Ways, paths, tracks, and trails May 2 2026

When I thought the weather had been bad on the kayak trip the day before yesterday, it was much worse today. It was colder, it was windier and the mix of precipitation was more varied: rain, snow, soft hail and sleet. At the northern tip of Tromsøya, storm gusts almost knocked me off balance and the graupel blowing straight into my face hurt. I wished I had brought a face mask and ski goggles and I bent my head low to avoid the heavy weather. That’s why I did not walk all the way home but took the bus, boarding it looking like a drowned rat.

At home the same procedure: a long, hot shower and a fire in the stove, which was drawing like mad in the storm.

However the photos are not about weather, they are about the ways, paths, tracks and trails that I followed or crossed on my hike on Tromsøya today. Some are ski trails, most are summer and winter trails. Some still offer very wintry conditions; others look like early spring – or late autumn. My rubber boots splash through water, bog down in the mud and disappear into the snow. It will take some time until most of the ways, paths, tracks, and trails are dry – if it ever happens.

Tomorrow will be different, tomorrow it will snow.

A hill hike and a bog walk May 9 2026

Trehørningen

While the mountains around Tromsø are still snowy and the locals are still going ski touring I was looking for a mountain or hill that I can actually walk on by foot. On Facebook people were talking about Trehørningen, not the large one but the small and child-friendly one near Skulsfjord with an astonishing height of 283 metres. Today I drove there, because most places are not accessible by public transport which makes hiking a bit of a motor sport most of the time. I arrive at around half past eight and I’m the first there. After three minutes I and a bit of ascending, I get the first views of the fjord Gállafjerda or Kaldfjorden and the mountain range around the Store Blåmannen.

At first, the path is muddy but then the ground is much drier. The track leads up through an open forest of birch trees. They are still bare.

A bit further up, there is a plateau with a beautiful view of Gállafjerda and the mountains behind.

There are some small snow fields, but only one covers a few metres of the track.

By that snow field there are some water-filled depressions. To my surprise a thin layer of ice covers these puddles. Was there frost last night?

While I am taking these pictures another hiker passes. I’m not alone anymore. Anyway, the mountaintop is near, as usual marked with a huge cairn.

The view is awesome. In the background you can see the island Vengsøya with its mountain Kvantotinden. The island is surrounded by islets and skerries, behind that the Norwegian Sea.

Vengsøya can be reached by ferry. It was just heading back while I was at the top.

The ferry connecting Vengsøy with Bellvik

The sun makes the air feel warm but the wind on the top wins: The air is still cold and I put on my anorak again, hood over my head. As often, I take less photos on my way back. I only want to take another photo of the bare birches. While I looked through the viewfinder I saw a movement. A reindeer that I haven’t noticed before it trots into view. Does it want to be photographed? Probably not. It continued its walk carefully looking at me to see what I intend to do.

After a four-kilometre hike I am back at the car. Six other cars are parked there now. I liked the tour. It is easy and the parking area is just 20 km away from Tromsø so you could do it as a small after-work trip. You get clean air, awesome views and maybe – if you’re lucky – a reindeer trotting by.

Peat bogs south of Tromvik

I had another tour in mind. A tour that could become pretty wet. I want to walk from Tromvik to the lake Storvatnet, but not on the track east from the river Storelva but instead crossing the mires and bogs. First I have to go there by car. Both Trehørningen and Tromvik are on the island Kvaløya but it’s a one hour drive. Remember, Kvaløya is the fifth largest island in mainland Norway. Then I put on waterproof clothes – you never know what happens and start my tour.

To make a long story short: I think, the lake is pretty boring. I took a souvenir photo, here it is. I guess this view is much nicer, when the lake is calm and the sun comes from the other direction.

Much more interesting were all the small ponds with mossy islets and also the muddy peat flats with their scattered grass tussocks forming small islands. Pretty fascinating. Some photos:

After a six-kilometre hike – a pretty wet one – I am back at the car. I liked this tour, too and I plan to come back on a sunny night this summer. Then the sun should be low in the north illuminating the mountains behind Storvatnet. Hopefully …

Mountains

Some mountains and mountain ranges are extremely fascinating in their combination of white snow and rough rock. The first photo I took from Trehørningen, for the other two I stopped the car on my way to Tromvik.

Hill hike II – Nattmålsfjellet May 14 2026

Today I decided to hike up another small mountain. It is called Nattmålsfjellet and is 296 m high. As Trehørningen it is on the island of Kvaløya.

I park my car and soon I am out in nature in Northern Norway. High mountains, covered with snow. Open birch woodland, the birches still bare. Small lakes and ponds, halfway covered with snow and ice. Small mud bogs with wet patches. And views of the fjords and the open sea. All under a blue sky with temperatures above 10 °C.

While this pond looks freezing cold, it is inhabited by common frogs. They have already spawned and large clumps of frogspawn are floating in the water.

It does not take long and I am on the summit, marked by an impressive cairn that looks half as high as the mountain itself.

I decide to take another way down. This brings me near the village Ersfjordbotn, but I stay above to follow a track that leads around Nattmålsfjellet which brings me back to my car. Before I leave the village behind I pass this artefact that clearly shows that I’m hiking in nature but not in the wilderness. Someone had mounted a satellite antenna on a small ledge. The cable leads downwards, probably to one of the houses.

First the track leads through some wet mud bogs but then it winds through an open landscape with views of the boggy grasslands below and the snowy mountains above.

After seven kilometres, I am back at the car. Elevation gain and loss – round 330 m.

Side dishes

After the hike I drive further west to the lake Kattfjordvatnet. Most of it is still covered with ice, but I don’t think it will stay long. Even the snow line rises with each day. This however is no argument for the locals to stop doing alpine ski tours and they always seem to find a snowy patch by the car, to avoid carrying up their skis. Meanwhile, cross-country skiers have now switched to roller skis and use the roads. Other locals walk their dogs or run downhill on the muddy path happily chatting to each other.

Then I take the car to Ersfjordbotn and stopped at the gravel car park at the viewpoint, apparently the only one in the village. I was too lazy to walk to the waterfall but at least I took a photo of the fjord Ersfjorden which faces directly west.

On my way back home I make another stop in Eidkjosen and take a walk uphill to Lomvatnet.

From Eidkjosen, it’s only a fifteen-minute drive home. I’m still happy every single time I realise that nature around Tromsø is so beautiful, full of variety and nearby, as long as you own a car. With public transport many of these small hikes would unfortunately be inaccessible.

Hill hike III – Ruksesvárri May 16 2026

Today I did my thrid hill hike within 8 days. After Trehørningen (283 m) and Nattmålsfjellet (296 m) I chose Ruksesvárri (470 m) today. Most people refer to the mountain by its Norwegian name (Rødtind), which more or less means the same as the Sámi name: red mountain peak. Like the other hills Ruksesvárri is located on Kvaløya.

I park the car in Storelva, put on my rubber boots and shoulder my camera backpack. From there it’s about one kilometre along the river Stuorajohka/Storelva until I leave the wide gravel hiking path and branch off. From now on the track may be wet and – looking at Ruksesvárri – snowy.

I hike up, following the track. Soon it vanishes under the first larger snow field.

The track is less muddy than I remember but wet, because the snowmelt turns everything into a brook, even the boardwalks. Further up I see that under sand and water there is blank ice. However, it is the only patch I see.

I look back. To the south I can see the island of Håkøya and mountain chains in more or less all directions.

The further up I go, the more the terrain is covered in snow. The barren sections show, how popular this hike is: the track is several metres wide.

Now I am above the timber line and snow dominates the scene. Mostly it is good to walk on and I do not sink in too much, but there are some nasty holes, especially above the mountain brooks, where you can easily break through up to your thighs. I’m on a gentle slope, angled at 10–15°.

I reach the saddle below the peak. In summer the path gets steeper and rockier, now all I can see is the peak and snow. The snowy slope is pretty steep.

I wasn’t the first one today. I met an elderly man who was already on the way down. Perhaps it’s his footsteps that I follow now on the way up. At the steeper part I use my hands as well. Then I reach the top plateau, cross another snow field and stand on the surprisingly unimpressive peak.

The impressive part are the views, especially to the west and the north.

At the tall cairn from where I can see Kaldfjorden meet the open sea is my turning point today. If I had skis or at least snowshoes I would continue. Without then, it’s time to return.

This hill walk was 7.2 km long. Elevation gain and loss: about 500 metres.

The weather is still sunny while I am editing the photos. In one of the photos I can see a small figure – the man who passed me on my way up. On his left side he has something blueish. I magnify the photo to 400%. It’s a pair of blue snowshoes strapped to his small backpack.

Tromsøya 21 May May 22 2026

Yesterday, I took a walk in the sun on Tromsøya from my doorstep. Will the snow finally be gone? What I first found was marsh marigold in bloom. Of course I had to take some photos, as it is one of my favourite flowers.

It is not the only change. The island is finally getting green. Finally, the birches have decided to open their leaf buds and the trees are clad in a fresh green. What a difference from the barren trees from my hike one week ago.

Other plants had started their spring activities as well. While the common cowslip had been blooming for weeks—sometimes you find a purplish one—the fern fiddleheads have not yet started to unfurl.

After 2.6 kilometres I found it. One of the very last patches of snow, located on a northern slope.

I am writing this blog article at the Frankfurt Airport while waiting for the connecting flight to my hometown Bremen. I guess, when I’m back in Tromsø in a couple of days, all this snow will be gone.