Info About Veidalsfjellet
Veidalsfjellet is a smaller peak within the Northwest section of the Lyngen Alps with a summit elevation of 946 meters. Located just above the town of Lenangen the area boosts easy access as well as safe travel if avalanche conditions are questionable. On the South side is a striking gully that holds snow late into the season offering great conditions in both powder conditions or corn.
By late May the weather conditions seemed to improve with the occasional clear sky days here and there. By now Ben and I had spent some time of the Northest side of the Lyngen Alps and decided to check out another area. My good friend David mentioned a line that he had drove by many times off of Veidalsfjellet and had always wanted to ski it. The plan was to hike up to the main ridge, set up camp and ski a few lines over the next 24 hours.
Leaving Lenangen for the Alpine
We parked our rental car in the middle of town and quickly threw our gear together. Putting our tent and sleeping bags in our packs we attempted to keep the balance between not enough gear and too much. Setting off into the mountains we battled our way through thick trees before reaching open terrain and traversing towards the ridge of Veidalsfjellet.
Once we arrived onto the ridge we set up camp and started hiking along the scenic ridge towards the summit of Veidalsfjellet. After a few minutes of hiking on dry ground we were able to switch to skinning for the rest of the route.
Snowboarding the South Face of Veidalsfjellet
Standing on top of Veidalsfjellet we had a beautiful view of the Lyngen Alps to the south. The day was perfect with no winds causing a perfect reflection of the mountains on the still water. Taking a few turns on the ridge we made our way over to the South gully. From the first moment we made turns in the line we were happy to find soft slushy turns.
Once in the valley it was time to head back to camp via a low angle traverse back onto the nose of the ridge. Throwing our ski gear onto our backpacks we navigated through the lower forest as the sun started to set in front of us.
Round 2 of Veidalsfjellet
Arriving back at camp we sat around for a hour watching the sun lower and eating some food. Wanting to make the most out of our limited time in the area Ben and I decided to go for a sunset run off Veidalsfjellet where we would be able to ride the ridge all the way back to camps.
Once on the summit we made turns off the north face just after the sun dropped behind the mountains to the north. After a quick traverse back over to the ridge we connected the snow patches as far as we could arriving within 100 meters of the tent.
Heading Back to Lenangen
Waking up we opened the tent door to see that clouds had moved in overnight. We had already planned for this as it was time to head back to town. The forecast had only called for clear skies the day before and we were hours away from rain falling.
Following our original route down the ridge David joked about it being the end of his ski season as most lines had melted out. With Ben still having a few more days in the Lyngen Alps we would have another ski tour or two but would have to be creative.
This was a great tour for late season spring skiing. As for Midwinter there are a lot of surrounding peaks that would probably grab my attention first. That being said it was a great camp sight and I think this would be an awesome summer hike.
Thanks For Reading this and if you want to check out more ski tours in Northern Norway check out this link