Location: North 69.40430, East 017.52404 (GPS on the summit)
Climbed September 23. 2017
Difficulty: YDS class 2+
Information:
How to get there:
This mountain is located on the west side of the island Senja.
Locate the town of Finnsnes, then take Hwy. 86 west (signed for
Gryllefjord, also serving the tourist location Hamn.).
After reaching the fjord Straumsbotn, take Hwy. 862 branching
right (north). After about 3 kilometer and before you enter a
tunnel, find parking on your right hand side of the road.
This location is N69.39725, E017.49180, elevation about 290 meter.
Route:
This route is marked with blue paint, but it may be a bit difficult
to find the trail in the very beginning. You may need to pick up this
trail on the right hand side (east) of the creek, by first heading
towards the river near the lake, cross it then head uphill.
Once you find the trail, just follow it as it climbs to the pass
directly south of Stormoa at location N69.40005, E017.53448, elevation
about 710 meter.
From here, follow the marked route to the summit. This route runs up
along the south ridge, but largely staying on the right (east) side
of the ridgeline. The route has lots of loose gravel and small
rocks so one needs to be careful.
The easiest route is mostly (YDS) class 2, perhaps short sections
of class 2+. However, it may be recommended to climb more along
the top ridge itself. This is mostly very nice scrambling on solid
rock with plenty of good hand and footholds. Such a route is largely
class 3.
There is a nice cairn on the summit and the views are very good.
Comments:
Karin, Kari and I did this climb in
the afternoon, after our board meeting
earlier in the day. The day before, Kari and I had climbed Kvænan.
However, today we needed a peak that was located closer and that would be suitable for a rather
short (half day) climb. The choice was easy,
since Stormoa is the second highest on Senja and
since it is located quite a short drive from Hamn where we were staying.
We left at 1300 and had a nice scramble along the main ridge (largely avoiding the easiest route),
arriving at the summit at 1420.
We stayed around for 30 minutes enjoying the nice view all around. One may look directly
back down to the trailhead. Descending in 1:10, we were
back at the car by 1600. Thanks to K&K for a very nice afternoon outing!