Back on the Våtedalen majesty
| Date | Peak | Height | PF | Location | WCP/FP | MAP |
| 13.07.26 | Eggenipa (Eggjenibba) | 1339m | 405m | Gloppen, Norway | WCP | MAP |
Monday: The summer break was over and the struggle to get back into a working rhythm had begun. After finishing my working day in Sogndal, I sat course for my home on Sunnmøre.
As the weather was stunning, I had decided to hike Eggenipa (aka Eggjenibba) in Våtedalen. I had been to this top before (in 2005), but I remembered seeing something about Sherpa steps and so I decided to visit it.
I assumed the trailhead was ~500m elevation, so that would mean “only” 800 vertical meters. I would allow 1,5 hours for the ascent (should be plenty) and 1 hour down. 2,5 hours in total and I would arrive home somewhere between 9 and 9:30pm.
New since last time was the Open road tolling. Very practical, as long as you remember to pay within 48 hours.
I drove up to the trailhead parking (Bjønnaspøtet) and was glad I came this late in the day. A few hours earlier, and I might not have found parking. At this point, I didn’t remember that there was another trailhead higher up – Øvredalen – which was the trailhead I used in 2005.
The Bjønnaspøtet trailhead was at 370m elev., which meant I would be looking at a 1000 vertical meter ascent instead of 800. Oh well, so the ascent might take 2 hours. It was a beautiful afternoon and no chance of bad weather. In fact, it was a little too hot.
Then I was on my merry way…
While Eggenipa is the main attraction, my focus was up to the left. I had still not been to Storfonn 1590m and it had been on my to-do list for years.
The path was great and had gotten refurbished from A to Z since 2005…
I was keeping a sustainable pace, but had a number of stops for pictures. In this heat, I didn’t want to run out of steam halfway up the mountain.
Eggenipa is a tremendously beautiful peak, and I looked forward to getting to the steep part. I didn’t remember the details but remembered a couple of sections with chains. I assumed nothing had changed there.
The hike was going quite well, and I was now approaching the steep section of the route.
At 964m, I passed “Breimsbu» – which is surely a turnaround point for many hikers, either because it’s high enough or the chain section is intimidating.
Then it was time for the fun part…
On the first section, the chain was literally in my way. I would have climbed it easier without the chain.
The second section was a bit longer, and I tried to imagine how the guy I spoke to at the parking was able to get his two dogs up there. He said it was a nightmare. The dogs must have been terrified!
The second section, as seen in 2005:
Finally, there was a very short section which hardly deserves any mention at all.
I didn’t remember if there was more scrambling awaiting, but higher up there was a fork and a signpost. “Klatrerute” (climbing route) to the left or “Nibbetrappa” to the right. I had a feeling that “Klatrerute” was the old route I did back in 2005 (and it was) and now I looked forward to seeing the Sherpa steps.
The stone steps were of top quality, pure Sherpa standard!
It would have been too bad if you must be OK with scrambling to experience this stairway! Fortunately, if scrambling is not for you, you can hike from Øvredalen and come up the south ridge, then continue across the summit until you reach the steps.
I was surprised when the steps suddenly descended. But only for a short section and only for 8-10 vertical meters.
I was curious if these steps ran all the way the top. They didn’t though. At least not yet.
A bit earlier, I met 4 Sherpas coming down the mountain and now I could see where they had called it a day.
I am assuming that a helicopter is flying them up on their working days, otherwise the overall job would have been inhuman.
I don’t want to talk more about Sherpa stairs. Like for most things in life, there are pros and cons. But I want to be clear on that this mountain is an attraction in its own right, without any stone steps!
I wish they could leave the last part alone. There won’t be visible wear and tear in this rocky terrain. And besides, people have to scramble to get this far, so they can surely manage the remaining pitch to the top.
Finally, I had the summit in view. It is less steep than it looks.
The summit was a bit “crowded“, but probably nothing compared to earlier in the day.
It took me 1h:32m to reach the top, which was the plan for 800 vertical meters, not 1000. So, I was quite pleased with that.
I considered doing the round-trip hike, but that would take longer time and I was looking forward to getting back home in time for dinner, albeit late…
It was really nice to be back again. I might include this mountain on future trips between Sunnmøre and Sogndal.
It was nice to see glacier views again!
I then headed back down and kept a steady pace down the mountain. I reached the trailhead 59 minutes after leaving the top. So, 2,5 hours is the benchmark for my future hikes here.
The route descriptions say 2,5 hours to the top and 7,5 hours for the round trip – which took me 5h:43m back in 2005 but then I also included Trollebottseggene (1419m) on the hike.
It was a superb hike and I’m already looking forward to my next hike here and see how far they’re going to build the stairs. I will definitely take the old “climbing route” up and “Nibbetrappa” down.
Trip statistics: 7,4km, 1000 vertical meters, 2h:31m