Iceland Hut Based Ski Touring - Troll Peninsula 

We have always wanted to visit Iceland and our good friend, Einar Steinarrsson, has provided us with the opportunity. Participants will depart the US on flights to Reykjavik, Iceland the evening before their trip starts and then transfer for a short flight to the remote town of Akureyi, Iceland where we will be met and transported the final 40 minutes to the lodge that will serve as our base for the week.

The Karlsá Lodge sits in right on the edge of the ocean, in the middle of the best ski terrain on the Troll Peninsula. With views across the fjord to the Gold Coast, this lodge is perfectly positioned to take advantage of Iceland's ski to sea magic. The lodge is a well appointed basecamp for our daily ski adventures while its hot tub and sauna make for the ideal end of day comfort. Local geothermal springs are another delight, well suited to soothing tired muscles.

Guests are housed in double and triple rooms with shared bath and the lodge can accommodate up to 12 skiers. After a long day of touring it is a treat to come home to a family-style meals prepared by the lodge chef. Typical food includes organic lamb, fresh fish and game meats such as goose. Vegetarians are also well taken care of.

Each day involves a full-day ski tour in terrain that will satisfy all ski abilities, and can range from steep chutes to big, open slopes. The touring style is very similar to that offered on our trips to France, Switzerland, and Italy, and generally involves an early start after a solid breakfast, and then climbs undertaken on skis, followed by long descents. We will change-up each day's destination based on the current conditions and objectives of the group.

This trip is designed to get in and out of Iceland efficiently, with 6 days of ski touring, but you will have the option to stay longer if you would like to spend some time in Reykjavik, or traveling around Iceland.

Itinerary for Iceland Ski Touring - Troll Peninsula 

This is a sample itinerary:

Day -1: Depart US for overnight flight to Reykjavik, Iceland

Day 0: Arrive in Reykjavik in early morning and transfer to flight to Akureyri the capital of northern Iceland. You will then be transferred by van (~ 40 min) to the Lodge for a meet and greet. Welcome dinner is served and we go over the week's agenda.

Day 1: Our first day of skiing. The morning is spent on detailed avalanche transceiver and avalanche rescue training, followed by our first peak of many. Our average daily vertical ranges from 1000-2000 meters depending on the group. For those that want more we can go until your legs say stop, for here the night is no excuse as the midnight sun barely touches the ocean before it rises again.

Day 2: Skiing the peaks above the small fishing village of Dalvik allows us the rare pleasure of sitting in the local geothermal baths and admiring our perfect tracks on the surrounding peaks. Dalvik is the home of some of Iceland's most accomplished skiers and it is no wonder considering the terrain they grew up in.

Day 3-5: Adapting to the current conditions we will sample the bounty of the Troll peninsula's skiing in different zones each day. There are amazing wide open ski slopes, panoramic vistas of snow covered Arctic peaks, deep fjords, & secret cirques, and high route traverses following in the footsteps of local shepherds who often had to battle their way through the rugged mountains to move their flocks from one valley to another.

Day 6: This is our last day of skiing. We pack our things up from the lodge, departing for a final day of skiing after another hearty breakfast. We recommend booking an evening flight to allow us to make the most of the skiing on this day. Wrapping up in the afternoon, we say our good byes and guests are transferred to the airport in Akureyri for the flight to Reykjavik. If you are tight on time you can catch a late flight back to the US, arriving on the same day you depart given the time change. Or if you have the time you can spend an extra night(s) in Reykjavik, for additional city explorations before heading home with the memory of a unique ski touring holiday.

Trip Leadership 

This trip is built around the expertise of our friend and native Icelander Einar Steinarrsson and will be run through the local guide service he helps to operate - Bergmenn Mountain Guides. Einar has guided for NMS in the US prior to returning to his homeland. Einar will be the lead guide for this trip.

IFMGA guide Olivia Race will be the second guide bringing her years of international ski guiding experience to a new range of mountains.

Getting to and from Iceland 

Registration will be processed by Bergmenn Mountain Guides and the pre-trip information will be forwarded directly to help plan your ski trip in Iceland. You will first need to fly to Reykjavik (KEF), Iceland on Iceland Air. Once in country you will then transfer to the domestic terminal (RKV) for the 40 min domestic flight from Reykjavik to Akureyri.

Getting to and from Iceland is a bit easier and shorter than getting to and from places such as Switzerland. The flight from Seattle to Iceland takes about 7.5 hours.

Qualifications 

Ski Ability: Skiing on Iceland's Troll Peninsula need not be extreme and is open to skiers of most abilities. It does, however, require participants to be decent skiers. Things you should feel comfortable doing include: skiing with a backpack, skiing a wide variety of snow ranging from powder to breakable crust to corn, and climbing and descending 3500-4500' on skis for a week. We have the option for much bigger days, but there will usually be a "short bus" option for those who prefer to mix up ski time and time spent relaxing in the lodge. It is not advised to undertake a ski trip to Iceland without any experience outside of a ski area. You will want to do some AT skiing in advance of this trip, as you will need previous, recent, AT experience and will want to show up having used your boots in the time prior to the trip.

It is not uncommon for people to develop very bad blisters if they go from not touring at all to putting in successive long ski touring days. You should be able to efficiently get down black diamond runs in most ski areas. Again, you do not need to be an extreme skier to do this, but there will be spots where it is best not to fall, and you need to be able to efficiently link turns in a wide variety of snow conditions. You should also be aware that skiing on a glacier is much different from skiing in bounds at a ski area. Real hazards exist in these mountains and none are marked. Prior to your trip you want to focus on skiing in control and being able to ski for long periods without falling. You do not need any previous mountaineering experience to do this, but it is nice to have some level of familiarity with the climbing harness, crampons, and ice axe. We use these items very rarely, but you will be more confident if you show up with some level of comfort with them. We will review their use briefly on day one of the trip.

Ski Skills Assessment - Iceland Ski Touring 

It can be difficult to determine where different people are in terms of ski ability without skiing with them in advance of a program. As we don't always have the opportunity to ski together in advance of all trips we have provided the following list so that potential customers can evaluate their ski skills and choose the most appropriate program.

Advanced Ski Skills 

• Able to ski fall line in most snow conditions (powder to wind affected snow).
• Able to make parallel or stem-christie turns on 35° groomed or firm snow.
• Able to side-slip on firm slopes up to 35°.
• Able to ski moguls in soft snow.
• Able to do kick turns facing in or facing out on 30° slopes.
• Able to skate on level terrain.
• Able to ski fall-line in tight radius turns in good conditions.
• Able to ski black diamond runs at ski areas efficiently and in most snow conditions.

Physical Conditions Evaluation for Skiing 

Ski touring requires a certain basic level of physical fitness to minimize risk and be enjoyable. In addition to a solid base of aerobic conditioning you need to have the basic core strength to ski in a variety of conditions while carrying a ski pack. The best training you can do for ski touring is ski touring. It is best not to go into any extended trip without finding the time to get in a few days of touring in advance to make sure that your feet are conditioned to your boots.

Very Good Physical Condition 

Full day tours with 3000-4500 feet of elevation gain while carrying a pack weighing between 15-20 lbs. on tours lasting 3-6 days.