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| Stian Benjaminson |
(editor’s note:  Our good friend, Zach Paley, has been living in the Arctic Circle of Norway for the past month.  He works on a boat, camps, skis, writes, and takes stunning photographs.  In this entry, Zach finds himself surfing arctic waters on his way back to the USA)
Because even bad heroin is still heroin…
Surfing in Hoddevik was wearing down on our shoulders and arms. Our stomachs hurt from swallowing salt water. We were ready for a sport we didn’t suck at (almost).
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| Time to send it |
The weekend after May 17 is a big kickoff for summer skiing at Stryn. Norway continued to treat us to amazing weather, making Jimmy and I think it’s always sunny in the west. As if it couldn’t have been better, we found great corn skiing all over rather than deep slush that comes with weather this warm.
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| Honcho crushing the slush |
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| Rowdy apres scene |
This was only my third day of mechanized uphill in Scandinavia, and it was a beauty! Beers in the backpack, flask in the pocket, no helmet, lots of sunscreen, skiing fast with the old crew, and finding places we could “point ’em” was the name of the game.
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| Jan Henrik D |
Combined with solid shenanigans sessions at camp, this was quite the way to end the season and the trip. A day to pack back in Oslo, and I found myself writing this post in the Berlin airport on my way home.
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| Polish horseshoes |
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| “Sacar la Branca!” Honcho and I celebrate skiing together on three continents in one winter. |
It’s time for a change of seasons. I’ll trade ski boots for sandals, warm clothes for cold beer, skintracks for footprints in the sand, and long days in the snow for long days on the ocean. There’s a chance an Argentina trip will happen, there’s a chance the temptation of a New England summer will be too strong. Time will tell.
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You’ve got to check Zach’s other reports from Norway this May:
This is the best one:  Solo… 8 Lonely Days Under Norway’s Midnight Sun
These are great as well:
Dream Trip:  Skiing from a Boat in Norway’s Arctic Circle
High Pressure, Stable Snow, & Sweet Terrain | Lyngen, Norway Trip Report
Skiing Powder North of the Arctic Circle | Riksgränsen, Sweden Trip Report & Photos
First Impressions of Skiing the Arctic Circle | Lyngen, Norway Photo Tour
Yeah Zach!
Trip of a lifetime Z. Stoked you got so much in.