Twenty-five years ago I was camped high on the side of Utladalen in the south-west corner of the Jotunheimen National Park looking across at the alpine peaks of the Hurrungane. It was the twenty-third day of my walk the length of the Norwegian and Swedish mountains and I had completed 555 kilometres. The final total would be 2200.
To reach this point I had traversed the Setesdaleheiane and
Hardangervidda mountain plateaux in mixed weather and crossded many
snowmelt-filled streams and remnant snowfields. I’d enjoyed much wild and beautiful
scenery but nothing to compare to the grandeur of the Hurrungane. In my journal
I wrote ‘Hurrangane spikes and towers by far the finest peaks I have seen’. The
weather cleared as well for the first time in over a week and I also noted that
I had ‘almost dry boots’!
My camp site I described as ‘magnificent’ and for once I was
able to sit outside to cook and eat and relish the view. This fine weather
would hold for the next few days as I made my way through the Jotunheimen.
Note: the pictures are
scans from Fuji Velvia slides.
Great. I'm really looking forward to reading your Scandanavia trip account in the ebook due to be published. My own long distance walks have tended to be on the continent eg. Pyrenees GR10, Swiss Alpine Pass Route, hopefully next year the Italian GTA from the Mediterranean to Switzerland. Or UK coast to coast trips. Your Scandinavia journey encourages me to 'look north' for a future adventure.
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