Fall(ing) into winter with the Musk ox
Winter is suddenly here…
The temperatures in this part of the country can reach below 30 degrees celcius, but the animals manage.
In the beautiful mountains of Dovre National Park, you can find these majestic animals, if you are lucky. There are about 200 individuals spread across a massive area which can be hard to reach during several periods of the year. At 1500 meters above sea level, the weather can be challenging throughout most of the year and one must plan for the worst.
Today we take the bus from Hjerkinn to Snøheim Lodge, a cabin where you can spend the night during some months of the year. The route is an old road once used by the Norwegian military, when there still was military activity in the area. Luckily, not anymore. The journey will take 30 minutes to the final destination and by the time we are halfway, fall turns into winter. At this altitude, you can experience snow in the summer months, so in October this is not exactly a surprise. For us wanting to photograph the musk ox this is just a happy bonus. We spot 4 animals first and we decide to spend some time with them in proper winter conditions. Cold wind blows sideways and within minutes some of the animals are covered in snow.
“These animals have inhabited the Arctic for many thousands of years, and their long shaggy hair is well adapted to the frigid climate.”
An hour has passed and the memory cards have started to understand what the day will bring. Our guide observed a group of seven animals longer down the valley where there is no snow and that is our next goal. Once the plan is set, the walking remains. Its easy to be fooled by the terrain and what seems to be a small walk turns rapidly into kilometers. Will we find the animals? If not, there is plenty other motifs to photograph.
What a backdrop
After a small break and some food we spotted the animals in the most scenic landscape one can imagine. Now we just had to hope that the animals would not move away once we came closer.
Bring a guide with you.
If you want to have a similar experience, make sure you take a guide with you. On this trip we had Knut Inge Røstad as our guide and he knows what he’s doing. If you want to book him, you kan sende an email to kinge@moskusguide.com .
Equipment used:
Sony A7R IV / Sony A7IV
Sony 200-600mm F5.6-6.3 / Peak design tripod
