Norway

A bitter-sweet tale of whitewater adventure, July/Aug 2005...

After a pleasant month working in the Alps, I decided it was time to focus on my own paddling again… and for advanced whitewater paddling Norway is top of the list. With Keogh taking my boat in his van, all I had to do was fly Ryanair to Oslo and take a train to Otta. It was to be a short 2 week holiday and with no vehicle of my own, I’d just have to see what happened.

Rossco Redmond was heading up a crew from Limerick who were coming to the end of a month of Norwegian beard growth. Rob ‘Red Destroyer’ Murphy was living it up in the back of his HiAce, and B.K. was clocking up as much river mileage as his broken body could muster (he’s going on sixty you know). With new friends Billy and Sherman from Scotland the chances of scoring good paddling were high.

The chances of a gentle warm up were not so good. First stop, the Upper and Lower Skerva – lots of class 5 drops and lots of long portages. After 6 hours on the river, I got the message: “Welcome to Norway- if you want a vacation then go back to France.” This is hard, committing paddling and it was great to be pushing myself in a boat again.

The Sjoa festival was in full swing and the boys got stuck into some Moonshine (Norwegian for rat poison). It tastes like Zambian Cane, Ugandan Waragi and Nepali Roxi, all mixed together. Eight hours after taking one shot it was still burning. Jimmy informed me that the key is to keep drinking it, till the burning sensation (and all other sensation) is completely numbed. Based on his results, I’m not convinced…


Anyway, back to the boating. We fell off Ulla falls a few times – scene of many photos, but technically easy. It was nice to get back in the swing of steep creeking again, so I celebrated by head-butting my cockpit rim with my nose…

The Finna and the Upper Sogndalsaelva had some sporty 4/5. Skipple to Urdland on the Raundalsaelva is run by the rafts but packed plenty of punch in its Timber Hole rapid. The run of the week though, was definitely the Lower Myrkaldaelva. Miles of waterfalls and slides followed by more waterfalls and more slides. Nothing of the “balls over brains” variety – just high quality, technical class 5 in pristine scenery. We spent 2 days on it and it made my trip…

Then things went bad.

I was aware that Norway was claiming some scalps this season. There were reports of cracked boats, broken paddles, damaged pride. Then we heard the news that Rob Coffey had smashed his ankle, requiring extensive surgery. On a day when things felt generally sluggish we made a late start on the Reime –Skipple canyon of the Raundasaelva.

It soon became clear that we had underestimated both the difficulty and the water level. However, we were making good progress, with frequent scouting. On one such stop, I climbed just high enough to see what I was pretty sure was a clean(ish) line – river right on a ledge. So, I drove for the line, made the line I wanted, then got destroyed.

A long surf-come-cartwheel session eventually seemed destined to become an infinite one. I pulled, got some downtime and resurfaced, a wreck of a man. With the lads behind me waiting for a signal (go left!) it was a while before the boat could be retrieved and I was forced to hike out. Unable to hike the boat out of the canyon Dave Tec put a spraydeck on it and sent it down ahead of them. The team tried their level best to keep up with my beloved boat, but the portage caught them out. The boat which served me through 2 Alpine trips and a month in India was last seen greasing the line on the portage – may it rest in peace.

To give you an idea of the remoteness of these supposed road-side runs, it took me 45 minutes to reach the top of the gorge. After another half-hour I reached the van. By the time I met the lads at the take-out, the boat had spent 30 minutes running solo. Despite racing the van to the end of the next section (which takes 2 hours to kayak) the boat had already gone past, heading for the lower gorge (walled in by high granite walls and never run at these levels). I know this because I spent 2 hours faithfully waiting for it, throwbag in hand, while Rob walked down the section. It’s rough justice, but that’s Norway. Hard paddling with hard consequences.


So that was it – the end of that trip. Naturally, it then started raining, my tent leaked and we ran out of gas. That just seems to be the way of things. I headed home in a battered HiAce which sent smoke billowing into the cab whenever we tried to de-fog the windscreen. The cabaret act on the ferry did cheer me up somewhat though, along with a magician called Alex Alexander. However, it was the waitress in a greasy café in Stranraer that really put things in perspective:

Me: “could we get a jug of tap-water with that please”
Waitress: “we aren’t allowed serve tap-water. It’s actually illegal in this country, coz of the chlorine or somethin’”
Me: “Tap water is illegal in Scotland?”
Waitress: “Yes”
Me (too tired to argue): “I’ll have a coke then”
Waitress returns with a coke and a glass full of ice, made from tap water.

I may have lost my boat, but if it’s a choice between life on the road or life in Stranraer then I know where I’m headed.



Colin

 

 

 

Some information:
Firstly, let me say that I do not know Norway well. This info is based on 2 weeks in 1999 and 2 weeks in 2005. Irish paddlers with extensive information on the country’s many rivers include Dave Carroll, Ali Donald, Rob Coffey and Simon Westgarth. Try dropping them a mail. You can find any Irish paddler via the message board on www.irishfreestyle.com

Time of Year:
July is the most popular. Depending on the snowpack, the season might run off a bit late or a bit early. This year was a high water season, so many things were still high into August.



How to get there:
Drive to Belfast (2 ½ hours), ferry to Stranraer (2 hours), drive to Newcastle (5 hours), ferry to Bergen (24 hours).
or
Fly to Oslo.
or
Fly to Ryanair’s version of Oslo (Torp). Bus to real Oslo takes nearly 2 hours. Trains from central station will take you to Otta or Voss.
Car rental is expensive in general, but several groups find decent value with rent-a-wreck.

How to go boating:
Check out these river notes by James Farquharson on http://www.ukriversguidebook.co.uk/
As far as I can establish, they are the only notes readily available in English. There is also a guidebook called “ElvePaddling” which is very old but gives you some idea. Local knowledge is essential to match water levels with suitable runs, so ask around raft companies and kayak shops.

How hard is the paddling?
Norway is a destination best suited to strong, tight groups of class 5 paddlers. Bear in mind that class 5 is now a wide category. If you are counting the Ubaye gorge or the Guardian Angel in France as your hardest paddling then you will need to tread very carefully. If your class 5 experience extends no further than the Dargle or Glenmacnass then you would be wise to travel somewhere else first.

What makes Norway hard?
The runs are longer, steeper, more remote. They nearly all have several mandatory portages, some requiring a class 5 must-make move just to make the eddy. A Norwegian class 5 run is just that – a whole run of class 5, not just 1 rapid. The consequences of a swim can be severe, both for yourself and your gear. Some rivers are must-runs, ie the gorge walls are too steep to climb out.

Is there any class 3?
Yes, but it’s often hard to find, includes portages and is away from the road. The best option for a group of class 3-4 boaters is to join a commercial trip. Try Gene17

Where to stay:
Camp for free wherever you can find a space – it’s perfectly legal. The skydive club in Voss is a popular spot, as is the German campsite by the river near Sjoa. Ask around.

Where to eat:
If you are absolutely loaded then you can eat out. However, with a plain cheese pizza in a fairly grotty restaurant costing about 30 euro, most will choose to self cater. Fill your car with supplies from home. Buy a Statoil mug for about 7 euro and enjoy free refills all trip.

Costs:
You can do Norway for reasonable money, but you must be prepared to live like a peasant. Just remember that this is the best whitewater in Europe, and it’s absolutely free. You just have to make some material sacrifices to get there.

Fuel is about 1.30 a litre. Normal things like cafes and restaurants are mostly out of bounds for the budget kayaker. The cinema costs at least 10 euro. A pint would be cheap at 5 euro, but often hits 10 or 12. Niteclubs are an invitation to go bankrupt. A mars bar is 2 euro. Trains and public transport are actually good value, especially if you book in advance.

So, bring as much food as you can carry, stay off the normal tourist attractions, camp wild and enjoy a very affordable trip.

Summary:

Go to Norway for advanced whitewater and stunning scenery and you won’t be disappointed. Go for an all-round holiday, similar to the experience you have in the French Alps and you might feel a little short-changed. There is a low population, the surroundings are generally quiet and rural. There is not the same cultural buzz as in the Alps and nothing like the same history. The weather is similar to Ireland in the summer. The cost means you are always counting the pennies…

As for the quantity and quality of whitewater… words can't really describe. This article certainly doesn’t do it justice. Nothing else for it - I’ll have to go back. Who knows, maybe I’ll even find my boat.

 

 

Dagger Nomad 8'5'', born June 2004. Missing in action, Raundasaelva Norway August 2005. Any information to colin@rivernomad.com.

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