We paid our respects to Herr Munch as we passed by.

Bergen Railway: Oslo-Bergen

Bergen Railway: Oslo-Bergen

Bergen station, the final stop on the Bergen Railway

Bryggen, the UNESCO listed Hanseatic wharf town is also Norway’s second largest city.

I found my troll mate

Norwegian humor

As if you needed more reasons to hug a tree. Yarn bomber hits Bergen!

It wasn’t just good, the bread in Norway was outstanding! Most of our hotels served robust breakfast buffets with a selection of freshly baked multi-grain breads prominently featured.

Let’s get this party started! First ferry out of Bergen.

50+ shades of blue

Wind in our hair, don’t care.

Jon didn’t hesitate. He slapped on his new Top Set Trekker cap and got right to business.

Veten cliff

I have never seen a nicer trailhead facility; heated too.

There was no real trail at first. We just scrambled up the hillside above the beach.

Grotle, Norway: the trailhead for Veten Cliff

Helen

Jenny

Jon and Stacey

This big open meadow leads to an overlook at the far edge, Veten Cliff

Headed back to the van and the beach below.

Jon took us to the cozy harbor town Kalvåg, where we stayed the night.

From Kalvåg we took the van to Løen, on two-way roads wide enough for only one car.

We stopped in to meet Anne and Rogier and enjoyed a cup of espresso at their historic 1865 sheep farm in Davik. As on many other farms, only the main house is painted white, because white paint was more expensive. All the other houses on the farm (like the barn) are painted in red.

We met Anne and Rogier and got to pet and feed their sheep, an old breed, called ‘wild sheep’. They live outside all year, and also give birth to their lambs outdoors, by themselves.

As we approached Løen, we rounded a bend in the road and the Skåla peak came into view. We stopped once more for provisions and then set out on our hike to the top.

Karen

Missy, Helen, Stacey, Jenny F

Packs up and ready to hit the trail.

This compact, lightweight device allows you to safely drink directly from streams and lakes. @jon.meiholt had assured us the water in Norway is 100% safe without filtration (and it was!) but it was fun to test the @LifeStraw for future trips.

We settled into a rhythm hiking this section of gentle grassy switchbacks past the tree line. We drifted into pods of two or three, taking the time to catch up, or get to know one another better.

Skåla, being Norway’s longest continual ascent, is host to an annual summer event called the La Sportiva Skåla Opp, Northern Europe’s toughest uphill race.

Jenny

The luxury of clean, safe water was a plus. It was nice and cold too.

We had the trail largely to ourselves, though we did encounter a few locals out trail running. One, who we nicknamed “supergirl” blitzed past us when we were just 20 minutes from the summit. We shouted encouragements to her and she tucked in and went for it, sailing by in her tank top and running shorts, her long sleeve shirt tied around her neck, floating like a cape. On her way back down, she thanked us. It had not been a PB she said, but she was pleased with her time, and off she went. The women’s record for the race: 1 hour, 20 minutes and 6 seconds.

After a brief stop to regroup and have a snack, fill water bottles, we encountered snow, and the trail was harder to follow.

Stacey

Jon

Missy

Skåla group photo before the final summit push.

Seeing this trail sign when we had yet to see any sign of the summit gave us the boost we needed to reach the top.

Noticing we were within the lower end of the estimated hike time, perhaps inspired by “supergirl,” Jenny F and Dagmara decided to sprint the final bit to see if we could get in under 5 ½ hours total time. Yes we did.

Summit at last. Success.

The iconic Skålatårnet tower, built in 1891 for mountain tourists to rest body and soul.

It didn’t have to be said. The climb was not completed until you tagged the tower.

It felt good–damn good.

This is how it feels to climb a mountain.

Together at the top of Skåla.

We booked our overnight lodging in Skålabu, the new self-service lodge at the summit of Skåla, opened in 2017.

We hadn’t imagined such luxuries at 6,063 feet: a potbelly stove, a fully stocked honor-pantry, and down duvets. Welcome to hiking in Norway.

We appreciated not having to go outdoors to use the adjacent but separate (and very clean!!!!) toilets with windows and views!

Skålabu was a hiker’s dream: an architecturally cool Scandi design, compact, efficient, and meticulously clean.

Dr Hans Henrik Gerhard Klouman’s original tower is still open to mountaineers. There are 22 beds on two levels, and an honor bar with coffee and hot cocoa.

The new structure complements the landscape and does not compete with the original tower.

Skålabu sunset, 11:11 pm.

Tired and comfy cozy under our duvets, but YOLO so we set our alarms for the sunrise at 4:20am

Each of us grew in her own way, to be stronger, more confident, and set new and expanded goals.

Before we left Skålabu, we made sure to chop new ice to melt on the potbelly stove for the next travelers.

Jenny F

Exhausted, happy and proud.

Løen

Løen

A new day, a new adventure. After massages and a champagne toast sent to us (from Houston) by Helen’s husband Craig for their anniversary, we were ready to tackle the via ferrata.

Jenny has been looking forward to the Norway ferrata since we discovered how fun they were in the Dolomites.

Karen’s first ferrata

****

I didn’t stand too long at the junction between the E Expert route and the moderate option to the top. I had been training weekly at the indoor climbing gym and was eager to see how the effort would translate IRL.

E it was.

Jenny took the E route as well. It was much harder than we expected, and despite a double carabiner system, had potentially fatal consequences.

Smiles of relief; we made it.

Next up: a suspension bridge high above the gorge. And more excitement! A repair crew was working on it, yelling instructions to us in Norwegian as we crossed.

Going for it. There was no other option.

The last challenge of the day: a single cable bridge.

Success!

And now a short break to get the money shot with her LifeStraw for Helen’s friends in Houston.

A full day of adventure in Løen.

Dagmara loves ferratas!

View from our room at the cozy Hjelle Hotel

It was a reunion! Helen and Missy hadn’t seen one another since originally meeting at the Ashram in Calabasas, CA , eight years prior.

The clouds have cleared! Let’s get going!

Blue skies-Helen is skirted up and ready.

Kayaking is a treat after three rigorous hiking days.

Stacey lives in Monterey, and among us is the one with the most experience kayaking.

Helen

Geirangerfjord is among the world’s longest and deepest, and considered an archetypical fjord landscape, among the most scenically outstanding anywhere.

We’re just two women who met and started an adventure trekking group. You never know what the future will bring!

We are supposed to be kayaking, but this waterfall spoke to us…

It was too enticing to pass up. Spontaneous frivolity is part of the bonding experience.

I’ll do it if you do it. And yes, Geirangerfjord is cold.

Refreshing!!

It’s impossible to pick one best moment from the trip, but this was one of them.

Seven Sisters Waterfall, Geirangerfjord Norway

Seven Sisters Waterfall, Geirangerfjord Norway. There is a waterfall opposite this one called The Bachelors. They are vying for the sisters’ attention.

Jon was a kayaking guide before he was hired by Norway Adventures to guide us. In Geirangerfjord he was happily in his element. That, or he was relieved to muffle the voices of seven gregarious women for a short while. 🙂

On our way up Mt. Saksa, Jon shows us a bear cave. We decide to come back later to pay the bear a visit.

This is the last hike of our trip. Saksa means scissors, something we will discover later…

Jenny F from Portland, OR and Helen C from Houston, TX did not know one another before this trip.

At the far end of Hjørundfjord (sword-fjord) is the town of Øye, where we spent the night in the charming historic Union Hotel Øye.

Jenny F and Jenny G, friends from when they both were living in Portland, OR.

Missy adorned her new waterproof L. L. Bean backpack with our snazzy Top Set Trekkers sticker (also waterproof.)

We paused for a snack at the summit, not ready to head back. Jenny F surveyed the surroundings. There was a sense of something left undone…

What’s that knob over there? It looks like we could head down and back up. Is that knob at a higher elevation than the one we are on?

We couldn’t resist. “If it’s a trail, we will find a way to hike it.”

Now you see why this mountain is called “saksa” or scissors. It looks like a giant pair of scissors with the tips buried in the earth. The two knobs are the handles.

Just over the edge there is a cable handrail to help you access the saddle connecting the two peaks.

Stacey celebrating on the second summit of Saksa.

Jenny F, happy we agreed to visit the second summit.

Jenny G

The five of us couldn’t fit standing on the second summit. We had to kneel, balance carefully and lean in to the center.

Missy always packs Swedish Fish, Dagmara’s favorite treat.

Safely back at the original Saksa summit, we gather to sign the logbook.

Top Set Trekkers: Norway with our intrepid guide Jon at the summit of Mount Saksa.