What a horrible night. Even though we are exhausted, we cannot sleep at all. The snoring is incredible. In fact, it is so bad that at one point one of the other room occupants gets up and slams the bed of the primary snorer. What the banger did not realise was that he was also one of the guilty persons who snored. And then, all the windows were opened due to the heat and this allowed in all the mosquitoes. They terrorised us. They buzzed around our heads and bit us as often as we exposed any part of our skin. There was also some strange banging going on - maybe a lose shutter swinging in the wind.
Well, at around 5 AM, we have had enough. We decide to get up and start our hiking for the day. It is better than just laying in bed and being tormented. Also, as we have to reach a specific location by a certain time, this way we would have more time and be more relaxed. We pack up our stuff as quietly as we can and make our way downstairs. We meet another couple which has the same idea. We start hiking at 6:30 AM.
It certainly is a peaceful time to be hiking. We are making our way from this hut to another self-service hut on the Gjevillvatn lake, where we will catch a boat that will take us to the hut where we started this hiking adventure. We have to make that boat, otherwise we will have to hike along the length of the lake to the hut. The path we have chosen is one that follows the valley between the mountains and it seems straight forward on the map. No major elevation changes.
Well, it certainly turns out to be a beautiful walk, but it is not as easy as expected. Quite a bit of up and down and the trail was very wet. Crossing the many streams turned out to be very time consuming. In places the trail has been moved and it was not well marked. It is a good thing we have some extra time for this walk. Also, our feet are a bit sore. They are not so used to these long days of hiking.
The trail is within the tree line for much of the way - especially the first half. It is a wonderful walk, with lots of things to observe and enjoy. We see lots of small wildlife. We scare up plenty of grouse - they would fly off with a shriek. Lots of frogs of all sizes and colors - it is good to see that frogs still exist in this part of the world and we did not see any with deformities. Butterflies flew by all the time - yellow, blue, green and red. Lots of birds and plenty of ants crossing the trail. And the spiders - their cobwebs were everywhere. We were the first people using this trail today (and maybe even for the past few days), and they were strung across the trail on a regular basis. We could not see them (we would have avoided them if we could), and the worst was to get them in our face and mouth.
Anyway, we make our way up the valley alongside the Folda river. We stop at the Løsetsetra (farm house) for a quick breakfast and the carry on. The biggest problem with the walk today is all the water. The ground is very soggy and we have to make frequent detours to avoid the really wet, swampy spots. The many streams coming down from the Storlifjellit feeding the Folda river are swollen and crossing them becomes quite a challenge. Some times we have to scout to the left and right to find the best spot. If we had been willing to walk straight across and through the wet spots and rivers, we would have saved considerable time. But the vegetation is certainly green and lush as a result of all the water.
We have a few steep ridges to climb here and there, and these are usually followed by a flat stretch. Throughout the whole hike, we met just one other person, a women, who was resting in the sun and drying out her boats after crossing a river. For the latter half of the hike we were above the tree line and in the sun.
When we reached the Hyttdalstjønnin, a valley with a number of lakes, we finally came upon a number of rivers that we were not able to cross without getting wet. We scouted them to the left and the right, and the streams had broken their banks and were overflowing. They were swollen with all the snow melt. Well, we had tried our hardest to avoid this, but we now had no choice if we wanted to advance.
Jacqui took off her boots and entered the cold, rushing water in her bare feet. She did a good job of crossing the rocky bottom while the water was rushing by. But her feet were numb. Lars had some sandals with him and changed into those to cross the swollen rivers. Man, was the water cold. Must have just been a few degrees above freezing. We have to do this not once, but twice. It certainly did slow us down. But we had enough spare time.
It was at about this time that we were joined by a man and three women that we had met at the last hut. The man was helping out the woman, some of whom were suffering. He as carrying one of their bags on his chest. He was older, but certainly tough. Once we had crossed the stream, it was just a short way to the ridge from which we had a few down to the valley and lake below. Our goal was in sight.
From here it was all down hill, and we made good progress. The only thing that slowed us down were some very wet spots. We passed by the self-service hut of Vassendsetra and made our way directly down to the lake and the boat pier. We have about 45 minutes before the boat is scheduled to depart, so we take advantage of that time to soak our sore feet in the ice cold water. It numbed everything nicely. The locals went even further. The guy walked a short way down the stony beach and stripped down and jumped into the lake for a swim. The ladies stripped down to their underwear and also jumped in. That was a bit much for us.
The clouds had started to roll in and were a bit threatening, so we were glad when the captain arrived and we could board the boat. We paid our fare and then found a couple of seats on the Trollheimen II. Just as the boat left at around 3:30 PM, the rain began to fall. We were glad that we were inside the boat. The rain pretty much fell the whole way to our stop, but fortunately it stopped just as we were about to disembark. We were very fortunate.
From the pier it is a short walk up to the Gjevilvasshytta, where we began this hiking adventure a few days ago. We get here at about 4:30 PM and we decide to stay the night - relax a bit after the hiking. We check in and here we are able to get a double room - a very nice one in fact. Ours is at the end of the hall and we have a set of bunk beds, a closet and a table and bench. Very nice.
For the rest of the afternoon, we wash up and sort out our stuff. We bring up our bags from the car and organise everything and pack it all away. Then it is time to relax before dinner. Dinner is less formal than in the last hut, but still very nice. The dining room is an old room and we sit at long tables. We choose the second seating, which is less crowded. We have soup followed by meatballs, cabbage and, of course, potatoes. We are able to eat our fill. We have our coffee and cake in the lounge.
The rest of the evening we spend hanging out and relaxing. Part of the time is spent in the lounge, part out on the front lawn watching the sun set and part in our room. A great way to end our hiking adventure in Trollheimen. This is a great spot.