Anyone skied Lofoten?

[Yukonrider]

An opportunity to do a trip there has come up. I know nothing. We have 8 days and would like to do a guided trip problably Feb 8 through 16 or so.

Anyone have any information or guides they liked? I just started researching this morning so at this point anything is helpful.

[zion zig zag]

An opportunity to do a trip there has come up. I know nothing. We have 8 days and would like to do a guided trip problably Feb 8 through 16 or so.

Anyone have any information or guides they liked? I just started researching this morning so at this point anything is helpful.

I was there last summer, pretty stunning area. Days are short that time of year.

[californiagrown]

Days are short that time of year.

~6.5hours of daylight that time of year... and the sun will be really low that time of year when it is up so the days will feel even shorter though, if its clear itll be golden hour all day long.

Seems like the kind of place where the scenery is 99% of the reason to go, and that time of year you will have a very limited amount of time to see things. Seems like an awfully long way to go, with lots of travel time to just be in the dark quite literally 3/4 of the time. Also, be careful that lots of tourist stuff (cafes, etc) might be closed during the offseason. YMMV.


Full moon on 2/12, so if its clear and you dress WARM, you could get out for full moon adventuring which would be really cool (pub intended).

[brutah]

I skied there at the end of March- Early April last season. We stayed at the Lofoten Soi Lodge and skied with the Northern Alpine Guides. It was great time with good snow and food. I would recommend it!

Seems like weather can be a bit of a factor as we had generally good weather and temps but heard reports prior to our arrival of high winds and scoured slopes so bit of a luck of the draw there.

Feel free to ask me any specific questions

[CMartin348]

I skied there at the end of March- Early April last season. We stayed at the Lofoten Soi Lodge and skied with the Northern Alpine Guides. It was great time with good snow and food. I would recommend it!

Seems like weather can be a bit of a factor as we had generally good weather and temps but heard reports prior to our arrival of high winds and scoured slopes so bit of a luck of the draw there.

Feel free to ask me any specific questions

Also visited Lofoten & Lyngen last March and stayed at Lofoten Ski Lodge. 10/10 recommend Lofoten Ski Lodge & Northern Alpine Guides.

I don't really have words to describe the scenery around Norway and the overall experience. It's completely unique and phenomenal. Weather/snow conditions will 100% be luck of the draw. The week prior to my visit, they had 6 days of rain and 50mph winds. I lucked out with quite a bit of sun and slightly warmer temps and with the sun angle so low, prime corn skiing most afternoons. My only concern with February would be lack of daylight hours vs March & April.

I would reach out to Northern Alpine Guides and try to get their thoughts on Feb. If you've got the chance and it works out, you will have an awesome time! Really cool place!

[zion zig zag]

Also visited Lofoten & Lyngen last March and stayed at Lofoten Ski Lodge. 10/10 recommend Lofoten Ski Lodge & Northern Alpine Guides.

I don't really have words to describe the scenery around Norway and the overall experience. It's completely unique and phenomenal. Weather/snow conditions will 100% be luck of the draw. The week prior to my visit, they had 6 days of rain and 50mph winds. I lucked out with quite a bit of sun and slightly warmer temps and with the sun angle so low, prime corn skiing most afternoons. My only concern with February would be lack of daylight hours vs March & April.

I would reach out to Northern Alpine Guides and try to get their thoughts on Feb. If you've got the chance and it works out, you will have an awesome time! Really cool place!

I did stay at the Lofoten ski lodge in September and I can confidently say that they had the best food that we ate in two weeks of traveling Norway.

[Yukonrider]

Are NAG and the ski lodge wrapped in together or could we hire different guides and still stay at the lodge?

[bennymac]

We stayed at Lofoten Ski Lodge and didn’t use guides. I think breakfast and dinner were included in our room rates.

We flew in and out of Narvik airport (as we were also going to Lyngen/Tromso area) - no reason to spend any time in the city of Narvik. There is an airport closer to Lofoten/the ski lodge you can fly to (rather than Narvik)

When in Lofoten make sure you do the drive out to the village of Henningsvear - even if just to have a coffee at the cafe and walk around the shoreline by the soccer field.

There are really great guidebooks to skiing in this area - one focused on Lofoten and one on “safer skiing in Norway” that covers many areas but only details the safest routes (avalanche wise)

[garyfromterrace]

Damn Yukon, I was sure I did a TR on my time skiing there but can't find it. Amazing place. I was there in April. Lots of light. You may need a good headlamp. Pretty awesome just driving along and picking your line. No bushwacking, skiing back to the ocean. Great food, expensive booze, nice people once they open up to you. Bucket list item for me and didn't disappoint.

[Yukonrider]

Thanks all, booked from Feb 15 to Feb 22. Its going to be dark and cold, but this is when buddies could go. I'm sure it will still be great fun. I'll try and get a TR going when I get back.

[jacob_dbu]

If you get good snow, it will be great fun. I'd get a really good headlamp to give you some more time to work with. I was there two years ago and lucked out with 6 days of cold dry powder. Around the equinox is definitely the time to go light wise. The days got over an hour longer across the course of a week!

[Arctos Guides]

I’d recommend staying with Kompani Lofoten. They’ve got their own island lodge just east of the Troll Fjord. I brought a group there a few years back and was really happy with the quality of the experience. Nice accommodations, a private boat to access quieter ski zones and a private chef. Their new lodge looks phenomenal. Mid March and into April is a nice time to go as the days are longer.

[BFD]

anyone skied out of the huts? did some you tube searching and terrain didn't look like the movies. does Norway get busy? saw one video and the trail head looked like Turnagain Pass on a weekend. was thinking about the lyngen alps as my son thinks north is the way to go for conditions. Is there a recommended guide book that talks about conditions in different areas? Lots of great looking mountains.

[bobinch]

anyone skied out of the huts? did some you tube searching and terrain didn't look like the movies. does Norway get busy? saw one video and the trail head looked like Turnagain Pass on a weekend. was thinking about the lyngen alps as my son thinks north is the way to go for conditions. Is there a recommended guide book that talks about conditions in different areas? Lots of great looking mountains.

It’s not as good as the old Fatmap guide but the Strava guide includes the main routes
https://www.strava.com/routes/backco...y/troms/lyngen

[perba.ericsson@gmail.com]

How are you doing with the planning?

I live in Harstad, two hours from Lofoten. I can sadly report that the weather has been awful for a week and no snow is forecast at sea level for the coming week.
Lofoten is, obviously, a set of islands far out at sea. The conditions there are always variable. There are always better conditions inland, by the border to Sweden, around Narvik and along the road to Tromsö. There are some nice, longer routes in eastern Lofoten (east means more snow) like Geitgaljartind and Strandstind (not really Lofoten) that could be nice.
The Norwegian Tourist Association (DNT) have some really nice huts in the neighboring area, Vesterålen. Snytindhytta is known for its randonne-friendly location. Trollfjordhytta is really cool and only reachable by boat and there is some pretty steep and irregular terrain there.
I have some guide books for Harstad and Narvik, just send me a message if you want some pictures of them.

[PeaHead96]

Yeah weather has been pretty dogshit this last week. Honestly this is the worst winter I’ve seen in the last five years. So many rain events we’ve had in what’s supposed to be the coldest time of the year. Hopefully things turn around.

I’m some hours north of Lofoten and about two hours away from Lyngen/Tromsø.

Haven’t personally skied in Lofoten, but from what I’ve seen on IG and elsewhere the terrain looks great. The mountains aren’t very tall though, and it being an archipelago means that it’s subject to relatively warmer temps.

Lyngen has taller mountains + several glaciers. Snowpack definitely better there. Little bit more risk in Lyngen though. Usually at least one avalanche fatality a year there. Would definitely get a guide. Luckily there’s plenty for hire.


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

[zion zig zag]

<p>

Yeah weather has been pretty dogshit this last week. Honestly this is the worst winter I&rsquo;ve seen in the last five years. So many rain events we&rsquo;ve had in what&rsquo;s supposed to be the coldest time of the year. Hopefully things turn around. I&rsquo;m some hours north of Lofoten and about two hours away from Lyngen/Troms&oslash;. Haven&rsquo;t personally skied in Lofoten, but from what I&rsquo;ve seen on IG and elsewhere the terrain looks great. The mountains aren&rsquo;t very tall though, and it being an archipelago means that it&rsquo;s subject to relatively warmer temps. Lyngen has taller mountains + several glaciers. Snowpack definitely better there. Little bit more risk in Lyngen though. Usually at least one avalanche fatality a year there. Would definitely get a guide. Luckily there&rsquo;s plenty for hire. Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

</p>
<p>
&nbsp;</p>
<p>
Are you near Bardufoss? I had a strange night there last fall. Beautiful area though.&nbsp;</p>

[BFD]

Perba and peahead thanks for posting. I have been looking at the huts. I picked out 3 that looked good. They are small maximum 12 people. I am traveling so don't have the names with me. Hopefully you will be around because I definitely have some questions.

[Yukonrider]

Forgot about this, glad I saw it while scrolling.

Flight leaves Thursday and I think we get into Svolaer on Sunday the 16th after two days in Oslo. We have hired a guide, and do have a rental we could drive wherever if it is worth the trip, no sure what the guide has in mind, that was someoen else's job.

I'll make some inquires. Any tips still appreciated!

[garyfromterrace]

Enjoy Yukonrider! I sure did. Adding a local guide into the mix is not a bad call at all.

[NWFlow]

We'll cross fingers for some new snow. These passed couple weeks have wrecked the skiing, but cooler weather and some fresh snow will turn things around quickly!

[PeaHead96]

Yep, visited the local ski hill today and it looks comparable to how it should look come April. Even the old heads around here are saying this is the warmest winter they’ve ever experienced. I’ve even had a couple admit that they believe in climate change now lol.

Fingers crossed for a snowy March.


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

[Yukonrider]

If anyone can tell me how to add pictures without Tapatalk I will.


I had a great trip! I don't feel like typing out a whole TR without pictures, so here is how it went down in case someone searches this again:

Flew in to Oslo and spent a few days there, its a cool town, very quiet, incredibly expensive ($15 for a beer was pretty standard). There is a train direct from the airport to downtown, a few nicely located hotels make it walkable even with skis. It was a great way to break up a lot of flying.

Flew in to Svolare and Rent-a-car-Lofoten left our car in the airport parking lot with the keys in the ignition, very easy and good service, I messed up our booking and they took care of me despite a few things.

Stayed at The Ski Lodge, would recommend. The cabins are quaint, and right on the water with a great view. We had breakfast and dinner there every night and it was a great experience. They have a sauna, and a luke warm tub that are great after a day of skiing. They have a dock you can jump off for your cold plunge pleasure. The first time is electric. It took me a day of convincing, but finally jumped, what a rush. The rooms come with boot dryers, and there were a few other parties with similar interests which was cool, staying in town would have been nice but everything is somewhat close so driving in to a bar or restaurant is reasonable.

Our Guide Sebastian Tallent was top notch, seemed pretty cued on in what terrain would be good, and despite challenging conditions we only skied one run that was bad, everything else was good, or good enough which is a great compliment considering the snow conditions. We averaged about 4k per day, our group was a little slower than I'd have liked, but the guide read the room well and kept everyone in the game for 4 days in a row of touring, so that's good.
We skied mostly mellow stuff, but the beauty is beyond explanation. There are some pretty wild looking lines if that's your jam

We were supposed to take our rest day in the middle of the trip, but late week rain forecast left us with a rainy Friday off. We drove about 2 hours out the peninsula to Lofoten Beach Camp and went surfing in the Arctic Circle! Now I'm not a surfer, and got absolutely rinsed a couple times, but honestly this is the memory that stands out to me. The skiing was good, but surfing surrounded by snow covered peaks in a driving rain all comfy cozy in your wet suit is super cool, I even managed to 'catch' a few waves! I HIGHLY recommend this for your rest day. It was like 60 bucks for the board and wet suit.