Ic.21    Section Grannes - Mosvatnet 24 km

I started early in the morning with blue sky and sunshine. Soon it became warm. After a short walk along the road i turned onto Nordlandsruta. The trail slowly climbs on a nice trail through a forest. On and off I had good views of Lake Unkervatnet. Here I met a few of the sheep I seldom encountered during this hike. The animals most frequently seen were the reindeers. Then the trail turned away from the lake and I crossed the open Saeterfjellet. Soon I was back in forested areas. At River Sørelva I came across a pedestrian bridge and continued along a gravel road. Here I stopped for lunch in the sun. I passed by two farms and crossed River Garsmarkelva before leaving the road at Tverrelvness. At this farm they are taking in hikers.

After a short climb I came out in the open again. As long as I was hiking in the forest there was hardly any wind. But once in the open on Knoppfjellet I could feel it. The wind brought in clouds and the sun slowly disappeared. While hiking along Lake Mosvatnet I came across a huge pile of old fence posts. When looking carefully at the ground I could see where the fence once had been. Just short of the river in Tjuvjodalen I came to a reindeer herder's hut. I was not locked. I had a short brake in the wind shade behind the hut when the first drops fell. Soon it became more and I headed into the hut. That was probably the best decision I made all day long. Now it started raining really heavy while a thunderstorm moved in. I could hardly see anything outside through the rain. The hut had four bunks, a kitchen and stove plus table with chairs. The rain never really stopped for a long time. Occasionally it became less before coming back in full force. I decided to stay here for the night. During a break I rushed to the nearby creek for water. Until early morning I sometimes could hear the rain when waking up.

View of Lake Unkervatnet from Nordlandsruta / E1

Three of the few sheep I encountered in Norway

Cairn along Nordlandsruta with Snow Mountains in background

Nice section of Nordlandsruta

Dark clouds are threatening with rain

Very heavy rain from inside reindeer herder's cabin