LATE SUMMER - THREE DIFFERENT TRIPS

Friday  August 27 - Sunday August 29

Kjøligruva

Glomma

Sylan

Sylane

KJØLIGRUVA

The summer is in full fading. It is a sad fact and we are moving towards darker times. However, even if nature soon enters a long period of dormancy, it does not mean that we must. Both autumn and winter can offer many wonderful nature experiences. Therefore, there is no reason for us to go into gloomy mindsets even though the nature around us may seem very gloomy during the periods of autumn and winter.

 The summer still keeps it stand with green trees and green lawns. The sun, shining from a blue sky, still emits warm rays towards us and warms our skin. We can just glimpse, in some places, that autumn is beginning to take hold, especially in the mountains.

This weekend it was reported great weather and with the thoughts mentioned above it is important for us to take advantage of it. Early on Friday we directed the E-Golf with the kayaks on the roof towards Røros and a weekend at the cabin. We spent less time at the cabin itself than outdoors as the weather lured us out on adventures. The sun was shining in Trondheim, but it became more and more cloudy the closer to Røros we came. According to yr.no, this was not expected. They rather had forecasted a radiant sun. We had to wait for that until the afternoon.

After charging the car a bit on Ålen, we drove up to the sign showing Killingdalen and Tydal. This is a toll road over Riasten, a very nice drive from Haltdalen over to Tydalen. You pay 80 kroner, but you get a very nice experience.

Blue dot: Exit Killingdalen.

Yellow dot: Parking Jensåsvollen.

Red dot: Cool, abandoned mine.

Earlier this summer, my parents and I had found a place up here on Riastveien to go for a walk. Thanks to the app Trimpoeng and the competition Ålen had created, we found a place called Kjøligruva and Kjølihytta. We became curious and took the trip in early August. This turned out to be such a nice trip in a great terrain and I wanted to show Martin this place now that the opportunity arose.

We followed the gravel road (which in the winter serves as a ski trail), and came to Jensåsvollen on the left. Here it was just to follow a tractor road up to a parking area. From here you pass a barrier and can then just enjoy the easy-going wide path, which is also cycleable, further and further in to the mountain.

Blue dot: Parking.

Yellow dot: Open cabin.

Red dot: Cool mine.

Orange dot: The cooling cabin.

View towards Sylan.

When ascending upwards, the more view towards Sylanmassive you get on the right hand side (i.e. eastwards). This Friday it was cloudy and the clouds hung a little heavy  at the Swedish border, but it was supposed to clear up so that we could see the Storsylen / Syltoppen itself. Dear mountains have many names.

You get the first trim point when you get up to Nedre Kjølitjønna. Here you pass a small stream and by this water there is a small cabin. This is not Kjølihytta, but an open cabin you are welcome to use, with 5 beds and a small kitchenette. We went in to get shelter from a slightly chilly wind and ate in there. According to the guest books, this cabin has functioned as a guest cabin for 41 years.

We wrote our names in the cabin book before we went on up to the Kjøligruva itself. Here there is a large, gray pile of stones that probably have been used to fill the mine. There is a small river that comes out from under a solid iron door which closes the entrance to the mine. The river is brownish-yellow and doesen'l look particularly healthy, but it is typical of such mining areas and should not be drunk. At least there were trim points at the mine as well.

Then we went on to see if we saw Kjølihytta, which we did after only a few meters. The plan was to go further, but I found out that it was smart to turn around as my foot began to give signals that this was far enough. Ihad to do the return trip also.The distance we had hiked was a little over 5 km.

The cooling cabin in the distance.

We can higly reccomend to take the trip if you are in the area. It is lots to go on and lots to explore. Martin also took a few throws with the fishing rod in the hope that it bit, which it did not. Better luck next time.

PADDELING ON GLOMMA

Saturday morning I woke up early and when I opened the door from the small annex we sleep in, called "Hiet", (meaning the hole in the ground where animals live), I came out in zero degrees celsius and typical autumn fog with a sun that tried to break through. It's just as magical every fall to experience this. This day it was promised sunny and always after fog it will be nice weather, at least often it does. It was forecasted up to 20 degrees and we were going for a paddle trip with my parents. The original plan was Femunden and Nordvika, but it was adjusted to Glomma, or Glåma. It turned out not to be a bad replacement. Martin and I had paddled the stretch Orvos - Røros airport in 2019, the day after May 17. Back then we did not think the stretch was so nice, but we had had cloudy weather, wind directly opposite and I experienced it as a quite cold trip. This Saturday, however, the weather was totally different than in May 2019.

Typical early autumn mood in the mountains, 0^oC.

The logistics required 2 cars. First, all equipment had to be unloaded at Orvos, close to the bridge. There was once a campsite here, but it was closed a long time ago. There is a barrier here which means that canoes and kayaks had to be carried a short distance before we came down to the river. The river has a number of rapids right here, but one puts out the boats on the lower side so that what you do not end up in the rapids. When all equipment was unloaded, we drove both cars into Røros and to the end of the airport on a road to the right where one car was left behind. Then we drobe back up to Orvos again. When all the logistics are done, just put out canoes and kayaks and enjoy the trip.

Blue dot: Orvos and exposed by canoe and kayak.

Yellow dot: The Sound.

Orvos and launching of canoe and kayak.

It was wind-still, low water in some places and there was only one thing to do; let the boats drift calmly with the current. Not many paddle roofs were required on this stretch.

Happy paddelers

At one riverbank, a herd of cows came down to the water's edge. One seemed very angry  and had probably as a goal to chase us away. If we had paddled further inland, I actually think she would have tried to push the boats away or attack. Therefore,  we left as fast as we could without disturbing them too much.

One should always have some rests when on such tips, and paddling is no exception. So when hunger struck, it was just a matter of finding a place to go ashore. Thanks to the fact that it was a little later in the river this year, a sandbank had emerged on the left bank where it was easy to go ashore. It was lovely to stretch the legs for both two and four-legged. The weather was now warm enough to walk barefoot on the sandbank, but Glomma already had quite cold water in it. Still, it was lovely to dip my toes. A type of bird called Sandlo walked here on the sand and seemed very tame. A number of animal tracks from various cloven-hoofed animals were left in the sand and we could follow them out into the water, so they had probably waded / swam over at some point.

After the break we paddled to where Glomma makes a fairly steep turn to the left. Here it is a kind of headland with soft sand and it fitted perfectly with a break number two. Martin quickly started a small fire with dry twigs and sticks lying around and soon the two who drink it could get freshly brewed campfire coffee. We had a fishing rod and a lot of fish were jumping/waking, but none of the four of us who tried fishing got any. Nevertheless, it was very nice to just hang here, walk barefoot in the sand and polish the wedding ring so that it became shiny in the fine-grained sand. 

Break 2 with bonfire and fishing.

Parking for car number 2.

From here it is not far down to the airport and where the other car was parked. We had spent about 4 hours on this stretch. That no more paddles here is incomprehensible to me. Yes, some logistics are needed, but if you want, you can always arrange it. . If you have the opportunity, take the trip as it has a lot to offer in nature and nice calm paddling

SYLAN

The following Sunday was as nice weather-wise as Saturday. Now the plan was to drive Riastveien over to Tydalen and into Nedalshytta which is the gateway to Sylane and Storsylen / Syltoppen and generally the entire Sylan massif. Martin had an overnight stay at the top during the heat wave in the summer of 2019 and was very eager to show me the area. Several years ago, we had driven into Nedalshytta, but never put did not walk into the area. Now was the time and we left the cabin at Rugldalen relatively early, together with my parents. We think it's nice to bring them with us so that they can experience new places out in nature. They are both in their 70s, but fit enough to walk in the woods and mountains. It takes 1 hour and 26 minutes to drive from Rugldalen over Riastveien and into Nedalshytta, a little longer than around Aursunden which takes 1 hour and 18 minutes.

Riastveien.

We found parking just below the cottage and it appears that this is a popular place to visit since it was almost full at the parking lot. You pay 50 kroner in fee to stand for one day. Up by the cabin I found a pole that is part of another competition I am in, namely the Pole Hunt and got 25 points for the little trip, which was fun.

Blue dot: Driveway towards Nedalshytta.

Yellow dot: Nedalshytta.

At the cottage yard there are signs and maps showing paths where you can go. We followed the sign to Syltoppen which is marked as a black route. Black colors mean demanding, but it must apply only from the very foot of the mountain and up to the top. For the path up to the plateau was more than achievable for most people. It is not allowed to cycle here and the path is not wide enough for that either, even if it was allowed. Many wooden planks  have been laid out, which helps protect the path. This is a good thing as we could see traces of a lot of human activity before the planks were laid. We humans are unfortunately world champions (without having anyone we compete against) in destroying nature and our planet with our imprints. We must make an effort to ensure that nature is left as it is as much as possible. Therefore, it is a great measure to lay out these planks in vulnerable areas.

Back to the more positive, it's so great to go straight up into a mountain massif like this. You do not have to walk a long, boring and gray gravel road before you enter the mountain area itself (just drive it). Here you have the Syl massif right in front of you right away and you just have to go and enjoy it. The sun was shining and the sky was blue, but it was a bit windy, so a windbreaker jacket was nice to have. The blueberry heather had started to turn red so high up and gave the mountain its fantastic play of colors famously for the autumn. The heather is also starting to get the autumn feel. It's just beautiful and must of course be experienced since words become poor when describing these impressions.

The plan was to go to Sylsjøen, but it is 8 km there and it was not possible with the foot I have now. Still, I'm not disappointed. Just being up here was reward enough and we got to climb a tiny peak with a small cairn on it. Thus, it became a "summit trip" anyway.

Route of the day

The poodle must be with us.

If / when my foot becomes completely fine again, I would like to try to get up on Syltoppen. Goals are fine to have, but they must not be stressed through. Anyway, I'm so happy that I finally, after 3 years, manage to get out on a little longer trips in the woods and mountains, because these are impressions and memories I need to continue working with the foot so that it can be good again .

We have here described 3 relatively easy trips in the Røros area. Go to any of these three places if you can and enjoy the surroundings. Create your own memories and impressions. Our words are just a help along the way for how to complete the tours.

Good trip!