Recently, we went on a ski trip with a group of dancers. I would say we went out of town but we were actually in Oslo the whole time. It seemed like we were out of town though because we had to cross country ski to the event.
We left Friday at 1:30 pm. Our travel group had 7 people in it including a toddler in a ski pulk.
I had only been skiing about 9 times before and was really bad at stopping. Sooo… things didn’t start out so well for me.
Yes, that is exactly how I fell and exactly how they told me to stay so they could get a picture. That was the first hill.
We skied to Tryvannstua for lunch, baked goods, and tea. Tryvannstua is located on a cross country trail as well as at the bottom of the downhill slopes. In the summer, you can walk the lakes and forest. There is also a geocach hidden nearby. This is the American/Scottish/Norwegian duo ready for the next leg of the trip. Yes, he skied in a kilt!
We arrived around 4 or 4:30 pm. The hytta (cabin) had two private rooms, two four person dorms, and two 6 person dorms. I think. HB and I were in the 6 person dorm. A sauna and showers were also available to us. Yay! Passing skiers are free to stop in the hytta during the day for a meal, baked goods, their famous hot chocolate, and warmth by the fire. We decided to take the moment and danced a flash mob Gay Gordons through the dining hall in kilts and ski clothes. The people seemed to enjoy it and clapped along!
Saturday was full of skiing, playing games, taking care of your body hour, and dancing in the evening. I had 6 people in my body work “class”. I took what I’ve learned in yoga, dance, and massage and combined it for an hour. Their enjoyment made me wonder if I should do this more. (… what would the class be called? Who would go? I guess it’s mostly for dancers. Specifically Scottish dancers. Could THAT be the thing that would make me stand out? Maybe I should develop it more? But who would want an hour if they only have a 2 hour class? Maybe I could cut it down to 30 minutes? Should I do it? I should! OK! Now if only I had a gig…)
The cabin was cozy as we danced and listened to our musicians.
When we left Sunday, a few of our dancers made a very necessary Nessie in the snow. Yes that is a big storage cabin in the back.
We walked the non skiers down another path. It took about an hour. Then HB and I skied back up. Except we didn’t. We had to herringbone 90% of the way. That link wasn’t us by the way. Once we made it almost up, we stopped in a hytta cafe and met up with 6 other dancers! So we had a bite, drink, and headed back to our hytta in the fog. It was very thick fog. So thick you couldn’t see the bottom of the hill you were about to ski down! For a beginner, gotta say that is a little scary. Once at our hytta, Kobberhauhytta, we had lunch, put our packs back on, and skied to our car. I think it took over two hours maybe three. I can’t remember. All I was thinking about was a hot bath and tea. I was sooo exhausted and frustrated my skis didn’t work. Ok fine! My technique didn’t work.
There are no photos of the oasis I will call the car, but boy was I happy to see it. We arrived just as another dancer arrived and told us everyone had gone to Frognerseteren, the big cafe. (Themes of the trip are hyttas and cafes.) We drove (about 4 minutes) to the cafe and enjoyed a hot meal and dessert. Sigh… great end to the weekend. Home was a 5 minute drive and Bananagrams by the fire wrapped up our weekend.
Hopefully this will be an annual event! Skiing practice, to be continued…
Elves Are Never Bored 