Norwegian Mountains, Møre og Romsdal

Varguraksla, 772m

Fylke/Kommune : Møre og Romsdal/Vestnes
Maps : 1220-II Vestnes
(Statens Kartverk, Norge 1:50 000)
Primary factor : 62m
Visited : Apr 2006
See also : Sprovstinden
See also : Nysæternakken
See also : Gjølbotntinden
See also : Kjølen
See also : fjellstova.no
See also : Trolltinden
See also : Høgsvora

Varguraksla seen from Sprovstinden

Varguraksla seen from Sprovstinden

Introduction

Varguraksla is strictly speaking the southwest end of the mountain massif where Sprovstinden is the dominating mountain. The top is very accessible from highway E39 (Ålesund - Molde) on Ørskogfjellet.

The route described is a slightly cumbersome skiing route, and is perhaps better in the summertime.

Primary factor:

Varguraksla (M711: 772m, Ø.K.: 772,34m, UTM 32 V 395985 6935072) has a primary factor of 62m towards the higher parent mountain Sprovstinden (1194m). The defining saddle (approx. UTM 32 V 396627 6935108) is found between Vargusaksla and Sandtinden. Ref. the 1220-II map (20m contours), the saddle is within the range 700-720m, interpolated to 710m.

My GPS reported 774m on top as average over a 5 minute period.

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.

Ørskogfjellet - Varguraksla (winter)

Difficulty : Class 2 (YDS)
Exposure : No
Distance : Approx. 2,3Km to the top
Time : Approx. 1-1,5 hours to the top
Starting Elev.: Approx. 310
Vertical Gain : Approx. 460m (total)

Map of the area
Map of the area
(No Javascript)
Detailed map
Detailed map
(No Javascript)

Access

From Ålesund, follow highway E136->E39 towards Åndalsnes. From the E136/E39/Olsvika roundabout near Breivka, follow E39 37,8Km (9,7Km from the Geiranger/Stordal junction at Sjøholt). You will find a huge parking area on the right-hand side of the road.

The route

Most likely, you may follow prepared tracks towards the west end of the Varguraksla ridge. Ski up the west ridge, but stay below the sharp end of the ridge, avoiding cliffs. The birch forest doesn't give you too much difficulties, although it isn't optimal terrain for skiing.

Higher up on the ridge, a short pitch is fairly steep, but the ridge levels out beyond this part. There may be a small cairn which is visible in summer, but not seen in winter. Be aware of the cornices facing north. Make well sure you are on the mountain proper.

Descend your ascent route, or head down to the Sandtinden - Varguraksla saddle and either descend the slalom hill or southbound towards Måslia.

Varguraksla seen from Lebergsfjellet

Varguraksla seen from Lebergsfjellet

Trip report, Apr 22 2006

I headed up to Ørskogfjellet, hoping to escape the strong gale along the coast. The plan was to ski up to Sandfjellet - Trolltinden's neighbour top, but the strong wind and flat light made me cancel this project. Instead of returning to Ålesund "empty-handed", I decided to pay Varguraksla a visit.

The dog and I headed out from the main Ørskogfjellet parking area 11:15PM. There wasn't much snow, and whatever was left, had an icy crust. The dog didn't even leave footprints. We headed to the west end of the ridge and headed up the birch forest. The forest protected us from the wind, which was convenient.

Due to lack of snow, I parked the skis at approx. 700m and continued on foot. The light made it very difficult to see the contours between the mountain and the cornices, and we kept safely to the south side of the ridge. We reached the top 12:15PM and felt the wind at gale force. I was slightly concerned about the dog blowing off the mountain, and kept an extra eye on how he was doing.

I might have had plans for a roundtrip, but the wind was of the "get the hell off the mountain" kind, and we descended our ascent route. I had very short skis and was able to descend the birch forest without too much inconvenience. We were back at the car 12:50PM.

Pictures from the Apr 22 2006 hike

To Varguraksla

1. Varguraksla seen from E39 (193KB) 2. Troll leading on (160KB) 3. Up the birch forest (300KB) 4. The ridge gets steeper (276KB) 5. The wind gets rougher (150KB)

Wide-angle panorama

6. Wide-angle panorama from Varguraksla (602KB)

50mm panoramas

7. 50mm panorama from Varguraksla (474KB) 8. 50mm panorama from Varguraksla (605KB) 9. 50mm panorama from Varguraksla (509KB)

Descent

10. Raven using the winds (123KB) 11. Mountains towards Sjøholt (433kB)

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Other pictures:

1. 360 deg. wide-angle panorama from Giskemonibba (1101KB) 2. 360 deg. wide-angle panorama from Nysæternakken (1386KB) 3. 50mm panorama from Svartløkfjellet, part 2/2 (892KB) 4. 50mm view from Middagsfjellet (805KB) 5. Wide-angle view from Kjølen (1029KB) 6. Views, up in the hillside (611KB) 7. Alone at the trailhead (807KB) 8. Wide-angle view from Smørhylla S. (1401KB) 9. 56mm view from Næremstindan

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