Ticking off the Clock Towers

For a skier and photographer, the Lyngen Alps are a dream destination with their mind-blowing nature and skiing. The mountain range is located on the Lyngen Peninsula, at almost 70 degrees north, and it’s one of the most alpine mountain areas in Norway. It has around 140 glaciers and massive peaks that rise straight from the fjords and up to Jiehkkevárri at 6,017 feet above sea level, the tallest mountain on the peninsula. The skiing terrain attracts skiers worldwide, especially during spring when the midnight sun makes it possible to ski round the clock. Lyngen has been on my “to-do list“ for many years, so it was a no-brainer when asked if I could film Nikolai Schirmer and Krister Furnes Kopala camping on a glacier in the heart of Lyngen.

Nikolai and Krister are well known in the skiing community for pushing big mountain freeriding and filmmaking to a new level. The way they ski steep couloirs in Northern Norway like no one else, combined with high-quality filming and Nikolai’s storytelling skills, has proven to be a recipe for success and has helped them make a living out of skiing. I could not wait to see them in action and to be a part of the crew. Nikolai and Krister had different objectives for this trip and were going to part ways when we arrived at the camp. Krister was going into the steeps, and his main goal was to make the first snowboard descent of the gnarly south side of Jiehkkevárri, a massive and serious line with a long and exposed no-fall zone.

Nikolai’s goal was to ski less exposed freeride lines, and his main objective was a northeast-facing side called “The Clock Towers,” with 1,600 feet of steep skiing. After Nikolai had torn his achilles in October and fought his way back amazingly fast, this was the season’s highlight. It now looked like we got the weather window we had waited for with sun, cold temperatures, zero wind and lots of fresh snow. The approach to camp on Sydbreen was about six miles with a 2,000-feet ascent. With pulks of 110 lbs, this was a good challenge for the group of eight, including me, Nikolai, Krister, Joonas Mattila, Eivind Aanesen, Eirik Verlo, Vetle Sevild and Anders Vestergaard.

After a while we passed Daltinden, where two skiers got caught in an avalanche a few days earlier. Fortunately, they got away unharmed, but the same day one person died in an avalanche further north in Lyngen. These accidents left a lasting impression, and with great respect we were now hiking toward large mountains and lines that made us look like dwarfs in the massive mountain world of Lyngen. We finally arrived at camp an hour after sunset. I was speechless. It felt like the Himalayas. The south side of Jiehkkevárri rose 3,600, almost vertical feet from the camp. I did not allow myself much time to enjoy the view because I had to set up a tent I borrowed just before departure. I had no idea what the finished result should look like.

When I finally got it right, it was dark and the others were already asleep, warm and comfortable in their sleeping bags. We spent the first day digging snow profiles and checking the stability of the snow. With last week’s avalanches in mind, we assessed the snow long and well before Nikolai and Eirik skied the first west-facing lines in the afternoon sun. Nikolai spoke of the best snow he had ever skied in Lyngen. The tempo picked up many notches in the next few days. The weather was coming in a few days earlier than first reported, so we had to make the most out of it. The alarm went off at five, and the skins were on at six. We skied and filmed until the sun went down.

Krister quickly decided that the big south face of Jiehkkevárri was a no-go due to bad conditions in the south. The two groups now became one group with the same goal – to ski freeride lines and produce world-class ski films. The last day was approaching fast, and it was time to tick off the northeast-facing Clock Towers. The weather was supposed to get better on Tuesday at noon, so we set the alarm for four o’clock. The clouds were thick and threatened to throw a blizzard at us every moment, but we trusted the forecast and pushed on. Just as the group reached the summit, the sun burned through the clouds and lit up the Clock Towers in the beautiful morning light. Nikolai dropped in first. He skied fast and stomped the biggest cliff in the face.

Krister skied his line perfectly before Vetle finished off by flipping the second largest cliff. The stoke was high, and we got the perfect ending to the trip!