UPDATED: After the warmest December on record, Oslo, Bergen and much of the rest of Norway were heading into the Christmas holidays with little if any snow. The lack of “normal” winter weather was ruining lots of Norwegian holiday rituals, and prompting families to change their plans.
With no snow for skiing, sledding or sleigh-riding, annual Christmas trips to family hytter (cabins) just wouldn’t be the same. Some were giving up holidays at the hytte and opting to stay home. Museums in some cities were staying open on days when they’re usually closed.
Heavy rain was predicted in Northern Norway, the only part of the country where the weather had been cold and with lots of snow. An abrupt change in temperatures combined with rain quickly made roads hazardous as they turned into solid ice. Police posted warnings against driving, also on the main road between Vadsø and Vardø in Finnmark.
By Christmas Eve, state meteorologists were also posting warnings of strong winds and avalanches from Hammerfest in the north to Bodø farther south. It was also due to be raining and sleeting in Tromsø, weather officially deemed as “unusual” at this time of year. Flood warnings were also posted.
Meanwhile the sun was shining brightly during the roughly five hours it’s up in Southern Norway (Sørlandet, Østlandet and Vestlandet) and temperatures fell below the freezing point just before the Christmas holidays began. There was no snow, though, nor any in the immediate forecast.
The lower temperatures at higher elevations enabled some ski resorts to turn on their snow cannons and hope the artificial snow would last this time. A cold snap in November had raised hopes at alpine skiing centers, but then most all the snow that had been made melted away.
There were few prospects for new snow to fall either. “There’s a high-pressure system lying over Sørlandet (the southern tip of Norway), Østlandet (the area extending from Oslo south and east to the Swedish border) and Vestlandet (the West Coast and fjord area),” said Magnus Ovhed of the state Meteorological Institute. “That will give us only slightly cloudy or clear skies.” In other words, no snow.
He and his colleagues were predicting a change in the weather between Christmas and New Year, known as romjul in Norway. The weather may get colder, he said, “and the mild rain can turn into some powerful snowstorms, but it’s still uncertain how far south that will reach.”
NewsinEnglish.no staff
