabin from then until mid June. It is on a hill, on an Island, in the fjord :-) fully furnished and with sleeping loft, yard and nice view. Oh, and it's cheaper than my room in Oslo. I don't have any pictures of it but will post in April when I take some.SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-49990484457513194412009-03-01T15:02:00.000-08:002009-03-23T15:02:34.840-07:00GöteborgSpent the weekend in Göteborg, Sweden visiting my friend Fredrik and his girlfriend. They have a nice apartment on a hill overlooking the city, and were nice enough to feed us delicious food and wine for the weekend.<br /><br />Göteborg is only 4 hours' bus ride from Oslo, but it felt like a completely different place. Oslo has 2 feet of snow in the city and the fjord is frozen, while in Göteborg the snow has melted and it even felt kind of warm. We did go iceskating, which was more fun than I remembered it being. Maybe because we spiced it up with racing and mad triple ax--err, 360's...<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwewRoBi9UVVjZggMOUOdsJLsspemlDazwjHOU15_nY3-0y4nX3ZlQZKlJ1LvirOGO1FjvZD2FaPV6ZpTecBD9E6o5TcpEew9fUsZgdv7t7es_HfMqnnIQomsqcdaH1jpATqEnGyC-6w6i/s1600-h/g%C3%B8teborg.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwewRoBi9UVVjZggMOUOdsJLsspemlDazwjHOU15_nY3-0y4nX3ZlQZKlJ1LvirOGO1FjvZD2FaPV6ZpTecBD9E6o5TcpEew9fUsZgdv7t7es_HfMqnnIQomsqcdaH1jpATqEnGyC-6w6i/s320/g%C3%B8teborg.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5316506953012477426" border="0" /></a><br /><br />It was good to see Fredrik again though, and also fun to practice understanding Swedish. They didn't switch to English at all for the whole weekend, so I definitely had to be on my game the whole time. It's for the best though: there are only 4.5 million Norwegians, so if I can fluently converse with Swedish people then that makes it 9 million people <span style="font-style: italic;">less</span> worthless that I speak Norwegian. Sweet.SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-51596420932688374112009-02-22T12:58:00.001-08:002009-04-26T12:55:39.481-07:00Hemsedal<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd2ltzCwve_AfCV4-oxzEk0EeoKYYoEDu7iVrT8bNApiCjTqo_6leN6ma9UzTrewsT2VtHRFaiZBT9BhPSsvmbjSMtnqgivNWTDLWvTYg5b1ZawKaON45V8_gb74gkdKsjVywo0XExV9pw/s1600-h/P1030101.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgd2ltzCwve_AfCV4-oxzEk0EeoKYYoEDu7iVrT8bNApiCjTqo_6leN6ma9UzTrewsT2VtHRFaiZBT9BhPSsvmbjSMtnqgivNWTDLWvTYg5b1ZawKaON45V8_gb74gkdKsjVywo0XExV9pw/s320/P1030101.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5305734927159575330" border="0" /></a><br />My friend Gregers invited me for a weekend skiing in Hemsedal, where he has a camper trailer. There was no way I could resist the opportunity, considering it involved both being trailer trash (which I'll add has been fully adopted into the Norwegian language) and backcountry skiing. Sweet. It's about 3 hours' drive from Oslo, but the time passed quickly with shit talking and good music.<br /><br />The first day we did several long, tree runs in the backcountry and hiked up one peak for a nice powdery bowl. The light was a little flat though, and it started snowing pretty hard as the day went on so we hit the 'after ski' for beers at about 4:30. It was my initiation to Norwegian after ski, and I've gotta say that I am definitely a fan. It's not like the garish idea of après ski that I had in mind, but more just a big post-ski-happy-hour where everyone clunks into the pub in their ski boots for beer. There was a live cover band, random SKÅÅÅÅÅL-sessions and plenty of drunk Norwegians dancing on tables in the aforementioned ski boots. Good times.<br /><br />Today we got up a bit earlier to hit the powder, and did a couple of steep in-bounds runs before the crowds showed up. Then we hit some more backcountry and had a really awesome day of it. Oh, the Fluffy.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfGVFqVhhOj3xq6J0WWnMfIO88tvx52jxxj0heHlq4tL-ZtxaKkkKudas7rL5WLBJ1S2EgKXvWuKAYMRBKDgWBPSueInBWkv_tYoUV7RbPAjLMTNoCnRZuymdpbymJrvCx48Cat1qsplGd/s1600-h/P1030105.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfGVFqVhhOj3xq6J0WWnMfIO88tvx52jxxj0heHlq4tL-ZtxaKkkKudas7rL5WLBJ1S2EgKXvWuKAYMRBKDgWBPSueInBWkv_tYoUV7RbPAjLMTNoCnRZuymdpbymJrvCx48Cat1qsplGd/s320/P1030105.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5305739379526346194" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;"> Gregers looks for the entry while Bent demonstates </span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"> some high-wind-snowboard pissing.<br /><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqhCJQKxCvv2y8QTN4zlcPv9x0WENV3CtqShdylU882J1Pv4m_NfPlk6gjzxEos-24d8JJBEZ7Sq-GFfstHdrGrtc4Ju6x3eTcRXEL7naEnZyY5HRESfRh08tEzC9uu_NuO4eBpcQnNroA/s1600-h/P1030122.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqhCJQKxCvv2y8QTN4zlcPv9x0WENV3CtqShdylU882J1Pv4m_NfPlk6gjzxEos-24d8JJBEZ7Sq-GFfstHdrGrtc4Ju6x3eTcRXEL7naEnZyY5HRESfRh08tEzC9uu_NuO4eBpcQnNroA/s320/P1030122.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5305736001103307170" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjteyTxiTlic_-Ht_aeuaaSuflr6YDVJEei_bnaCpawWkmH6bXqWwfp5RW27e_KdxrW8NTQjaf-5UBC46mUHSAl-K3B9Umk1qBTzsCquulnp-as06GPRwC0v7OpitjwMlNgHzRkUhlwKe6I/s1600-h/P1030111.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjteyTxiTlic_-Ht_aeuaaSuflr6YDVJEei_bnaCpawWkmH6bXqWwfp5RW27e_KdxrW8NTQjaf-5UBC46mUHSAl-K3B9Umk1qBTzsCquulnp-as06GPRwC0v7OpitjwMlNgHzRkUhlwKe6I/s320/P1030111.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5305738037226916514" border="0" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-style: italic;">We skied from the upper left into this photo;<br />If you look closely (left of center in the shade) you can see the fracture line from a<br />Sluffalanche that I started when I dropped into the bowl.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE592BrKz3wui5tkh4oaYIe5nj_CNCsq0ErKQXSBBBVPUAKCL4C3-wqhle-G-qBH_VwzA8DRPdETmlHvX6kBfljRqg2RwmJxexlNH_HITXE0-LbBLv3rYObI4uwsnXLWTymLywmIicGspe/s1600-h/P1030113.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 298px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE592BrKz3wui5tkh4oaYIe5nj_CNCsq0ErKQXSBBBVPUAKCL4C3-wqhle-G-qBH_VwzA8DRPdETmlHvX6kBfljRqg2RwmJxexlNH_HITXE0-LbBLv3rYObI4uwsnXLWTymLywmIicGspe/s320/P1030113.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5305740275638707554" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8UDgg-gkhqJp4NQfgP6D4xu0U1aNeHPkxSRyNNeOABmr2uI5_O04aUlLl1_ZsLq1G5HUUZ3JOMNYrkL70ClK3LenORixTjgha-dSdd7oUtKOXDSIOurD5VEkIr3CR8xOeHMErjjGZEqOC/s1600-h/P1030114.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 254px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8UDgg-gkhqJp4NQfgP6D4xu0U1aNeHPkxSRyNNeOABmr2uI5_O04aUlLl1_ZsLq1G5HUUZ3JOMNYrkL70ClK3LenORixTjgha-dSdd7oUtKOXDSIOurD5VEkIr3CR8xOeHMErjjGZEqOC/s320/P1030114.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5305753968964238962" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: left;">I didn't take many pictures on my camera, but Gregers allegedly got some good action shots including some airborne Davids.<br /></div></div>SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-71553873076125558652009-02-20T09:46:00.000-08:002009-02-20T09:59:15.430-08:00Park RatsThey don't even have to leave the city. I walk by this everyday on the way to work and it's usually crawling with snowboarders when I walk home in the evening.<br /><br />I would almost be tempted to grab my skis and head over, but I really just can't get psyched about rails--seems like you're just putting your teeth at risk for very little gain.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY6Q4HeoSD65Xhm5lMTKaUnSJDE2kzF9jkpc4015BFmtXXajk5Nu0Ruk_ZHCCVyYAi5sSkujHH-F7UuOU6h0CahwT-crefCjVC3z2nrJ0WPZtTrRuMsXjIvIwYncwUQcZQqSQEDvgS5u26/s1600-h/P1030073.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY6Q4HeoSD65Xhm5lMTKaUnSJDE2kzF9jkpc4015BFmtXXajk5Nu0Ruk_ZHCCVyYAi5sSkujHH-F7UuOU6h0CahwT-crefCjVC3z2nrJ0WPZtTrRuMsXjIvIwYncwUQcZQqSQEDvgS5u26/s320/P1030073.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304939120037336354" border="0" /></a><br />Besides, I'm heading to Hemsedal for the weekend, suckas!SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-75392403106711261452009-02-16T12:31:00.000-08:002009-03-16T14:19:31.881-07:00Weekend Fun<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Nd5lle4rFvJy-zpVAkbO-sCv6DZlKhUEeixDPT49WMvMXNDPRZvbjUbUIPfNHMlVsDi8NPYCgZ_EmLv9b_z-EzRrxnbS1R3deziS-ou1vGChsknHxWKTColbLD-gp5NyUllglqSLXszJ/s1600-h/P1030051.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Nd5lle4rFvJy-zpVAkbO-sCv6DZlKhUEeixDPT49WMvMXNDPRZvbjUbUIPfNHMlVsDi8NPYCgZ_EmLv9b_z-EzRrxnbS1R3deziS-ou1vGChsknHxWKTColbLD-gp5NyUllglqSLXszJ/s320/P1030051.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303501684751594754" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Started out the weekend right by taking a 'fredagspils' (~happy hour) with several of the guys from work. I think my boss must be hiring people based soley on how funny they are, because everyone i work with is absolutely hilarious.<br /><br />On Saturday I went for a ski tour to my friend's cabin in Nordmarka (the woods bordering the city to the north.) It's the same place where we celebrated the new year, but this time we only skied in for the day. The weather was absolutely perfect, with clear skies, powder snow and tolerable temperatures (just a few 'kuldegrader'.) The days are a lot longer now too, so our fatty fat late start didn't hurt us.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF8t0axGdax1L5OVrcVMk1BSdidwCzB4w-F8uZt2iZiQlX45psK24YGnvDjbanudt7kTD4GhhWeDygtyrwZZ2t23JFefyuNmZ6COlf3PmM1-bTmrEOfUPfc1puvepAzttyRrxUiWeJ8MJK/s1600-h/P1030068.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF8t0axGdax1L5OVrcVMk1BSdidwCzB4w-F8uZt2iZiQlX45psK24YGnvDjbanudt7kTD4GhhWeDygtyrwZZ2t23JFefyuNmZ6COlf3PmM1-bTmrEOfUPfc1puvepAzttyRrxUiWeJ8MJK/s320/P1030068.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303501992879508418" border="0" /></a><br />At the cabin we made soup and pillaged the cellar for some beers. Then after lunch I practiced some flips off the deck railing. I have been tempted lately to do some (purposeful) flips on skis, so practicing the motion with soft landings was nice. Now I just need to call my mom and have her send me my ski helmet :-)SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-66310253526902404312009-02-08T12:37:00.000-08:002009-02-16T11:31:31.365-08:00Gaustatoppen<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxNPR2tsjW7EXSOehcz2FesSCugmMVRZ5m697RvTzyuCB_CsxqeYz4mDKfh9EDgN3JVd0x7MFBPqWG2aI3g80RGhv8_quSkkVprgJa0Db_e2_D0qhcPfgwyhMHRyvYwxla1uVv2GoNL1ft/s1600-h/P1030025.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxNPR2tsjW7EXSOehcz2FesSCugmMVRZ5m697RvTzyuCB_CsxqeYz4mDKfh9EDgN3JVd0x7MFBPqWG2aI3g80RGhv8_quSkkVprgJa0Db_e2_D0qhcPfgwyhMHRyvYwxla1uVv2GoNL1ft/s320/P1030025.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303478605841613538" border="0" /></a><br />My Canucko-Austrian friend from home introduced me to another ski friend who lives in Oslo. When I first talked to him on the phone i was surprised when he answered me in perfect South African English--not what I expected from someone who I had been email corresponding with in Norwegian, but what the hell. He's a fun guy, with a ski-résumé including high Andean and Central Asian peaks, so I was excited to meet up again and go for a skitour on Guastatoppen--the closest real mountain to Oslo (about 2 hours away in the Telemark region.)<br /><br />The drive there was actually very nice, and I was reassured that Southeast Norway isn't as boring as I had worried. There's snow everywhere and the hills surrounding the city and fjord get bigger and could almost be called mountains by the time you have driven a half hour out of<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9GqRSUfAkdyMGNgAJ8Hlx-_ufY5ad-kqZCAy4tFN3DRHdbzvEl1gMH3Zjt6bMmo22hXk6k2bwJP1zIWOXrW0EjqSKABrtcIMXY63F9EkgESW4ZKx8BWoJzg9osv19O-78GIDngw73_XIM/s1600-h/P1030013.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9GqRSUfAkdyMGNgAJ8Hlx-_ufY5ad-kqZCAy4tFN3DRHdbzvEl1gMH3Zjt6bMmo22hXk6k2bwJP1zIWOXrW0EjqSKABrtcIMXY63F9EkgESW4ZKx8BWoJzg9osv19O-78GIDngw73_XIM/s200/P1030013.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303479594251480354" border="0" /></a> the city, with steep U-shaped valleys and rocky outcroppings.<br /><br />We had a bad coincidence though when we stopped for gas, realizing simultaneously that we had both forgotten our wallets. Balls. The two hour drive thus turned into a 3.5 hour drive as we had to go back and grab money so that we'd be able to make it to the mountain and back.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFrydFebLSprhHDZqKCnS1GJ_32d9Fr884znHuAqY18YkyqP5bzsxhrs87jbqrx4tkkZ82kfE9Rv8Yjbl42MCeF6Ao2qbOValAYGSMMc9OOBs5VsBga9lMp_2LathLil1eMySLTQyzZcuB/s1600-h/P1030018.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFrydFebLSprhHDZqKCnS1GJ_32d9Fr884znHuAqY18YkyqP5bzsxhrs87jbqrx4tkkZ82kfE9Rv8Yjbl42MCeF6Ao2qbOValAYGSMMc9OOBs5VsBga9lMp_2LathLil1eMySLTQyzZcuB/s200/P1030018.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303479352889503538" border="0" /></a>We tobogganed into a parking spot just as pretty much everyone else was skiing down from the mountain.There were a lot of smiling faces coming down as we started, so had high hopes (albeit dwindling daylight.)<br /><br />The weather was clearing up after some fresh snow, but as soon as we got above treeline we realized that we had a problem. The temperature was below 0F and the wind had started howling like crazy higher up. After an hour or so of that, Andrew decided that he'd rather just make laps on the lower part, because 1) He'd been to the top before and 2) he couldn't feel his hands or feet and snot was freezing to his face.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx9ZrXinVW0h5eOyoD1UKL29_3Mt3h9siggj_bbav4AMnVrTUA7o5rJ7O5l4mVoZ4Hb3-vmxivOPvv6NICdBHRNaj3nxSn2t50oL2aU5rI_zBJXCDBXxQIMEYcPyjmS5o6or6flTvAGxnp/s1600-h/P1030009.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx9ZrXinVW0h5eOyoD1UKL29_3Mt3h9siggj_bbav4AMnVrTUA7o5rJ7O5l4mVoZ4Hb3-vmxivOPvv6NICdBHRNaj3nxSn2t50oL2aU5rI_zBJXCDBXxQIMEYcPyjmS5o6or6flTvAGxnp/s200/P1030009.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303478878064918626" border="0" /></a>I wasn't as cold so I decided to keep going, and we agreed on a turn around time and meeting place. I continued up, soon getting some frozen snot of my own, but was actually really enjoying the skiing and the views. I ended up running out of time about a hundred meters below the summit, but it was getting dark so I was pretty okay with heading down. The skiing was really variable, with a mixture of windswept styrofoam, packed powder caches and boiler plate. Pretty manky on the whole, but fun and challenging nonetheless.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJY2v5BmhkfXa7179CGZExcf3f60QCYRfA14vruv2QeVicVYCkr4FvbCDUyiivZ2ooQCFo5YjIwLZCk3qgak2_rrYeFrRdyJii-FiA-20AmBcIsi6aVwn3RngnIIxVisiMxhCqkFEGJhhO/s1600-h/P1030036.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 140px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJY2v5BmhkfXa7179CGZExcf3f60QCYRfA14vruv2QeVicVYCkr4FvbCDUyiivZ2ooQCFo5YjIwLZCk3qgak2_rrYeFrRdyJii-FiA-20AmBcIsi6aVwn3RngnIIxVisiMxhCqkFEGJhhO/s200/P1030036.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5303479083520753042" border="0" /></a>Made it back to a cold Andrew ('I'm a freaking african damnit, i'm not made for this shit!') and we hit the car and drove back to the city. Guess there's a reason a lot of Norwegians wait and do most of their 'toppturing' in the warmer, lighter months.SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-4816539625876765262009-02-07T04:51:00.001-08:002009-02-07T05:03:07.163-08:00TryvannYesterday I went up to check out Tryvann, which is the best of the small ski hills in Oslo. It's nothing too special--about comparable to Summit Central at home--but it's definitely nice to have just above the city (you can take the Tbane up there.)<br /><br />It's been snowing the last couple of days and so conditions were pretty good. Went with two friends on telemark and we ripped down the slopes and later practiced our 'mad 1080 backflips' in the park.<br /><br />I have access to two season passes to the place through my job, so I think I will be dragging friends up there quite often this winter. Gotta love free skiing.SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-60006020779539078222009-02-02T11:59:00.000-08:002009-02-02T12:42:35.679-08:00LillehammerI spent the weekend in Lillehammer, which hosted the Olympics in 1994. A friend's aunt lives there in a big house overlooking the valley, and was nice enough to host us and continually feed us delicious food.<br /><br />We skied at Hafjell, which was fun. Found some nice dry powder and jumps in the trees, and hauled ass on the pistes. It was very cold both days (-13F) and my nostrils kept getting ice in them--I need to buy a new balaclava.<br /><br />From the top of the mountain we could see the snow-clad sexies in Jotunheimen to the west. I can't wait until there is enough daylight to get out on some multiday tours. Looks like some seriously sweet terrain out there.SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5923953361429757622.post-65894902046518845972009-01-28T09:59:00.000-08:002009-08-19T17:12:02.416-07:00Norwegians love Twin Peaks<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://slikejenter.files.wordpress.com/2008/10/twin_peaks.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 891px; height: 668px;" src="http://slikejenter.files.wordpress.com/2008/10/twin_peaks.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />Turns out almost all Norwegians like the show <span style="font-style: italic;">Twin Peaks</span>. While I find that kind of funny, and had previously thought it was just the Japanese, I consider myself a fairly enterprising young man and lately it has become kind of convenient.<br /><br />Now when people notice my accent and ask where I am from, I can very efficiently evoke images of nice mountains, dark woods and strange people--all fairly appropriate for my hometown.<br /><br />They are often disappointed when I tell them the real name of the town, 'Snoqualmie', which is a word that not many norwegians can pronounce. But this disappointment is quickly brushed off with an excited, 'wow, I can't believe you are from <span style="font-style: italic;">Twin Peaks!'</span> And then they shower me with party invitations, employment, pickled herring and the like. So it's doing me some good. If I'm feeling especially in need I might mention that the opening credits were filmed a mere 200 meters from the house a grew up in. That's gotta at least be good for a blow job or something.SUPERMARMOThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13118573878519166595noreply@blogger.com3