25th Anniversary Appeal Expedition: Day 78

25-anniversary-expedition-day078Joatkajarvi to Snowhole above Stabbursdalen. 35km 6 1/2hrs.

Tania says: Last night I got lots of information from Steiner at Joatka about potential snow conditions in Stabbursdalen National Park in the northern part of the Finmarksvidda. People are being advised not to go there due to deep and unstable snow. Fortunately I aimed to keep on the high ground to the west. The three possible night stops were, however, all basic earth huts close to the Stabbars river, difficult to locate in all the snow and highly likely requiring digging out. I picked one 35km from Joatka, giving me time to “settle in” before sunset. As I skied, first on scooter tracks and then leaving them north into National park land, forbidden to scooter traffic, I was mulling over what to do. Descending to the river had the potential for another deep sugar-snow encounter… and I didn’t fancy spending hours digging out a hut out only to find I’d dug out the end without the door!! 🙈 By the time I was in position to drop down to the hut I’d already made up my mind… to make a snowhole if I could and stay in that. It turned out to be just the thing to turn a wonderful few days into a completely magical experience. In the right conditions snow holing can definitely be the better option.


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