Hiking Rampestreken, Norway

Then he told him about Åndalsnes, a tiny settlement up in Romsdalen valley, surrounded by high mountains which were so beautiful that his mother had always said that that was where God had started when he was creating the world, and that He had spent so long on Romsdalen that the rest of the world had to be done posthaste to be finished by Sunday.
Jo Nesbø, The Bat

After enjoying the azure blue coast of Ålesund, Matt and I drove two hours east to a town in the center of Norway: Åndalsnes. High, tall, thickly-forested mountains surround the town, which sits down in the valley of the the Romsdal region, sliced and chopped by the winding Rauma River. Åndalsnes often sees tourists only for a moment, as they travel from the north and west on their way further south to see the nearby Troll’s Road (Trollstigen). The Romsdal valley also offers a train excursion through the valley–the “Rauma Railway,” which Lonely Planet named one of the most scenic train rides on Earth.

But Matt and I had different plans for our trip to the Romsdal Region. We wanted to see the mountains up close. After a bit of research, we chose to hike to the Rampestreken Viewpoint for a birds-eye view of the Romsdal Valley. After an hour in the car from Ålesund, Matt and I reached the Visitor’s Center in Åndalsnes, where a pair of local guides told us that the hike to Rampestreken was “quite easy” and would only take us “two hours.” Seemed like a great way to spend the morning!

Not easy

Pro tip: do not ever underestimate a Norwegian’s rating of the easiness of a hike. It will always take you longer and will always be harder than they say!

Getting There

From the Visitor’s Center, follow signs to the city center. You should quickly see a large paid car park. We paid 100 NOK (10 USD) for our car and headed to the trail with the knowledge that a friendly security guard would be watching our valuables over the morning.

The trailhead is just a few meters from the car park. There’s lots of signage and maps to help you find your bearings at the trailhead. Rampestreken sits 537 meters above sea level (m.a.s.l.) It is part of a much longer hike, Romsdålstrappa. To reach Rampestreken, follow signs for either hike and look for trees marked with red “T” (for “trail,” we imagine). You should spot a sign post every 100 meters.

Nebba Viewpoint

From the car park, the trail starts somewhat as a “choose your own adventure.” The first twenty minutes of Rampestreken takes hikers to the Nebba Lookout. For these twenty minutes, hikers have the option of climbing a traditional dirt path, or walking up a gently-sloping steel walkway.

This walkway seemed quite suitable for wheelchairs or strollers. The viewpoint offers a lovely sweeping view of the town of Åndalsnes, the Rauma River, and the mountainsides. If you walk a few more minutes past the Nebba viewpoint, you’ll reach a picnic area with stunning views of mountains to the south.

To Rampestreken

The next two to three hours are, simply, up. The gentle slopes of the Nebba viewpoint quickly fade from memory as you are faced with real obstacles: craggy, knobby tree roots grabbing for your ankles; heaving scrambles up slick rock faces, assisted by chains and cables; and the burning pain of leg muscles that haven’t used a Stairmaster in a few years.

The trail is walkable only thanks to a group of Sherpas who constructed stone stairs and cables to help hikers pull their way up the mountain. Sherpas are fantastic, fascinating members of the Himalaya region on the border of Nepal and Tibet.

Worldwide, they are famous mountaineers, most well-known for serving as local guides on Mount Everest. During the grueling Everest climbing season, Sherpas help prepare hiking routes, fix ropes, carry gear, and rescue stranded hikers. They are tough and their jobs are full of risk. It was really special to climb a trail built by these mountaineering experts.

For most of the journey up, the path is very steep and there are few places to rest. There are signposts every hundred meters to help you track your progress. When you reach the final stretch (about 100 meters from the top), a series of narrow stone steps start to switchback against the mountain, taking you up very quickly.

This section of the trail had a lot of exposure to the mountainside and I suffered from a bit of vertigo. Thankfully, there were cables to hang onto at the really narrow spots and I never felt unsafe. (Plenty of locals were running these trails “for exercise!”) On the final push to the lookout, you will climb a series of steep metal stairs.

The Viewing Platform

If you manage to reach the top, you’re in for a treat. The Rampestreken Lookout is an incredible engineering feat, with a steel walkway that seems to hover over the valley. Walking out onto the end of the platform made my hands sweat like crazy.

If you look down through the grates, you see rocks and trees far, far, far below you. Lots of vertigo here.

The view of the Romsdalen valley and the Romsdalfsjord is unbeatable. We watched a summer shower come and go over the valley and stayed for about half an hour at the top, though many locals bypassed it without so much as a glance!

If you continue up (though we did not), the trail takes you another 30 minutes to the top of the mountain, called Nesaksla, topping off a very beautiful day hike.

The way down is almost harder on the knees than the way up, since it’s almost totally vertical. It took us about an hour to descend the mountain.

What to Bring

Light day pack
Two canteens of water
Protein bars, bananas, snacks
A raincoat or light jacket in the summer
A light dry-fit shirt that stays cool and wicks sweat
The map you get at the Visitor’s Center (the trail, while well-marked, can be confusing)
A camera
Sturdy hiking boots (don’t wear Keds like a girl we saw on the trail–she was miserable)

Where to Eat

After a long, arduous half-day hike, you’ll be hungry, and I have just the place. Just a two-minute walk from the car park, take a left into the neighborhood cafe, Sodahlhuset. The wait staff was so friendly: one of the servers was the granddaughter of a local, and she was working there for the summer to help pay for school.

We enjoyed the warm breezy day on the back patio sipping our iced coffees and nibbling the edible flowers on top of our bright and colorful Norwegian salads.