Bjønneskortenatten, Søtelifjellet & Madonna med barnet
Cold weather didn’t stop me from going on another mountain trip. There was middle of November when I decided to go on the last trip this year. And this time I was going on Bjønneskortenatten (1020m asl). This mountain is known for the statue of Madonna with Child, that was erected on the summit in 2009. How this was happen? I am going to explain below. Keep reading 😊
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In 1989 Sigdal Kommune was gifted of large forest estates in Trilledalen i Trillemarka area. The donor was Anne Margethe Bugge, 85 old woman, the current landowner. She inherited those lands after hers father death and for several years she was the only administrator there. She got many purchase offers from land merchants but finally she decided to give everything to local community.
In donation documents there was included the clause. It said that intention of the donor is to erect Madonna statue somewhere in these lands. Initially the parties agreed that the perfect place for that will be Leinåsen peak, but soon they realised that there is a nature reserves area and such attraction could cause negative effect to environment. Project stopped in dead point. Anne Margethe Bugge died in 1995 and everything seemed that her idea will lost.
Someone revealed the donation documents in new millennium and finally, thanks to several enthusiasts the project went to successful conclusion. The sculpture, made by Turid Angell Eng, was erected on the summit of Bjønneskortenatten (1020 m above sea level) in 2009, just 2 km north of the previous location. Shortly thereafter, the Madonna statue became famous and local authorities decided to hire Nepalese Sherpas to build stone trail to the top of Bjønneskortenatten. The trail was completed in 2019 and it’s called the Madonna Trail.
What lies behind the idea of erection Madonna sculpture? Well, we can only guess. Anne Margethe Bugge was married twice. The first marriage was not successful. Her only child, son, died in age 16 during sea accident. Then, she had to bury her second husband. I guess all those life experiences have left their mark on her and she could get close to the God to get a relief. Or maybe she was very religious person from beginning.
Anyway, statue of Madonna with Child is the only object this kind in Norway. At least the one I ever heard about. If you consider how to get there, here you have some instructions. First you need to get to Eggedal, small town at the foot on Norefjell Mountains. On the west side of that place, about 1 km from town centre, there is a side road and sign directs to Madonna. Follow this road up to the parking lot at Utvollane. You need to pay a fee and it cost 70 kr (2021). On the parking lot there are information boards telling the story of Madonna statue and possible trails to the summit. In general two tracks goes parallel so its good idea to make this route as a loop. But there are also other paths leading in other directions, if you want to diversity or extend your hike. Madonna Trail from parking lot to the top counts about 3 km and its about one hour to get to the summit. There you can admire the statue as well as the beautiful mountain panorama around.
