A big mix of everything…
Index
| Date | Peak | Height | PF | Location | WCP/FP | MAP |
| 30.12.24 | Blåfjellet | 1398m | 144m | Sogndal, Norway | WCP | MAP |
| 30.12.24 | Åberge | – | – | Sogndal, Norway | – | MAP |
| 31.12.24 | Stedjeåsen | 625m | 123m | Sogndal, Norway | WCP | MAP |
| 01.01.25 | Melshornet | 809m | 567m | Ørsta, Norway | WCP | MAP |
| 02.01.25 | Huldrehornet | 271m | 113m | Herøy, M&R, Norway | WCP | MAP |
| 03.01.25 | Hornseten | 190m | 152m | Herøy, M&R, Norway | WCP | MAP |
| 03.01.25 | Huldrehornet | 271m | 113m | Herøy, M&R, Norway | WCP | MAP |
| 04.01.25 | Huldrehornet | 271m | 113m | Herøy, M&R, Norway | WCP | MAP |
| 04.01.25 | Dragsund | – | – | Herøy, M&R, Norway | – | MAP |
| 05.01.25 | Røddalshorn | 563m | 100m | Sande, M&R, Norway | WCP | MAP |
| 05.01.25 | Huldrehornet | 271m | 113m | Herøy, M&R, Norway | WCP | MAP |
Blåfjellet (1398m), Dec 30 2024
Monday: This trip is featured on a separate post…
Røvhaugane, Åberge, Dec 30 2024
Monday: After returning to Anne’s place (after the Blåfjellet ski trip) I just changed clothes and took Karma for a walk. Anne had already walked the dog and I’m not sure if I would have gone on this extra walk, if it hadn’t been for deciding to try to reach 200,000 vertical meters in 2024. With two days left, every meter would count.
We started down by the fjord, hiked across Røvhaugane and continued up to Åberge.
On our way down from Åberge, I took some after-dark pictures of Sogndal.
Then we took the Åberge – Kongavegen path, after lifting Karma across a fence.
I enjoyed this walk a lot, but with 1100 vertical meters and 2 slices of bread at breakfast, I looked forward to getting home and enjoy a dinner.
Of course, I had to stop for a picture of the new Loftesnes bridge.
Trip statistics: 3,6km, 260 vertical meters, 1 hour
Stedjeåsen (624m), Dec 31 2024
Tuesday: The “fjord dippers” are crazy. Every Sunday isn’t enough. They added “Christmas Eve bath” and today – “New Year’s bath”. According to the screams, it was probably quite cold.
After breakfast, I did the “math” and found that I was 510 vertical meters short of 200,000. I would close that gap with a hike up to Stedjeåsen.
In the beginning, we followed paths we seldom hike. I really like this forest. I could walk here for the rest of my life and never really get the proper overview.
This was my 15th trip to Stedjeåsen in 2024. That’s way above average. Not really sure why. Probably a lot of bad weather. This forest provides all the shelter you need…
Then I couldn’t resist going off-trail. When we got to the snow, off-trail was cumbersome, and I aimed for the nearest path.
Next, we passed one of the two “viewpoints”. This forest doesn’t offer a whole lot of views…
It was nice to get to the meadow. I enjoyed the light today.
It is a bit tedious to get to the high point. Either the snow is too deep (winter) or the meadow is too boggy (summer). But today, the snow carried my weight.
And soon after, the high point was “in the bag”
On our way down, Karma suddenly sat down. The paw was held as if in a royal crook, like an elegant pose fit for a queen. I got a scare, as I thought she had injured her leg or paw. But it was just an icing problem. She made me laugh. The way she sat, said nothing, just signaled “please fix”. Straight from a Larson cartoon…
Then we stopped by viewpoint #2 before returning to Anne and help her get the house in order for our dinner guests.
The vertical meter count for 2024 ended up on 200,080m. The actual number is probably quite a bit higher. I have been conservative in my estimates.
Anne had prepared a delicious meal…
Then it was time for dessert. Our friends had brought a super-delicious dessert of cloudberries and whipped cream. Yum!
We had a great evening and watched Magnus Carlsen take yet another world championship, just as the new year had arrived. It’s become a tradition to see him win. Sadly, his sportsmanship wasn’t as I had hoped for, this year.
Then – fireworks all around. Karma was shaking. I enjoy fireworks in general, but I stand with the animals that don’t and I would be happy if they abandoned this altogether.
Trip statistics: 5,9km, 590 vertical meters, 1h:52m
Commute, Melshornet (809m) and Aurora Borealis, Jan 1 2025
Wednesday: This trip is featured on a separate post…
Huldrehornet (271m), Jan 2 2025
Thursday: Yesterday’s nice weather was such a prank. Today, it was back to miserable, miserable. It was snowing massively. Or was it? It was very windy, so maybe I got all the snow from my neighbors. I had my first full working day since mid-December and had to dedicate the lunch break for keeping my driveway … drivable.
After work, I figured that Karma would be able to work her way up Huldrehornet. This is a predictable forest. 20 cm in the lower forest, 2-3 times that in the upper forest (but only where the wind has been blowing) and hardly any snow at all above the forest.
But she gave up after just a few minutes. “Get me out of here!”. I respected her wish, and we took various detours back to the house.
I considered skiing Huldrehornet but dropped the idea in the end. With this weather plus darkness, it wouldn’t be any fun on the way down. I decided to walk…
The weather wasn’t really that bad, but it wasn’t pleasant either.
I was wearing low terrain shoes, gaiters and good socks. It wasn’t cold and I didn’t get wet.
The ridge was quite windy, but it helped to look to the east.
And then my 2nd 2025 top was in the bag…
Altogether, a nice hike!
Trip statistics: 7,3km, 315 vertical meters, 2h:05m
Hornseten (190m), Jan 3 2025
Friday: After work, I decided to drive to Eggesbønes to walk the dog across Heida. If we were lucky, there would be tracks up to Hornseten.
The weather was holding up when we passed the lean-to shelter (Gapahuk).
But minutes later, another shower was passing.
A polar low pressure was hitting Norway, causing all sorts of problems for the transportation infrastructure. We were only in the outskirts of it. We tend to say “it’s a lot of snow” when we can’t see our boots, but we don’t have to travel very far before we run into 100cm+ of snow.
There wasn’t a lot of snow on Hornseten. It must have been windy up here, but it was nice and quiet by the time we reached the top.
And it was about to turn dark.
It’s fascinating to see the snow (and hail) showers “dance” their way along the coastline…
We took the usual round trip…
Back at the trailhead, I could see Venus “align” with the moon. Too bad I didn’t bring my camera.
Trip statistics: 4,4km, 270 vertical meters, 1h:10m
Pictures (Iphone 13 Pro Max) from the hike:
Huldrehornet (271m), Jan 3 2025
Friday: Now that Karma got a good walk across Heida and Hornseten, I wanted to get some additional vertical meters by hiking Huldrehornet – again.
The plan was to drop Karma off at home first, but then I decided to check if she wanted to come along. If not, I would take her back and go by myself. We parked by lake Djupvikvatnet and followed the road for a couple of hundred meters.
She was not enthusiastic. Like: “Didn’t we have this conversation yesterday?”. I didn’t want to pressure her, and so I just started walking. If she was up for it, she would come along. If not, she would stay put. She came along.
My tracks from the day before helped a lot. And when the snow level was knee-deep, I helped her out a little.
The ridge was almost snow-free, like almost always…
When we reached the top, another shower was passing. But it wasn’t very unpleasant at this low altitude.
She may have not enjoyed herself on the way up, but she sure did on her way down!
Trip statistics: 2,8km, 250 vertical meters, 1h:01m
Huldrehornet (271m), Jan 4 2025
Saturday: The snow kept coming and I was shoveling snow every 2nd hour. There was no point in checking if Karma was up for another hike to Huldrehornet, so I took my randonée skis and looked forward to surviving another crazy descent down this thick forest.
So, when I decided to go skiing, why go to the worst place? Well, going up on skis would do wonders for the track and this was a pure investment for getting Karma to a top, the next time around.
The weather was holding up. I really wanted to get to the top before another shower came along. I don’t like skiing off-trail when it’s snowing. I need visibility and contrasts.
When I got to the top, I got a good overview of the weather around me. It was quite clear that the next shower would be here in minutes. I was now in a hurry.
But I can’t just leave without taking pictures of this cool weather.
After all, it’s a polar low pressure! We don’t get that every day…
The descent was quite fun, although it felt a little “Hail Mary” at times.
Trip statistics: 3km, 250 vertical meters, 58mins
Dragsund, Jan 4 2025
Saturday: After the trip to Huldrehornet, I took Karma for a walk to Dragsund and back. There was no “mojo” in her and I am always very anxious after her heat periods, fearing complications in the womb.
It was fascinating to see the weather. If I hadn’t heard about the polar low pressure in the news, I would have just thought it was January like always. Now, the task was to get the driveway in pristine order before Anne arrived.
Little did Karma know that she would have to be spending the evening by herself, while we would enjoy a nice Rakfisk (a traditional Norwegian dish of fermented trout) dinner with friends.
Trip statistics: 3,2km, 25 vertical meters, 38mins
Røddalshorn (563m), Jan 5 2025
Sunday: This trip is featured on a separate post…
Huldrehornet (271m), Jan 5 2025
Sunday: After Røddalshorn, we drove home, and I took Karma for a ski trip to Huldrehornet. She was very eager when she left the car by lake Djupvikvatnet. She was not so eager when we got to the start of the Huldrehornet path.
She walked reluctantly and kept looking back. After a while, she seemed to find motivation and her nose was more below the snow than above.
When we got on the ridge above the forest, we met my neigbours Elin and Jonny, coming on snowshoes from the other side of the mountain. We had a nice chat.
I looked forward to another “Hail Mary” descent and had brought a GoPro camera, for the first time in a very long time.
On my way to the top, I considered going back to Røddalshorn afterwards, but it would be dark then and I wouldn’t enjoy the descent as much as I would have done in daylight. I decided to call it a day and spend the afternoon with Anne instead.
And then we were back on Huldrehornet – my 4th visit in 4 days. It’s time to find other tops where I can take the dog to.
The below video didn’t exactly turn out as I hoped for, but in case you wonder what I mean by “Hail Mary”: In this context, it means “In a non-religious context, “Hail Mary” is often used to describe a bold or desperate attempt to succeed in a challenging situation.” (source: ChatGPT)
This time, I skied harder than I’ve ever did before. In this forest, you can’t plow or make turns. You just have to commit and trust that you won’t hit a tree…
Trip statistics: 3km, 250 vertical meters, 1h:07m
Hi Arnt, best wishes to you and Anne & Karma, as always, great to read yr reports with lots of beautiful photos!!
The video with Karma enjoying every second gives me chickenskin! Thanks for sharing!
Ellen
Many thanks and the same to you! Glad you enjoyed the video 😉 That was fun! On previous posts from your avatar, the name was Ellen… ?
Ohjeh this is my official name, but my call name is Ellen,
Dutchy in Sykkylven😁😉