POND HOCKEY

Just outside Oslo, ponds and small lakes become natural arenas for ice skating. Urban dwellers grab whatever skates they can find — usually old, sometimes the wrong size — but that rarely stops us. If there’s ice, you’ll find us on it. On this particular day, we left the office, recruited a few friends — also known as Iskrigere (Ice Warriors) — from Vålerenga Hockey, and headed up to Øvresetertjern. The name literally means “the upper mountain pasture,” a fitting description as it sits quietly above the capital, close yet far enough away. 

King Winter had made his official arrival the night before, laying a light, fluffy coat of snow across the pond. Armed with shovels, we cleared a rink just big enough for a 2-on-2 game. Once the ice was ready, the puck dropped and it was game on. High tempo, crashes, slides, and goals. We played until darkness fell — and then kept going. With headlamps on our foreheads, we stretched the short Oslo daylight a little further. We’ll tell more another time about the Norwegian relationship with headlamps — a trusted companion for extending the day.