Nordre Høyholmstind, June 30 2016

Mom gets a proper high…

Peaks visited:

Peak Height PF Municipality Location
Nordre Høyholmstind – east top 1015m 705m Vevelstad GPX
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Høyholmstindan. The east top to the left.

Summer vacation 2016 continued…

Anne and I were back in Brønnøysund after some fantastic days in Lofoten. The day before was spent on “island hopping” when we visited the high points on Mindlandet, Tro and Hamnøya. On Hamnøya, I got the idea to invite mom and Anne to visit Nordre Høyholmstind (1015m) as soon as the weather permitted. And as the forecast for the next day was just great, I presented my proposal in the afternoon. Mom argued that this was a high peak for a 71-year old woman, and she had already been on a long hike that day. But she also knew that the opportunity for a guided trip to this mountain would not come around too often and signed up…

Although the official map refers to the two tops on this massif as Høyholmstindan (plural), I prefer to call them Nordre Høyholmstindan. I have often heard that Saltkartinden and Stortinden – and even Hornstinden – are referred to as Søndre Høyholmstindan. Nordre Høyholmstindan has two distinct peaks; the eastern top is 1015m and clearly the highest. The western top seems to barely exceed 1000m but has no exact height on the map. It’s a shame that they do not have individual names. This report describes our trip to the eastern top at 1015m.   

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Northern and Southern Høyholmstindan. The northwest top to the right

After breakfast the next morning, we drove to Horn and took the 08:50am ferry to Andalsvågen. On the ferry, we met Asta Høyland (mom and I are FB friends with Asta) – also going to Høyholmstinden. From Andalsvågen, we drove the trailhead at Ytrehaugen (approx. halfway between Andalsvågen and Forvik). As we needed some time to prepare our backpacks, Asta decided to get going.

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Trailhead info

The path was not marked in the beginning, which was a bit strange. The path showed on the map, and there was also a map at the trailhead. But it was not marked. We had seen Asta walk to the left of the red barn, and then along the outskirts of the crop field and head into the forest (through a gate), which was really helpful. Once in the forest, the path was visible and shortly after, the first red paint appeared.

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Heading out. We’re passing the barn (left) and then go into the forest

The terrain got gradually steeper but the path was still easy to follow. We passed a very distinct rock, high above Sandosbekken (creek) and my natural instinct told me to do something exposed. But as I didn’t quite trust the rock, I decided to leave it alone.

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No balancing on rock today…

The path now turned south and traversed over to Drogsåa (creek) where we could refill our water bottles. We continued south until we reached one more creek, and from here on the direction was southeast – straight towards Høyholmtinden’s north ridge. The map calls this ridge Brenndalstinden. I’m not sure what Brenndalstinden really is. The name suggests it’s a peak, but the only peaks up here are the two Nordre Høyholmstindan peaks.

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Easy terrain. Up to the left in front of the ridge

We aimed for a pitch of snow that seemed like a good route up to Brenndalstinden, and we could see Asta up there. If the snow had been hard, we would have to look for another route up the mountain. But today, the snow had a soft crust and was easy to walk on.

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On the way to Brenndalstinden. Asta is on the upper snow field

Soon, we were on Brenndalstinden and could see Høyholmstinden above us. The snow on the ridge would not cause any problems. And mom was still going strong. We would definitely reach the top today!

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The summit is close!
Halfway up the north ridge, I came across a cap which I assumed was Asta’s. I picked it up, assuming she was sitting on the summit. Actually, she was sitting just below the summit, and I couldn’t restrain myself from the first (and only) prank of the day. I dropped the cap, which landed next to her. And then came the scream…
Shortly after, Anne, mom and Karma followed and we could all enjoy a nice break and the wonderful views that this peak has to offer.
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On top of Nordre Høyholmstind – the eastern top
There’s so many hikes in the surrounding wilderness (yes, I call it wilderness) that Anne and I would like to do. We’ve seen a LOT of the Helgeland coastline, but not so much of the inland mountains – Børgefjell included.
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A view towards the Sør-Helgeland wilderness

Then we talked about Høyholmstindan’s western top. Asta had not been there, and was surprised when I told her that I came across that top in August 2008. She didn’t think it was possible to go that way. But if you like scrambling the route between the two tops is just fun.

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Nordre Høyholmstindan’s west top

After a good stay on top, it was time to head back down. We took the same way down, but stopped to have some fun down by the big boulders below Brenndalstinden.

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Descending

At Drogsåa, Asta told us she would lay down in the grass and enjoy the mountain (and more coffee) a little bit longer. The rest of us went back down to the trailhead and arrived at the car 2:50pm – 5h:15m after heading out.

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Mom and Asta on the way down from Høyholmstindan
I was really happy about having visited this beautiful mountain again. And being up here with Anne and mom also was a big bonus.
Trip statistics: 9,7km, 1015 vertical meters, 5h:15m. 
The trip report from my hike in 2008 can be found here.
Pictures from the hike: 

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