Norwegian Cabin Trip

The desire to experience at least once a very typical Norwegian cabin trip, despite being loaded with inches of notes for midterm test, Jiann Chyuan embarked an unforgettable experience and learnt that this might be the last cabin trip he ever has.

It was planned for a long while and my email inbox had been inundated by tonnes of discussion emails. Struggled whether to since there was a midterm test which required tonnes of reading and endless amount of brain-cell killing due to memory occupation. Pondered for a few days, I finally made up my mind and joined my first, and might be my last, typical Norwegian cabin trip to Vinjøra.

I was hugged with courage and excitement when the day came. Friday afternoon, boarded on the two-hour journey bus and kicked start this once in a life time experience.

Two hours later, reached our first pit stop safe and sound. All of us taking photos happily without noticing the approach of dangerous evil grinning ahead of us.

Destined not to waste our time waiting for the remaining pack of the gang that couldn't it to our bus, we decided to give the 11km extremely long stretch of walking a damn try, while enjoying the loads on our back. It was that bad I have to say. However, it would definitely be a lot better if we are filled with impressive scenery as to fulfill the investment return need for this long walk.

After about two-hour of walking, with of course maybe two pauses in between, we finally met with the rest of the gang, joining us in a comfy minibus that we hired. Everyone (the walking group of course) bumped into the minibus without wasting any second to only realise that we were only 3 minutes of ride to our next pit stop - the base of our cabin.

Didn't matter the premature death of enjoyment sitting in the minibus, we left the minibus with the highest spirit of the day, thinking that just another kilometre of small hike will lead us to our final destination - our cabin located in nowhere of the mountain.

It was 6.30pm when we begun our hike to the cabin. For this time in the autumn in Norway, it was only 15 minutes before darkness came.

However, we have faith that we could make it since it was only a kilometre.

We walked. We stopped for direction. We walked again. And then we stopped again for direction.

However, darkness wasn't patient and chose to present before we made it to the cabin.

The good friend of darkness, the wind, fiercely cold and strong, blowing furiously across the rather bald mountain, leaving everyone of us shivering in the wind while struggling to find out path.

Wait, did we have a path? Good question. We have no sense where we were heading. The supposed 15-minute walk has turned out to be an hour and a half.

Anxiety started to strike in. Hunger was ringing its bell mercilessly in the stomach. Our cabin, still hiding quietly in the darkness, overlooking the whole bunch of us soaking our feet in the deadly cold swamp and mud.

The feeling of the loads behind our backs started to increase. The numbness of toes soaking in freezingly cold swamp has ruined our souls. Hunger still ruling, but the only thing in our minds at that particular moment was our cabin was just right ahead.

We continued walking in the darkness, directionless, despaired.

Another hour passed. Seriously thinking that we couldn't find our cabin, we walked downhill and reached a small farm. Eagerly requesting a stay in the farm for a night had led us to rejection and a lend of two torch lights, and also a verbal direction.

Despair over controlled all our senses. Were we going up once again?

Left with no choice, we soaked our feet into the swamp again. We were told that the cabin was just 15-minute walk from the farm and there was a track which we can follow. What a wonderful suggestion when someone told you to find a path in complete darkness with flash light.

15-minute passed, we didn't reach our cabin, as expected. But we made it to a small house, nope, building, nope, store. Honestly, I was thinking to just stay in the store for the night while some of us went to search for the damn lovely cabin. Inside the cabin, raw (uncooked) meatball packet was unpacked to fill the stomach of hungry souls.

Good news after about an hour! We found the cabin! It was about 300m from the small store.

The rest of the story? Of course it was walking to the cabin and staying happily in the cabin for one night, after being lost in a mountain, under complete darkness and insane coldness, for four and a half hours.

Absolutely unforgettable, my first cabin trip to a Norwegian mountain.