Kvaløya

7 April 2026 – 12 April 2026

I have wanted to do a sunny-winter trip to the Norwegian mountains for some time now. Being winter, the normal wildcamping approach just wouldn’t do but I had found an AirBnB in a nearly perfect location: Ersfjordbotn, a town about 15km from Tromso Airport and lying at the head of a dramatic fjord with excellent hiking/skiing options on both side.

The initial idea was to aim for mid-March, offering a nice balance of daylight and ‘true’-night along with a near-certainty of snow all the way down to the sea. Unfortunately, because the key to the trip was a single high-demand AirBnB property, the trip needed to be pushed back to early-April. The change would mean pushing into warmer temperatures and less dynamic light – there would be still be plenty of snow in the hills, but the snowline had the potential to have begun its retreat.

My former housemate from Manchester started posting mountains that looked awfully familiar from my visits to Senja the week before departure. Unfortunately, we just missed eachother.

Tueday, 7 April

Things got off to a poor start when Schiphol turned a routine delay into an exercise in frustration through poor communication and needless rudeness. Fortunately, things got back on track after departure. The two flights proceeded without further issue and clear skies meant spectacular views of Senja’s snow-covered fjells on approach.

Amusingly, Tromsø Airport has installed a ‘drone jail’ at the baggage claim since I last passed through: a reminder (warning) that all of Tromsøya is within 5km of the airport and therefore operating drones anywhere in town is illegal.

Sunset in Ersfjordbotn

Wednesday, 8 April

As always, the first day was dedicated to a straightforward option to get a feel for conditions. Buren, immediately outside of town, on the north side of the fjord, fit the bill perfectly – local, an easy ascent, and views that were more than worthy. In fact, it is one of the most popular ski peaks in he area for exactly these reasons.

Not much to report – it was an easy ascent and the views from the top were exceptional. Exactly what I look for in a warm-up day.

Views from the top

Not so much snow down low

I went back out in the early-evening, up Nattmålsfjellet, the small hill immediately behind town. A nice stroll but given that the predicted high-cloud had finally settled in, the lighting was very flat. Oh well.

Thursday, 9 April

A proper spring day: overcast and extremely windy on the tops.

There are no shops in Ersfjordboten, with the nearst being close to the airport. A preliminary stop had been made immediately on arrival, but at least one more would be required during the week. Given that the day’s forecast was the least appealing, it was the logical choice. There was of time to get out for another easy objective before the logical slot in the bus schedule for groceries.

Because I was looking to keep things simple, there was a single logical option: Hatten, directly opposite the previous day’s objective. Views would be far lesser due to Hatten being considerably lower than all the surrounding tops, but it would provide the chance to scout a ridge I was interested in doing with better weather.

The climb was a bit of a slog. Views were minimal and the snow deep and wet. Nevertheless, there was a nice burst of light on the north side of the fjord and I was able to see that my route idea should be possible. Windchill was significant on the top and I absolutely froze my fingers whilst taking photos – should have brought my glove liners… Gloves were actually a significant problem, and one that would plague me for the remainder of the trip. Given how much I was having to plunge into the snow, gloves were critical, but my light waterproof gloves were uncomfortably ‘sticky’ in the warm, humid weather. Being wool, the glove liners would been of minimal help with the snow, but they would have given me an option for countering the windchill when taking photos or on smoother ground.

It was good to get out, and I accomplished my goal of getting eyes on the possible upcoming route, but it was hardly the most memorable outing.

A well-timed break in the cloud

The grocery store expedition worked out with minimal headache too. Despite the very modest distance, the journey was complicated by a frustrating bus schedule – typically two buses are required and the outbound and return times are such that a lengthy wait is typically required. In this case, if the shopping could be completed in 10minutes, there was a rare direct bus could be caught on return, saving a potentially lengthy wait (or expensive Uber).

Friday, 10 April

Despite exceptional weather, I was not enthused about getting going. But what a day it ended up being!

The goal was to complete as much of the South Ersfjord Traverse as possible. The full traverse is a stiff ridge scramble from Trehørningen to Hatten. I had no ride to Trehørningen, and the full ridge is a major undertaking in summer conditions (10hours, running) – the full traverse was out. But I hoped to complete a solid chunk of it – a realistic objective seemed Storsteinnestinden.

Of course this meant repeating the slog up Hatten before I could begin the ridge proper. I was not enthusiastic about dragging myself back up Hatten and I had no idea how far I could actually get on the ridge. I was confident in achieving the first top, 795 (Soria Moria*). After that, things were highly uncertain, particularly if the wind was as strong on the tops as it was the previous day.

The snow had retreated alarmingly from just 24 hours ago. That made the lower reaches that much more of a slog, but in a little over an hour I had reached Hatten in calm air and under clear skies. The south side of Hatten has a gentle descent onto the broad ridge connecting to 795 (Soria Moria). It had looked very straightforward the previous day, but that was from a distance and you never know what you’ll run into in practice. Fortunately it was very smooth sailing. A short steep final push to the top of 795 (Soria Moria) and I had reached the start of the ridge.

Backside of 795 (Soria Moria)

I was unsure what I would meet on the otherside – the mass of rock comprising 795 (Soria Moria) blocked most of the details from Hatten. Storsteinnestinden is a fun scramble in summer conditions. Winter (snow) has the potential to both simplify and complicate though. Fortunately, someone else must have recently completed the route as there was a single set of bootprints continuing down the backside of the pillar, providing a very handy confidence boost.

I descended the pillar and followed the ridge to the base of Leirholtinden, the next pillar on the traverse. Heading in this direction, a direct ascent of Leirholtinden looked unlikely without protection, but the heavy snow made it easy enough to traverse below and scramble the ridge from the other side.

Views from the ridge

Upon topping out Storsteinnestinden via the direct northern approach, I chatted with some skiers who were a little surprised by my lack of skies. They understood when I explained the route though. I made the traverse and steep reascent to Storsteinnestinden Vest before deciding that I had had enough and it was time to head down while my legs were still in good shape.

Back to the road, but still a long way home

I was very glad I had not pushed further on the ridge as the descent via the southern bowl had considerably more snow than I had expected. There was still plenty of daylight, but breaking trail in wet snow is very tiring – I was definitely ready to be done by the time I reached the road. Unfortunately, I still had real distance to cover to close the loop. I could take the road all the way home but that winds all the way around Nattmålsfjellet. I opted to cut over Nattmålsfjellet instead – shorter, but involved more slogging through snow.

Given the exceptional weather, I had intended to go back up Nattmålsfjellet in the evening. I was tired and apathetic though, so put it off for the next day…

*this is an unnamed top (795moh) except on Peakbook, which uses the name Soria Moria

Saturday, 11 April

The Ersfjorden Traverse is apparently Kristin Harila’s favourite route in the North. Kilian Jornet may describe it as ‘a light scramble’, but given that it involves Grade IV climbing, I was certainly not in a position to take on the full route solo, much less winter-solo. I could do a portion of it though.

I would attempt the final two tops in the traverse: the Big Blue Man and the Dutchman. Theoretically, it would be possible to make a very interesting circuit by hiking up Blåmannsvikdalen before climbing a gully to Hollenderhytta in the saddle below Zapffetoppen (Hollendaren) and taking the ridge to Store Blåmannen before descending to the road. I was not confident in this option though. I was apprehensive regarding avalanche risk on the route up to Hollenderhytta this side of the saddle, but more critically, approaching Zapffetoppen from the west would require roped climbing that I was not equipped for on this trip. Instead I would take the normal route up Store Blåmannen and do an out-and-back on the ridge, approaching Zapffetoppen from the east.

Once again, there were no bus options for me to reach the start. So I started with another 5.2km on the road. Potentially a red-flag, I was the only one on the mountain this fine Saturday morning… In stark contrast to the slopes of the previous days, there were also precious few ski tracks.

My ascent to the ridge was the route for Tromsø Skyrace Vertical Kilometer (Kilian’s contribution to the World Series, sadly the race seems to have ended in 2022) and I was about to find out why this was the route used. From the start it was a relentless climb but the final 250m took things to another level. I didn’t have my inclinometer, but it was notably steeper than the 55degree Stanley Glacier and definitely steep enough to require the use of hands. Fortunately, the soft snow meant that my frontpointing technique was not tested.

As with the previous day, I was quietly pleased to see a single set of fresh set of bootprints on the ridge – a small boost in confidence that I was not about to do something completely irresponsible… The initial stretch down from Blåmannen was narrow and there were a few dicy sections, but before long I reached the broader slope of the east face of Hollendaren.

Backtracking, I returned to Blåmannen, descended to the road, and made the hour walk back to town.

Finally attained the ridge

Views of Lyngen in the distance

Sunday, 12 April

Travel days are never fun and this was no different. Things went smoothly though. At least until the Dutch refused to honour Schengen – I would say there’s a joke in there regarding the dysfunctional Dano-Dutch relationship, but sadly Schengen has long been dead and buried.

It was a nice trip. Ever more ephemeral winter conditions have meant that I have been missing opportunities to further my winter skills on recent stays in Scotland. This trip provided routes at the perfect difficulty-level to boost solo-winter confidence. That being said, slogging through the snow was not always the most fun. I really should have been skiing, or using snowshoes – oh well.

A few assorted notes on gear:

• I did not do the best job of packing for this trip. I knew it at the time. I did not miss anything critical, but there were a handful of items that I really should have brought.
• My B2s got quite wet by the last day – an unexpected and unwelcome development. There are a number of possible causes (ground conditions were unusually wet, humid accommodation, not using external gaiters, etc). With Pisco and Yanapaccha on the immediate horizon, it may be worth investing in double boots sooner rather than later though. Wet was simply a mild discomfort in these warm conditions. In colder weather it could quickly turn into a very serious problem.