Norway is typically known for cold temperatures and bad weather, especially in the northern parts of the country. But not this year. I spent just under two weeks up north this summer (with a small mission into Sweden), and it was close to 30 degrees almost every day.
My main motivation for heading north each year is the Vefsna River Festival. It’s the third and final kayaking festival of the season in Norway, and personally, my favourite. The combination of great big water, fun creeks and friendly people always makes it an amazing week. Unlike Ekstremsportveko and Sjoa Fest, everyone camps in the same spot, which makes it way easier to find people to paddle with.
There were two main highlights from this year’s festival, first, the fun mining lap with my Palm Groms rmentor Joe Rea-Dickins and his partner in crime Rhys Thomson, where they guided a group of us down three sections of the Vefsna over six hours, showing every single playspot, kickflip launch pad and eddy line. Secondly, the Big Ball Race down the canyon section of the Vefsna. The concept is simple: each team gets a yoga ball, and the goal is to get it across the finish line first. Big waves, yoga balls, and kayakers flying everywhere made for some hilarious carnage and interesting lines.
Another highlight from my time up north was the Susna, one of my all-time favourite rivers. Being able to paddle it without a dry top made it even better, something I’ve never done before in Norway. The Susna is a super fun pool-drop river with lots of great moves but the highlight is definitely the Shower Boof: a 4–5 meter tall boof with no hole at the bottom, a soft landing and a perfect lip for throwing freestyle moves. I first ran it when I was 12, and I’ve returned every year since, improving my lines each time.
Back at the festival camp, I was told about a relatively unknown gem on the Swedish side of the border, a river that was supposedly “like Susna, but for 20 kilometers.” After a week of sunshine and great kayaking around the Vefsna, a group of us decided to go check it out. What struck me as odd was that there were no pictures of the river on the Whitewater Guide and only a very short description. If it was really that good, surely someone would’ve documented it?
Still a bit skeptical, we went for it, and I’m glad we did! The Gaustad river turned out to be one of the best rivers I’ve ever paddled. Beautiful scenery, amazing Class IV/V slides and boofs and completely pool-drop style. As a Norwegian it kind of hurts to admit but one of my favourite rivers might actually be in Sweden. If you ever find yourself in the Vefsna area, I highly recommend checking it out!
