First of all, forgive me if I ramble a bit, as I have never written a report like this before or uploaded any pictures.
Myself and my wife Alison had been thinking of going on an overseas wildcamping trip for a while now.
On good advice from friends who had already done this, we decided on the Nordmarka area just north of Oslo in Norway. We were also advised that early May would be a good time of year for our first adventure. A good friend lent us some maps and the planning started. We would be hammocking and were told that our gear and knowledge were fine.
Flights were booked from Gatwick to Oslo, then it would be a short train journey into central Oslo where we would need to buy some methylated spirits (rodspirit) and arrange a fishing permit.
We flew out on Saturday 4th May excited and a little bit anxious. It wasn't too long before we were boarding Tbane 5 to Sognsvann Lake. Its only a short walk from the train station to the lake. The lake itself is fairly well used by the people of Oslo. Lots of joggers, and walkers out for a weekend stroll. It was mid afternoon and the temperature was around 1.c. Just got to the lake and it started to hail, so we dived into the woods for shelter..
It only lasted about 20 minutes so we decided to continue on and try and get a bit further from along the lake.
An ok spot was found and so it was time for us to set up camp for the first night.
Sognsvann lake first night...
We ended up spending 2 nights in this spot. It gave us the chance to explore the area a bit and to scope out our next spot which was going to be on the next lake north Lille Aklungen. With the packs on, I guessed it would be a couple of hour hike.
The day we moved the temperature had dropped to a high of 0.c. At least we wouldn't get too overheated on the journey. The wind had picked up as well. It felt bitter. We found a spot relatively out of the wind to set up camp.
I had managed to find a spot where we could hang the hammocks side by side and rig the two tarps up to try and keep the wind off as best as we could. It dropped to -2.c that night and we had a sprinkling of snow.
The lake was beautiful and Alison really liked this spot, so I took down a few small pine trees to try and build a bit of a wind break.
The area was littered with what I presume was Elk poo. Either that or the squirrels grow large in these parts!
We heard them calling one night... very eerie!
We spent 2 nights here as well.
Time for a brew...
Our next destination was the next lake north Store Aklungen. About another 2 hours hike.
The temperature had not increased much and was still at a high of about 0.c
On route Alison...
When we got to this lake we found another spot where we could hang the hammocks side by side..
A bit more to come
Myself and my wife Alison had been thinking of going on an overseas wildcamping trip for a while now.
On good advice from friends who had already done this, we decided on the Nordmarka area just north of Oslo in Norway. We were also advised that early May would be a good time of year for our first adventure. A good friend lent us some maps and the planning started. We would be hammocking and were told that our gear and knowledge were fine.
Flights were booked from Gatwick to Oslo, then it would be a short train journey into central Oslo where we would need to buy some methylated spirits (rodspirit) and arrange a fishing permit.
We flew out on Saturday 4th May excited and a little bit anxious. It wasn't too long before we were boarding Tbane 5 to Sognsvann Lake. Its only a short walk from the train station to the lake. The lake itself is fairly well used by the people of Oslo. Lots of joggers, and walkers out for a weekend stroll. It was mid afternoon and the temperature was around 1.c. Just got to the lake and it started to hail, so we dived into the woods for shelter..
It only lasted about 20 minutes so we decided to continue on and try and get a bit further from along the lake.
An ok spot was found and so it was time for us to set up camp for the first night.
Sognsvann lake first night...
We ended up spending 2 nights in this spot. It gave us the chance to explore the area a bit and to scope out our next spot which was going to be on the next lake north Lille Aklungen. With the packs on, I guessed it would be a couple of hour hike.
The day we moved the temperature had dropped to a high of 0.c. At least we wouldn't get too overheated on the journey. The wind had picked up as well. It felt bitter. We found a spot relatively out of the wind to set up camp.
I had managed to find a spot where we could hang the hammocks side by side and rig the two tarps up to try and keep the wind off as best as we could. It dropped to -2.c that night and we had a sprinkling of snow.
The lake was beautiful and Alison really liked this spot, so I took down a few small pine trees to try and build a bit of a wind break.
The area was littered with what I presume was Elk poo. Either that or the squirrels grow large in these parts!
We heard them calling one night... very eerie!
We spent 2 nights here as well.
Time for a brew...
Our next destination was the next lake north Store Aklungen. About another 2 hours hike.
The temperature had not increased much and was still at a high of about 0.c
On route Alison...
When we got to this lake we found another spot where we could hang the hammocks side by side..
A bit more to come
