Muskox
In February 2022, my brother and I travelled to Oppdal, Norway. We were there to photograph Muskox. Oppdal is a small town that sits on the edge of the Dovrefjell national park. The national park is the only place in Norway where you can find wild Muskox.
Over a week in Oppdal we explored the national park with the help of a local guide who helped us find the Muskox herd. We spent most part of our first day hiking through the park. It wasn't until the late afternoon that we found the herd, huddled together on the side of a valley. Amongst the herd we could spot some calves born the previous summer.
Not long after finding the herd we had to leave if we were going to make it back and set up camp before we lost the light. Just after turning around we were hit by 60mph winds and found ourselves in a whiteout as the temperature dropped further and further until it hit -20°C. Following as close as possible behind our guide we marched for 2 more hours till eventually we found ourselves at camp. By the time we had set up camp and gotten into our tent it had been over four hours since we left the herd. Boots frozen and covered in snow we sheltered from the wind. Using a gas stove to heat up the tent before settling down for the night.
By morning the inside of our tent had thin layers of snow covering us. Unfortunately, the door to the tent was left cracked open during the night. Our bags, shoes and clothes were covered in snow and frozen solid. Unable to defrost our boots we packed up. Hiking back down into the valley we found the Muskox much quicker knowing where they most likely were. By midday I couldn't feel my feet. Unable to warm them up and my brother starting to feel it too we decide it was best to not camp over night again but instead hike out of the national park and return to town. We would try again two days later.
Taking the day off meant we had time to charge all of our batteries and dry our kit. By the time we headed back into the national park we were ready. Our guide had heard news of another herd further up the park. We decided this was our best chance to find them.
To our luck we found a large herd with a mix of male Muskox butting heads and charging one another. We spent the day with that herd watching them running around, but eventually it was time to leave. Arriving back in Oppdal we had a train to catch back to Trondheim before our flight home.
Though it wasn't as successful as we had initially hoped for. I think our trip was a success. It opened my eyes to a whole new list of challenges. I think this is where my passion for adventure photography was born.