Northern Loop of the Lyngen Alps
The idea for the Northern Loop in the Lyngen Alps was mixing together some of the best lines within the area. Having previously skied Istinden, Tverelvdalstinden and Fastdaltinden and I wanted to put them together into a single tour. These were some of the best ski terrain just north of Lyngseidet and although it was a lot of ground to cover I knew it would be worth it.
The Trip Report below includes photos of old trips to better show the route
Preparation for the Northern Loop
After riding the North Couloir of Rornestinden the weather turned for the worse. The next few days we got the break we needed and filled up on calories. Finally we saw a promising forecast but it was only going to be for about 12 hours. Looking at the topomap I mentioned the North Loop to Wiggles and he agreed that it would be fun. By now we were days away from the Midnight sun so light wouldn’t be an issue.
The forecast called for it to be clear during the night so we started around 6 p.m. Heading up to the base of Store Kjostinden we wrapped up the low angled glacier heading for the west col shown in the middle of the photo below.
Climbing and Snowboarding on Istinden
Arriving on the col we traversed over to the south face of Istinden. The climb up with be the crux of the Northern Loop and though the snow was slushy we were able to climb the final ridge with the help of crampons.
Standing on top of Istinden we edged our boards over to the north couloir. This was going to be the biggest line of the trip. It’s a consistent pitch all the way to the valley below.
Dropping into our line the snow was firm but edgeable. By now it was starting to get dark but we still had great visibility as we rode all the way into the valley before heading east. The North face of Istinden is the obvious line in the picture below.
Our Second Run on Tvereldalstindan
We started heading West towards the north cirque of Tverelvdalstindan before climbing up the face. Though it was late in the night there was still sun on the northern chute as we made turns. While the previous line had been icy we were happy to find some powder turns all the way to the lake below.
The Third Run off of Skáidevárri
Our next objective of the Northern loop was the West face of Skáidevárri. By now the sun had set below the horizon as we skinned up the firm slope. Off in the distance we could still see our previous line on the left in the photo below.
Finishing off the Northern Loop on Fastdaltinden
Climbing up to a low col on the west slope of Skáidevárri we rode down the main northern bowl all the way to the creek running east. Fortunately the valley was heading downhill as we made low angle turns next to the open water. After taking a 30 minute break it was time to climb again heading up the Northwest side of Fastdaltinden.
We were minutes away from sunrise us we crampons up the face. Behind us was the same valley we climbed during the North section of the Lyngen Alps Traverse.
Traversing around the east bowl of Fastdaltinden we watched the sunrise in the distance. By now clouds we starting to build up and we were happy that we had made the most out of the weather.
Riding down the Southeast bowl of Fastdaltinden we had finished off our Northern Loop in just around 12 hours with only a handful of breaks in-between. Our feet were beaten and we were tired but with the weather looking bad for the upcoming days we would have time to heal.
The photo below shows 2/3 of the Northern Loop with Fastdaltinden on the left Our descent bowl of Skáidevárri in the middle and Istinden behind it.
