The mountains of Southern Norway are supposed to be welcoming summer tourists, hikers and cyclists at this time of year, but folks in Sognefjellet, Valdresflyet and Hardangervidda woke up Tuesday to find wet snow that had dusted the landscape. With more snow expected this week, highway officials are urging caution when driving on mountain roads.
All mountain passes remained open but the asphalt can be slick. State broadcaster NRK reported that highway officials at Statens vegvesen aren’t demanding a shift to winter tires, but warn that relatively cold temperatures are forecast for the rest of the week. “Drive in accordance with weather conditions,” was their standard advice.
The snow that fell just two days before midsummer and this weekend’s summer holiday kickoff known as Sankthans in Norway is not entirely unknown but marks a big change from the heat wave that settled over Southern Norway in May and early June.
“We can have variation in temperatures in the summer, and this (snow in June) happens now and then,” Roger Nedberge Hille of Statens vegvesen told NRK. More snow was predicted at elevations from 1,400 meters and higher.
newsinenglish.no staff
