Hordaland Mountains - Route Descriptions

Stangfjellet, 640m

Mountain area :	Osterøy
Fylke/Kommune :	Hordaland/Osterøy
Map :	1216-III Stanghelle; (Statens Kartverk, Norge 1:50 000)
Primary Factor:	>300m (est.) Vedafjellet
Hiked :	Mar 2002

Stangfjellet seen from Austbygdi

Introduction

Stangfjellet is located in the south-central parts of Osterøy. The mountain is located north in the mountain range that includes Brøknipa, Vedafjellet and Såtefjellet. The mountain offers breathtaking views all around, and a easy trail. A number of trails lead to the top. This page will describe the Byrkeland trail.

Trail descriptions:

Byrkeland - Stangfjellet (summer/winter)

Difficulty : Low

Risk : Low

Distance : Approx. 2Km to the top

Time : 1-1,5 hours to the top

Starting Elev.: Approx. 250m

Click for detail map

Access:
Take highway E16 from Bergen towards Oslo. Shortly after the Arnanipa tunnel, exit right towards Osterøy, and cross the Osterøy bridge. Pay at the toll booth on the Osterøy side of the bridge (currently NOK 45,- for passenger cars).
After the toll booth, set your odometer. Follow highway 566 for 10,5Km and exit right towards Hatland. Follow the Hatland road for 1,5Km and exit right towards Hovden. Follow the Hovden road, turn right when you see the "Hovden 2" sign, and after 3Km, just after a green mailbox on your right, you should see a pole with a yellow "Høyspent - Livsfare" sign (Danger - high voltage) on a pole. There is a gate by the pole, and parking for approx. 3 cars alongside the road.

The trail:
The trail begins by the gate, turns slightly towards the left. After a few minutes, by a stone fence, the trail changes course to eastbound. Up on your left, you see a small, but steep mountain. The trail will take you around this mountain, on the right hand side. Once around, the trail will take you up to the left, on the back side of the mountain. In other words, if you climbed up the mountain, you will meet the trail on the other side.
Now you are at the foothills of Stangfjellet. The trail will climb eastbound towards two huts that you might already have seen from below. From the huts, the summit is a 10-15 minute walk further east.

Notes
Great views towards Vaksdal/Bergsdalen mountains and Gullfjellet. You also see the Byfjellene massif and Åsane mountains. In the north, you see the mighty Høgafjellet (highest on Osterøy) and the Austlendingen massif beyond.

Trip report, Mar 24 2002

Stangfjellet is one of those mountains that come in handy on a cloudy and windy day. Not too high, and not too far away.
I found the trailhead rather quickly, thanks to a group of cars alongside the road. That caught my attention, in addition to the footprints in the snow. Content I followed the footprints, although I wasn't comfortable with the direction. The tracks were heading south-east, and I wanted the to head east, towards the mountain. Fortunately, I met the group of 5 who I was tracking, and I did a course adjustment.
Now I was in the middle of juniper heaven, just below the mountain. Rotten snow and juniper trees is the worst combination. And before I knew it, I was in stuck in a hole with snow above my knees. After a similar climb on Tyssdalsfjellet last week-end, I decided to escape the snow, and climbed the mountain head-on, where it was too steep for snow to gather.
The climb - which was a real climb - was quite strenuous, but at least I didn't drown in the snow. Soon I arrived the huts, and could enjoy hard snow towards the summit. I literally gasped when I arrived the summit. The panorama, stretching from Høgafjellet to Ulriken (which included Bergsdalen and Gullfjellet) was breath-taking. The downside was the freezing wind and the bad light, which did the pictures injustice.
On the way down, I found the trail and was back at the car in "no time". On the way back home, I was very inspired, and hiked Ulriken while "I was at it.."

Pictures from the Mar 16 2002 hike:

Move cursor to read notes, and click on the images to see full version.
Some of the thumbnails may have been cropped to fit the format