In the middle of the Norwegian mountain plains lies a very well preserved airplane wreck all by itself. As soon as we heard, we had to go explore.

A few years ago we travelled to Maridalen north of Norway’s capital Oslo to find an airplane wreck. In full Indiana Jones style we excavated a wreck from the 1940’s from the snow.

This was very exciting and we could barely believe that something like that is still just lying around in the forest, without being cordoned off or sheltered from harsh weather. Later we heard a rumour about another and even better preserved airplane wreck in Norway. And to add to this it also is substantially larger. This was allegedly not only the best preserved airplane wreck in Norway, but among the best preserved in Europe.

Excited we therefore jumped in the car and drove to Ringebu north of Lillehammer, near Øverlihøgda to be more precise.

The airplane is a Junker JU 52, a large airplane almost 19 meters long and 30 meters wide. This particular airplane took off on its final flight a snowy day in October of 1942. Departing from Fornebu in the capital of Oslo the airplane was headed northbound. On the way ice on the wings forced an emergency landing. Despite the relatively open plains at Øverlihøygda it was far from a runway and the pilot lost his life during the landing. Another crew member also lost his life in the following hours. Five others survived and got to safety.

Even on a snow free summer day it is 8 kilometers to walk from the nearest road. In 1942 this must have been a challenging walk in the snow in shock after the emergency landing and loss of friends and colleagues.

As we arrived at Ringebu the scene was very different; the sun shining over the mountain plains, a trekking path to one of Norway’s most visited hiking destinations passing by and a cabin belonging to the Norwegian Trekking Association (DNT) just 1.5 kilometers from our starting point. Not a bad start to the trip.

Around the cabin and shortly after we ran into some really nice people. After that all turned to silence. Just us and the open landscape as far as the eye could see.

There is a path all the way to the wreck and it is quite well marked. About half way the path splits and it is important to go in the correct direction. We, on the other hand, did not choose this wisely and didn’t realise our mistake until we had walked quite far. We therefore decided to go off the beaten path and cut across to the correct trail. Unfortunately there were marshlands in between and this turned a lot less pleasant than expected.

Thankfully our luck changed for the better and we found our way back on the right path again, where a small dark object was sticking out of the landscape. Is it a rock? Or is it… an airplane wreck!

The closer we got, the more it grew in size. As we finally reached it we were surprised not only by the sheer size of the wreck, but also by how intact it was. Seeing something like this was very special; not only is it uncommon to see an airplane wreck in the middle of some mountain plains, there is also quite a story behind it.

Going to a museum you will see things that have been moved, restored and made available to the public for practical viewing. This was something very different. The airplane wreck stood before us right where it crashed. Knowing that right here an airplane had gone down 77 years earlier in the middle of the largest war ever seen. That two people had died right next to where we were standing, that others had moved right by us, fighting in the snow for their very survival. All of this, with no fences, no protection or anything else. Just lying there, on the Norwegian mountain plains all in the open. That was such a strange feeling.

Even though the airplane was well preserved something was still missing, namely the tail. While there was little information about the airplane wreck there was even less about the the tail. Still, we had heard rumours that it was located nearby. After pitching the tent we therefore got ready to go on another hike seeking to find the tail.

Finding something in such an open landscape should be easy in theory, but we almost walked into the tail before we spotted it. In a small depression about 730 meters from the main wreck we found the large chuck of metal that undoubtedly had once been an airplane tail. How it ended up so far from the rest of the wreck we do not know. Did the airplane hit the ground and broke off the tail before sliding further away or did someone try to bring it home and gave up along the way?

Returning to our tent we found more metal parts across a large area. As we reached the top of a hill the airplane wreck once again came into view and we were reminded of how truly strange this sight was. Just as we decided to go to bed the sun set behind the massive mountains.

What a day. Compared to the history lessons at school about World War II this has definitively made a more lasting memory.

How to get there

Drive to Ringebu and continue along road FV385. Stop at a small parking space near Jammerdalsbu. From here there is a marked path to the DNT cabin. Continue on the path towards Øverlihøgda. Just after a small bridge crossing a river the path splits up. Keep to the left, the path is not as big as the one on the right, so make sure you go in the right direction. Continue along the path for another few kilometers. After about 8 km in total the airplane wreck comes into view, it is hard to miss.

See the map below for location of parking, the main wreck and tail. Ut.no also has a good description of the hike here (in Norwegian).

Interested in airplane wrecks? We have visited the airplane wreck in Oslo both in winter and in summer.

Remember to always step carefully around airplane wrecks like these and never take anything from the sites.