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Sea to summit

Spring skiing above the arctic circle in Norway.

Last spring I rounded up some friends, and a bunch of Majesty equipment, our destination was an island in the north of Norway. We had 4 days of adventure in nature so splendid, it’s hard to believe it before you actually get to see it, even for native Norwegians.

4 days with everything from sun, perfect powder and also the last spring snowstorm. Join us in our story, and get inspired!

Early morning, May 5th, we left the hot black tarmac at the Oslo airport. We were in search of epic spring skiing. Very late in the season, even in the Lofoten area the snow was gone. We had local intel about some quality snow a bit further north, in the Harstad region. We were exhilarated to check it out!

Our destination, the island seen from the land side.

Harstad is a relatively small town, populated by 24 000 skiers (J). Located north of the polar circle, the daylight at this latitude in the spring lasts almost 24 hours a day, spectacular!

Land of the midnight sun.

A 90 minutes flight from Oslo, 45 min by car, 20 min on a local ferry, and we are there, at the dreamspot on the island our guide picked for us.

We met up with our experienced local guide Christian Dramsdahl by the ferry at our destination. Christian who, like most people up here, were born with skis, and also diving fins, on their feet.

The ocean up here is crystal clear, the beaches sandy white. Breathtaking.

Christian, a 10 year veteran of Naval Special Operation Forces in Norway, is the owner and operator of the currently only guide company in Harstad, Arctic Sea to Summits.

When this late in the skiing season, its nice to locate a starting point that has snow all the way down to sea level. It’s a special experience to be able to ski from sea level to summit and all the way back down to sea level, in May….

3 hours after leaving the hot Oslo we were surrounded by paradise, our very own paradise, all alone with our guide, and endless territory to ski and make virgin tracks.

Skinning away.

The only other tracks we saw on the mountain as we passed thru the treeline, was from hares and grouse.

Christian had told us that we would experience changing weather, from warm sun and teeshirt conditions, to cold wind with snow and whiteout.

Changing spring weather is gods gift if you like weather and contrasts, you have to be prepared for anything and bring correct gear.

On our accent, the melting of snow was apparent, so we crossed some small rivers as we saw the summits up ahead. Getting seriously excited to reach the summits and experiencing the mind-blowing view of the Vesterålen region with all its skiable islands, and the blue sea.

On many of the island mountains around Harstad, you can experience to be completely alone, unlike many of the the most popular destinations elsewhere were can meet heaps of people

Nature you will not forget easily.

Wind picking up.

The view was stunning, the ocean is surrounded by steep, beautiful mountains in every direction. The snow is as white as you want it, and normally you will be the first to take turns and make the first track down.

Selfie time with our guide Christian.

One of Christians guides that joined our trip, Håvard, took some of us up to the highest peak on the island. This late in the season, the snowpack is solid early in the day, so we put our skis on the backpack and started booting to the peak.

2 hours worth of booting at a 45 degree incline, 600 altitude meters, we came to the very top of the peak.

Rapid changes in weather in this part of Norway.

Windy.

Skins off at the top, cant wait to be setting off!

We had such a great time on the accent, and as Christian told us, the weather could change. We felt the wind pick up, and then in a matter of a couple of minutes we had snow all around us, immediate whiteout. We were prepared with warm clothes and goggles, dug a small shelter in the snow and had some lunch, waiting for the weather to pass.

Patience paid off, we got fresh powder on our way down the peak.

All of used Majesty skis and Majesty tech bindings.

Christian used the Majesty Supernova Carbon and is superhappy with the ski. He has a lot of superlight rando skis and heavy freeride skis in his lineup, but as he he says, this is the best from both worlds, light and agile giving you all the fast fun on your way down.