Last days of 2025 around Tynset

It has become a family tradition for us to spend the last days of the year in the Tynset region. This year we stayed in two places - first, a couple of days in a cosy old cabin near Kvebergstjønna, and then in an amazing little house in Fådal, just 5 km from Savalen lake. 

The area around Kvebergstjønna offers great views and some nice cross country skiing routes. It was a big contrast to snowless Oslo. 

Kvebergstjønna is supposed to have good trout and arctic char populations, but on the day I tried icefishing there, nothing was biting. Still, it was a good opportunity to test my new (half home-made) pulk and to grill in the local gapahuk. 

It was time to move to Savalen. My first ice-fishing day there did not start very smoothly. I stepped right into a pool of water on the ice near the shore. I didn’t notice it because it was still dark, and there were tracks there. It was only about 50 cm deep, but I ended up lying in the water and had to drive back to change into dry clothes. As a result, I started fishing an hour later and also had to pay the toll twice. But there was a positive side to the day as well: I met Gaute on the ice, a nice man who runs an online ice-fishing shop called Isfiskebue. He gave me some good advice on when and where to fish—and he also gave me three nice fish. So I ended up with five fish for dinner and drove home after two hours. 

The key to fishing at Savalen is to start early (very early) and find the right spot and depth. A combination of a char lure, a red blinking light, and a fly with maggots usually works well. I fished four mornings and caught some nice fish every day. Such early start is actually good for a family holiday, because you can leave the ice at around 10:30–11:00 and still have time to go skiing or sledging. 

These are the places where I fished. At the southernmost spot, the fish were very active from 07:00 and stopped biting after 09:00. The northern spots were deeper (8–10 m), and the fish started biting later—around 09:00—and stayed active until about 10:00. 

Nacreous (pearly) clouds (perlemorskyer), or polar stratospheric clouds, are clouds that form in the stratosphere during winter at altitudes of 25,000–30,000 metres.

Before a lot of snow arrived, we went on a little expedition to explore the ice, using a spark (kick sled), our favourite local way to get around.

Locals really use them in Tynset, too.