Norwegian Mountains, Møre og Romsdal
Kjerringa via Trongegylet + Hoksteinen, June 6 2009
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Kjerringa and Trongegylet
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The couloir looked quite steep from a distance, but the only way to know for sure, was to go and have a look. A cold wind met me when I parked at Ytreflø, but the walk was still nice. The sun was shining and sleepy cows were scattered around in the grass. After 1,1km, I left the road and headed up a boulder field. 4 calves wanted to join in on the hike, but I think a fence in the forest stopped them.
For the first time in 2009, I noticed flies. And lots of them too. I strongly dislike flies. They keep coming at you all the time. There's just no end to it. I decided to see if they would leave when I reached higher ground, and if not, I would find myself a rock wall and sit down below it for a while.
Trongegylet
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Trongagylet was far easier than I had anticipated. There were no "ugly" sections. I could even see a vague track here and there. At several places, I was able to get up on the ridge to my left (which means that the couloir isn't very steep). I won't be surprised if I come back one day to see if I can scramble this ridge all the way up.
A falcon caught my attention, and I was barely able to take a picture of this fast-flying (and screaming) bird. I wondered if there was a nest somewhere up on the cliffs, and if this bird would follow me for a while. But it didn't.
Vandrefalk / Falco peregrinus / Peregrine Falcon
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80 vertical meters below the top of the couloir, I noticed a steep, but doable route up to the ridge. I scrambled up and was tempted to continue along the ridge, but I decided to stay true to my plan and finish the hike up the couloir. The flies were still bugging me, so I aimed for a rock wall and sat down for a little while. As expected, the flies lost interest when they could no longer fly around me. After a minute, they had all vanished.
I didn't know it at the time, but the rock wall was the characteristic rock that has given the name to the mountain. Once upon a long ago, someone has seen the face of an old woman in this rock (it's never an old man..), and hence the name Kjerringa gave the mountain its name.
The Kjerringa rock feature
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I didn't find the route back down to the couloir at first, and I noticed my heart was beating slightly faster. But after scrambling around for a while, I found it. A few minutes later, I was on the Kjerringa plateau. After having a good look around, I continued up to the cairn and arrived there 2:48pm, 1h:15m after leaving the Flø trailhead.
Next on the agenda was Hoksteinen. I continued up to the high point on the plateau before setting course for Ytreflødalen. 3:23pm, I was standing in front of Hoksteinen and this time I was determined to climb this rock.
Hoksteinen
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Climbers climb the back side of this rock. It's too high for bouldering, so a number of bolts can be found on top of the rock. Non-climbers, such as myself, can find a challenge in the side facing the sea. It's fairly easy to climb up. The tricky part is the descent, as the crack you have to pass is quite narrow, and a bit more awkward as you climb down. Don't climb up unless you're confident that you can get back down. I assume it would be embarrassing to wait for a passing hiker and to ask him/her to go and fetch a ladder from the nearest farm...
I went up and down twice. The first time without the camera. The climb went smoothly. The second time, the camera around my neck caused a few practical problems upon descent, but it all sorted itself out in the end.
It was altogether a very enjoyable hike. I got to do what I came to do, and had many fine moments along the way. I also noticed a handful other routes that I will come back for.
