Lifjell

20 – 23 September 2021

Autumn 2021, I had the opportunity to move to my ancestral hometown in Norway to further my outdoor leadership skills through a programme with the University of South Eastern Norway. I was approaching from a very different angle to most, particularly in the international camp. Most of my peers were from a youth education background and this was clearly the direction the programme was taking. In contrast, I was approaching from a leader-amongst-peers direction (The Mountaineers). This clash occasionally created friction, but I think almost everyone had some excellent take-aways from it.

The autumnal programme was split into four trips: canoing, hiking, sailing, and a mixed trip.

For the mountain [hiking] trip, Nordic and internationals were separated, with the Nordic students participating the week after. Us internationals were divided into two large groups and tasked with making our own tripplan. We had four days to cross the Lifjell plateau, situatated just outside Bø, using as few trails as possible. This task actually proved mildly challenging as there is quite a high density of trails in Lifjell, avoiding them took some serious work and often led us to less than desireable terrain.

The week prior was a ‘rest’ week with no activities planned. I therefore used the opportunity to get a quick trip in to see my mum, which had not been possible in over a year due to Covid restrictions. Because Norway was still closed to British residents at the time of booking, we went to Iceland. I arrived home late on Sunday evening, with the Lifjell departure early the next morning…

Fjell Trip

A short morning car ride to Grimas Hyttefelt on the westen side of Lifjell and we were off. It was not my day to lead, but I was volunteered to lead the group up a top along the way. In the evening we made camp on a flattish area between two small lakes. Unfortunately, we were forced into obligatory group activities after dinner, crammed into one of the tents.

The next morning we were completely fogged in. I was pretty disheartened – the weather forecast had been mixed, but largely favourable and I wasn’t mentally prepared to be cold and wet so early in the trip. Fortunately, it lifted as the morning progressed. By this point I had gained a nickname from the Germans due to always having up to date weather information. Much of the second day involved treading boggy ground. I had warned about this during planning, but wasn’t able to force a change.

The third day was my arranged leadership day. Reviews of my leadership were very positive, but it was extremely draining. It was definitely noted by the group that I had a distinct attitude change afterwards, a change that I wouldn’t fully recover from until I was home and alone. I expected to find the ‘babysitting’ part of leading draining. I wasn’t prepared for the change in [self-imposed] navigation standards. When alone, I’m generally content to know my approximate location. When leading, I was watching the paper map like it was a GPS. I wanted to know my location as exactly as possible.

In the afternoon, the terrain changed to be considerably more scrubby. We were hiking parallel to a nice singletrack, but due to the programme, were forced to fight through the bush. The autumnal views made it worth the effort though.

Our final day was a short one. We were to be picked up in the midafternoon and did not have much distance to cover to reach the car park. A lazy start was therefore in order.

Immediately after lunch, the weather finally turned and the rain rolled in. I was finally given license to open up and proceed at the pace I wanted. The freedom was greatly appreciated (particularly by me, but several others too). Upon reaching the car park, we had a bit of a wait for the minibus and the short drive back to town. We weren’t released just yet though – we were roped into one last debrief. My impatience was definitely noted…

A mountain hiking trip in the fjells was nothing new for me. This was my first time hiking in a group of any size though. My overall thoghts:

• Going immediately from the Iceland trip to this trip may have been a bit too much. Being stuck in such close proximity in the tents, I had not had any alone time for far too long.
• My last minute softshell swap to the lighter option was absolutely a mistake that I regretted for the entirty of the trip. Henceforth, I’ve always taken the heavier option.
• Hiking with a large group is very different from hiking solo. Everyone has different speeds, interests, etc. It just isn’t for me.
• I chaffed against the way a lot of people handled leading. As an example: ‘quizzing’ everyone on our location constantly. I understand where they were coming from, with a youth education focus. It is the antithesis of what I would do though. In contrast, I think others may have thought I wasn’t ‘playing my role’ enough when I was leading. I would simply ask if ‘everyone is happy with our location’ – providing the navigation activity whilst opening the floor if someone needs help, but simultaneously treating everyone like an adult and keeping things moving along.

The Nordic students were out for the same trip the following week. That week had the most rain of the entire year… They did not have a fun time. I was glad to be inside and dry.