Mountain bikers love mountains, want to experience beautiful landscapes and burn off energy. That's why they can be found in large packs in the Bavarian Alps, Italy or France. But Norway! I travelled to the land of the trolls to explore the area on an e-MTB. My destination is the Canvas Camp from the sporting goods manufacturer Norronawhose name is derived from the basic material of the dwellings - canvas, a thick sailcloth. The camp is located in the Telemark region, near the town of Treungen, 7 kilometres from the nearest town, in the middle of nowhere.
Those travelling to the Canvas Camp do not stay in wooden huts or even a concrete bunker as is usually the case. The camp is located on a small peninsula in the lake, mostly built on wooden stilts, and you sleep, eat and have a sauna in yurts, large round tents made of the aforementioned canvas, which can accommodate 2 or 3 people. The kitchen or "dining room" is also housed in tents. The entire camp is designed in such a way that it can be dismantled without leaving any significant traces in nature. As a result, there are no power lines, and cooking - rustic but incredibly good - is only done with gas and wood fires.
In stages to the Canvas Camp - Journey to nowhere
The Norrona Canvas Camp can generally be booked over the weekend from May to October during the (Norwegian) snow-free period. Arrival on Friday, Saturday and Sunday is time for nature, peace and camp life. And this tranquillity begins long before the camp, as the journey is staggered: From Oslo, I travelled 250 kilometres southwest by car, first on the motorway, then on country roads and finally on the gravel roads that are quite common in Norway.
After the last village with a few houses, we continued over gravel to a car park. Here we unloaded most of our luggage and continued on foot along a narrow 2-kilometre hiking trail - or was it a mountain bike trail? We crossed a suspension bridge, which was a sight to behold, and continued on into the wilderness. The first view of Norrona Camp came after a hill.
What makes the trails and the nature here so special and distinguishes it from the Alps, for example: The mountains and hills are polished and made of granite - slickrock. A riding experience on a mountain bike that is fundamentally different from most of the areas I usually ride in. Even when wet, the rock slabs are grippy, you just have to trust them! There are rarely scree areas because granite hardly crumbles. You have to rethink your biking, but then the slabs are almost like a pump track that nature built millions of years ago! In addition, there is a lot of flat scrub, but also wet, rooty and often very narrow trails - and remarkably little signposting. More on this in a moment.
The yurts of the Canvas Camp
The programme for my weekend at Canvas Camp can almost be summed up as Eat, Bike, Sleep, Repeat. Each point is a real highlight. Let's start with the yurts, because we get an explanation of them when we arrive at the camp. Each tent has a Hästens double bed as its centrepiece; those in the know will take note, those without experience will simply sleep wonderfully on these deluxe mattresses - like me. If you lie on the bed, you can look up at the sky through a light hole. A small wood-burning stove provides warmth. The toilet is in an extra tent on the attached jetty.
Fun fact: The toilet is not a simple thunderbolt, but a special machine like those used in refugee camps. It goes without saying that the waste water does not disappear into the lake, but is collected and disposed of in an environmentally friendly manner.
In addition to the yurts, there is the kitchen tent, the dining tent, the tent sauna with wood-burning stove, the recreation tent with large wood-burning stove and the tent for bike hire and workshop. Because if you don't want to transport a bike to Norway, you can also hire a (very well-maintained) e-MTB on site. And the dining tent is open soon after arrival, as it is already early evening.
Simple accommodation with plenty of luxury
From a culinary point of view, there is no need to worry about camping cuisine with tinned ravioli or pasta with sauce at Norrona Canvas Camp. An important part of the concept and the next highlight is the evening feast. If you're out in nature all day, you need something good to eat in the evening. The tent is set up accordingly: A large table with candlesticks (the only light when it gets dark), cosy chairs with thick furs and fine table furnishings. Glamping instead of an aluminium bowl and canned beer.
The menu varies according to the season and can be fish, meat or vegetarian. I was incredibly surprised at what the kitchen conjures up, considering that it is cooked centrally on a wood-fuelled cooker. The menu was on a par with a much more upmarket restaurant. The guest pays extra for drinks. It should be noted that prices in Norway are generally somewhat higher and alcoholic drinks in particular are significantly more expensive than in Germany.
So we dine, chat to our MTB companions for the next two days and find out that one of them is already a guest for the third time and has already booked again next year - the other is just filling in, but is already delighted with the location in the middle of nature. There are Scots, Poles, French and many Norwegians. As long as the table is, that's how many guests the camp can accommodate. A maximum of 34 people per weekend. The real highlight of the evening comes after dinner.
We are drawn to the water and the jetty with its round platform to sit on. What already looks nice in the light becomes a spectacular place in the dark and with a beautiful fire in the centre, which you don't want to leave all evening - and you don't.
Breathtaking: Biking on Norwegian slickrock
The next morning, the candlelit table in the dining tent has been transformed into a huge griddle. Instead of the tabletop, pancakes, sausages and fried eggs are now sizzling there, which everyone treats themselves to for breakfast as they please. It's a fun and informal way to get to know each other.
But then it gets "serious": bike handover at the entrance to the camp and splitting the group into different skill levels. The highlight of my weekend: The well-known freerider and Rampage rider Geoff "Gully" Gulevich and his colleague Remy Metailler are there to give riding technique courses in the morning.
In addition, local guides lead the groups, as it is difficult to find your way along the paths over the polished rocks that make up most of the surrounding terrain.
The area around Canvas Camp is private property and belongs to Per Kveim, who together with Jan Fasting planned and created the 120 kilometres of trails with countless bridges and even two suspension bridges. He and the founder of the camp, Jan Fasting, wanted to connect the rocky mountains with short trails.
The trails with names like Utsikten, Innsikten, Norrøna Ridge, Rode veien, Berghyl, Europe Svaet and Storvannnuten are already familiar to a few people and invite experienced trail bikers. But everyone else will also get their money's worth, as the first ride shows.
The tyres scrub over the slickrock, and you repeatedly cross plank footbridges that you should never leave, otherwise your feet will get very wet. Granite slabs alternate with earthy ground. Sometimes roots, sometimes peaty ground. The e-bikes help me to crank up the short, steep climbs and I'm back with the others on a steep cliff that is easily 50 metres high. The view takes my breath away, because I've never seen a landscape like this before.
Brief history behind the Canvas Camp
Jan Fasting was responsible for safety and route planning for a Norwegian reality series (71° North) for 12 years. Before that, he trained in sports, is a former member of the Norwegian Navy Special Forces and was a member of the Norwegian elite in river paddling. Jan also has experience as a mountain and bike guide and is not only super personable, but together with his seasonal staff he literally takes care of everything at the camp.
While travelling in 2006, he met his future business partner Per Kveim, who owns the land around the camp. Jan was living in a tent on the island where the Canvas Hotel is located today. While he was there, the idea of creating a remote luxury hotel especially for mountain bikers was born. The Canvas Camp opened for guests in 2010.
The nature here is completely unique and I could see that it had enormous potential for trail cycling. - Jan Fasting, Founder Canvas Camp
Night in camp
The first day is over quicker than I would have liked, I could have done a few more kilometres thanks to the motor support of my Scott bike. But our guide, Tarja, directs us back to camp. The sauna is heated up and the food is ready. I don't bother cooling off in the lake - the water is very fresh - but the food afterwards is all the more welcome. In addition to the small chill-out island, people are also hanging out in the lounge and outside for a long time that evening at Canvas Camp. The peace and quiet is simply infectious - the evening lasts even longer than the day before. Especially as the two professionals Gully Gulevich and Remy Metailler tell jokes and exciting stories from their lives.
Responsibly built
The Norrona Canvas Hotel is an "off-grid" camp. The yurts have been placed on stilts. There is no infrastructure here. The hotel is built in such a way that it leaves no trace when it is dismantled. Solar panels, gas and wood burning are the main sources of energy and heat for food preparation. Electricity is only available in the communal areas for charging e-bikes, mobile phones or PCs.
Day 2 - Norrona Canvas Camp
As there is no more riding technique on the second day and everyone can now better assess the terrain, Jan Fastings himself does the honours. The camp boss takes us on an extended tour through "his" trails. He knows the trails by heart and takes every bend blindfolded. And Jan is fit. He says "a leisurely pace", but I struggle to keep up.
But the wild chase is worth it. Jan shows us the best bits, the 5-star spots by the lake and then another cliff.
In the end, I almost forgot that I was already heading back to civilisation and, above all, to Germany in the evening. The rhythm of eating, sleeping and cycling - it could go on like this for at least a few more days. In such pleasant company, all united by the fact that they enjoy being on their bikes, love the outdoor life and, like me, would have loved to indulge in this rhythm for longer.
Norrona Canvas Camp: Price & features
- Breakfast, lunch and 3-course menu in the evening
- Sauna and/or whirlpool, hot tub
- Bike guide for tours
- Peace and quiet in nature
Just to be on the safe side: the camp is designed as such. So if you find it difficult to socialise or prefer to ride your bike alone, you should perhaps find somewhere else to stay. Because those who come here, perhaps even for the second time, want exactly that: to experience everything the Norrona Camp has to offer together. Oh yes, and in summer there are supposed to be mosquitoes at the many water areas there...
Marc Strucken
Editor
