Hordaland Mountains - Route Descriptions - Geitfjellet, Rundesteinen

Norwegian Mountains

Rundesteinen, 424m

Fylke/Kommune :	Hordaland/Lindås
Maps :	1216-III Stanghelle (Statens Kartverk, Norge 1:50 000)
Primary factor :	171m
Hiked :	Apr 2005
See also :	Geitfjellet
See also :	Gråsida
See also :	Almeskilet

Geitfjellet seen from Verafjellet

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Introduction

Geitfjellet (Goat mountain) is located just above Vike (just east of Eikefettunnelen) by Romarheimsfjorden. You have the mountain up to your left when you pass Vike on highway E39 towards Førde. The highest point on this mountain is Rundesteinen (Round rock), 424m elevation. I attempted a visit on skis from Vetle-Aurdal to the high point back in March 2005. I missed the high point back then, but hiked on foot up Store-Aurdal in April 2005. The Store-Aurdal route is described on this page. Visit the Geitfjellet page for route description for Vetle-Aurdal.

The views from the top are not as good as from Geitfjellet, due to trees obscuring the view towards Romarheimsfjorden. Whether you hike from Vetle-Aurdal or Store-Aurdal, you can walk on forest road/forest trail to Vikasætri. Prepare to hike off-trail from Vikasætri, although there are forest paths here and there.

Primary factor:

Rundesteinen (M711: 424m, Ø.K: 424,30m) has a primary factor of 171m towards the higher Gråsida. The saddle is found between the two tops, by Vikasætri. Ref. Økonomisk Kartverk (5m contours), you cross the 255m contours on the high route, but not 250m. The saddle height has been interpolated to 253m.

Trail descriptions:

Notes: Class ratings are in reference to YDS. Click here for more information.

The trails described below are not necessarily the *easiest* trails to this mountain.

Store-Aurdal - Rundesteinen (summer/autumn)

Difficulty : Class 1

Exposure : None

Comments : Forest road, trail, off-trail

Distance : 3Km to the top

Time : Approx. 1,5 hours to the top

Starting Elev.: 10-70mm

Vertical Gain : Approx. 350-410mm

Map of the area
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Detailed map
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Access

From Bergen, follow highway E39 northbound (Førde/Ålesund). Cross Nordhordlandsbrua bridge and pay toll on the north side (NOK 45,- for passenger cars per March 2005). From the toll station, follow highway E39 for additional 32,5Km. Turn left onto an unsigned gravel road (Store-Aurdal). There is a road junction in the very beginning. Consider parking here or turn right. If you plan to park higher up in the Store-Aurdal valley, continue for 680m until you reach another road junction. The road to the left leads to a stone quarry (private property). Go right. Drive additional 550m and find parking on the left-hand side of the road.

The route

Assuming you parked 550m north of the stone quarry, continue 1Km on the Store-Aurdal forest road and turn right onto a forest trail. Follow this forest trail all the way to the Vikasætri cabins at 260m elevation. Go off-trail from here. Keep a south-to-southeast direction all the way to Rundesteinen summit. There are a few ups and downs, but you should be able to pick a good route that bypasses the humps. The high point is obvious in good weather - a big rock. There is no summit cairn. Descend your ascent route.

Trip report Apr 19 2005

It was Tuesday, and yet another lovely April day. I had spent yesterday afternoon well and visited Stølafjellet on Tysnes. This afternoon, I wanted to visit Rundesteinen. Ever since I missed out on this summit on my Geitfjellet hike back in March, I had wanted to mend my navigational mistake and collect this top once and for all. I called my friend Ketil Vevle, who volunteered to come along. Together with my dachshund Troll, we drove to Store-Aurdal and parked halfway up the valley 17:45PM.
I had been up this road before. I had hiked Gråsida (661m) back in December 2003 and was able to drive a little further up the road. This time, I noticed a sign saying "Private road", but as there were no other warnings, I concluded it was OK to drive up here. We could have driven further, but after all, it was supposed to be a hike.
The Kråfjellet west face above us was quite impressive. The rock seemed to be good for rock climbing. Troll is always walking when I have company, and today was no exception. After a little while, it was time to leave the forest road. We followed a convenient forest trail all the way to the Vikasætri cabins. From here, we went off-trail. Normally, I would have put Troll in the backpack, but since I had company I expected he would go "the extra mile". Which he did.
The route was fairly uncomplicated, and we reached the summit 75 minutes after we left the car. I concluded that the views were better from Geitfjellet, as some trees blocked the views towards Romarheimsfjorden. Nevertheless, it was a great evening. Good company and a good hike. Another upside was that I got a good view of Husafjellet - an upcoming hike. While Ketil and I shared bisquits on top, Troll had earned his lunch-box. We sat down and enjoyed the views that were presented to us.
Rundesteinen summit was a large piece of rock that required some climbing moves when approached head on. Ketil took the easy way around, but was not able to "escape" upon the return. After climbing this big piece of rock, I honored Ketil for "truly" having reached the summit, and we could head back down. Ketil already knows that I'm an oddball and climbed the rock without protests. After a "happy now?" face, he signaled it was time to head back home.