Tales and adventures of two lean mean mountain machines
A little over a year ago I posted some thoughts on time. Back then PJ and I were both on furlough, the pandemic had only just begun and many of us imaged that 2021 would be very different from 2020. But the reality of things hasn't changed all that much. Also this March we entered… Continue reading The Cancelled Season
At last the weather forecast shows multiple days of blue temperatures. From last week new snow and minus degrees descended upon us, hopefully for a while to stay. When I came home after Christmas in Belgium it was like driving into a postcard. The forest around the house was so incredibly beautiful it made me… Continue reading The long spring of January
On the first of January we left Abisko for the King's Trail, loaded with 22 days of food and fuel, enough to reach Sulitjelma in a single push. On January 4 we were back in Abisko, defeated by a wall of snow, having had a storm over our heads yet again, disquieted by signs of… Continue reading Polar Night
The thermometer showed -16°C when we left the hotel in Kautokeino at 10 in the morning. The temperature we were actually feeling was -23°C. It was a crisp, clear morning, everything sparkled in the sunlight. Every twig, every blade of grass, every needle on every pine tree was frozen and covered with a thick layer… Continue reading Reisadalen and a stormy crossing into Finland
Even though we lost a day looking for phantom trails out of the Ruby Valley, we still arrived a day early to Machhakhola. Manaslu is a restricted area: it requires a special permit and a guide for company. I was quite grateful for a day of rest in the wait: the past 7 days alone… Continue reading Manaslu Circuit
Spring always represents a clean break in the season. Suddenly I wake up early in the morning because the sun is piercing my eyes. It's so warm outside that I only need a fleece jacket to go around. God forbid, I have to take sunglasses on tour, I need them for driving, I need… Continue reading Spring
For the past five days I have been so incredibly tired that all I felt I could do, was sleep. Outside endless snow kept falling from the sky. Around 50cm of fresh powder must have been dumped on us during the past three days. When I was driving back PJ's overnight guests yesterday, they asked me if the… Continue reading The beginning of the end
Our arrival on the Lofoten Islands was not as glamorous as the one in Lyngen had been: instead of brilliant sunshine we were met with threatening dark skies. Long had we believed that we would make it all the way down to Oslo without a single drop of rain, and long had we not checked… Continue reading The Road through Norway, part II: Lofoten
