Closing Before Easter:
Hans Christian had hoped for a dream Easter at the mountain cabin. Now he needs to make other plans.
Have you made plans for Easter? If those plans involve ski trips and visits to traditional mountain cabins, you may demand to change them.
Especially if you were planning to visit one of the popular areas in Rondane, Norway.
Grimsdalshytta and Øvre Dørålseter, located in Norway’s oldest national park, will be closed for Easter this year. The reason? Simply a lack of snow and unusually mild temperatures in the mountains.
The news was first reported by local news outlet Vigga.
Summertime Temperatures
Cabin caretaker Hans Christian Johnson has experienced temperatures exceeding 68 degrees Fahrenheit in sunny spots recently. Such conditions rarely lead to good skiing.
– I had hoped for more snow and better conditions, since Easter is early this year. But there simply isn’t enough snow. The conditions aren’t what we want them to be for our guests,” Johnson told DinSide.
He added that the snow conditions in the southern part of Rondane are better, and hopes skiers will uncover other areas with good snow.
– We’ll focus instead on opening for the summer season on June 19th. We’re really looking forward to that,” he said.
A Study Trip
The staffed portion of the privately-owned Øvre Dørålseter cabin in Rondane is also closed for Easter.
And here, too, the solution is self-service for those who still make the trip.
The early spring is bringing bare patches, poor skiing conditions, and more open rivers than usual at this time of year, making it difficult to offer safe and predictable conditions for Easter guests.
The route between the two closed cabins is 11 miles, and is usually a popular ski trip. But this year will be different.
Instead of working as a cabin caretaker during Easter, Hans Christian Johnson will join other skiers on trips to other Norwegian Tourist Association cabins.
– I’ll be visiting some of the other cabins in the Tourist Association. Usually I have to work, but now I have the chance to see what others are doing,” Johnson said.
More Cabins Closed – For Completely Different Reasons
In addition to the lack of snow in Rondane, several DNT cabins on Hardangervidda are closed this winter due to a conflict between the Norwegian Tourist Association and landowners.
The conflict centers on landowners refusing to allow the Tourist Association to mark winter trails and transport goods with snowmobiles.
Landowners and the wild reindeer management board believe the trails and traffic disturb the wild reindeer, while DNT warns that it leads to poorer safety for people in the mountains.
The cabins Kalhovd, Stordalsbu, Lågaros and Helberghytta are closed, and more than 15 established winter routes in the area will not be marked this season.
For many who venture into the winter mountains, So fewer open cabins, longer distances without markings, and a greater need to carefully plan the trip in advance.
Snow conditions are excellent in both Jotunheimen and Hardangervidda, however.
– It’s looking very promising,” said Robert Brunvoll, managing director of SkiGeilo, to DinSide.
– We’ve gotten some fresh snow and everything is looking good for a dream Easter,” he said.
The same is true at Hafjell, Kvitfjell and Oppdal.
– We’ve fortunately been able to produce good snow during the cold periods earlier this winter, so we’ll be able to deliver good ski products throughout Easter. So we’re confident that Easter will be best spent in the mountains,” said Amanda Wold Kortnes, communications manager at Alpinco, to DinSide.
The outlook is also positive at Trysil.
– We have good conditions and all the slopes are open. The snow conditions this year are much better than at the same time last year, and Easter is two weeks earlier,” said Gudrun Sanaker Lohne, destination manager for SkiStar in Trysil, to DinSide.
– We have good snow cover on the slopes where we produce snow, which applies to about half of the areas. Snow depth is 7-11 inches and in the terrain we have 5-9 inches.
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Hi, my name is Odd Roar Lange and I am a travel expert and journalist for DinSide and Dagbladet. Do you have a tip or question about travel and vacation? Feel free to send it to me. Tips and questions that can be used for a report will be prioritized.
