For most Iowa State graduates, getting a job is a first priority. For Kaare Oien, it is second.

Last semester, Oien was an exchange student at ISU obtaining his master’s degree in chemical engineering.

After graduating, he returned to his homeland of Norway with the idea of skiing across it.

On Jan. 10, Oien began his trek in Lindesnes, on the southernmost point of Norway, with the hopes of completing the trip to Nordkapp by the end of May.

He estimated the total distance to be about 1,800 miles — about the same distance from Ames to San Francisco.

So far, the trip has taken Oien through some of the most desolate areas of Norway — complete with blizzards and temperatures in the 20 below range.

Though he has met up with people along the way, only one companion is constant — his dog Jonatan.

A Web site of Oien’s journey is being maintained by Oien’s Norwegian friend Marius Krogh. The site, which may be viewed at www.travel.to/nordkapp99, includes maps and a diary detailing his progress.

An excerpt from his diary translated into English describes the extreme conditions Oien faced on one particular day.

“We’ve had a lot of snow, and the going is slow. Visibility is very low. We almost fell off a 15 meter overhang! Everything is white — can’t see the outline of anything. We’ve fallen off some small snowdrifts, and some of the equipment is broken. Where will this end up?”

Another, more optimistic entry states: “Another cold morning, but what a morning! No clouds and absolutely incredible colors. White mountains against the clear blue sky. Absolutely unbelievable!”

Krogh said most communication between him and Oien is one-way. Oien writes letters and mails them whenever he reaches a mailbox. After receiving the letters, Krogh posts them on the Web site.

“This system is pretty inconsistent,” Krogh said. He added that sometimes there are weeklong gaps between letters from Oien.

Some ISU students also are following the progress of Oien since hearing about his plans last semester.

“He was really looking forward to this,” said Asbjorn Larsen, senior in industrial engineering from Norway. “I think he does it to mark the end of his studies and the start of his career.”

Laila Fosse, senior in civil engineering, said Oien has dreamed about this undertaking for a long time.

“He was also thinking about skiing other places — possibly even on Greenland,” she said.

Oien’s last entry on the Web site is from Feb. 14 from the town Otta. It appears that he is still in good spirits.