In short – a lot of wind and rain – and deep snow…
Peaks visited:
| Peak | Height | PF | Location | WCP |
| Rjåhornet | 421m | 68m | Herøy, M&R, Norway | WCP |
| Kiberget | 438m | 65m | Ulstein, Norway | WCP |
| Breidfjellet | 535m | 72m | Ulstein, Norway | WCP |
| Gyrinakken | 365m | 157m | Herøy, M&R, Norway | WCP |
| Laupsnipa | 562m | 380m | Herøy, M&R, Norway | WCP |
| Huldrehornet | 271m | 113m | Herøy, M&R, Norway | WCP |
| Storehornet | 196m | 74m | Herøy, M&R, Norway | WCP |
| Igesundhetta | 216m | 216m | Herøy, M&R, Norway | WCP |
| Hornseten | 190m | 152m | Herøy, M&R, Norway | WCP |
Rjåhornet (600m), Hillehornet (211m), Mar 10 2020
Tuesday: It feels a bit strange to begin the hiking week on a Tuesday. What happened on Monday? Nothing much, except that I was tired after the working day and then driving from Sogndal to Sunnmøre, where the weather got gradually worse the closer I got to home. Once home, I had no energy or interest to do anything else than walk the dog around the block.
I woke up on Tuesday to a stunning red sky and “a flat battery“. No, it wasn’t the Corona virus, but something unknown that I’ve been struggling with since early December. Taking the dog out was a project in itself.
After work, I decided to hike Rjåhornet even though I really wanted to rest. So why did I go? The short answer is that I always feel better after a hike, than if I skip it. If I can just get across the doorstep. Which didn’t happen the day before…
After recent rain, there was hardly any snow left on the mountain, which was just fine by me. I was not in the mood for skiing anyway.
As we got higher, it was starting to get really windy and I considered to go around the mountain, as the wind normally reaches inferno level on days like these.
But today, the wind force didn’t seem to rise proportionally to the elevation, and so we took the normal route up to the top.
There was light rain in the air, and as the neighbour mountains didn’t seem to do to well, we didn’t stay long. On the way down, we went across Hillehornet – a hump that I hadn’t been to for several years.
And as suspected – I felt MUCH better after the hike than before the hike.
Trip statistics: 6,4km, 660 vertical meters, 1h:38m
Kiberget (438m), Breifjellet (424m), Mar 11 2020
Wednesday: Another rainy and windy day, and I didn’t feel too creative in terms of hiking. I ended up driving to Ulsteinvik to walk familiar paths, still hoping to discover some new.
We started out at Gamleeidet and followed the new mountain road for a little while, before we got onto the Kiberget path.
Once we reached the Kiberget ridge, the wind was really strong. Any idea about going any higher than Kiberget was immediately dropped.
The Sunnmøre alps did not look like a nice place to be in right now…
I kept an eye out for incoming weather (of the ill sort), but so far it seemed that we were in the clear.
Things looked way better further north…
After visiting Kiberget, we hiked over to Breifjellet. The wind wasn’t too bad, but the amount of snow didn’t invite for going further into the island. Progress would be too slow and I wanted to get off the mountain as soon as possible, if needed.
It wasn’t easy to tell if the *really* bad weather was coming our way our not.
So, we sat course for Høgskjerva (317m), from where I planned to hike down to Bugardsmyrane and follow the hiking trail back to Gamleeidet.
As we reached Høgskjerva, more rain came upon us and the fun part of this hike seemed to be over. Well, not quite. On the way down to Bugardsmyrane, I discovered a path that I wasn’t aware of, which I appreciated a lot. I really enjoy discovering new paths…
Finally, we returned to Gamleeidet and I was very happy that a warm house was only 15 minutes away…
Trip statistics: 8,4km, 460 vertical meters, 1h:55m
Gyrinakken (365m), Mar 13 2020
Friday: This was a day for the history books. Norway shut down schools, kindergartens, offices and people were sent home from work. My company told us to work from home and STAY at home. The seriousness of the Corona virus had hit the country with full power. There was just too much news to take in. Both our airlines suddenly looked like they wouldn’t survive. The oil price dropped like an anchor, sport and culture was shut down. Just to name a few. It seemed like Ragnarok was on its way.
It was just too much to take in. So, after work I took the dog for a walk to Gyrinakken and was faced with a much more pleasant problem – how the HELL do we get up there?
It started out quite easy, though. We followed the forest road from Vonheim, where there was hardly any snow at all.
Then I found the path to Brendeåsen (131m), where I hadn’t been before. So far, all good.
Then we went off-trail on the ridge towards Gyrinakken. The terrain was cumbersome, but nothing problematic.
But then we ran into more snow. A whole LOT MORE snow…
Eventually, there was so much snow that Gyrinakken seemed like Mt. Everest to me and Olympus Mons (Mars) to Karma. In many places, I had snow up to my waist and every step was a HUGE effort. Talk about the lee side of a mountain!
But, we’re not the quitting kind and eventually we reached the top.
We were blessed with some awesome light out in the ocean before I decided to call it a day and return home.
I wanted to follow the forest path, but how would I find it below all this snow? Well, the dog knew. Don’t ask me HOW a dog can follow a path with 100% precision without any tracks and smells? Quite mind-boggling.
Trip statistics: 6km, 350 vertical meters
Pictures (Canon EOS RP) from the hike:
Laupsnipa (562m), Mar 14 2020
Saturday: It didn’t rain and it didn’t snow. The weather seemed quite OK, so threw the skis into the car and drove away from home, ready to be inspired. But when I got onto the main road, I could see a high spindrift from all of the 600m tops all around. But Laupsnipa looked more quiet, so I decided to go there. Thinking about all the snow on Gyrinakken, surely Laupsnipa could offer some good skiing? From a distance, it didn’t look all bad.
At least we could ski from the car, but it was clear that on the way back, I would have to carry the skis for the final 100 vertical meters. Which wasn’t a bother, as long as I got some nice skiing on the mountain.
The clue to ski Laupsnipa – which is NEVER fully covered by snow – is to follow the “corridors”. This means good conditions for daddy and HARD work for Karma. But so far, it was going well for the both of us.
But as it got steeper, Karma ran into serious problems and I had to return and lift her up from the ditch she had dug, trying to make progress…
It turned out that Laupsnipa was a windy mountain today as well…
And when we reached the high point (Laupsnipa is now officially upgraded from 558m to 562m), I’m not sure if Karma was able to take in the views (top picture)…
Then we headed back to the cairn, ready for the descent. Karma had gotten her treats and was “game on”.
It really helps to know this mountain if you want to ski down from this mountain. As I said, there is never snow all over the place.
On the way down, we ran through all sorts of snow – soft, wind-packed, ice and hard crust.
But that didn’t matter at all, because I was able to take my skis to Laupsnipa – my #1 favorite skiing mountain on Gurskøy island, due to the fjord proximity – which doesn’t happen every year.
Trip statistics: 4,9km, 550 vertical meters, 1h:45m
Pictures (Canon EOS RP) from the trip:
Huldrehornet (271m), Mar 14 2020
Saturday: A bit later in the evening, I decided to hike Huldrehornet. Due to the low elevation, I decided to skip both the suit and the socks for Karma.
Once we got above the forest, there was more snow (of course) but not a whole lot of it.
Despite the low elevation, this mountain top was windy too. But it was nice to reach 800 vertical meters (in total) for the day.
Even Rjåhornet looked like a nice skiing mountain today. But the wind needs to calm down a notch or two before I go there. And by then, most of the snow has probably melted…
Trip statistics: 2,2km, 250 vertical meters, 41 minutes
Igesundshetta (216m), Hornseten (189m), Mar 15 2020
Sudnday: This was not a good weather day, by any means or standard. I decided to hike at a low elevation, and where there was no trace of snow. In other words, along the coastline.
I drove to Eggesbønes to hike Igesundshetta. Weather permitted, I could foresee a long round trip walk. But I had to wait in the car for 10 minutes before I found the inspiration to open the door…
We ascended the ridge on the south side of lake Storevatnet and aimed for Storehornet (196m). It was still raining, but not fierce.
We then followed the path towards Igesundsvarden, where we got a nice view towards Nerlandsøya island.
The rain came and went, and now that I was all cold and wet, I might as well keep on walking. My original plan (to also visit Hornseten) was something I now decided to go through with.
But first, we had to ascend Igesundshetta – the highest point on Bergsøya island. The weather was not good here and I thought about just returning to the car for a second or two.
But “rain showers” means that after a rain shower, there is no more rain. For a little while. And when it cleared up again, it was all good.
We hiked down to the mast on Litlehornet (where I’ve never been before) and I planned the route ahead to Hornseten. Once I had crossed the main road, I didn’t see any path up the forest ridge – which I thought was strange. It was exciting terrain, with lots of cliffs and cool, twisted trees. But no signs of human activity.
Eventually, we got onto the lit gravel road across “Heida” and took a final look at Fosnavåg before we moved on towards Hornseten.
Hornseten was a popular mountain today, and the trail was narrow. I was focusing on keeping my distance to the other hikers, but I seemed to be the only one focusing on this. Which was a bit disappointing, given the havoc the world is in right now.
The weather was still OK when we reached Hornseten, but it wasn’t meant to last. On our way down, we got a proper rain shower. But all in all, a mighty nice hike!
Trip statistics: 10,4km, 740 vertical meters, 3h:03m
Pictures (Canon EOS RP) from the hike:
