Ski tour cruise in Norway, the Bodø Alps

• Period: mid-February to mid-May.
• Guests: 12 max.
• Supervision: 1 or 2 mountain guides.
• Length: one week, Sat-Sat, or more upon request.
• Departures/arrival point: Bodø
• Price for individual customers: upon request
• Price for guides: upon request
• SEE THE VIDEO

Overview

An exceptional week of skiing between sea and mountains in the Bodø Alps, a region of deep fjords north of the Arctic Circle where the mountains drop s harply into the sea. Albeit it is less know than the Lyngen Alps, this area never ceases to amaze us every year thanks to its wildness. The mountain slopes are still completely virgin territories: no other ship comes there, and the area cannot be reached by car. The ship is a travelling and comfortable shelter that navigates everyday to find a new touring itinerary in magnificent and remote places where no one but you has ever set foot.

Details of the expedition

The Bodø Alps

The Bodø Alps, a beautiful landscape of gentle slopes and large, raw and hemmed in fjords, are facing the Lofoten archipelago. The hikers exploring this rather uncharted country will discover imposing peaks covered with white spotless snow and birch forests, as well as many hidden lakes at various altitudes. The Bodø Alps are graced with splendor and enchantment during the northern lights season. Fishing enthusiasts will also be happy to know that the waters are particularly well-stocked with fish, and that they will be able to use the fishing rods aboard Polaris 1 to catch salmons and cods.

The expedition

The Bodø Alps will be our playground. Several tours are possible, for all skiing levels: looped tours, circuits, expeditions across fjords: everything is possible. Being on a ship offers one big advantage: it can leave and pick up the skiers anywhere. Thus, we won’t need to take the same itinerary on our return trip. Countless promising and unexplored areas are waiting to be discovered in the area, and we’re always ready to forge ahead! Our ship is quite fast and has a long range.
The differences in elevation change from day to day, from 700 m to 1,350 m for the Helladisen, the highest summit of the Bodø Alps range. The differences of elevation are based on the beach altitude, where you put on your skis! There is a very distinctive alpine atmosphere and the snow is often of a great quality, as it is very cold. The tours don’t usually last for more than 4 to 5 hours.
Navigation will take place in still waters or in relatively sheltered waters. On most days, the daily trip will last less than 3 hours between the place of arrival of a tour and the place of departure of the next day’s tour. Navigating from fjords to fjords or along the ice field is the perfect opportunity to witness the breathtaking landscapes. The night, we will lie at anchor in wild bays to admire the northern lights and, for the fishing amateurs, to catch some haddocks and cods.

You will land on Bodø’s airport on Saturday afternoon and will immediately board the ship. After you have visited the ship and put away your luggage, you will explore the city for the rest of the day. We will spend the first night in Bodø’s port and will set sail on early Sunday morning, so as to enjoy the first ski tour a mere few hours later.
There is no set schedule. Several itineraries are possible, and the captain will decide the next day’s tour with the guide every evening, depending (in priority) on everyone’s wishes, the level of the group, the snow condition and the weather forecast. Upon your return from the tour in the afternoon, you will be greeted aboard with a warm meal and a well-deserved warm shower. Then we will set sail for the departure point of the next day’s tour, where you’ll be able to take the rest of the afternoon to stroll ashore, to relax aboard the ship, to fish or to snap pictures.

Special offer: mountain guide

You are a mountain guide and you wish to charter the entire ship, on your own or with another guide.

• The charter price is available upon request.
• We have aboard the ship all the hiking maps of the area, with the routes of our tours, as well as a GPS with the corresponding itineraries. Even if this is your first time with our services, you will still benefit from our experience and the experience of all the other guides before you.
• Equipments to communicate with the ship: cell phone for the tours in the Isfjorden, Iridium phone, VHF radio (156.800 MHz channel, radio available onboard if necessary).
• Replacement skis in case of breakages, a workshop with all the tools is also available. We also have crampons onboard.
• Locally available assistance: medicine chest (with a large quantity of medical supplies), helicopter. Hospital in Longyearbyen.

More information

• Physical condition: good physical condition required.
• Ski level: Level 3 ESF, all snows, all terrain. For ski touring amateurs or skiers with a good level and accustomed to go off piste. No technical difficulty.
• Climate: winter conditions and northern lights from February to mid-March. Permanent daylight from mid-April onwards. All weather conditions can occur regardless of the period of the year, and the snow is often of excellent quality.
• Required equipments:
  - Touring ski, climbing skins, crampons and boots.
  - Avalanche beacons, shovel and probe.
  
• Currency in Norway: Norwegian krone, 8 NOK = 1 €.

Consult our photo gallery.