A wonderful stay at Skei
Index
| Date | Peak | Height | PF | Location | WCP/FP | MAP |
| 31.03.23 | To Skei fjellandsby | – | – | Gausdal, Norway | – | MAP |
| 01.04.23 | Prestkampen | 1244m | 380m | Gausdal, Norway | – | MAP |
| 01.04.23 | Skeikampen | 1124m | 76m | Gausdal, Norway | – | MAP |
| 02.04.23 | Gråkampen | 1212m | 143m | Ringebu, Norway | – | MAP |
| 03.04.23 | Bjørga | 956m | 123m | Gausdal, Norway | – | MAP |
| 03.04.23 | Ski-skating, Skei | 818m | – | Gausdal, Norway | – | MAP |
| 04.04.23 | Killiknappen | 1055m | 170m | Gausdal/Øyer, Norway | – | MAP |
To Skei fjellandsby, Mar 31 2023
Friday: Easter holiday, and we had – late as always – booked a cabin in Eastern Norway, in an area that we had not been to before.
Skei – or Skeikampen – whatever you want to call it – was new territory for us and we really looked forward to it!
I had noticed that there were 4 pf100 tops surrounding Skei – Prestkampen, Gråkampen, Bjørga and Killiknappen. How great wouldn’t it be if we could do all of them?
The weather was just superb this Friday, and driving across the Filefjell mountain pass was just enjoyable.
Eventually, we arrived at Skei and could focus on locating the cabin.
We found the cabin, after a little confusion about which cabin we actually had rented, and checked in.
The cabin was really nice. Not big, but we don’t need a lot of space. Once Anne got the fireplace going, she was happy.
And when Anne served sour crème porridge, *I* was happy!
Prestkampen (1244m), Apr 1 2023
Saturday: It was time to visit the first of the 4 pf100 tops up here – Prestkampen. It didn’t take us long to become familiar with the cross-country tracks – which would take us – almost – up to the top.
We would still have to do a bit of skiing. We both chose mountain skis. Although the tracks were perfect for ski-skating, we would still have some off-trail ahead of us…
After a while, Prestkampen – the highest mountain in these parts – came into view.
There was a track that passed below the top, leaving us with very little off-trail skiing.
It was really nice to get off the tracks…
And soon after, we were on top of our first top!
The views were quite alright – especially towards Rondane!
We descended back to the cabin in a different valley. Back at the cabin, Anne found (more) happiness in the sunshine, looking like a typical Norwegian person on Easter vacation…
Trip statistics: 19,5km, 575 vertical meters, 3h:38m
Pictures (Canon EOS RP/Iphone 13 Pro Max) from the trip:
Skeikampen (1124m), Apr 1 2023
Saturday: I am not the type of person who can sit in a chair, licking sunshine. As such, I chose to go on another ski-trip – this time to Skeikampen.
I went alone and followed the route where we came down after the Prestkampen trip.
After a while, I got impatient and decided to head up along one of the downhill skiing routes (the ski-lifts had closed). And maybe I would come down the same way.
In-between the trip to Prestkampen and Skeikampen, I had bought a pair of new skis (Åsnes – Børge Ousland) that best could be categorized as “terrible in all terrain, but with all terrain combined – perfect“. Said differently, they have steel edges, would fit in CC tracks, but offer very little skiing pleasure downhill. As such, this would be a good opportunity to test them.
Eventually, I reached the mountain plateau and sat course for the top of Skeikampen.
It was nice to be up here. It was also nice to feel the body working again, although I was a long way from my regular shape.
I decided to try the skis in the same downhill slope I came up. What can I say… I survived.
Whenever we go on these Christmas- and Easter holidays, I try to get 100km on skis during our 4 day stays. Which is not a lot compared to those who spend the entire day in the tracks. But we normally ski on mountain skis, carrying a heavy backpack and I have a dog that has its limits. As such, I’m super-happy with 20km/day. And with 30,8km today, I was definitely ahead of plan…
Trip statistics: 11,3km, 500 vertical meters, 1h:46m
Pictures (Canon EOS RP) from the trip:
Gråkampen (1212m), Apr 2 2023
Sunday: Of the 4 pf100 tops I had on my radar, the highest (Prestkampen) was already “in the bag” and today we would be aiming for Gråkampen – the 2nd highest top in the Skeikampen area.
We started out by following the Peer Gyntvegen road towards the northwest.
It was another beautiful day for skiing!
Karma was busy getting off the tracks, then catching up with us before she could get off the track again. I can only imagine the actual distance she covered…
Shortly after Nedre Massingtjønnet, we got on the track towards Slagsfjella. We were now skiing towards the northeast.
We were definitely not alone up here…
We stopped by a viewpoint 300m SW of point 1190m (Ulene). There was a circular viewfinder here and it annoyed me that the route didn’t pass the high point. Ulene had a primary factor of 50m+ and as such – I was interested. But we were aiming for a pf100m top, and I decided to let this one go…
It was a nice viewpoint though…
By now, we could see our main goal for the day – Gråkampen.
In order to reach the top, we had to leave the tracks. Fortunately, the snow wasn’t too soft and Karma was doing just fine.
Man, it was nice to be off the tracks!
And shortly after, we could celebrate our 2nd pf100 top up here!
Afterwards, we followed the tracks to Skardbua – a main junction. It was crowded up here. Now, we only had 9,2km back to the cabin – along flats and downhills.
Karma was not on leash. She always runs very disciplined after me, not stopping for anything except for sudden peeing. As that can happen in the blink of an eye, she’s safer not being on a leash. I’m talking from experience. It was all going well until in one downhill – where I noticed a skier coming downhill from behind, very fast.
Karma doesn’t run in the track so if I hadn’t done anything, nothing would have happened. But I made a wrong decision and stopped to control the situation by making Karma stop too. But then Karma drifted over to the track and the skier rain straight into her.
The woman who crashed into Karma was really pissed and had a lot to say to me. I took the blame and apologized. As we continued, I was thinking about the situation. If I had kept the dog on a leash, then the distance to the dog would have been longer and I would still not be able to control her with the precision needed. Then I asked myself if the person coming up from behind has any responsibility at all? If I were that person, I would have been very aware of situations that could arise and prepare accordingly. But it seems that MANY skiers feel that when they’re IN the track, everyone else is supposed to get out of the way immediately. I don’t like this attitude and that’s one of the reasons I don’t like to be in crowded tracks. But today, the tracks were the means to an end.
I didn’t let it ruin my day. And now my skiing tally was 57,6km in 2 days. Definitely worth a beer or two in the evening…
Trip statistics: 26,8km, 660 vertical meters, 5h:12m
Pictures (Canon EOS RP/Iphone 13 Pro Max) from the trip:
Bjørga (956m), Apr 3 2023
Monday: It was time to bag pf100 top #3 of 4 in the Skei area – Bjørga. We had “saved” this trip for today, as the weather forecast mentioned some clouds. The higher tops would of course have priority in sunny weather.
So far, we had been skiing on the north side of Skei, but today – we headed south. The tracks were still perfect…
After a while, Bjørga came into view.
This Easter vacation was just unbelievable…
On Bjørga, the tracks went in a loop on the mountain plateau. So, we just followed the tracks.
And then another pf100 top was in the bag!
We had a good view northbound from here. We were now looking towards familiar territory!
To the southwest is Synnfjell and Spåtind. Good memories from another Easter vacation came back to life…
The view towards Skei and Skeikampen is also quite good.
The track encircled the mountain, and we followed the tracks to the south side of Bjørga, and then up north – back to Skei.
A very fun ski-trip, it was! And my skiing tally was now 75,4km in 3 days. I would surely reach my goal of 100km before leaving Skei – with 1 day left.
Trip statistics: 17,8km, 430 vertical meters, 3h:30m
Pictures (Canon EOS RP/Iphone 13 Pro Max) from the trip:
Ski-skating at Skei, Mar 3 2023
Monday: After the Bjørga trip, I went on a solo ski-skating trip. At first, I was skiing near the Skei skiing stadium (yellow track on the Bjørga Google Earth map)
Then the tracks guided me back to the cabin, but the first loop was way too short.
So, I went on another round – this time up to the powerlines that we had descended along, earlier in the day.
With skis not prepared for skiing, I managed to reach 43km/h down the hill along the powerlines. In a car, this feels like standing still, but on narrow skis, it felt like being on the roof of a speed train. Big fun! Now I am just wondering how fast I could have gone if I had base prepped the skis…
Trip statistics: 10,5km, 230 vertical meters, 3h:02m
Killiknappen (1055m), Apr 4 2023
Tuesday: This was our last day at Skeikampen, and the plan was 100% clear: ski to Killiknappen – the 4th and last pf100 top up here.
The weather was back to perfect and today, we skied to the northeast – towards lake Sjøsætervatnet – with Killiknappen to our right.
After 3 days of skiing, I was curious how Karma would be like today. Normally, she would show signs of lack of energy on day 3 or 4. But no signs could be seen. The monthly Librela injection may have proven to be worth the price (NOK 1000, – per month)
After 7,2km, we left the tracks and got onto a summer trail where no one had skied.
Crossing through the forest was hard work for Karma…
But eventually, the mountain came into view.
Unfortunately, there were snow scooter tracks all over the mountain.
Some people just seem to give priority to themselves and give a f… about others, the effects on wildlife, and regulations in general. It’s sad. These people get 0 points from me…
I was able to put this aggravation aside and keep on enjoying the trip. And soon after, we reached the top.
By now, it was familiar views all around…
We decided to descend southbound for a while, before picking up a trail back to Skeikampen.
Descending the mountain wasn’t all that easy with narrow cross-country skis…
We wasted some time by taking on a cliff that defeated us…
But eventually, we were on the track taking us back to Skeikampen.
We were all a bit tired by the time we returned to Skeikampen. Even Karma was no longer “on fire”.
My skiing “tally” was now 109,5km after 4 days and I had reached my 100km goal once again. If I had just stayed in the tracks with skating skis, I could have doubled this, but that’s not my goal. Reaching mountain tops by using the tracks as transport legs is the perfect combination for us.
Trip statistics: 23,6km, 850 vertical meters, 5h:20m
Pictures (Canon EOS RP/Iphone 13 Pro Max) from the trip:
