Bjørnåsen
After a few months break, I returned to Norway. New job, new place, new opportunities, you might say. This time I found myself near Moss, in the south of the country, in a place that is probably the flattest area in Norway. The highest peak of Østfold (the southern district of the country) is only 336 meters Slavasshøgda. In the very neighborhood of Moss, however, it is much worse.
The first week of work passed somehow quickly and I decided to look around for a nice route for Sunday. I suspected that I would have to be content with just a trip to the forest, especially since the lack of a car precluded any further excursions. However, I spotted a hill on the map, or rather an elevation near Moss, which I could climb. The hill is called Bjørnåsen and is only 138 meters above sea level and it is located on the island of Jeløy, a few kilometers from the city center.
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I set off in the morning, as I had a long distance to go. First, I had a leisurely, eight-kilometer walk to Moss, only a small part of which was through the forest. Then breaking through the streets of the city, crossing the bridge to the island, more streets and finally go beyond the area of buildings. Unfortunately, outside the city, it’s hard to see a sidewalk, so I walked a long distance along the road, exposed to passing cars.
I inadvertently turned into the woods much too early and wandered there for a long time, unable to find any path. Finally I went to a farm field and from there I got to the main road. A moment later I was standing by the trail leading to Bjørnåsen.
As the peak is not high, most of the route is a quiet walk in the forest. Only the last two hundred, maybe three hundred meters is slightly uphill. Some time ago I came across a photo from the top of the already mentioned Slavasshøgda on the net. The mountain, although the highest in the region, was completely covered with forest, so it did not offer any views. Just some stones among the trees, marking the end of the climb. I expected nothing else here, especially since the view of the wooded slope can be admired at will all around Moss. However, I was pleasantly surprised. It turned out that the western side of the peak is on the edge of the cliff, so nothing obstructs the view and you can enjoy the view of the distant hills of Vestfold, located on the other side of the fjord, and the pleasant panorama of the beach on this side of Jeløy island. Unfortunately, the view is slightly spoiled by the multitude of camper vans, but you can’t do anything with that.
The trail to Bjørnåsen is 1.4 kilometers long and is a great option for a trip with a small child on a Sunday afternoon. However, without a car you have to take into account the several-kilometers walk from Moss, which can be tiring. My feet cried out for rest as I made my way back towards the city, and it didn’t get any better after that. After returning to my quarters, I counted the kilometers covered and I got as many as 35 of them, most of them on a hard surface, which made my feet very painful.
This post was originally published 2019-05-13 on https://kraina-trolli.pl.
