Location: North 67.71439, East 014.95393 (GPS at the summit)
Steigen, Norway
Difficulty: (YDS) class 4
Climbed August 17. 2014.
Information:
How to get there:
This mountain is located quite far south in Steigen. Drive
south to the municipality center, Leinesfjord, then continue towards Nordfold
on Hwy. 635. However, in Botn, turn right on Hwy. 633 towards Leines. Before reaching
Leines, watch for a signed road going left to Brennvika. Turn onto this road and drive
500 meter. Look for a small road going left that has trail signs to Skarbu. Turn left
here, then fork right and arrive
at a new trail sign on a pole on your left side. Park on
the grass on your right. This is the trailhead, location N67.72864, E014.88981, elevation
about 18 meter.
Route description:
First, follow the trail that runs from the information pole across a small, flat field with grass.
The trail then enters the forest and heads uphill, it is nice and pretty large. Continue uphill, the trail
breaks out of the trees and continues pretty much straight uphill to reach a small cairn with a pole.
From here, the trail turns right and ascends to a small, local col.
From this col, one looks directly into a more level basin, then the ridge leading up right to the peak.
Descend to the small, nice hut called Skarbu. The location is N67.72768, E014.93190, with an elevation
of approximately 550 meter.
From here, follow a much smaller trail that ascends gradually as it aims for the lowest saddle up front,
perhaps slightly left as viewed from below. Basically, you need to access the horizon ridge ahead, the route
will follow this ridge up to the right as seen from Skarbu.
Once on this ridge, a new stage begins.
Follow along the top of the ridge. It looks a bit worse than it turns
out. It is generally best to stay on the very top, despite some tracks that sometimes lead off to the left side.
Soon, you will reach a small notch and see a distinct cairn a bit
up along the ridge further ahead.
This is the first section that may
be characterized as (YDS) class 3. It is easier than it looks, but care should still be
exercised as there is some exposure here.
Next follows a fairly broad section with nice "rolling" terrain, then you arrive at the final steep step to gain
the (very large) summit plateau. Ascend gently among rocks and keep a bit left. You will soon locate some
cairns that lead uphill towards a large, distinct crack.
This crack is blocked by a rock near its bottom and is
not the route. The correct route enters a more narrow, parallel crack on the left side.
Climb into this crack and
then out of it up on your left hand side. This is a single (YDS) class 4 move, however, well protected and no/little
exposure. From this position, continue a bit uphill, (picture is looking down.)
then climb another step.
This is the second (and last)
(YDS) class 4 move. It is slightly awkward, perhaps in particular for small persons as the step has a small
overhang.
From this point, the rest is easy scrambling to gain the surprisingly large
and almost flat plateau. Turn slightly
left and walk the gentle downhill until you reach the lowest point. From here, ascend on very easy terrain to
arrive at a super-big and very nicely built summit cairn. Note: There are reliable reports that one may avoid the (YDS) class 4 section by descending left, then
traversing further ahead. Finally, there should then be a technically easier way that will reach the summit
plateau at its lowest point.
Comments:
The weather was supposed to improve in the afternoon, I wanted a clear view if possible and therefore
arrived at the trailhead as late as 1250. Clouds were still covering the
summits and the terrain looked indeed
a bit intimidating from the parking area. I left my car and started hiking along a very nice trail
that showed signs of frequent use. After about 45 minutes, I reached the small col that serves as an
entrance to a nice basin with the hut Skarbua. I decided to give the clouds more time, making a stop in the hut and
signing the book there. This is a small, but very well equipped hut.
The landscape is rough around here, but the
route to gain the ridge
looked quite easy. Once on the ridge, the hike turned into more
of a scramble. The ridge certainly looked
interesting, and I had quite a bit of fun exploring
my way along the top route. The first class 3 section looked difficult, but was easy. After a few more
interesting sections I arrived at what was obviously the crux section of this route. It turned out
to be well protected, but two single moves certainly belong in the (YDS) class 4 category. The rest
was easy and I arrived at an exceptionally large cairn at 1530.
The clouds were moving around, sometimes giving short moments of good view, sometimes just fog.
I stayed around about 15 minutes. There was no sign of real improvement in the weather and time to
head back down. The descent was
easier than the climb, typical for short, steep steps where
gravity makes the difference. I moved quite quickly and before long I
could again look into the basin
with Skarbua in front and the small col before the final descent further along.
The clouds had finally cleared and the views were
fine in all directions.
I decided to follow the ridge to the lowest col, then traverse the hillside slightly
above Skarbua. This worked well and soon the final
downhill remained.
I reached my car by 1720.
