Hemsedal Ice Climbing
Course Ratio: 1:1 or 1:2 coaching/guiding ratio.
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Course Duration:
This is an eight-day trip, with five climbing days and a rest (ski?) day.
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Course Dates:
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24th - 31st January 2026 - fully booked
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28th Feb -7th March 2026 - fully booked
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30th Jan - 6th Feb 2027
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27th Feb - 6th March 2027
Price:
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1:2 ratio: £950 per person
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1:1 ratio: £1850
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Overview
Hemsedal, located in south-central Norway, has become a popular destination for ice climbing. It is often referred to as the “cradle of Norwegian ice climbing”, as this is where ice climbing started in Norway in the 1970’s. The are more than 100 established routes, from single pitch test pieces to multi pitch classics, all in a relatively compact area. These include a couple of Norway’s best know routes, Hydnefossen and Grotenutbekken. This is an area not to be missed! If that’s not enough then if you need a rest day there’s even a great local ski area.
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As this is a private course we are able to tailor each day, and the week, to your individual aims and aspirations. So whether you want to learn to ice climb, learn to independently lead ice climbs or be guided up classic routes every day – we can make it happen. The course will be delivered at a maximum ratio of one instructor to two clients which enables us to be very flexible therefore allowing us to head out each day and climb wherever the conditions are best. The majority of climbing will be in the WI grade 2 to 4 range (Scottish Grade III to V).
To get a flavour of what ice climbing in Norway is like then check out this great short video, by Cragcloud, showcasing just some of Hemsedals amazing icefalls:
Course Content
This is a private course which is run at either a 1:1 or 1:2 instructor to client ratio, this allows us to offer three different course options:
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• Intro to Ice Climbing
• Learn to Lead Ice Routes
• Guided Classics
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Once you have chosen your course option, we will then tailor it to your own abilities and aspirations thus ensuring you receive exactly the right course for you. We will choose the content of each day to make the best use of the prevailing conditions, as well as the aspirations and fitness of the team. As such it isn’t possible to provide a definitive programme for the day/week, however, the trip will roughly follow the format below:
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Day 1 – Fly to Oslo, Norway. Transfer to Hemsedal, settle in to accommodation, and sort kit
Day 2 – Intro/Recap ice climbing
Day 3 – Coached/Guided ice climbing
Day 4 – Coached/Guided ice climbing
Day 5 – Rest Day, or there is the option to go walking, snowshoeing, or skiing if keen
Day 6 – Coached/Guided ice climbing
Day 7 – Coached/Guided ice climbing
Day 8 – Transfer to Oslo, Fly Home
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How do I get there?
Hemsedal is roughly a three hour drive away from Oslo (Gardermoen Airport) which has good air links to Manchester, London, Edinburgh and other regional UK airports. We will be flying out on a Saturday and returning the following Saturday as this allows you to choose direct flights from the widest range of possible airports in the UK. Feel free to fly from which ever airport you prefer, all we ask is that you arrive no later than 5pm (local time) at Oslo Gardermoen Airport on the first day of your course.
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What’s included in the Price?
• Instruction/Guiding - your AMI qualified and experienced instructor’s time at a 1:2 ratio for 5 days of instruction split across the 8-day trip and their travel out.
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• Kit - the loan of any equipment, and use of the instructor’s kit for the trip.
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What’s not included?
• Flights – you’ll be responsible for booking your own flights to Oslo Gardermoen airport. Budget around £150-£200.
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• Car hire – is booked and paid for by clients. A medium/large car is preferable for stability driving on snow, plus it will need to accommodate yourselves and the instructor and all the associated kit. Budget around £100-150 each. If you would prefer your instructor to drive for the duration or for part of the trip then that is no problem at all, please just ensure they you add them as an additional driver of the hire car.
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• Fuel and Tolls – fuel and tolls are paid for by clients whilst out in Norway. As a guide, the average total costs, on recent trips, for fuel were £100 and for tolls £40.
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• Accommodation – is booked and paid for by clients. The accommodation will also need to have space to accommodate your instructor for the week. We are happy to provide some accommodation suggestions and to advise you on the best area/locations for it.
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• Food – food costs are split evenly between everyone. Usually, we’ll stay in self-catered accommodation and the plan is to cook as a group. Food is a bit more expensive than in the UK, but we’ll cook basic hearty evening meals. Bringing your own snack bars from the UK helps to keep costs down a bit. We often head out for a final evening meal, but this is optional.
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• Insurance – clients should take out travel insurance that covers ice climbing as an activity. The BMC, Snowcard and Dogtag are all companies that offer policies. Budget around £80-£100.
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