Norway headed into a five-day Easter holiday weekend on Wednesday with rain pouring down in Oslo and wet, cloudy weather dashing dreams of spring skiing under blue skies. The best Easter weather was found in northern Norway.
State meteorologists didn’t offer much hope for residents and holidaymakers in southern Norway. Rain or sleet was predicted into next week, with snow at higher elevations but of the wet and heavy kind.
Avalanche warnings were in place and Red Cross crews were standing by, after heavy snows and warmer temperatures set off a string of snow- and rock-slides in recent weeks. The rain and new snowfalls weren’t helping.
Easter tourists north of Trøndelag were having the best luck with their holidays. Skiing conditions were called “pretty close to perfect” on the Finnmark plateau, while non-skiers flocked outdoors to parks and walks along the coastline.
There was some chance of short glimpses of sunshine in the most southern parts of the country (Sørlandet) while conditions would vary along the west coast. Stormy weather over the mountains of southern Norway made driving conditions hazardous, and some highways enforced convoys, only allowing cars to venture over the high mountain plateaus in groups.
Hunkering down indoors
The bad weather made it easier to justify staying indoors for the roughly 6,000 youngsters attending the annual computer fair in Hamar known as “The Gathering.” They started lining up outside the former Olympic speed skating stadium called Vikingskipet early on Wednesday, to be among the first to find prime places inside when doors opened.
They’ll spend the next five days playing computer games, sharing expertise and generally “nerding” their time away. The Gathering is ranked as the world’s second-largest organized computer meeting after Dreamhack in Sweden.
Views and News from Norway/Nina Berglund
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