Norwegian Mountains - Route Descriptions

Norwegian Mountains, Møre og Romsdal

Veten from RV61, Aug 10 2007

For Information, maps, trailhead and route descriptions, click HERE.

Earlier..

I'm still being bugged by what appears to be a virus, and the diagnostic process seems to be through the elimination method. Up for this morning, was ultrasound. The medical office told me that it would be weeks before I could get an appointment. This was disappointing news. I told the receptionist that I was in the process of buying a new house, and that I really didn't want to do that if I was dying. That *might* have put her off balance, because she said I could come back 3 hours later. Based on the ultrasound alone, there is good hope for more trip reports on westcoastpeaks.com.

It could have been a devious lie, but it wasn't. I was actually considering a prospect on Gurskøya island, and I would have a look at it in the afternoon. Actually, they hadn't even started building it, but there was a similar apartment close by. There was nothing wrong with the area, but deep inside of me, I sensed a certain reservation about joining a small community. I pictured myself attending bees (dugnad) when I really should have been exploring our beloved mountains. A chill ran down my spine, and I realized that I would have to give this some more thought.

Matt

After considering my future on Gurskøya island, I continued southbound to visit Matt and his family down by the Gursken fjord. They had rented a house for their summer vacation. Matt and I had recently visited Vassdalstinden, and the day before, we had great fun scrambling and climbing on Sukkertoppen in Ålesund. Based on my standards, Matt is a most excellent climber. He did some climbing on Sukkertoppen that was very inspirational. From now on, in addition to the dog, my climbing shoes will be permanently in my backpack on my afternoon hikes on Sukkertoppen.

Veten

Since I was in the area, I might as well hike Veten. Of the higher Gurskøya tops, this was the only one I hadn't been to. Matt and his family had been up there a few days ago, in thick fog. They turned around half-way, so Matt decided to join me for this hike.

We left the trailhead 18:25PM. I decided to carry my dog Troll up the mountain. It was a hot afternoon, and he would get his exercise on the way down. Veten was a no-brainer, and we reached the top 19:20PM. Winged termites made the summit stay somewhat unpleasant, and if it hadn't been for Photoshop's brush tool, the panoramas (below) would have featured many weird dots.

19:30PM, we were on our way down the mountain. Troll, being 60% blind, and with the sun against, had problems sticking to the path. He kept falling flat on his face all the time. Which isn't a large fall, but still. And it was hot too. I imagine this wasn't Troll's best hike in life.

We were back at the trailhead 20:25PM. I dropped off Matt, and said goodbye to them. I'll probably see them again upon their next visit to Norway. I've promised to take Matt skiing. As he hasn't skied before, that's gonna be a hell of a trip report. Stay tuned!