Norwegian Mountains - Route Descriptions

Norwegian Mountains, Møre og Romsdal

Åsen from Ertresvågen, Dec 26 2006

For Information, maps, trailhead and route descriptions, click HERE.

I felt tired after my trip to Øspetinden the day before, and had little or no will to go on another hike. Fortunately, it was raining and the fog hid the mountains, giving me an ample excuse to stay home. But I still needed to walk the dog, so I took out a map, hoping I would get inspiration.

My eyes fell upon an unnamed hill that I had completely overlooked. Inspiration came instantly. This hill was certainly below the fog, and it didn't matter if it was raining. I got into the car and drove to Ertresvåg (approx. 40 minutes from Ålesund).

I found the trailhead and the dog and I left the car 13:00PM. The dog walked for about a minute and then parked in front of a waterpit, which he couldn't cross without getting his paws wet. I shoved him across, and he walked - unwillingly - for a few more minutes until he gave up. I took him in the backpack and headed up the - wet - forest trail.

At the Grøtshornet - Åsen pass, I found a path that, conveniently led me up the bushy hill. The wind was quite strong on the ridge, close to gale force, but it had ceased raining. I reached the top 13:40PM. There wasn't much to see. Grøtshornet and Storfjellet took away most of the views, which would have been foggy anyway.

Troll would have walked all the way back down, hadn't I lost the path and ended up in the middle of the bush. Once down on the forest trail, he seemed happy about walking. Whether it was because it was downhill, or the fact that he knew he was going home, I don't know. By 14:10PM, we were back at the car.

I decided to drive home via Hellandhamn. That was a good call. The north face of the Storfjellet massif was just amazing. I have now Skoradalen on the urgent to-do list. Stay tuned.