FLY BY Portal to Creativity There are no lifts here. Len Jørgensen utilized his splitboard for this exposed line above the Vatnahalsen Hotel. The owner of the hotel, Petter Andresen, shows us around. He tells us that he’s never seen people ride with the approach we’re bringing to the mountains he’s skied with so many others so many times before. Whether it’s finding rocks to pop off, wind lips to hand drag, trees to jib or even rays of sunlight to slash into, we make the most of everything we see along the way. He says he’s used to people looking at big lines to ski in full, rather than no-ticing all the fun spots to play around on during a tour. The big, scary lines that have attracted so many here in the past eventually come into focus for us. We ride some of those lines, as well as a first descent now and forever known as Lenny’s Ledge. But, per-haps more importantly, we introduce the area and its hosts to a new and different way of seeing, a different way of being. A new approach to interpreting the mountains, and new ways of riding them. We manage to etch a new tale into these ancient structures and the storied history of this incredible area. As night falls, the northern lights begin to reveal themselves to the naked eye, clouding the constellations with dance. Fire-places warm our bodies and souls, and the contentment of the day’s accomplishments breeds deeper friendships within our gang of gonzo snowboarders. Vatnahalsen is not just a destina-tion, not just an altered state of mind, but a portal to ultimate creativity. The opportunity to step out of the front door and expand your potential and paint new history amidst the frozen waterfalls, with very little distraction and constraints of the ev-eryday world down below. No more mundane, only challenge. No more retreads and revisits, only new opportunities. No more excuses, only potential. 032 THE SNOWBOARDER’S JOURNAL
The Snowboarder's Journal The Snowboarder's Journal 21.2: Page 32
