Norwegian Mountains

Håvikamulen, 489m

Fylke/Kommune : Hordaland/Fusa
Maps : 1215-III Fusa (Statens Kartverk, Norge 1:50 000)
Primary factor : 256m
Hiked : Dec 2004
See also : Haugafjellet
See also : Rødsfjell
See also : Våganipen
See also : Storehorga
See also : Bergsfjellet
Haavikamulen seen from Haugafjellet

Håvikamulen seen from Haugafjellet

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Introduction

Håvikamulen, along with Haugafjellet and Rødsfjell form a chain of mountains that rise steep above Sævareid by Sævareidfjorden and lake Henangervatnet. The overall terrain is in general unfriendly, and you can only access these mountains where the terrain allows you to. The route described on this page is most likely the easiest route up this mountain. The route begins at Sævareid, and passes the old Ljotå farm. This page talks about this region and mentions that the Ljotå farm can be tracked back to the year 1647.

The name "Håvikamulen" relates to "Håvik", the farm at the north end of "Håvika", an arm of Sævareidfjorden. "Mulen" (Norwegian for muzzle) may be a descriptive form.

Primary factor:

Håvikamulen (M711: 489m, Ø.K: 489m) has a primary factor of 256m towards the higher Bergsfjellet (521m). The saddle is found at the top of Harddalen valley. Ref. Økonomisk Kartverk (5m contours), you cross the 235m contours on the high route, but not 230m. The saddle height has been interpolated to 233m.

Trail descriptions:

Notes: Class ratings are in reference to YDS. Click here for more information.

The trails described below are not necessarily the *easiest* trails to this mountain.

Sævareid - Håvikamulen (summer/autumn)

Difficulty : Class 2
Exposure : Not on the easiest route
Comments : Trail/Off-trail
Distance : Approx. 4Km to the top
Time : Approx. 2-3 hours (w/o pause)
Starting Elev.: Approx. 60m
Vertical Gain : Approx. 600m (total)

Map of the area
Map of the area
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Detailed map
Detailed map
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Access

From Bergen, follow highway E16 towards Oslo. At the E16/RV 7 junction (roundabout) at Trengereid, turn right onto RV 7. Follow RV 7 to the RV 7/RV 48 junction after Bjørkheim (approx. 13,9Km from the Trengereid junction). Turn right onto RV48 and follow this road all the way to Kilen (34,7Km).

At Kilen, turn right onto highway RV 549 "Sævareid/Baldersheim" and drive for approx. 5,8Km. Turn right towards "Solheim/Sentrum". Drive straight ahead (ignore the next "Solheim" sign) and follow the road for approx. 800m (the road turns to gravel road after 600m). Turn right and drive 100m up a hill. Find parking in the junction on top of the hill.

The route

Follow the road to your left for approx. 300m. Pass a stone fence and locate a red gate to your left, just after the fence. Pass through this gate and find a forest trail 30m further down. Turn right onto this forest trail.

The forest trail heads southwest and you get a glimpse of Nautaneset down by Sævareidsfjorden before the trail turns north. Before you reach the 100m contour, you enter a trail junction. Turn left, and follow a less traveled path westbound. The path descends towards Ljotå, and you have to cross a bridge before you reach the Ljotå farm. Show caution on this bridge.

Follow a forest road from Ljotå into Ljotådalen valley. After a while, this turns into a forest trail. The trail crosses the stream down the valley twice. Show great caution on both. At the second valley bridge, leave the forest trail, turn left and locate a vague path that runs west/southwest up the forest. You should be able to follow this path up to (at least) 300m elevation. Maintain a direct course up to the summit.

The high point (489m) is not marked in any way. The 482m trig. point is found 200m further south. Descend your ascent route.

Trip report Dec 12 2004

Yet another miserable week-end morning. The clouds hung low over Bergen, and didn't expect it to be any different elsewhere in Hordaland. Still, I decided to drive down to Fusa and collect Håvikamulen. This would be my last mountain on Fusahalvøya. I've grown quite custom to bad weather lately, but Troll didn't seem to look forward to the hike. He was lying in an awkward position in the passenger seat, with almost all of his body on top of his head. His eyes were staring empty towards the glove compartment. "Please God, kill me now". He's not Einstein, but knows the difference between a good and a bad day.

I had done some research last time I was in this region, and knew roughly where the trail towards Ljotå began. We left the trailhead 10:55AM, and "roughly" meant spending some time walking about, trying to locate the trail. After a few minutes, we were on track. More precisely, I was on track. Troll was in the backpack already by the time we left the car. When he didn't want to move from the passenger seat, I took that as a hint.

On my map, there was no trail toward Ljotå. So I assumed that the trail I was on headed up to the pass between Gråhaug and Haugafjellet. Thus, when I arrived a trail junction east of Skoltane, I left the main trail and followed the much less traveled path westbound. This path led me down towards Ljotå. After carefully crossing some wooden planks above the river, we reached the Ljotå farm 11:30PM.

We then followed the forest road upwards. After a while, we crossed the river on a similar scary bridge. Once again, I crossed the bridge, walking upright. When I reached the second (valley) bridge, I looked around for an alternative way across the river. When no other alternative was found, I crossed the river on the bridge, once more walking upright. At this point, I left the valley trail and headed upwards, following a vague path.

This path led me the wrong way. I was on my way back towards Ljotå at 230m elevation. I abandoned this route, and found the path that was going the right way. Above 300m elevation, this path faded, and I was off-trail in the fog. I felt uncomfortable. There were not many details on the map, and I chose not to navigate by compass. Instead I decided to spend time trying to focus on the terrain. This was quite futile in the dense fog, and I had to pull out my roll of red ribbons from the "emergency bag". By the time I had ran out of ribbons, there were no more trees. I built small cairns along the way to the summit.

My "just head upwards" plan led me too far north of the summit. I found myself on a local top and had to descend a bit before I was at the summit foothills. It was quite steep, but I decided to scramble my way up the cliffs, rather than seeking around for an easier route. We reached the summit 13:00PM. I found no markers on the high point, and didn't feel for looking around for the trig. point. I turned around immediately and started on my ribbon-quest down the forest.

I felt the ribbon plan worked perfectly, although mountaineers would probably shake their heads. It took me only 30 minutes down to the valley, and I didn't fumble around once. Without these aids, I know I would have ended up in a place I didn't want to be. At this season, where darkness comes in around 16:00PM, I didn't want to take any risk whatsoever.

I let Troll walk when we reached Ljotådalen valley. I didn't plan to give him a choice, but he seemed happy to be out of the backpack. I decided that walking upgright across the bridges was to stretch it, and I "assed" myself across all three bridges, with the dog in my lap. We were back at the car 14:15PM, soaking wet, but quite happy to be down safe and sound.

Pictures from the Dec 12 2004 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.

1. Arriving Saevareid (72KB) 2. Heading out (136KB) 3. The forest trail (160KB) 4. Bridge near Ljotaa (218KB) 5. Ljotaa (130KB) 6. Steep cliffs above Ljotaa (94KB) 7. Leaving Ljotaa (124KB) 8. On the valley trail (253KB) 9. Another tricky bridge (170KB) 10. The third bridge was the worst (174KB) 11. Heading up the forest (98KB) 12. A foggy day (184KB) 13. The summit is ahead (136KB) 14. A steep scramble to the top (110KB) 15. The high point (124KB) 16. View north (112KB) 17. View south (103KB) 18. Back in the valley. Rocky trail (134KB)

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Pictures from other hikes:

1. Fusa mountains (267KB) 2. Ilefjellet summit view (541KB) 3. Fusa mountains (183KB) 4. 50mm panorama from Helleknappen (1052KB)

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