Hi,
I'm off snowkiting to haugastol and the Hardangervidda plateau in April
(yes, it may well be UWOL time ;-) and plan to do some filming while I'm there. I just wondered if any of you guys have ever shot in that area, and what I can expect, and maybe hope to shoot on the nature side too? Plus any handy tips would be good - equipment/technique wise - I have rarely shot in such cold temperatures.....

Cheers,

Rob

Wow Rob,
that's interesting, maybe we can meet! I'm not so well-known in the Hardangervidda area, but I know that Trond is, I think his family has a cabin in that area.
Do you know more specific which date you will be in the area?

Could have been nice to get a uwol-meeting there, what do you think Rob and Trond (and others who might be able to be there)?

That's only about 50km/30 miles from where my family has a cabin and where I spend much time all year. (Our cabin is on the west side of Hardangervidda, while Haugastøl is on the east side.)
Haugastøl area is really popular for snowkiting, so I believe you will have a great experience. I have seen many people doing that just a few km west of Haugastøl, but also all over the Hardangervidda.

Be prepaired for rapid changes of the weather. On the Hardangervidda, it can change from blue sky/sunshine to cloudy/even fog in a very short time.
You can expect temperatures down to around -15C, but on a good day even around +5C or more.

Maybe we could meet. That would be cool.
(Seems like Per Johan and I was writing to you at the same time)

Trond

Guys! Thanks so much for such a warm response and information.
Sure I'd be up for a meetup - I'll be there I think between the 10-18th April, but maybe I'll have more ideas closer to the time - it's a big trip, we fly to germany, then travel on road up through Denmark and then by Ferry to Norway - should be time for some excellent shoots ;-)
I did a film of a trip in 2006 - http://www.treborsnave.com/video/snowkite01.wmv that was in germany.

and there a guy who makes excellent snowkite films - http://www.snowkitefilm.no/cat.asp?id=5 - check out some of his stuff, its truly stunning!

Yeah, would be good to have a get together!

Cheers!

Rob

And I should add, if you guys fancy trying snowkiting, we'll have plenty of kites, and I'm an instructor ;-)

And I should add, if you guys fancy trying snowkiting, we'll have plenty of kites, and I'm an instructor ;-)

Rob, that would be awesome. I took a 2 day class a few years ago, but the wind was strong, around 20-25mph, so it wasn't ideal conditions for someone who had never tried it before. Once, my sister basically took off up in the air and the instructor had to grab her legs to keep her down. But it was very fun. Haven't had a chance to try snowkiting again after that.

I'll check my work schedule for April, and hopefully I will have at least some days off when you are here.
I'm definitely up for an UWOL meeting while you are in Norway.
In April the weather is mostly good enough for the road over Hardangervidda to be open most of the time.

Hi Rob

Ther is some Norwegian how kiting at Dyranut an halv hour driving west
from Haugastøl.Inn the wally Bjoreidalen below Dyranut you can!!! see
Wild-Reindeer,if the wind have been north-west some day.At this time
last year wee meet to heard reindeer 500-600 deer in eathce. But
Hardangervidda is big and reindeer rund fast,but some luck you will
see them.But ther is mointan-grouss,different falcond and eagol.
good luck Rob.

VJV


________________

And I should add, if you guys fancy trying snowkiting, we'll have plenty of kites, and I'm an instructor ;-)
Ho, ho, ho, can you imagine a 50 year old hanging, dangling from a kite through the Hardangervidda :-)
Meryem, the Theme Adventure should be reused for next round!!!

I'm in! In fact I will be in Sweden 11-14 of April, but if you stay in the mountain at Hardangervidde to 18. of april I will curtainly want to meet you Rob (and you other guys too!)

Ho, ho, ho, can you imagine a 50 year old hanging, dangling from a kite through the Hardangervidda :-)


I have kitebuggied with a 57 year old guy who has ONE ARM, so don't let that stop you - it's actually very very easy, after about 30 minutes kite instruction you can get going - and I guess most of you norweigan guys were born on skis huh? ;-)

Ther is some Norwegian how kiting at Dyranut an halv hour driving west from Haugastøl.Inn the wally Bjoreidalen below Dyranut you can!!! see
Wild-Reindeer,if the wind have been north-west some day.At this time
last year wee meet to heard reindeer 500-600 deer in eathce. But
Hardangervidda is big and reindeer rund fast,but some luck you will
see them.But ther is mointan-grouss,different falcond and eagol.
good luck Rob.

VJV


This is part of the area where I do most of my skiing and hiking.
I have seen many tracks of the rain deers, but never seen the animals myself.
But I have seen one lonely wolf 2 years ago. And in this area there is at least 2 king eagles /golden eagles. Have seen them many times, but never got any good shots of them yet. I believe Per Johan with his longer lenses would have a much better chance to film them.

Oh, and yes of course we Norwegian vikings were born with the skis on our feet. HAHA

hi Trond

If you sud meet rein, the l winterpart in Bjoreidalen to Tinnhølen is a good
place.A good binocular is a must to find them.In the end of april the
calv-season start, and you sud not come neer them.But a nice hide in
Bjoreidalen is one of the best place for birding in the whole vidda.
It`s birding reservat,so you Trond have a great wildlife-place in your
backyard.I have run in the West-vidda since I was 16 yeare,and allot to
discover.


VJV

_______________

Very true, Vidar. I often see birds up there.
And the hide would be our cabin, haha. Have had 2 golden eagles flying maybe as close as 10 meters above the cabin a few years ago.

Lots of people are hunting these birds:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagopus (Willow Grouse)
We can see big flocks of those.

... Oh, and yes of course we Norwegian vikings were born with the skis on our feet. HAHA

Well it is a little bit odd since I have used this old saying in the beginning of my uwol film :)
Geir Inge

I have used this old saying in the beginning of my uwol film :)
Geir Inge
That just proves the fact, Geir Inge! :)
And you should think about heading south in the middle of April if you get a chance. Destination: Hardangervidden.

Good afternoon,

I am not Norweigan, But I still have relatives over there.

Bring your ski stuff here, no mountains, mostly flat but we have plenty of cold and snow.

Raindeer are way north of me, but I have a herd of 200 to 400 white tailed deer near by and several smaller Herds of mule deer.

the other day I was filming a gyrfalcon in the sky, the ice crystals up there actually prevented me from getting a clear picture of any kind. Had a 360 degree sundog that Morning, pretty dramatic in itself.

the other day I was filming a gyrfalcon in the sky, the ice crystals up there actually prevented me from getting a clear picture of any kind. Had a 360 degree sundog that Morning, pretty dramatic in itself.
I bet you had a great experience, Dale.
Would be cool to see your film of the falcon.

Hey guys!

Well looks like I am all set for the Hardangervidda!!!! I'll be getting to haugastol this time next week, apparently there is 7m of snow - which is more that I have ever seen in my life ;-) I have Trond's mobile number, perhaps if you guys fancy trying snowkiting ( or filming it ;-) ) then drop me a line before tuesday.....

Cheers!

Hi Rob,

Have fun on your trip! Wish I could join you.
Unfortunately I will not be able to meet you this time.
Have 2 business trips scheduled while you are in Norway.
Hopefully we will get more chances in the future.

Weather forecast for Haugastøl next week (until Friday, April 11):
Temperatures between 0C and about -5C during the days, a bit lower at night. (It was -20C a week ago, so it can change a lot in short time)
Partly sunny Wednesday and Friday, but cloudy Thursday.
Wind: light breeze.

A great snowkiting area:
Drive a few km westbound from Haugastøl on the main road (nr 7) up a long hill until you reach the top. (not sure, but maybe around 5km) There is a big lake called "Ørteren" up there, and on the south east part of the lake and the area around it, I have seen many snowkiters many times.

Notice:
If bad weather or much wind, the road west of Haugastøl will be closed, or open for convoys.

Trond - thats great - thankyou so much ;-)

Weather update for you, Rob:

Forecasts at www.tv2.no/ver
Type in "Haugastøl" in the search field.
(Text in Norwegian only, but the graphics is of course universal)

Maybe this direct link to the Haugastøl forecasts can be used too, so you don't have to do the search:
http://full.storm.no/tv2ver/vaer.aspx?lat=60.51&lon=7.87&meter=990&sted=Haugast%f8l&zoomlevel=10&maptype=1
(Not sure how long that link will be valid, if it works, please refresh the page after it has opened)

It is forecasted between -5 and -10C until Wednesday next week. Sunshine the first days you are there at Haugastøl, and then mostly cloudy.
Winds forecasted around 3-5 m/s, but that's usually less than the real wind.

Have a great trip!!
Too bad I couldn't join you this time.

Trond - thanks thats great!

There is a webcam on the haugastol.no website, I can see it is quite cloudy but lots of snow ;-) I'll see if I can post an update when I am there ;-)

oh and no surprise, it's where i'll be shooting my UWOL entry!!!!