On the way to Hardagervidda
Peaks visited:
| Peak | Height | PF | Location |
| Batnehov | 845m | 107m | Vinje |
| Haraldshovde | 1289m | 160m | Tinn |
Batnehov
Monday morning; we checked out of Hotel Dalen in Telemark and sat course for the Kalvhovd tourist hut in the outskirts of Hardangervidda. When we passed lake Totak, it was time to let Karma out of the car, and as it happened – there was a pf100 mountain top nearby; Batnehov.
Batnehov was a so-called “bonus top“; only 0,7km+ and ~90 vertical meters to the top, in other words; very little effort.
The only issue was that it had been raining and the grass was wet. I was soaking wet from the waist down after a few minutes.
Anne waited in the car. Karma and I got up in 13 minutes and returned to the car – not where we headed out from – but down by the main road, 22 minutes after heading out. Karma got her lunch walk, I had got myself a new top and we could continue towards Kalhovd with increased spirit…
Vemork
We continued to the town Rjukan, seated deep below high peaks, such as Gaustadtoppen. Anne hadn’t been to Vemork before, so we decided to take the walk up to the historic building. The story from WW2 is quite dramatic and too long to touch on here, but you will find some interesting information on the internet. Search for “Norwegian heavy water sabotage“.
Haraldshovde
After a round of shopping in Rjukan, we continued towards Kalhovd. This tourist hut is located in the eastern outskirts of the Hardangervidda mountain plateau, and a bit outside the national park. We drove to lake Tinnsjøen, where we turned north at Mårem and aimed for the toll road to Kalhovd.
Kalhovd was a busy place. We had told them we had a dog, but got a 4-bed room. The thought of sharing room with two others, not familiar with our dog, stressed me. The girl at the Kalhovd front desk was very friendly and said she could probably promise us the room to ourselves the first night. Good enough for now. We checked in and went out for the afternoon activities.
I decided to hike Haraldshovde, while Anne wanted to bike from Kalhovd, in the same direction. The Haraldshovde trailhead was just a 4,5km drive from Kalhovd and the hike up the mountain was only 2,1km.
I was very pleased having bagged my second pf100 top for the day, although the effort had been moderate. I was confident this would “even out” during our stay.
As Karma and I headed down from Haraldshovde, Anne reported that she was close by. We met by the car and she stayed “on my tail” for a while, until I got tired by driving in 15km/h.
Later in the afternoon, it was time for the regular 3-course dinner. The couple running Kalhovd introduced the dinner in a very enjoyable way, and although I feared getting company in our room, I decided to like this place. We would stay for another 3 days, and I could see my list of new tops growing by the minute…
Pictures from the day
