After we lastly arrived in Oslo, the town welcomed us with a radiating early Might solar, and crisp blue skies. It was two days earlier than the official begin of Excessive Camp Turtagrø, a multi-day ski touring occasion which takes place within the Jotunheimen Nasional Park, which Altitude Sports activities had been invited by Norrøna to participate in.
Our group spent Wednesday night sharing tales and attending to know each other over some high quality wine and a savoury bowl of Fiskesupp (fish soup) because the Norwegian sundown. We laughed, we smiled, and it was laborious to consider we have been all strangers merely a number of hours earlier. We completed our drinks, ignored the temptation to find Oslo’s nightlife and loved a scenic, waterfront stroll again to the resort which was positioned within the coronary heart of the town. We have been solely minutes from the high-end retail district and located amongst widespread vacationer websites equivalent to Oslo Harbor and Opera Home.
Oslo is an exquisite metropolis. Its structure is generally a contemporary minimalistic twist on the basic Nordic designs discovered throughout Northern Europe and Scandinavia. After a short stint there it was evident that Norwegians really worth their pure surroundings and simplistic designs, whereas Oslo locals favor the appears of technically practical high-fashion.
Thursday started with a tour of the Norrøna headquarters in Oslo. We have been welcomed with smiling faces and clear white partitions adorned with epic mountain scenes. As soon as inside, it was clear {that a} ardour for the mountains grew inside these partitions.
Norrøna is a model devoted to consolation, technical element and most of all, guaranteeing memorable experiences in nature. Their merchandise are designed for the out of doors fanatic who doesn’t watch for a bluebird day to get out and luxuriate in nature’s playground.
Every assortment is impressed by the well-known mountain peaks the place freeride fanatics run amok, and breathtaking mountains views tempt out of doors fanatics year-round. Whether or not you’re snowboarding the rugged, big-mountain strains of Lofoten or ski-touring the peaks in Lyngen, Norrøna merchandise are designed to encourage you to play outdoors.
“Welcome to nature implies that we assist/encourage everybody to have a unbelievable nature expertise. For Norrøna Sport – this implies fulfilling our mission – making the world’s greatest out of doors merchandise, so our clients can concentrate on their actions as a result of we preserve you snug.”- Jørgen Jørgenson CEO and proprietor at Norrøna.
Norrøna makes use of prime of the road supplies and chooses designs which might be positive to excel within the mountains. From their lofoten Gore-Tex Professional Pants to the trollveggen Gore-Tex Gentle Professional jacket, Norrøna is conscious of the wants of their athletes wherever their winter adventures take them.
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Males’s Lofoten Gore-Tex Professional Jacket Store |
Ladies’s Lofoten Gore-Tex Professional Pants Store |
Males’s Falketind Warm1 Stretch Zip Store |
Ladies’s Falketind Down750 Jacket Store |
A tour of the headquarters gave us actual perception into the model and the dedication that goes into every product. All the things from the design, stitching and testing is finished in-house and has a private contact from somebody on Norrøna’s fastidiously chosen staff of workers. They work laborious in order that athletes can play laborious, realizing their gear will carry out on the hardest terrain and thru the harshest parts. Our plans over the following few days at Excessive Camp have been to place this gear to the take a look at on quite a few ski-touring journeys.
Because the tour got here to an finish, we requested our closing questions, stuffed up our water bottles and packed into the van. We had a six-hour drive forward of us, and two mountain passes to get by means of earlier than the gates closed at 8 pm. We buckled-up plugged the music and hit the highway.
The drive to Turtagrø was breathtaking. Every bend revealed immense partitions of snow that had solely just lately been formed when the highway was plowed by means of the earlier week. The tops of the snow partitions performed peek-a-boo with the snowscapes far off within the distance whereas beams of daylight sparkled on the jagged peaks. All of us sat perched on the sting of our seats as we gazed in awe on the putting landscapes unfolding in entrance of us.
As we rounded the curve reaching Turtagrø Resort, the solar started its sluggish descent behind the mountains. Tents littered the snow outdoors and Norrøna gear was in all places. This was Excessive Camp Turtagrø, and we had three days to discover its epic terrain, expertise the unreal views, and uncover a new-found devotion to nature.
Every day started with in depth planning the evening earlier than. From the elevation and journey period to avalanche hazards for the proposed routes, our confidence grew with the data and expertise displayed by our guides. We have been sure that they might lead us on an unforgettable few days of snowboarding by means of Norway’s breathtaking mountainscapes.
The mornings started with van rides alongside the winding highway to our beginning factors. From there, we assembled our touring gear, locked into the bindings and skinned into the huge snowfields and mountain passes that laid forward.
Friday took us touring throughout a dam and up the bottom of Steindalsnosi, a mountain with an elevation of 2025m. Saturday had us adventuring throughout a glacier and up the steep slope of the 1965m Lauvnostind peak. This area within the Jotunheimen Nasional Park is named the ‘House of the Giants,’ which was evident from the rugged peaks that towered over us on our ascents.
We skinned onwards, every step bringing us that a lot nearer to our day by day vacation spot and the descent that awaited on the opposite aspect. Through the demanding ascents, we informed tales, shared jokes, and easily loved one another’s firm among the many peaceable environment. You might look to the horizon and see limitless rolling fields of snow and jagged uncovered peaks simply ready to be found.
It didn’t matter how briskly you climbed or how technical the strains you skied have been, all that mattered at Excessive Camp was that you just took the time to benefit from the spectacular views. There was no must rush to a peak or scramble all the way down to the underside as a result of everybody was there to stay within the second. How typically do you get to face on a peak over 1900m excessive and benefit from the scenic Norwegian panorama beneath?
Excessive Camp Turtagrø was not solely a backcountry snowboarding occasion however an ode to nature. Every day started with smiles and sunshine, then completed with contemporary tan strains and a few new and thrilling tales. Those that had by no means skilled the Jotunheimen space got here for the snowboarding and left with an distinctive mountain expertise. All of us departed Excessive Camp Turtagrø and Norway wanting extra.
*Pictures By Photographer Stephen Shannon
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