The best hike so far in 2016
Peaks visited:
| Peak | Height | PF | Municipality | Location |
| Sveddalstinden | 1042m | 132m | Ørsta | GPX |
| Nordre Raudfonndalstind | 1025m | 75m | Ørsta | |
| Midtre Raudfonndalstind | 1005m | 35m | Ørsta |
The following video clip summarizes the traverse from Nordre Raudfonndalstind to Midtre Raudfonndalstind. I think it speaks for itself. I was high as a kite for days..
The main purpose of this trip was to visit Sveddalstinden and Nordre Raudfonndalstind, located on the ridge between Romedalen and Langedalen.
I had already been to Høgehornet (1040m), Kjerringa (1130m), Mannen (1133m), Midtre Raudfonndalstind (1005m) and Årsæterhornet (1047m) and now I was just missing Sveddalstinden, Nordre Raudfonndalstind (1042m) and søre Raudfonndalstind (1049m).
I hiked/scrambled Midtre Raudfonndalstinnd on July 9 – from Langedalen, but As I didn’t know if I would be able to get from Midtre Raudfonndalstind to Nordre Raudfonndalstind, I decided to hike up from Romedalen. Based on pictures I’ve taken from Kolåstinden – the route looked steep, but doable.
I’ve later learned that the locals refer to Søre Raudfonndalstind as Heimste (closest) Raudfonndalstind and Midtre and Nordre Raudfonndalstind as Fremste (farthest away) Raudfonndalstind. I am however following the names defined on peakbook.org and propose that the locals contact the map authorities to get their names official.
I drove up Romedalen until I was aligned with the valley between Søre and Midtre Raudfonndalstind. I forded the river using an extra pair of boots that I left behind by the river. There was hardly any water in the river, so the crossing was easy.
Then I headed up the forest and followed deer tracks upwards. I had expected that this could be a nightmare hike but the forest ascent went remarkably well. Instead of following the river into the valley below Søre and Midtre, I ascended steeply up to the right and came into the “bowl” below Midtre and Nordre. From here, the ascent to Sveddalstinden was very easy (use of hands not needed)
It was really good to reach the top of Sveddalstinden. For long, I thought that this would be a top I couldn’t reach without climbing. And now I had learned that there are two routes (the other being from Langedalen, via Midtre Raudfonndalstind) to this top where a rope is not mandatory.
Then I sat course for Nordre Raudfonndalstind. I was confident that I would have to go around this summit and come up from the back side. The north ridge looked way too spooky. But at least I could take a look at it, and upon closer contact it wasn’t all bad. There was a pitch where I had to ask myself if I really was in my comfort zone, but I realized I would have to start climbing to find out.
Once above this pitch, I felt that anything was possible. And I really needed that boost of self-confidence because the ridge across Nordre Raudfonndalstind was AIRY AND EXPOSED!
I am neither an old climber nor a bold climber. But as long as the handholds are good, I am OK with exposed terrain. However, I had to bypass two points on the ridge towards Midtre Raudfonndalstind. On the first point, I wasn’t able to get into a position where I could – SAFELY – climb backwards down a narrow section on the ridge.
The second point I bypassed was a short, steep drop where I could have climbed down if I had taken extra time to find the best solution. But I wanted to get home before it got too late.
Finally, I came to the saddle between Midtre and Nordre and concluded that a direct ascent up the ridge wasn’t something I was interested in doing. Instead, I seeked further to the left and found a series of small ledges that brought me up to Midtre’s east ridge. And two minutes later, I was standing on top of Midtre Raudfonndalstind for the 2nd time in 12 days.
On my way down, I wanted to see if I could follow the east ridge further down and get back into the “bowl” closer to the place I entered it. This ridge was – if possible – even more narrow than the ridge across Nordre Raudfonndalstind and I was having the time of my life. Clearly the best hike in 2016!
The terrain was quite unforgiving in the sense that one wrong move could have been fatal, and I can understand those who will never understand why some of us do this. But hopefully, others like me will see the beauty of this wonderful part of Ørsta.
Getting off the ridge and down into the bowl was a new exciting moment. There are not many places where you – SAFELY – can do this, but I found a route that was both fairly safe and quite easy. And instead of having to descend on large boulder, I could slide on snow all the way into the bowl.
Back on my ascent route, I more or less stuck to it down to the river. This section was quite steep (but not exposed) and it was a struggle to avoid slipping. From the river and back down, I just followed openings in the forest and didn’t attempt to stick to my ascent route.
I returned to the trailhead 8:23pm, 3h:15m after leaving the car. I had been high on adrenaline most of the trip, but now that the trip was over, I felt a touch of depression. Well, that’s perhaps not the correct word, but you know what I mean…
Now I’ve only got Søre Raudfonndalstind yet to do and I can’t wait to get there…
Pictures from the trip:
