Skiing Powder North of the Arctic Circle | Riksgränsen, Sweden Trip Report & Photos

(editors note: Our buddy Zach Paley is working on a boat in Norway.  He heads to shore, climbs, & skis everyday.  He’s been writing about his experience skiing north of the Arctic Circle) 

After a brief introduction to Norway, I’ve neglected my writing. Life in and out of a tent, bouncing from couch to couch, in and out of a boat, it’s not conducive to keeping a computer handy for writing purposes.

I’ll pick up where I left off, just before a short weekend trip to Riksgransen.

Just crossing the border, Sweden had a different feel to it. Snowmobiling being legal, all the skiing being above tree line, plus high pressure and a more stable snowpack, it was a little weird to be out of cloudy Norway. We took advantage of 20cm overnight and bought lift tickets the first day. These would be some of the only turns I made using mechanized uphill transportation in Scandinavia, and they were good.

This was the first time I’d gotten to ski with Jan, whom I’d originally met in Jackson, since 2010. It was great to catch up on the chairlift, and the next few days hiking. Conversation about what was new in our lives and what we had been up to, while good turns with an old friend, made it a really pleasant trip.

We returned to Norway to find more clouds and scattered snow. Sick of car camping, and in the mood to reward ourselves for a few solid days of skiing, we helped ourselves to the sweet nectar of some duty free Jagermeister. Motivation the next morning was about as high as one could expect after a late night drinking the deer’s blood. I said farewell to Jan and agreed to meet up in Oslo in May. Fueled by Daim and Jager, Johannes and I went for a short tour outside Tromso, glad to once again have the ocean as a backdrop to our turns.