It was busy for the car owners on Hardangervidda during the Whitsun weekend. Between one and a half and one meter of snow in piles made driving conditions very difficult, and motorists seemed unprepared for the winter weather that met them. “Completely normal in May”, say both the Swedish Road Administration and car owners. – This is actually quite normal. It is not unusual for us to have periods of such stormy weather in both May and June, says Ørjan Herland. He works as a car salvager at Eidfjord car salvage. He estimates that they salvaged 4–5 cars and 7–8 lorries on the plain at the weekend. One of them was a vintage car on its way to a vintage car meeting in Eidfjord. Instead, he stood for hours on Hardangervidda. In the end, the car was almost completely covered in snow. – He was at the very back and I had to move all the wagon trains. We had to winch a bit and shovel away snow, says colleague at Eidfjord car salvage, Bjørn Lægreid. Train by train, car by car, they worked their way backwards towards the vintage car. – We had to get them out of the car, says Herland. Dense SNOW: Between one and a half and one meter of snow in piles made driving conditions very difficult on Hardangervidda. Photo: Norwegian Road Administration – Fun until they see the madness Lægreid, known to many from the series “Heroes of the Winter Road” on National Geographic, has been involved in car recovery for 29 years. – At the end of May, the beginning of June, this kind of bad weather always hits, he says. Drivers are rarely prepared for winter conditions and often have summer tyres. At the weekend, the Norwegian Road Administration recommended that you have winter tires if you were going over the mountain pass. – When it first happens on the mountain, it happens incredibly quickly. It can go from bare asphalt to full winter in ten minutes, says Lægreid. SNOW: There were large amounts of snow on the mountain. Photo: National Roads Administration – People must follow the weather forecast and not least the road reports. Then they get an indication of what it’s like, says colleague Herland. But they are used to people going on a drive without preparation. – It’s kind of the same every year, there aren’t many improvements, it’s just the way it is, says Lægreid. In recent years, he believes that tourists in cars and RVs are coming earlier and earlier. – They probably think it’s fun until they see the madness. Then it’s not so silly anymore. – When it first happens on the mountain, it happens incredibly quickly. It can go from bare asphalt to full winter in ten minutes, says car mechanic Bjørn Lægreid. Photo: Norwegian Public Roads Administration Fine the next few days – It was a bit stormy at the weekend, yes, says Norwegian Public Roads Administration traffic operator Tom Erik Englaugstad. He says May can offer most things. – We are now in the period when we can get snow and sleet that can settle down, but also sun, fine weather, completely dry roads and plus temperatures, he says. In the next few days, the situation looks good. Sun, mostly warm degrees and no precipitation in sight. – We are starting to get closer to being done with the snowy weather, but it is difficult to put a date on it. – We are starting to get closer to being done with the snowy weather, but it is difficult to put a date on it, it is not possible, says Tom Erik Englaugstad in the Road Administration. Photo: Norwegian Road Administration
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Snow and column driving at the end of May on Hardangervidda – news Vestland
