Cross Country Skiing in Norway
We finally got enough snow and had enough time to get out and try Norway’s national sport
The phrase <<Alle nordmenn er født med ski på beina>> or, “All Norwegians are born with skis on their feet,” is a common saying here in Norway, so it makes sense their national sport is skiing. Prior to moving to Norway I had gone cross country skiing twice and really enjoyed it. So when I learned skiing was just part of winter life here, I was excited at the prospect of being able to cross country ski often throughout the winter. If the days are going to be short, at least I’d have a fun outdoor activity to do.
Unfortunately, the particular area of Norway where we live does not get the same amount of snow as the rest of the country. On top of that, when we do get snow, it doesn’t stick around too long, or the wind is so strong that the snow falls sideways. These are obviously less than desirable ski conditions.
But this past week the stars aligned. Around a foot of snow fell over the course of several days, and the wind speeds were tolerable. One of my friends texted and said, “go to the culture center to rent some ski equipment, we’re going cross country skiing!” She didn’t have to ask me twice, I was ready to join in the fun.
I don’t know if it is common throughout the country or unique to our kommune, but the local community center has all kinds of outdoor equipment available to rent for free for up to one week at a time. We were able to get cross country skis, boots, and poles for free and keep them throughout the week while the weather was nice. We didn’t have to worry about renting on the day with the best weather because we could keep them for an extended period of time. This is a wonderful program provided by our community.
Lucky for us, my friend’s daughter went skiing on a school trip the week before, so she was able to share a trail with us. Of course there are trails everywhere, but we wanted one that was good for beginners. The ski trail was about a twenty-five minutes drive from our house with beautiful scenery along the Trondheimfjord. Surrounded by snowy mountains, icy fjord water, and skis in the back of my car, all I could think throughout the drive was, “This is the Norway I was expecting.” Needless to say, I was excited to get on some skis.
It was my friend’s first time trying cross country skiing, so we set our expectations low and took it slow. The trails were not groomed which surprised me. Luckily other skiers had been there before us, so we used their tracks as guides. It didn’t take long for us to find our groove. We were able to enjoy the views and peacefulness of gliding along a snowy trail through the forest. We made it two laps around the short course, then headed to the shelter to enjoy a fire. We closed out the early afternoon roasting pølse and marshmallows for s’mores over the fire. It was a lovely Friday outing.
In fact, I enjoyed myself so much that I planned a second ski day that weekend on Sunday, which also just so happened to be our son’s 3rd birthday. Not only did the area have cross country ski trails, the shelter and the fire pit, but it also had two really great sledding hills. I thought it would be the perfect place for celebrating our three-year-old, and I wasn’t wrong.
Two other families joined us on Sunday. We spent the day skiing around the trail, getting better with each lap; taking turns sledding down the hills; and building a fire in the snow for roasting more pølse and marshmallows. This was the first time I had gone sledding in years, and I highly recommend getting out there and launching yourself down a hill if you have the chance. All the adults laughed like little kids, and all of the kids thoroughly enjoyed themselves. I think it turned out to be a fun birthday for our son.
Sadly the weather has warmed up just enough for the snow to begin melting again. We likely won’t get another chance to cross country ski this season, but I’m so happy we at least got one weekend to give it a try. Slowly but surely I’ll continue to check off the experiences on my Norwegian bucket list.
