After it was recommended by a friend, climbing Mt. Skala was high on my to-do list. I watched a video of the Skala Opp (race) and I found out that the original summit hut was created by a physician Hans Henrik Gerhard Klouman in late 1800’s for unclear reasons. I read that it was built to treat tuberculosis but there are no reports of TB in this area until the 1990's and it would be have been very difficult to access if you were sick.
Regardless of the age of the hut, its history and the fact it is the longest uphill stretch of climbing Norway was enough to make me want to come to this area and explore. We hiked the first day after we arrived; at first the weather looked promising but then it got windy as a storm moved in. The way up was filled with blueberries and raspberries and we gradually climbed above tree line. Just above the lake, we started to feel the wind and by the time we reached the pass, I thought we might be turning around as it was becoming hard to stand. However both the kids seem to get more determined as the conditions got worse and they continued to scramble upward. Isabelle talked about how well "Alaska" had prepared them for bad weather adventures and she proceeded to recite a long list of times when we had run out food, water, clothing or other essentials. She also talked about the many times one of her "other moms" (i.e my amazing friend group) had to step in and help her as her "temporary mom." It made me smile to think that she looked back at these obstacles as positives; I hoped this wind would be one more such story.
The last stretch to the top of any mountain in Alaska would have been an endless boulder field, but in Norway, it was a beautifully terraced pathway of flat stones-even the trails are engineered to perfection! We went into the beautiful old two-story shelter for awhile before making our way down as the crowds picked up. On the way down, there was a beautiful lake where we had filled up with water on the way up. This time we stopped and had lunch, a nap and a swim in the glacial water. Eating berries, telling stories and feeding cows filled the rest of the way down. We all agreed that Mt. Skala was not as hard as we had feared and it was a wonderful hike all around.
Lily climbing to the top.
The top, just above a glacier. The summit hut was built over a 120 years ago - a welcome shelter to many-especially this day.
Inside the shelter there was a wood stove, supplies and beds (if you chose to stay the night).
Time to brave to cold and get ready to head back down.
The sense it was cold didn't last for long; after a warm lunch the girls went swimming in a very cold lake!
Isabelle telling me how awesome these stairs are as we approached the summit.
The cows were a hit, and very friendly. This one gave Lily’s arm a full bath when she reached out.
One more waterfall on the way down
Lily missed all of dinner and was out cold; you wouldn’t have known she was that tired!