Location: North 62:15.528, East 6:18.663, this is GPS at the summit.
Climbed May 2, 2003.
Information:
How to get there:
From the village of Ørsta, drive 4 km south-east on
Hwy. 655. Just as the road crosses the river Storelva, make
a left before the bridge. (There is a parallel road going
up the valley on the other side of the river as well, this
is also possible, but perhaps slightly longer wrt. driving time.)
Approximately 7 km up the valley, the two roads meet (this is
near the farm Kolås), and a dirt road with signs for
Standalen continues. This road heads up Øyadalen and
reaches the small lake Standalsvatnet (363m) after about 4 km.
The very nice hut, Standalshytta, has a short access road
to the left shortly after the lake. Standalshytta belongs
to Ålesund ski club, one of the oldest ski clubs in Norway.
One section of the hut is operated as a self service DNT hut.
It is not often these huts can be reached by car, however,
one should bring the food needed, since this hut did not
appear to carry a food supply. The hut is locked with the
DNT standard key. Route description:
From the Standalshytta, head north just on the left side
of an open (farmed) field. There is a trail here, but it
may be difficult to follow as several wet meadows are crossed.
The narrow opening of Kvanndalen valley at the base of the
rugged Sætretindane is the first goal. The best way there
(at least in the spring time with the snow line higher) is likely
to climb the hill on your left fairly early towards the upper
part of the vegetation, then continue the climb at a fairly
gentle angle in order to end at the distinct opening of the
valley.
In Kvanndalen (where we could start skiing) the terrain is
more gentle, the valley is narrow in the beginning, but then
becomes wider further in. There is avalanche danger from the
Sætretindane (on your right). Continue straight ahead, first
north-west, then north as the valley climbs higher. The glacier
below Kolåstinden is higher up on your left. Straight ahead
on the left is a steeper cliff, the route will circle this and access
the glacier higher up via a narrow "cut" in the ridge that closes
off the Kolåstinden glacier to the north. Higher up, the
valley turns left (west), one can ascend directly to the small
ridge-top called Appelsinhaugen (The place to have an orange), or
ski a slightly larger arc and ascend a bit further north. The next
objective is to continue up this valley to the saddle called
Kvanndalsskardet (1030m). From here, the cut in the ridge should
be clearly visible. This cut, called "Stretet" (formerly
also "Strait du Calais") is very narrow, but the deepest cut in
the ridge. It is reached by skiing steeply on an ascending traverse
from the saddle. There is a second "cut" in the ridge further west, this
one is substantially higher, by one account called the
"lobster col", do not head that way. Under unfavorable conditions
the climb to "Stretet" may be difficult, possibly more easily
done on foot than on skis. There is a single cliff below the route
near its end, otherwise just a steep snow slope.
The access to the glacier immediately on the other side of
the "cut" is normally quite easy. This glacier has crevasses and,
in particular, bergschrunds (crevasse between rocks and the ice), roped
travel may be needed in late spring and in the summer.
The route continues fairly steeply up the glacier, then more gently in
a large ascending arc with the spectacular rock formations on your right.
The peak is at the opposite side of the glacier when viewed from
the point of glacier access. Near the peak itself, the terrain gets
substantially steeper and most skiers continue on foot. Be aware
that there normally is a substantial crevasse in this transition
area between the glacier and the Kolåstinden itself.
Continue left until the top snow field is visible straight above
you. Depending on the conditions, an ice axe may often be useful for
added security in this area.
Immediately upon reaching the top ridge there is a metal container
with a guest logbook. Most people turn around here after taking a look
at the very steep slope going directly down to the Standalen area.
However, this is not the highest point. Turn right and scramble
up and around some large rocks. The short, but very exposed top
ridge is now visible. The traverse of this ridge is not difficult,
but carries considerable exposure. With snow and ice, some parties will
choose to use a rope for added security along this area. It appears
that the two end points of the ridge have approximately the same
height. Comments:
I did this climb with my son Pål Jørgen, age 14, and
my friend Jan-Frode Myklebust. We had mixed weather, unfortunately
not very good views from the summit, but enough to spot the
valley floor in Standalen. The climb took about 4.5 hours, we spent about
30 minutes exploring the top ridge before returning to Standalshytta
in about 2 hours.
The top ridge runs
south-east from (N 62:15.528, E 6:18.663) to
north-west (N 62:15.539, E 6:18.657), a distance of about 20 meter.