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| Hiking | 14.20 Miles |
4,000 AEG |
| | Hiking | 14.20 Miles | 7 Hrs 45 Mns | | 1.91 mph |
| 4,000 ft AEG | 20 Mns Break | 15 LBS Pack | | |
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| no partners | | | This hike is increasing in popularity. The Norwegians report in 2010 about 800 hikers attempting this and in 2016 about 80,000! I noticed they include pictures of it with their tourism ads. I don't care for heights or exposure and never intended to "pose" on the rock formation but the challenge and picture opportunities intrigued me and a challenge it was. I may have been in better condition for it but had 2 weeks of full Irish and or full Scottish breakfasts prior to arriving in Norway. The parking lot in Skjeggedal was about 20 minutes from my hotel in Odda,the signage in Tyssedahl where you turn is adequate to find the parking lot after a 4 km drive on mostly a one lane road. I left the hotel at 0530 had a cup of coffee at the Shell station and after parking and paying the 150 nok about $20 I was hiking by 0620, everything I had read suggested getting an early start. FYI there is a new road leading to an additional parking lot about 2 km further up signs indicate it opens at 7am but it cost 500nok or $63 ,note Norway is expensive, it would save 4km RT of hiking. By the way there are no toilets on this hike so best to use one on the way to parking. There are guided hikes available for about $100 they provide a guide and trekking poles but would not recommended unless hiking after September 15. I was blessed with a day of no rain and would recommend not doing this hike on a rainy day as less safe and less photo ops. It was 8 degree Celsius when I started this hike at 0620, of course I was warm enough on the heart pounding way up with 2 t shirts and gloves but the wind was about 25 to 30 mph and on portions of the trail and at the top it was difficult to stand still and I was cold despite adding a jacket and knit cap. Unlike Arizona, one nice aspect is you can keep your pack weight down as there is plenty of running water that's drinkable. As long as you pay attention route finding was easy particularly with other hikers going up never seemed to be more than a quarter mile from anyone and campers coming down plus no significant foliage to block visibility and a distance marker every km, I had no garmin or functioning phone app for navigation and did not need it on this clear day. A rainy or foggy day would be a problem however. The wait line for photo ops was not as long as I had imagined decided to not participate plus the wind did not encourage lingering there. There are 2 survival cabins on the route which fortunately I did not need but I understand there are blankets available there. Be careful on the way down fall risk is high I was surprised at how weak my legs were feeling going down the rock steps. Working out on a stairmaster may be good prep for this hike. I did do most of my picture taking on the way down to save time on the way up though the large crowd I anticipated never materialized. Bottom line advice enjoy the gorgeous scenery on this hike if adequately conditioned between June 15 to September 15 on a non rainy day. |
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