Midvagur to Traelanipa, Jun 9th

There are two or three hikes in the Faroe Islands that ended up being epic mostly for scenery. This is one of them, and in fact, this hike is one of the things that drove to me go all the way to Faroe Islands and explore. The hike itself is not too long and doesn’t have a lot of elevation gain as compared with other routes in the islands, yet it has, in my opinion, one of the most incredible and mind-boggling views. The hike starts from the village of Midvagur that is close to the airport. The trail takes you around Leitisvatn lake that looks like something gigantic stepped in leaving a footprint impression while displacing the ground to the sides.

Far in the distance, a change in color tell you you’re looking at the ocean. It doesn’t necessarily make you think you’re in some sort of plateau, but you get that as you get close to Traelanipa. For the most part, the trail is gentle and goes fast up until you get closer to cliff. Then you get to a four-way junction that sits at the very edge of a cliff down to the see. In front of you are vertical walls that almost make the terrain look like someone just cut a piece of it. At this pint you can get as close as you want or as brave as you are, to the edge. Views certainly don’t disappoint.

There is a user path on the left side that gives you better views of the right side, but it gets windy as you get higher. I took a couple of pictures from the point I got to and the retraced my steps back to the edge and continued on the trail towards the top of Traelanipa.

I circled around for a bit until I found a couple of spots with the view I was familiar with and was able to sit next to the edge with my feet dangling on the edge. From this angle is hard to understand you are looking at a lake that sits on a plateau and below is the sea. It almost looks like the lake should be the sea. Even without the angle covered with the camera lens it was hard to get that in your brain.

While exploring the top of Traelanipa, I saw a waterfall from the lake into the sea. The wind was blowing steadily, and clouds were rolling in. In the distance, a big chunk of earth is detached from the mainland and sits there in the ocean.

I managed to find my way to the waterfall which ended not being as dramatic as I saw it from above. I still explored a bit around the mouth of the lake and then headed back on the lower trail with the intention of taking the shortcut to the parking area. AS I did that, I walked right into a nesting area and was chased down by angry birds that dive millimeters from your head. Without an option, I had to stay on the lower trail all the way to the main road and then hike the road back to the trailhead to get to my car.

You can see the rest of the pictures here

Gasadalur, Jun 9th

After seeing Gasadalur from the top of Knavin and realizing it was in my to-do list, I got back on the car, drove thru the last tunnel and the long winding road down to a farm house just outside the village of Gasadalur and parked next to the sign pointing towards Mulafossur. This waterfall is one of the few places that you can consider more touristy in the Faroe Islands. Rather than a hike, where you have to navigate and find your route, this is just a short walk from the road to a magnificent view point from which you can see the waterfall, the village and Heinanova mountain behind.

It’s quite the scenery, that’s for sure. This image is, according to an article I read, what opened the Faroe Islands to the world. Seems like someone came to explore and shared the picture on social media and it went viral. After that, tourism picked up and placed the Faroe Islands on the map.
As I was walking back, I stopped at a junction with a well-marked, wide path heading north towards the village. It looked inviting, so I took it. As I walked and enjoyed the views, started realizing the path was probably build by the farmer that owns that plot of land. It also seemed they build it, so people would actually walk around a bit and eventually find their way to the village and a nice coffee shop (it was closed when I got there). I walked around some of the old farm houses easily recognizable by the black walls and turf roofs before heading back to the car just when the rain came in.

You can see the rest of the pictures here

Bour to Knavin, Jun 9th

When I got back after my first couple of hikes, I realized that my plan to start on one end (the far end) and work my way to the other end hiking all the areas I had planned and researched was not going to work. It wasn’t a bad idea in paper, but I didn’t think that the driving would accumulate fast. I had spent several hours in the car driving in solitary winding routes, so I wanted to do something closer. So instead of heading back and start from where I left off, I decided to start at the other end from Bour just north of the Airport. This hike is the original route that connected the village of Bour with the Village of Gasadalur before the tunnel was built. That last minute change made me forget or not check a little detail that I would realize later in the day, but we’ll get to that later.

The hike started from a small parking lot at the end of dirt road heading towards the ocean as it gained elevation quickly. It almost seemed like the route was made by someone who wanted to get closer to the precipice to get a better look at some of the features on the northern side of the Faroe Islands. First and the smallest is Drangarnir, a vertical rock that comes out of the sea and has an arch underneath. Just looking at it gives you the idea that no one has ever set foot there (unless there’s a way to climb on ropes or something).

Then is the island of Tindholmur with steep hill that looks like the rocks were lifted by strong winds. I had read about this place and learned it’s a private island and nobody leaves there despite having a “summer” house. There are tours to the island and guided hikes to the top of that mountain that I wanted to take but rain didn’t allow it. Still pretty amazing to see it from the distance.

The there’s Gasholmur which in contrast is like a plate, almost flat with no prominent peaks or features other than cliffs all around it (I believe there’s no access to this island).

And finally, all the way to the northwest, the islands of Mykines known for the abundance of birds, especially puffins. I also thought about going but then rain didn’t allow it and someone I met on the trail said it was overrated. Who knows.

That view stayed with me for several switchbacks as I gained more elevation and going around Rogvukollur. It was a steady climb passing several cairns on the way until I could see one last big cairn in what looked to be the saddle over Knavin.

Looking at the map, it seemed like from there the trail went almost straight down to Gasadalur which, at that moment I thought I was doing. But then, when I reached that spot, I realized several things. First, it was a long way down that I would need to climb back again to get back to the car and second, there was a big waterfall into the ocean down there. I had completely overlooked the fact that I had that waterfall in my to-do list without realizing where it was. I knew I was going there anyway so instead of hiking down to then retrace my steps, I decided to hike back and the drive to Gasadalur to check the waterfall.

Before doing that though, I did explore the ridge a bit as it extends to the north not only overlooking Gasadalur but also Heinanova, the peak behind it and all the way to Mykines. It was quite the spectacle. After a bit and taking a bite to eat, I started my hike down retracing my steps. As I did I got a second chance to enjoy the views of the islands and a smaller water fall from the side of the mountain down into the fjord below. Not a bad way to start the day – next stop, Gasadalur!

You can see the rest of the pictures here

Bondhus Glacier and Fonnabuten, Jun 5th

This was a very long and spectacular day with two hikes in one. When I was in the planning phase for this trip I came across these two hikes and for a while, was a bit torn. On one side you have a shorter easier hike with at least one scene that is out of a postcard. To get there is not that hard, but the trail does continue and goes to the base of the Bondhus Glacier. It didn’t kame much sense to just go to the lake and not continue to the glacier and check that out as well. On the other side, there’s an arduous climb to Fonnabu which is the starting point if you are planning on crossing the Folgefonna Glacier towards Odda. In other words, the trail takes you to the edge of a pretty big glacier. These two trails start from the same place and have a common trail in until a junction where you can elect to go one way or the other. Not wanting to use two days for this or walk the same trail twice, I opted for the obvious solution of doing both the same day. The only caveat was it made for a 17+ miles and over 5000 feet of elevation gain. Being early summer in Norway, light was not a problem, I knew I had about 20 hours and night time was not entirely dark. So, I packed my stuff and of I went.
The hike starts from a big parking lot at the end of the road. I guess this area gets a lot of visits as it’s the nicest trailhead I’ve seen. Not only for the information but also the big trail marker in the center of a kind of roundabout. From there, the trail is just the continuation of a dirt road alongside the creek. Just from that point you can tell the scenery will just get better as you go

At some point, the road splits and a big sign indicates the different destinations you can reach… all color coded for difficulty. Since I had already made the plan, I went with green and blue first leaving the red and black for later in the day. Shortly after that, I came up to the end of the road and the outlet of Bondhusvatnet. It was one of those moments when you get a place you’ve seen in pictures before, but the real-life version is way better. It was literally a postcard and it even made me wander if the boat actually belongs to someone or it’s just there to enhance the scenery (if you search for this place, you’ll see the boat is always there)

I took several angles of the same picture trying to avoid capturing some other stuff that was in the way. Here’s the thing, when I got there, there was a car parked on the side, running, spitting fumes and playing music. It belonged to a group of kids that were camping at the mouth of the lake. I could see they were using a campsite, so I guess that’s allowed, but I was not sure the car was supposed to be there, and even if it was, running? Seriously? Aside from that, it seems they had taken a swim and changed before sitting to eat (which is how I found them) so there were wet clothes hanging from a rail on a little dock. I did give them the look but that did not get anywhere. After several pictures and breathing heavy, I took off on the trail going around the lake. The trail was rocky and wide so probably an old road. Eventually I got to the other end of the lake where I found a gate (to keep animals on one side) and a bridge over the creek that feeds the lake from the glacier. From that point, the view looking back on the lake is magnificent as you get full reflection of the mountains on either side and the narrow outlet towards the fjords.

Then you turn the other way and a shallow forest stands between you and Fynderdalsnuten, a rocky mountain where the glacier sits to its side. From my view point, I could see the mountain clearly but not too much of the glacier (as compared with pictures I’ve seen before). Later I would discover that the glacier has retreated considerably so now you only see the chute where it used to be

The hike thru the forest goes quick and the trail suddenly starts to thin out and eventually disappear. This happens as you come out of the forest into a wide rocky expanse where the glacier probably washes out. Finding your way is pretty much pointing in the direction you want to go although there are some small cairns here and there. I traversed the whole area with the intent of getting to the base of the rocky slope where I found a small creek and waterfall. I was not even close to the glacier and from that point you couldn’t even see it which was a bit disappointing. It looked like you could scramble a bit and get closer but with a long day ahead I decided not to experiment with that and just take some pictures of the waterfall

After that, I retraced my steps back to the lake and around and to my delight to find the campers had left. I took a couple more shots of the lake and the boat before heading back to the junction to veer right and head up towards Fonnabu. As a lot of other places so far, the beginning of the trail looked more like a farm road than anything else, or maybe it was the cows that helped with that idea. Either way, it was kind of funny that, as I was walking the trail, the cows started walking towards me and got close just to look at me. I guess they were interested in whatever I could offer. I don’t feed animals on the trail, so I hope they were happy with me just saying hi to them. After the cows, I entered in a more forested area and the road started looking even more like a road going up on the side of the mountain. At first, I couldn’t make sense of it but then I found a sign that would explain everything to me. Back in the late 1800’s a German Merchant visited the area and found it to be the most spectacular in Norway. Working with local authorities, the trail was converted into a bridleway, so tourists could get access, with horses, to Gardshammar. Construction was done by local farmers as the bridleway would also benefit them. A big portion of the road goes up on the side of the mountain, but the most striking part are the 18 switchbacks that wind their way up. Beautiful at the views are though, getting up there is a workout. I sweated my behind as I went thru all those switchbacks and gained elevation quickly. Below me I could see Bondhusvatnet Lake getting smaller and smaller as I was looking at the top of the mountains around more at eye level.

After one last turn, the trail goes thru another gate (again to keep sheep on one side) and then enters Gardshammar. This area is a small valley with a handful of farmhouses perched up in the mountains. It was like a scene from Heidi where she would come running to meet Pedro and his sheep (which I could hear by the way). It was like walking into my childhood.

As I walked and singed the Heidi song in my head (I know how bad I can sing so I keep it to myself) a passed by a couple of sheep laying under a tree. It was just ridiculous.

Eventually I left the farm behind and the small trees thinned out and I got to Botnavatnet, a beautiful small lake in a basin. The trail continues around the lake and soon resumes a steady climb that only gets steeper as you go. There wee a couple of times I turned around, not only to check the lake from above but also to notice I had left the valley and lower lake far behind already.

As I got even higher, vegetation started to give up and let the rocks take most of the scenery. This is when I started noticing some of the most incredible rock work I’ve seen on a trail. I passed a section that looked like an old bridge from medieval times still holding up after the pass of time. Maybe this bridge is not that old but still, impressive work that will be there for years to come

The trail kept going up and eventually got to a saddle where it turns east and climbs on a ridge. It was a perfect stop for a quick stop and recharge and as I did that, I turned around to amazing views. I knew I still had elevation to gain, but from where I was, it seemed I was at the top of Norway. It was quite incredible to see the rolling peaks and deep canyons cutting thru the scene

Once I recovered my jaw from the ground, I continued my arduous and slow progress. After a while, the trail started leveling up and I could see some snow ahead and mountains in the distance. That view was kind of blocked by a big boulder I had to get around. To my side, I had a snow filed and a small snow melt lake that was beautiful and ahead a surprise I was not ready for. Once the trail took me around the boulder, a new view opened in front of me and I remember yelling something in the lines of “holly..”. The funny thing was that up to that point, I hadn’t seen anyone on the trail, but there was a guy sitting on the other side that almost jumped when he heard me. I spent several minutes apologizing as he just laughed at me. We talked for a bit and told me he was from there and liked hiking to that point just to sit and admire the scenery. It was easy to understand why.

From my point of view, I could see the trail descending a bit to the lake and going around but lost where it went from there. I could only see what looked like ice floating over water. I did know there had to be a way to continue and get to Breidablik which is a small cabin that sits on the top of the hill on the other side (you can see the hut on the top right corner of the picture above). Once I passed the lake I found markers pointing to an area where I had to cross a small snow field and then get back on a rock chute to continue up. From that point up, it was pretty much a rock staircase towards the hut, so I got there pretty quick.

When I got to the cabin, I noticed it was not locked so I decided to check it out. There I found the cabin sleeps four and it’s fully stocked. Not only there are pillows and linens but cooking utensils, gas, plates, silverware, you name it. I started checking out the notices on the wall and learned the cabin (as many in Norway) is open to the public on a first come, first served basis. Pretty much you get there and use it. There was a payment envelope where you can fill out a form and put cash or your credit card information and leave it there to cover the cost of using the cabin at a very reasonable rate. It was the most civilized thing ever.

I left the cabin and continued on the ridge towards a huge cairn that I could see in the distance. By now, the views ahead of me had a white boundary, the Folgefonna Glacier. Far to my right I could see more peaks in the distance and to my left a deep depression with an ice melt lake. It was surreal, I was literally at the top of Norway. I finally made it to the big cairn which indicated the Fonnanuten summit, the highest point of the hike. From that point, I could see cairns all the way to the huts at Fonnabu but by then I was tired enough that decided to make this my turning point. I sat on the rocks to take in the views and refuel for the long way down being content that I was there. For me, there was no need to push a bit more to get to Fonnabu as the views where not going to get any better. After taking in the big picture, I changed lenses in my camera and started focusing on details, things I couldn’t see clearly without the aided help.

After a handful of pictures in different direction, I packed my stuff and started my long descend back to the parking lot retracing my steps. As the sun was moving away, I took a lot more pictures on the way down, so I’ll leave some of those here.

You can see the rest of the Bondhus Glacier picture set here and here for the Fonnabu Glacier pictures set

Rotekot from Fossasete, Jun 4th

I met my AirB&B host in the morning as I was heading out to hike Buer Valley. In a short conversation, she recommended me driving further down the road until I found another parking area and hike up next to a wonderful waterfall. Being a local advice, I took note and placed it in my to-do list. After the hike to Buer Valley I drove and found the waterfall not to far from where I was and the parking area. Before heading up, I grabbed my packed lunch and found a nice spot on the other side of the road where I sat under a tree with ample views of the fjord and another gigantic waterfall on the other side. After that and under a very bright day, I grabbed my gear and headed up the trail and right there I found an old storage hut that was very interesting. The bottom was big rocks piled into the mountainside with the door below ground. Above ground, the hut was wood with the customary grass roof. What I found interesting where the two rock slabs on the front. Not sure if they were just placed there without a specific purpose or not.

Then I turned back and got on the trail and started climbing quick. After doing three hikes, I started to realize that trails in Norway are designed with a different goal than here in the US. While here we tend to have graded trails that are designed with horses in mind, in Norway, it seems they design them just to last and be functional. This trail, as the others, follows a chute straight up. Using stepping stones. Is pretty much a big ladder that will get your heart pumping pretty quick

As you gain elevation, you get better views of of the fjord and the waterfall on the other side. Eventually you pass a couple of spots where the waterfall nest to the trail almost splashes at you. In one particular spot, I found a side path to the edge of the waterfall. Mossy and wet rocks stopped me from getting closer which I wouldn’t have done anyway after seeing the force and amount of water coming down.

At the top of the waterfall lies Fossasetevatnet, the lake that feed the waterfall. Next to it I found a couple of farm houses and a cable car that descends thru the trees all the way down to the road. I didn’t see that when I started but it made sense to have some sort of help to bring materials up for those houses and farms up in the valley.

I left those structures behind and continued the rocky trail gaining more elevation. As I did, the sliver of white from the glacier popped in the horizon and I knew I was closer to Lisatevatnet, the next lake. Roughly at that moment, the trail changed into a foot path which seemed weird at first. Later, looking at the map, I realized I had missed a turn somewhere and got off trail. Either way, I made it to the end of the lake and, surprisingly, more farm land.

As I hiked on the lake shore, I saw sheep, a horse but no people. There were at least 4 or 5 houses in the area sharing the mountainside and the lake in an almost idyllic place. As I was looking at that, I was wondering how they get materials and anything else up there. The only thing I saw was the cable car but that was away down the hill. I’m still puzzled as to how they make this work. Towards the western edge of the lake I found the little stream that feeds the lake and took some pictures there.

I noticed the footpath continuing up, so I decided to follow it and explore a bit. For a while I snaked thru the bushes and got glimpses of another lake and the glacier in the distance, but t didn’t seem I was going anywhere. At some point the path got thick and more difficult to navigate so I decided to turn around and head back down the way I had come. Even though this hike was not the most memorable I did in Norway, it was very educational given all the things I discovered or realized.

You can see the rest of the pictures here

Buer Valley, Jun 4th

Once in city of Odda, I had several hiking options aside from the very well-known Trolltunga hike. One that picked my interest was the Buer Valley as it followes the valley formed by glacier runoff all the way to the base of the Buer Glacier, one of the many fingers of the Folgefonna Glacier. What I didn’t know was that, aside from the incredible views at the end of this trail, the trail itself would offer a nice challenge with multiple ropes, bridges and ladders to go thru.
As with a lot of hikes in Norway, the trail starts at the end of a farm road, going thru the farm and eventually getting on the trail. On this particular trailhead, you can see the price from the very beginning and some would argue that it’s a better view than what you get after. Completely debatable.

After passing the farm buildings and some very hairy cows that looked more like large dogs with horns, I took a slight turn and got on the trail right next to the creek. I had thought that building cairns was a thing here in the US, but it turns out it’s a thing everywhere. I’m guessing the first part of the trail was an old road that became a trail. As hikers go by, the build and leave cairns behind so he whole side of the trail is just that, cairns.

Then the fun began when I got to the first obstacle. Coming from the right hill, a creek was rushing down over rocks and bushes almost looking like a small flood. It was interesting to see that since the creek bed is mostly rock, the water has not been able to dig a trench so instead it just runs over everything and over the span of quite some distance. The first section had only a log that served more as a guide than something to step on. Luckily the water was not that high so several rocks where clearly above water and hopping thru was not that hard. The second section was without a log but with a rope. I had to go a bit around it as the rope goes on the deeper part of the creek while right below there are some bigger rocks that made passing a bit easier.

After that, I got to the steel bridges which was quite easy.

The trail continues up making quick turns to go around big boulders or just going over them with the aide of ropes or chains. It was an easy trail to follow but a full body workout in places. And then I got to the hanging bridge. It was quite impressive to see this small structure anchored to rocks and just hanging there. Quite a scene.

(btw, the red markings on the other side are trail markers. There’s another rope there to climb over that boulder)
As I continued up, I got used to the variety of anchors, ropes and interesting things the trail was throwing at me. It was a lot of fun to traverse all those features

Finally, I got to the end of the trail where another side runoff joins the Buer runoff. You can continue a bit further but there’s no ropes or aides so you’re at your own risks. Since I had come out unscathed from my little ordeal the day before, I wasn’t in the “mood” to get into another pickle, so I decide to stay on the safe zone and just explore around the view area for a bit and enjoy the majestic scenery.

Just as I turned around and was getting ready to hike out, I noticed a little hut on a small ridge to the left and a foot path going to it. I decided to go check it out and found it to be a hut that sleeps 4. It was open and very clean suggesting is open to the public and used as a first come first served basis. From that point I took a last peak at the scenery and then headed back down over the whole variety of small challenges. All that certainly placed this trail very near the top of my most fun trails list.

You can see the rest of the pictures here