Distance: 5.5km (358.8km), time spent: 1:34 (144:14).
Altitude (start / end / highest): 1413m / 1368m / 1497m.
Weather: Overcast, some blue patches, light drizzle in the evening.
Last year I had to stop my hike of the Massiv trail at Sognefjellshytta, having no more days to go. Now, returning once again to the mountains, I will continue walking and finish the trail by hiking the two last remaining stages to Sota Sæter. To get back to Sognefjellshytta, I do the exact opposite as what I did when leaving, I take an expressbus from Oslo to Lom and there change to the local bus route going to Sogndal, which stops at Sognefjellshytta along the way. The bustrip to Sogndal from Lom is a wonderful trip in itself, as it passes over the wonderful mountain area of Sognefjellet. That being said, it is a long trip from Oslo, taking over eight hours until I will arrive at my destination (or my starting point depending on how you see it).
The start of the path from Sognefjellshytta.
Before I venture out into the wild, I take a break at Sognefjellshytta. The break includes a beer, or two. Given my late start, the clock is close to seven in the evening when I start walking, I do not expect to walk very far today. The only possible problem that I will have, is probably my own eagerness to walk on the first day on a hike. Returning to the mountains is like coming back to a long lost love. I might overdo it and walk all to far. True to the word, it does feel exalting to feel the clean mountain air and see the barren and wild landscape of the Norwegian mountains again.
View towards Fanaråken from the path leaving the road across Sognefjellet.
I leave the road and the cabin behind me, with the large Smørstabbrean glacier looming behind them. Although the ride on the road over the mountain is a nice one, it still gives me a connection to civilization that I want to get away from. Fanaråken is as usual covered by a cloudy hat, but the memories of the fiery sunrise from the top still manages to warm my heart. Since there has not been any significant rain in a long time, I wonder what they do with water high up there. Water is usually collected when it rains and stored in containers for later use. Hikers going up will probably have to carry a lot of water up themselves.
Looking back towards Sognefjellshytta with the Smørstabbrean glacier behind.
Given the sunny and hot days that has ridden Norway this spring and summer, it is strange to find myself walking underneath an overcast sky, before I left I could look at numerous pictures from the mountains with a clear blue sky. This overcast weather is however expected, it sort of fits right in to the weather on my previous sections on the Massiv trail.
Sognefjellet.
One of Norways most famous adventurers, Lars Monsen, has this summer been making a sort of a minute to minute tv transmission of hiking in Norway. To be able to pull that through, he has to have a significant number of helpers with him that can carry what is necessary to film the show. The social medias are full of comparisons of this against the famous scene in Forrest Gump where the main character is running with a large number of followers behind him. They were here in this area not many days ago, but I am glad that I am not going to run into them. It would probably be too crowded for my taste, and I have no interest in showing up just to get on national tv.
Not that I do not meet other people. On the way, I meet late hikers coming from Nørdstedalseter. It is a long hike from that cabin to Sognefjellshytta, estimated to be around 9 hours if you walk non-stop and with a light backpack (and keeps a good pace). I will be passing that cabin tomorrow. Nørdstedalseter is also the last cabin on the Massiv trail before the endpoint at Sota Sæter (or the second cabin on the trail, if you start from Sota).
View towards Storevatnet with its dam, tomorrow I will be crossing the dam.
In the days leading to my hike, I had been feeling a slightly tension in my body and mind. What was the source of this tension I could not tell, but as I started walking I could feel this tension slip away. Just like I knew it would, the mountains has this effect on me, as walking do. After walking for about one and half hour, I arrive at a small lake called Aurkvee. It is now past eight o'clock, so I see it fit to find a place to pitch my tent. I would gladly have continued walking, but I feel content.
Aurkvee, the site of my first night on this leg of the Massiv trail. I pitched my tent out on the tiny peninsula in the middle of the picture.
It is a nice little lake. I am not alone. On one side of the tiny peninsula that I have set up camp at, I can see a lone fisherman and his tent. On the other side, a family with kids must be camping, I can see the kids running around later. The Massiv weather holds its promise and starts to rain shortly after I have finished setting up my camp. Only a short drizzle though, and I can quickly go out to prepare dinner at the shores of the lake. The first day of the last leg of the Massiv trail was a short, but nice, walk. I might only have hiked something about five kilometers, but those kilometers were welcome after a long busride from Oslo. Tomorrow it starts for real.
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