You must be an ONC member to go on this trip; membership is only $27!

This is an opportunity of a lifetime! Let’s go to where cross-country skiing began! You have always wanted to do this trip and here is your opportunity.

This year, we will ski in the Jotenheimen National Park – the name is translated as the “Home of the Giants”! This popular area contains the highest mountains in Norway and is the perfect destination for a rigorous hut-to-hut ski trip.

We will fly from Portland in the afternoon of Thursday, March 21nd, and arrive in Oslo at about noon on Friday. We will take the train and bus to Gjendesheim, the beginning of our ski tour from mountain lodge to mountain lodge. These staffed mountain lodges have electricity (for a portion of the day), dining facilities with huge meals, rooms with beds and blankets (often with only 2 per room), saunas, and sometimes hot showers. You only need to carry your clothes and personal gear in your pack, weighing from 15 to 25 pounds.

At Jotenheimen, we will stay overnight and take a day to recuperate from our long flight, train, and bus and prepare for the long ski trip. We can ski in the area around Gjendesheim to warm up. Early the next morning (Sunday), we will start the ski tour. We will ski from Gjendesheim, to Glitterheim, to Spiterstulen, to Leirvassbu, to Gjendebu (self-service hut), ending at Fondsbu – the best ski tour in Norway! We will take a snow vehicle and busses back to Oslo, where we will stay at Anker Hotel. We will enjoy Oslo on Saturday afternoon and fly back to Portland on Sunday morning, March 31.

It is not necessary to be expert skiers to come on this trip; this is not a technically difficult trip. You should have intermediate-level cross-country skills and ability to ski up to 20 miles per day (although most days are much shorter); you will also have the opportunity of relaxing in and around the mountain lodges. Some parts of the route are hilly, but most of the trails are fairly gentle through valleys with mountains on either side. The trails are well marked with flags.

This trip is limited to 15 persons, including the leader. The cost of this ski trip is estimated at only $2,495 for members of the Oregon Nordic Club (membership required), including round-trip airfare from Portland to Oslo, nine nights of lodging, all meals except during travel and the last dinner in Oslo. Sign up and make a $1,000 deposit online (ONC-PDX.org) for this trip in October or mail the Overnight Trip Application with a check payable to ONC-PDX to the leader, Ted Scheinman, 36 SW Brugger St., Portland, OR 97219.

The final payment of $1,495 is due on December 15th, 2018, to secure the special group airfare. Costs are estimated and may be revised based on airfare and exchange rates.

For more information, contact Ted at 503-452-7432 or tedskier@gmail.com.