Rondane September 2008

Here are a few pictures of our recent trip to Norway's oldest National park.There are ten two thousand meter peaks in Rondane of which we did four during our two weeks holiday and we hiked about three hundred kilometers during this period with a 15kg and 25kg backpack respectively.
Shasa has not yet been trained to carry his own pack, and after carrying his food and snacks around for the whole trip, I have decided to get cracking on that issue as soon as possible :)
Our next trip will invole us being lighter on our feet and him being laden like a mule.






Reading a celebrity gossip magazine... This picture is one of a kind.

Back to Rondvassbu... the last stretch.

On the road agin...

Bugs Bunny and Crocodile Joe

There is no nothing on earth more invigorating and refreshing than mountain water.

This was one long and deceptively slippery rocky valley

The other side of Høgronden greeted us with a spectacular view.

Anja conquering Høgronden while Shasa is longingly staring back towards the warmth and safety of the cabin we just came from.
A little snack and some hot rooibos tea once we came down from Høgronden. And yes, Shasa was hungry too.
Mountain model :)

The water in this gorge is sweet and crystal clear.

Slowly hiking through the layers of cloud.

A beautiful little stone cabin which was built in 1890 can be used as shelter, if necessary, before hiking the final stretch to Høgronden.

The going gets alot tougher with that layer of snow covering the smooth, treacherous rocks and boulders.

My cutie pie...

Leaving Bjørnhollia with a tear in my eye. The cabin was beautiful, rustic and the food was outstanding. Off on a tough hike to Dørålster over Høgronden(2118) next.

Bjørnhollia is nestled in a lush, green valley with beautiful lakes and rivers everywhere

The last we saw of Shasa's goodie bag...

The champion dog... If only he could pose like this in the ring perhaps he may someday actually be a champion.

If there ever was a "Playgirl" magazine for dogs which bitches could buy and check out, Shasa would be one of the centre-fold hunks :)

Shasa cooling off

The view from Rondeslottet on the old glacial valleys below.



The Rondeslottet summit. Poor view due to fog and cloud cover

Shasa posing with the poise of Sir Edmund Hilary

Approaching the top of Rondeslottet, the view below is breathtaking.

This is the the top of Vinjeronden with Rondeslottet in the backround

Glacial activity has been a key factor in the shaping of Rondane and evidence of this is everywhere.

On our way to Rondeslottet

We attempted our first 2000m peak yesterday (Veslesmeden) but had to turn back just before the summit because of extreme weather conditions.
The next day, with full back packs, we did two 2000m peaks.
Vinjeronden (2044m) is the first and Rondeslottet(2178) is the second.We spent the night in Bjørnhollia.
Rondeslottet is the highest peak in Rondane.

Rondvassbu to Bjørnhollia

Our first walk was a scenic twelve kilometer easy valley walk from Rondvassbu to Bjørnhollia and back again.

The early days....

Shasa by the Nordnes Totempole...

The kennel which has since been replaced by our bed...

Walk training with mom :)

In the beginning...

`Twas a lovely sunny day in Bergen when my beloved and I hiked up the beautifully sloped road leading to Rundemanen above mount Fløiyen.
The birds were singing in contentment, the crows were deciding what to nick from the locals and everything in general was just perfect.
We were chatting away happily as all old married couples do, when the subject of children reared it's evil little head....
We were still discussing the pros and cons of having a brat, when we rounded the corner to the last picnic spot before the summit and lo and behold, before us, stretched the scene which would unite us in a common goal for quite some time to come.
Screaming their heads off, a couple of snot-caked little creatures were tearing around the tranquil lake in an obvious attempt to bring the mountain crumbling down before them...
Their parents were sitting and staring with that vacant look some people get just before an excecution, the look that says "This is as bad as it can get.... all the panic in the world cannot save me from this fate... I'm just going to be as stoic as I can about it and face this thing head on..."
Anja and I looked at each other briefly and I stated matter-of-factly "Let's get a dog"
"Yes, I completely agree" was her prompt and determined reply and that was that.
Driving from Bergen to Kongsvinger took us about 9 hours.
We spent the night in a cheap motel and collected him from Kennel Esperanza the following morning.
Love at first sight :)