Feeling absolutely crap, week 2
| Date | Peak | Height | PF | Location | WCP/FP | MAP |
| 14.10.26 | Haddalshornet | 611m | 103m | Ulstein, Norway | WCP | MAP |
| 15.10.26 | Huldrehornet | 271m | 113m | Herøy, M&R, Norway | WCP | MAP |
| 16.10.26 | Hasundhornet | 533m | 93m | Ulstein, Norway | WCP | MAP |
| 17.10.26 | Garnestua | 654m | 417m | Ulstein, Norway | WCP | MAP |
| 18.10.26 | Melshornet | 809m | 567m | Ørsta, Norway | WCP | MAP |
| 18.10.26 | Grøthornet | 745m | 57m | Ørsta/Volda, Norway | WCP | MAP |
| 18.10.26 | Sandhornet | 660m | 17m | Ørsta/Volda, Norway | WCP | MAP |
Haddalshornet (611m), Oct 14 2026
Wednesday: It was probably the aftereffect of the Salmonella infection after my Vietnam trip, but I didn’t even consider hiking on Monday and Tuesday. I was quite worried about the state of my body, especially since I got a terrible headache late on Tuesday evening.
I had a horrible night with very little sleep, but was able to get through my working day and still feel I deserved the “paycheck” …
The headache disappeared during the day and as there seemed to be a weather window without rain, I decided to see if I could get all the way up to Haddalshornet on Hareidlandet island.
I walked very slowly, trying to learn from my potential mistake from the week before, when I was pushing myself up mountains when I probably should have been resting.
A bit higher up in the Klungsdalen valley, the wind was very strong. In fact, it was so strong that it affected my progress and I couldn’t hear a word from the podcast I was listening to.
I looked forward to getting the top and be in shelter from the wind, on my way down via Hammaren.
In the evening, I didn’t feel any “penalty” from the hike and hoped that it could stay that way. I would definitely not be hiking a 600m mountain every afternoon for the rest of the week…
Trip statistics: 5km, 600 vertical meters, 1h:45m
Huldrehornet (271m), Oct 15 2026
Thursday: Not a single fiber in my body wanted to go for a hike this afternoon. My body was still recovering from a Salmonella infection, and the fact that the rain was pouring down didn’t help matters. I’m not sure if it was the smartest thing to do, but I felt it was important to get back into my usual routines. So, I fought my way across the doorstep and decided to hike up Huldrehornet.
Instead of taking the usual route from Djupvikhaugen, I drove to Djupvika and followed the new service road up to the transformer station.
From there, I continued along a faint, overgrown path – which I’m planning to improve a bit – before joining one of the regular paths to Huldrehornet.
Once I got warm, the hike was OK. I had intended to take a longer detour on the way back, but notifications on my phone suggested that I needed to return to work; something was wrong, and I was on call. So, even though the hike ended sooner than I had hoped for, it was still good to get out.
Trip statistics: 3,4km, 230 vertical meters, 0h:54m
Hasundhornet (533m), Oct 16 2026
Friday: The weather was still very poor, and the it was pouring down. But I was determined to do my daily afternoon hike, even though my body was screaming for sleep and rest. In my defense, I felt that some progress was being made.
I decided to hike up Haddalshornet, starting from Garsholhaugen – figuring that if it’s raining everywhere else, it’s likely raining the least there.
I put on a podcast, fixed my eyes on the ground, and placed one foot in front of the other.
A proper rain shower hit me just before the summit and left me completely soaked. But since it wasn’t very cold, it wasn’t a major issue. I was almost up, and the descent would surely go fine.
The ascent only gave me 475 meters vertical meters, so I followed the gravel road downwards for a short distance until I was sure I’d surpassed 500 in total. This display of geekiness was a sign that I was on the mend…
I felt satisfied when I returned to the car. I had now managed three afternoon hikes in a row without feeling like I was being severely punished for it. Even if the infection hadn’t left my body entirely, it was likely on its way out.
Something strange happened during the night. I had to get up, and when I placed my left foot on the floor, it couldn’t support my weight. I slammed into the wall. Not exactly the sort of thing one should have to experience at 2 AM. I limped to the bathroom, thinking that this wasn’t good. I have been struggling a bit with my instep over the last year (or two), but had it suddenly escalated?
Trip statistics: 4,2km, 510 vertical meters, 1h:27m
Garnestua (654m), Oct 17 2026
Saturday: The day began with me working from 8 to 11 AM. Then I spent a couple of hours blogging before I felt it was time to get some fresh air. It was raining, but I figured I could still hike a 600-meter mountain without it being too uncomfortable. I chose Garnestua, starting from Haddal.
It was raining lightly as I followed the steep path up from Haddal. I was really hoping the rain could take a break.
Sure enough, the rain let up, and the ascent went reasonably well. I listened to Friday’s episode of the “National Rap Show” and was doing just fine.
Suddenly, my instep began to ache again. Only then did I recall the episode from last night – my foot “collapsed“, and I had crashed into a wall. Wasn’t it rather strange that I couldn’t walk at two in the morning, yet by the time I got up at eight, my foot was perfectly fine and I had forgotten all about it?
There was some fog in the mountains, but I didn’t expect it to start raining again.
Reaching the summit was nice, but I didn’t feel like for going on a round-trip hike. I still had work to do (at my actual job), so it made sense to head back home.
Since my regular hiking shoes were still wet from yesterday’s hike, I wore a pair with completely worn-out soles. That wasn’t a smart move. Before the terrain got steep enough to naturally demand my full attention, I found myself horizontal in mid-air, landing hard and taking a solid whack to my hand.
Even then, it didn’t occur to me to focus properly; five minutes later, my left foot suddenly slipped out to the right. This threw me off balance, and I slammed into a large rock on my left side. I took a nasty hit to my side, and my elbow started to bleed. That was when I decided to start focusing…
Trip statistics: 5,3km, 615 vertical meters, 1h:45m
Melshornet (809m), Grøthornet (745m), Oct 18 2026
Sunday: Since I had no work commitments today (other than being on call), I treated myself to a bit more sleep than usual. After breakfast, I continued working on my blog posts about the trip to Vietnam. The posts had been exceptionally time-consuming, but I was pleased with the effort and the result – it was truly a trip worth writing extensively about.
The weather was okay, and no rain was forecast for today. I decided to drive to Volda and hike to Melshornet, starting from Helgatun.
The trail was incredibly wet – hardly surprising after several weeks of rain.
I haven’t hiked the route via Melssætra many times – maybe twice at most – and, naturally, I had forgotten that after rain, this path stays wet all the way up to the final mountain ridge.
But that didn’t matter at all. I felt in good shape and was having a great time. I noticed the snow line had crept down to around 1,000 meters, though I assumed it was only temporary; it’s been a long time since the October snow lasted into the real winter.
The meadows were completely saturated, but once you’re already soaked, things can’t really get much worse…
It was wonderful to see blue sky again – I had almost started to lose hope…
And then, I reached the top…
I hoped it wouldn’t be long before hiking a 1,300-meter peak on a Sunday became the norm again. It felt like I was well on my way.
Let me be perfectly honest. It felt exceptionally good to reach the summit without feeling like I was on the verge of collapse. Salmonella is no joke, and I had really hit rock bottom with the hectic workdays and my poor overall condition…
For the return trip, I decided to head over Grøthornet and down to Sandhornet.
My instep was still aching a bit, but the pain came and went. Maybe I should pump up the tires on my bike and treat myself to some alternative activity for a week or two…
From Sandhornet, I followed the ridge down toward the winter skiing trail.
After that, it was just a matter of following a faint, slippery path back to Helgatun.
Trip statistics: 8,4km, 705 vertical meters, 2h:17m
