Summer-Only Ski Resort Galdhøpiggen, Norway, Reopens After Brief Summer Break

Galdhøpiggen Sommerskisenter, Norway, resumed operations on September 19, after taking a brief summer break. The summer-only ski resort, also known as “Juvass,” is located beneath Norway’s highest peak in the Jotunheimen mountains, about 5-6 hours from Norway’s capital Oslo. The glacier-ski area is among Scandinavia’s most iconic ski-training and summer skiing destinations and is only able to operate in summer when the winding access road can be cleared.

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Galdhøpiggen has been open since May 5 but was forced to suspend lift-served skiing for a few weeks at the end of August as conditions had deteriorated through late summer. Now that the snowpack and temperatures have stabilized, the resort deemed conditions safe and sustainable for reopening again. The ski area is slated to stay open until November 5.

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Situated atop Scandinavia’s highest mountain, Galdhøpiggen, offers a skiable area spanning over 3.1 miles (5 kilometers) of groomed slopes from 6,069 feet (1,850 meters) at Juvbreen to an altitude of 7,368 feet (2,246 meters), making it the highest ski area in Scandinavia. The Summer Ski Center is located on a glacier, and the T-bar ski lift is secured to the ice, which is in constant movement down towards Juvvatnet. Its main slope is roughly 1.4 km long, serviced by a single T-bar lift that moves about 1,200 people per hour. While smaller than many year-round resorts, it remains Norway’s highest lift-served ski centre and a preferred training ground for elite athletes during summer months.

With Norway’s Folgefonna Glacier ski area falling into disrepair after declaring bankruptcy at the end of last season, training opportunities in Europe during the summer months are restricted to an ever dwindling number of glacier resort. 

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