Fjellbekk

How would one start a writeup of an experience?
How would one start a writeup of a feeling?
How would one start a writeup of an euphoria?

The Besseggen ridge - Gjendevannet and Bessvannet on the sides

Well a slightly more famous writer already did a try
some 140 years ago - so let's hear his words:

Have you ever
chanced to see the Gendin-Edge?
Nigh on four miles long it stretches
sharp before you like a scythe.
Down o'er glaciers, landslips, scaurs,
down the toppling grey moraines,
you can see, both right and left,
straight into the tarns that slumber,
black and sluggish, more than seven
hundred fathoms deep below you.

From Henrik Ibsen's Peer Gynt (Gendin-Edge is Besseggen)

Short summary:
I got the task to organize an Autumn Trip with the company this autumn together with
my fellow members in the Alstom Aktiv-group (Christian and L-E).
We choose to arrang a weekend trip to the mountains of Jotunheimen
With housing at the Bessheim Fjellstue not far from Besseggen
We ended up with being twelve people going. All a good mix of merry men and women with
various experiences from mountaintreks - me having none, nada, zero.

The schedule was first to get to Galdhøpiggen as written previously,
but due to disastruos weather we went for the "easier" trip across Besseggen -
which in itself proved to be a bit of a challenge with gusts of winds up to some 24 m/s.

Besshø, towering 2258 meters above sea level

Action:
Three men set off from Bessheim at 07:30 to take the ferry from
Gjendesheim to Memurubu and there walk up to Besshø (2258m) and
then go across the Besseggen-ridge on the way home.
But due to the bad weather only one outta two boats
were able to go, and the first one filled up fast
so we went the route "backwards" so to say.
That turn turned out to bring us luck throughout the day
since the switched direction saved us from the wind at some passages
where wind would have been quite a non-needed addition.

The actual trek was well comparable to doing a slower jog,
(pulsewise at least) - some number crunching for the nerds -
Average puls was ~65%, peaks at 87% and the total time walking 8h
and the amount of energy used would be something like 5 500 kcal.

The sights and views of the landscape was amazing,
can't really describe in words without slipping in to clichées.
Really hard to imagine that rocks and water in all it's shapes can
be that beautiful but indeed it was.

The altitude of the cabin and the ferry was at some 950 meters,
and not far from the tree line which would be at around 1100m.
Most parts of the trek was at 1400-2258m level -
meaning: no trees, no large animals and hardly not even any plants.
So it was quite a barren terrain.

Random plant, taken @ ~1100m height

I have come to see myself as a person who disregards weather forecasts
and can't care less on what weather the Maker has in hold for us.
But I did get to know the importance of it this weekend.
It started already friday morning when the saturday weather
was forecasted to be as bad that we had to cancel the first plan
and go for this modified trek. It is quite a feeling to get up there
and leave yourself exposed to what Mother Nature has in hold for you.
Our worst passages was firstly coming down to the Besseggen ridge
from the east side and having gust of wind
trying to prevent us from doing just that with all her force.

The ridge leading down to Besseggen

The other one was hitting the peak of Besshø @ 2258m
and the same gusts biting your face,
now without any risk of bodily harm but a whole lot cooler
and with hail and snow being thrown upon bare cheeks.

The Besshø-peak. Left to right: Peder, Me, Petros

The rest of the weekend was well memorable as well.
Everything from the drive up there -
packing in five adult persons in a Kia Sportage can prove a challenge
- to playing charades until two in the morning saturday.
A quick swim in 4º water before hitting the sauna,
filling your water bottle straight of a fjellbekk,
Reinsdyrssteik with Viltsaus and a therapeutic sunday walk -
refreshening both for mind and sore legs.

Thank you:
Petros, Peder, Barbro, Tone, Jørgen, Ingunn,
Fredrik, Helene, Gro, Kai and Christian for a great weekend!

Kvikk Lunsj - for well needed energy ("tursjokolade" since 1938)
Alstom - for sponsoring
Ringnes - "after trek"-beer never tasted better
Helly/Hansen - for producing and selling durable clothing

Kodak Moment @ Besseggen