Storevasseggene, 707m
Blådalsnipa, 682m
Klefjellnipa, 706m (not ranked)

Mountain area : Masfjorden
Fylke/Kommune : Hordaland/Masfjorden
Maps : 1216-I Masfjorden (Statens Kartverk, Norge 1:50 000)
Primary factor : Storevasseggene: 264m
Primary factor : Blådalsnipa: 109m
Primary factor : Klefjellnipa: 78m
Closest villages : Masfjordnes
Hiked : Mar 2004
See also : Ådneburen
See also : Torhaugen
See also : Bergdropen
See also : Austlendingen
See also : Båtevassfjellet
See also : Horgi
See also : Melshovden
Storevasseggene seen from Bergdropen

Storevasseggene seen from Bergdropen

(No Javascript)

Introduction

Storevasseggene, Blådalsnipa and Klefjellnipa form a string of tops on the mountain range from Austlendingen to Ådneburen. Thanks to a very good trail from Nordrekvingo, Storevasseggene and Klefjellnipa is easy to reach, although the hike is long. Blådalsnipa should only be attempted from this side by experienced hikers. The mountains offer good views towards the neighbour mountains, but higher mountains obscure some of the views in the northern and eastern directions.

"Storevasseggene" (plural) is used as term for the mountain area above Nordkvinges&aeling;tret cabins, but the term does not include any other tops than "Varden" - the 707m high point. The Nordkvinge&aeling;tret cabins look like a new cabins, seen from distance. Although they have been maintained, some of these cabins are quite old (19th century). It has been said that people looked after their livestock in this grazing land as early as the 17th century. 17th century.

Primary Factor:

Storevasseggene has a primary factor of 264m towards the higher Horgi (2,45 northeast of Storevasseggene). The saddle is found south of Drusensætret/Duesundsætret where the adjacent contours on the Norgesglasset 5m map are 445m. The saddle height is interpolated to 443m.

Blådalsnipa has a primary factor of 109m towards the higher Storevasseggene. The saddle is found between the two mountains, where the adjacent contours on the Norgesglasset 5m map are 575m. The saddle height is interpolated to 573m.

Klefjellnipa has a primary factor of 78m towards the higher Storevasseggene. The saddle is found between the two mountains, where the adjacent contours on the Norgesglasset 5m map are 630m. The saddle height is interpolated to 628m.

Trail descriptions:

Note: Class ratings are in reference to YDS (Yosemite Decimal System).

Note: The trail described below is not necessarily the easiest trail to this mountain.

Nordrekvingo - All summits (winter)

Difficulty : Class 1 to Storevasseggene
Difficulty : Class 3 to Blådalsnipa
Exposure : Yes - towards Blådalsnipa
Comments : Family hike towards Storevasseggene
Distance : Approx. 5,2Km to Storevasseggene
Distance : Approx. 15Km all summits, round-trip
Time : Approx. 2,5-3 hours to Storevasseggene
Time : Approx. 7-8 hours all summits, round-trip
Starting Elev.: Approx. 60m
Vertical Gain : Approx. 1150m (all summits, round-trip)

Map of the area
Map of the area
(No Javascript)
Detailed map
Detailed map
(No Javascript)

Access

From Bergen, follow highway E39 northbound. Pass the toll station on the north side of the Nordhordlandsbrua bridge (near Knarvik). The fee for passenger cars is per March 2004 NOK 45,-. From the toll station, continue approx. 26,1 Km on highway E39 and exit left towards "Masfjorden". Follow this road for approx. 12,5 Km.

You are now at Nordrekvingo. You should see a gravel road to your right, signed "Kalvedalshytta". This is DNT (The Norwegian Mountain Touring Association) hut in Kalvedalen, on the eastern side of Storevasseggene. Exit onto this gravel road and drive 100m. You arrive an old white school building. You can park here.

The route

Storevasseggene

Locate a gate behind the school, and you will see the first red "T" painted on rock. The trail passes a tele transmitter a little higher up before it switchbacks elegantly up a steep cliff. Handrails and stairs have been put in place. There is no exposure here. The trail passes a bench at approx. 200m elevation and stays at the 220m elevation for 700m. The trail turns more and more into a nature trail. The trail can get truly wet after rain, and the rock is slippery. Be careful.

The trail descends slightly into a small valley and you cross a stream that drains to lake Sørkvingevatnet. The trail climbs slightly and continues towards "Gjelet". Impressive stairs built by rock lead you down into this gorge. It is free fall down on your right, but you have move away from the trail to see this. The trail climbs between boulder up through "Gjelet" and takes you to lake Blådalsvatnet. The trail then turns sharp right and climbs up a valley between point 431m and Ytre Klefjellet. There are some impressive cliffs up to your right here.

When you pass lake Sætretjørni, you see the Nordkvingesætret cabins on the other side of the lake. The trails stays on the south side of the lake and descends some before it climbs towards the pass between Klefjellnipa and Storevasseggene. At approx. 600m, it is time to leave the cairn trail and head directly north towards Storevasseggene summit at 707m. A proper cairn marks the summit.

Blådalsnipa

I have classified the route to Blådalsnipa as class 3. This is primarly to signal that this may be a demanding route. There are two steep sections down to pass between the two summits. In perfect conditions and with optimal routefinding, this may very well be a class 2-2+ route. But finding this route requires research, and is time-consuming. Since I have only done this walk on snow, it is difficult to say if it is easier in summer. With the snow gone, there will be more handholds, but the snow will also provide easier access down cliffbands. However, according to locals, there *is* a good route down, but with significant exposure.

Since I did not find this optimal route, I will restrict myself from suggesting another. The varying conditions (snow, ice, slippery rock) will allow or eliminate route selections. Once there, it is your call. I will however make a note about the second slope (the most difficult of the two); If you descend until you find a long ledge that leads towards the valley down on your right, then you can find several places to descend to the next ledge. If you traverse this ledge away from the valley (back in the direction you came), you have a good chance of finding a route that will take you down to the pass. The walk up to Blådalsnipa is easy. A proper cairn marks the summit.

Klefjellnipa

Hike back up the way you came, cross over Storevasseggene and keep heading south until you reach Klefjellnipa summit. A proper cairn marks this summit. You will cross the cairn trail from Nordrekvingo to Kalvedalen on your way. Descend back to the cairn trail and follow it back to Nordrekvingo. An alternative may be to follow Klefjellet westbound until you reach the origin of the stream that drains into lake Sætretjørni. This pass is steep further down, but easy for experienced hikers.

Trip Report March 27 2004

The dog was spending the week-end with friends, and I was free to go wherever I wanted to. Of course, a low pressure was hitting the coastline this week-end, and I settled for something not-too-high. Storevasseggene had been on the to-do list for quite some time, and I decided to drive towards Masfjorden and collect this peak. Blådalsnipa would be a bonus. I knew it would involve some steep and nasty terrain.

I chatted with an old-timer at Nordrekvingo, and he didn't raise my hopes for Blådalsnipa. He said it would involve some climbing. The good news was that the trail was "refurbished" last year, so there should be no problems sticking to it all the way Storevasseggene. I left the trailhead 12:05PM. I enjoyed the trail. This trail has been around for a long time, but those who did the maintenance had done a very good job. The local placenames had been put on fun signs. One was "Kakedikje - nam nam". Another was "Hadda - Godt å kvile". I also enjoyed the mighty stairs (Gjelltråppå) leading down to "Gjelet". There was clearly some serious work behind these stairs. The weather was plain OK. Rays of sunshine came through the clouds here and there. I was happy as long as it didn't rain.

All in all, I kept a pace above the average on my way upwards. I spent a few minutes climbing a vertical rockface on the final slope towards Storevasseggene. It was just too good to let go. There was snow below, in case I fell down. After one failed attempt, I managed to climb it. The rockface had just the necessary cracks to stick fingers and toes on. Serious fun. I reached Storevasseggene summit 13:50PM and watched the fog cover Blådalsnipa within a few minutes.

I decided to have a look at the route towards Blådalsnipa. The upper slope wasn't too bad. I could climb down steep sections with safety in ledges below. In other words, I wouldn't fall off the mountain. Some class 3 scrambling was necessary, although I suspected I could have followed a long and steep slope (snow) further to my right. The next slope offered serious problems. The cliffbands led me towards the valley down to my right. The problem was to get from one ledge to the next. If I fell I had to make an arrest to avoid falling off the mountain. If there had been solid snow, the problem would be minor, but there was only a thin layer of snow on the entry point. Below this thin layer of snow was either slippery rock or ice. I turned around and headed back up.

Then I climbed back down again. I didn't feel I had done a thorough research. More time was spent looking for a route, but then I turned back around for the second time. So damned close, I was thinking to myself and started to climb down again. I had become used to the exposure by now, and I decided to go for it. I was finally able to get down to the next ledge, only to discover that the route I had seen from above involved a 5m high cliff. Then I followed the ledge upwards (which seemed unlogical at the time) and to the west, where the drop was even higher. Then I stumbled onto a cliffband leading downwards, which could be down-climbed. By 14:45PM, I was in the saddle, and 15 minutes later, I was on top of Blådalsnipa. The fog was more dense than ever, and it was snowing. I turned back around immediately.

Back on Storevasseggene, I decided to collect Klefjellnipa, even if it wasn't a ranked mountain (primary factor was less than 100m). I had a vague plan to walk the ridge westbound and join the trail via a steep gully. I was pretty wet and cold by the time I reached Klefjellet (15:45PM). I took a well-deserved lunch-break and got even colder. I couldn't see anything of the ridge, and decided to return back to the cairn trail. Once I got below 600m, there was no more fog, and I could enjoy the rest of the hike back down. I reached the trailhead 17:15PM, and was very content about today's accomplishment.

Pictures from the Mar 27 2003 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.
Pictures are presented in the order they were taken.

1. Tele transmitter early on the trail (149KB) 2. Good solution for awkward terrain (237KB) 3. The trailhead seen from above (152KB) 4. On the nature trail (217KB) 5. Klefjellet seen from the trail (134KB) 6. A good place to rest (273KB) 7. Stairs down to Gjelet (344KB) 8. In Gjelet (276KB) 9. Arriving lake Blaadalsvatnet (227KB) 10. Bergdropen seen from lake Blaadalsvatnet (124KB) 11. Litlegjelsfjellet (169KB) 12. First view towards Storevasseggene (281KB) 13. The neighbour mountains (284KB) 14. Nordkvingesetret cabins (171KB) 15. Waterfall from Klefjellet (212KB) 16. Serious and safe fun (116KB) 17. Klefjellet ridge (446KB) 18. Storevasseggene summit (201KB) 19. Storevasseggene summit view (582KB) 20. Storevasseggene summit view (492KB)

Blådalsnipa

21. View towards Blaadalsnipa (175KB) 22. Steep slopes (106KB) 23. Light scrambling down Storevasseggene (114KB) 24. Storevasseggene upper slope (112KB) 25. Lakes below Horgi (213KB) 26. Numerous problems in the 2nd slope (200KB) 27. Down in the pass (101KB) 28. The nasty slope (101KB) 29. Blaadalsnipa summit (89KB)

Klefjellnipa

30. Thick fog when climbing Storevasseggene again (65KB) 31. Klefjellnipa summit (115KB) 32. Heading home on the cairn trail (67KB)

No Javascript:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32

Pictures from other hikes:

1. Storevasseggene seen from Skjerhaldefjell (212KB) 2. Coast view from Horgi (685KB) 3. West to north view from Horgi (837KB) 4. West view from Raasefjellet (972KB) 5. South view (zoom) from Vardefjellet, 513m (643KB) 6. Austrefjellet summit views (1056KB) 7. Lake Meisdalsvatnet (216KB) 8. Blaadalsnipa (133KB) 9. Slettefjellet summit views (zoom) (432KB)

No Javascript:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9


Other hordaland mountains Other Masfjorden K. mountains westcoastpeaks.com