Guro and Lars Krempig

Lars is a writer and nature photographer and works as a teacher at Alta Folk High School. Guro is his eldest daughter. In recent years, they have become known through the Norwegian TV series Villmarksbarna (Wilderness Children), which has also been released as a cinema film. The family was voted as the Wilderness People of the Year in 2015.

Few, if any, have as much experience as Lars and Guro when it comes to taking an entire family on a wilderness expedition. We have concentrated many decades of experience into six days. We look forward to helping you experience the winter outdoor life.

Winter holiday

The course takes place in week 8 (2024), which is the week when many Norwegians spend their winter holidays. This course gives participants an opportunity to take part in an experience that they will remember for the rest of their lives. Experience the winter, Northern Lights, skiing, frost, overnight stays in tents, polar dogs and bonfires in exotic Finnmark.

Who is this course suitable for?

It’s particularly suitable for families with children aged 9-10. It’s designed for those who want to learn more about outdoor life and how to make this a positive experience for younger children as well. We will arrange for everyone involved to learn the art of winter outdoor life and for the families to become confident about the small things that are likely to make winter outdoor life their favourite activity.

Where will the course be held?

Most of the course will take place in the area around the Jotka Fjellstue mountain lodge, which is located on the edge of the Finnmarksvidda mountain plateau. This area has small fishing lakes that we will fish in, birch trees to make a fire with and beautiful nature aplenty that will inspire you and your family to find your own winter outdoor paradise. As the annual Finnmarksløpet sled dog race takes place in this area, it’s natural to take huskies that are used to children with us on the trip.

During the course, we will also go on a ski expedition and spend one night at the mountain lodge and two nights in tents. We won’t focus on skiing very far on these days (6-8 km each day). Instead, we will focus on having a good time and going through the points needed to have an enjoyable rime on winter outdoor experiences.

Course content

Topics include what a sensible equipment list should look like, clothing, practice setting up tents and building shelter walls, cooking in the tent, ski equipment and waxing skis, polar dogs and expedition sleds. Everyone will  get to fire up the primus stove. We will also talk about the little tricks necessary for the trip to be successful.

Polar dogs

It’s a big advantage on trips like this to be accompanied by polar dogs. The Alaskan husky, which is the same type of dog used in the Finnmarkløpet sled dog race, is super-social and extremely strong. They love going on winter expeditions, helping and being with people. The huskies will pull the expedition sled on our winter trips, which is wonderful help. This makes it possible to have plenty of clothes, good food and a few extra treats.

For those familiar with Villmarksbarna, perhaps Narve will stop by the camp. He knows a few outdoor tricks too!