1 Day 1
Meeting and planning
We meet in the early evening and talk through the course plan, your aim with the course, and your previous knowledge and experience.
Alpine expedition course · Jostedalsbreen
Alpine expedition course
A private course, built around your goals.
30+ years of courses and guiding
Guides with experience from their own expeditions
Private course – your dates
Glacier equipment included
Course aim
Prepare for expeditions involving glaciers and steep snow.
Join our alpine expedition course and learn all you need to prepare and conduct your own expedition. Or use it as a preparation for participating in advanced expeditions led by others.
Our Alpine expedition course aims to prepare you for expeditions involving glaciers and steep snow. The skills we cover include basic and advanced walking and climbing in the blue ice areas, route selection through difficult areas of the glacier, rescuing on snow and ice, safe climbing in steep snow, use of fixed ropes, first aid, navigation, avalanche awareness and expedition camping on snow-covered glacier.
After the course you can take your first steps towards expeditions in the Arctic and Himalaya.
Demands
This is an advanced course that demands a lot from you physically. It is also a prerequisite that you have experience from climbing and glaciers before you come. The more you know, the more you can learn from this course.
Guides and equipment
This course includes certified guides with experience from their own expeditions. We expect you to have most of the climbing equipment, but we supplement what you need without extra cost.
Enquire and book
Tell us about your plans.
This is a private course. Send us a message with your preferred dates, how many you are, and your experience with climbing and glaciers. We will get back to you with a suggestion and a price.
Price from
kr 26 000
- Per person
- Seven days on Jostedalsbreen
- Dates and content adjusted to you
- Glacier equipment hire and certified guide included
Or call us: +47 917 23 314
Send an enquiry
We usually answer within a couple of days.
Course programme
Seven days on Jostedalsbreen.
The programme is a suggestion. For private courses, the course content can be adjusted to your needs.
2 Day 2
Blue ice
The blue ice part of the glacier is the focus this day. We start with basic repetition of walking techniques, use of equipment and ice screws. Then we move into the ice formations to learn and practise our use of the rope and ice screws to protect us.
3 Day 3
Icefall and crevasse rescue
We start the day by selecting a challenging route through an icefall, and use our knowledge and skills to get through it. Then we arrange for a fall into a crevasse, and practise rescuing the rest of the day. First, we rescue using simple principles, then we move on to more advanced and effective methods.
4 Day 4
Into the glacier
We pack our tents and move on to the glacier. With large packs, we first select a route through the icefall. A particularly challenging part is the area when we go into the snow-covered glacier, with thin snow bridges. Then we continue further into the glacier where we select a camp site on snow.
5 Day 5
Rescue, steep snow and fixed ropes
Based on the advanced camp on the glacier, we practise rescuing from snow-covered crevasses the first part of the day, further developing into effective methods of rescuing a person that is injured. Then we practise how to move safely in steep snow, and how to prevent and stop falls in different ways. We also set fixed ropes and test their safety.
6 Day 6
Summit or steep snow
This day we do one of two, based on your wish. We can move onto a summit from the camp. Navigating, steep snow, crossing snow-covered crevasses, and using fixed ropes will all be part of this day. Or we can use the entire day to practise safe movement in steep snow. In the evening we return to our glacier camp.
7 Day 7
Back down
We pack down the camp and return down the glacier with our large backpacks. The course is finished with an evaluation in the afternoon.
Reviews
What others say about our courses.
Jonas Elliot B.
2 weeks ago
Very competent guide and thorough apprentice
Sophie S
3 months ago
I joined the beginners glacier course in August and would highly recommend. It was well run, delivered in English and Norweigan, and I came away with a solid understanding of glacier safety and navigation. Also, a lot of fun with good people!
Christian C.
3 months ago
Good program, good instructor and educational. Recommended
Knut-Erik K.
4 months ago
Great course with a good and steady instructor. The instructor adapted the course along the way and made sure that everyone in the group would experience mastery and safe travel in the mountains!
Tim B.
4 months ago
Completed 2 courses at Breoppleving AS. Ove finds very skilled and competent instructors and has been doing this for a long time. The course program for the Climbing Courses is very rich in content compared to other courses. If the weather permits, you will get a lot of experiences: Climbing on a climbing wall, natural belays and beautiful high mountain ascents.
All equipment is also included in the course fee.
The price is a little higher than other courses, but they are often shorter and less rich in content. I feel that 6-7 days are necessary to become competent within the trad.
Turid D.
5 months ago
We have hiked Josten several times with Breoppleving. Their glacier guides are very skilled and have extensive experience. In addition to the trip, you will gain increased self-competence in rope-layer routines, winter camping and general travel on a glacier! Breoppleving's trip across Josten follows the original route, from Erdal ending down to Fjærland! The trip is demanding, but is experienced as social and fun! High satisfaction factor!!
Blandine B.
1 year ago
I took part of the glacier course in Jotunheimen with Ove and Dan, and it was the great experience I was looking for! They both were very communicative and taught us everything we needed to know, while allowing us to explore and try by ourselves, both as individuals and as a team. I would 100% recommend this course.
kine b
2 years ago
Was on a high school glacier course with the golden boy Runar as a skilled instructor. Informative course that was adapted to the level the group had and what we wanted to work on more.
Rik de J.
2 years ago
The course was amazing. It was above our expectations. We learned more than we expected and we did a lot of cool things. Especially the last two days were super cool. On friday we had great weather and climbed Kalven, which was an awesome hike. On Saterday we did soms ice climbing and rappeled down the most beautiful crevasse. We will remember this for a long time.
This whole week was so awesome because of Runar. He's a great guy that loves the mountains and we felt save throughout the whole course. He was taking good care of us, knowing our limits and teaching us not only about the glaciers but also about the evironment
Ulrica A.
3 years ago
I have taken both basic and advanced bree courses at Breoppleving. They are professional and have good instructors. We also had a lot of fun together on the course.
mattias G.
3 years ago
I had a great experience during the climbing course.
Good, experienced and skilled instructors. The course offers opportunities that are not particularly available on a daily basis. Consider having an experienced climber "hang over your shoulder" while you set belays.
The course site (Lom) provided an excellent opportunity to get to and from various tours and walls, as well as to buy things you needed in the center of Lom.
It was nice to have a sink and toilet available at the campsite, but it would have worked just as well without it.
The information sent out ahead of the course was complementary.
Geir M.
3 years ago
A great week on ice with good guides and many exciting people. This is fun for everyone 🙂
Martin F.
3 years ago
I am very satisfied with the course!
Thought it was educational and covered relevant parts. I feel ready to go out in a rope team with people who have taken the equivalent course to get to the top.
Runar was really good as an instructor, very committed, concerned about our safety and really decent!
p.s. Being on the glacier feels a bit like being on another planet. 👍
Hylke J.
3 years ago
We did the 3-day glacier course. Truly an amazing experience. We learned about walking on ice, on snow, navigating on a glacier, placing ice screws and about general gear management. We also practiced rescue techniques and did some ice climbing. The guide (Jonas) was very friendly and professional. Can certainly recommend!
Boo B.
6 years ago
We had a glacier course in Josterdalen with Marte and it was fantastic - our knowledgeable, patient and experienced guide taught us what a needed to know to navigate glaciers safely. We had a great time, learned a lot, in a beautiful place! (And we were lucky with the weather...!)
Marius D.
6 years ago
With no previous experience of rope climbing, I took part in a course run by Breoppleving in the summer of 2020. Based in Lom, we practiced theory and practice for 4 days together with two experienced instructors and finished the course with two summit trips. The first day of hiking went to Vesle Galdhøpiggen where we hiked up the glacier to the entrance and climbed four lengths of rope. On the second day of the tour, we summited Store Austanbottentind with a rope team and running belays. Two wonderful trips that are memories for life, where we got to practice what we had learned. The instructors were educational, patient and made all the participants (varying experience with rope climbing) feel safe in exposed but wonderful surroundings. Recommended for anyone who is new to climbing and summit climbing in alpine terrain!
Location
Jostedalsbreen
This course will be held at Jostedalsbreen, the largest glacier in mainland Europe, where there is a large area to practise, such as large icefalls, blue ice, crevasses hidden under the snow, and peaks.
Your own expedition
Plan the course with us.
The price is per person and includes glacier equipment hire and instruction from a certified guide.