Hiking to mountain huts in Norway is possible again in May 2020

After being closed for months due to the COVID-19 pandemic it is safe again to open up the mountain cabins to visitors again.

When time seems suspended

May 7th, 2020. As we have been confined to our homes for many weeks,  it seems like one day  merges into the next. If you feel you are losing grip on your sense of time, you are not alone. It appears to be a common psychological reaction to the lockdown experience. Psychologists tell us that change is an important physical and emotional marker for our sense of time, and even for memory building.

Measuring time, one leaf at a time

Looking out of the window of my inner-city flat in Moscow, I have felt and seen winter slowly turn into spring. The biting arctic wind and snow have given way to warmer rain and breezes, and the first fresh green leaves have appeared on the trees nearby. I can almost touch them from my first-floor kitchen window. They not only delight with the promise of warmer days, but I have found them strangely reassuring as a measure of time. I can relate to days long past, when people did not have watches and calendars at hand and the turn of the seasons and associated festivities were important markers.

Spring arrives in Norway

Most cultures seem to have some kind of celebration to mark this moment between winter and spring. This is very much the case for Norwegians. Spring - and especially May - is a special time in their calendar. Not only do Norwegians celebrate their national day in May (on the 17th), but many will take the opportunity to visit the mountains. Not for hiking, as there is often still too much snow, but for cross-country skiing which is often enjoyed at its best at this time. The days are getting longer and warmer, but the snow is still there to enjoy.

Steps out of lockdown, one foot at a time

And so the gradual reopening of some of the mountain cabins of the Norwegian Trekking Association (DNT) is very welcome news. Since March 12, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they had only been open for emergency use.

It is an important step out of the lockdown - even though many restrictions will still apply.  For those of us not in Norway, the country remains closed due to the pandemic; but knowing that things are moving in the right direction is heartening for all.

The situation remains very fluid and it would be best to check the current status, if you are in Norway and planning to make use of the mountain cabins. The regional associations of the DNT will post updates on their respective websites, explaining which self-service cabins they are opening and under what conditions. In Southern Norway, the larger regional associations are the Trondhjems Turistforening (tt.no), the Oslo og Omegn Turistforening (dntoslo.no), the Stavanger Turistforening (stf.no) and the Kristiansund og Nordmøre Turistforening (kntur.no). Information for all mountain cabins can be found at ut.no - simply search by cabin name (note that some sites might be in Norwegian only).

List of the most important measures and restrictions as of May 5, 2020

Conditions vary slightly between associations, but below are some of the important restrictions:

• You are not allowed to visit any of the mountain cabins of the DNT if you are sick, feeling ill or if you have been required to self-isolate

• You have to be a member of the DNT or a regional/local association in order to stay in a cabin

• Cabins can only be booked by a party and a maximum size of party applies.  You will have sole use of the cabin during the course of your stay 

• All of the people within the party might be required to be from one and the same household

• Casual visits or day visits into the mountain cabins are not allowed and use of the rest room facilities by casual hikers is discouraged

• You are required to bring proper bedding (sheets) that has been washed at 60ºC - therefore sleeping bags and sleeping liners are not allowed

• You will find enhanced instructions for hygiene and cleaning in the mountain huts and you are required to follow them at all times during your stay

Opening of staffed mountain cabins/lodges of the Norwegian Trekking Association in the summer of 2020:

The DNT is expecting to open some of their fully serviced mountain cabins and lodges in the summer months, in line with government advice on measures to mitigate the spread of the COVID-19 virus. These measures are intended to keep the infection risk low, and we can only hope that the evolving situation will allow for a stepwise removal of restrictions.

Here in my flat, I am grateful for an old, battered exercise bike that helps me stay fit until I can go and explore those glorious Norwegian landscapes once again.

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Photo credit: The delightful main hut of Gammelsetra near Åmotan in Dovre