65.065°, 13.757°
Remote, rugged and wild are three words that perhaps characterise Børgefjell best. The park’s remote and rugged landscape of granite peaks, tumbling waterfalls, birch clad valleys, marshland and lakes provide a dramatic, varied and rugged terrain. The National Park is home to the rare Arctic Fox, European Brown Bear, Lynx, Wolverine, moose, Golden eagle and Snowy owl.
Season: 15th of July to 1st of September
Kent Mikkelsen
Kent Mikkelsen will be your local host and wilderness guide. He’ll introduce you to Norwegian ‘friluftsliv’ and take you off the park’s beaten tracks to show you his childhood haunts and secret places. As you wander the unmarked landscape you’ll forage for berries and mushrooms taking your time to enjoy the wild nature, tranquillity and silence. In the evenings you’ll catch trout and arctic char from the high mountain lakes, pan fry wild game and boil coffee over the campfire embers. At the end of the day there’s time to share stories and marvel at the constellations shining brightly in a clear night sky.
A tour highlight for many is the chance to experience an evening with reindeer owning Sámi, Europe’s last remaining indigenous culture. Our first evening and night will be spent in a “gamme” – a traditional Sámi timber frame house covered with layers of birch bark and turf. You’ll be served a traditional Sámi meal of arctic char and reindeer meat. We use sleeping bags insulated by reindeer pelts on top of a layer of birch branches. After dinner your Sámi hosts will prepare traditional Sámi coffee boiled over an open fire and explain the etiquette of how to sit and behave in a gamme.
Wild living rules and etiquette
On this trip we sleep in two man expedition tents and use a Sámi style Laavu tent (tipi) for our meals and communal activities.
The campfire will always be lit when we are in camp and is a favourite gathering point, especially at dawn and dusk.
As members of the expedition team you are expected to participate in setting up the camp, preparing and cooking food and cleaning dishes, pots and pans.
Once we’re in the national park we don`t have fixed schedules or activities but let our interests and the weather decide our opportunities. There will be plenty of time to trek, canoe, fish, forage and relax around the campfire. This is the essence of Norwegian ‘friluftsliv’.
A successful expedition relies on efficient and harmonious teamwork if we are to maximize our enjoyment of the wilderness. We hope expedition members will share our passion for the outdoors and that the ‘team’ experience and knowledge gained together will contribute to a wonderful learning experience.
