Tours › 2009 › Kutjaure: Day Tours › 25/8

Tuesday 25/8

Gådotjåhkkå

Horizontal distance:	16 km
Vertical distance:	+440 m, -80 m, +60 m, -420 m
Time:	4 h 45 min
Lunch break:	1 h 45 min
Dinner:	–
Night accommodation:	–
Stage classification:	Easy

I walked the path to the waterfall on the other side of the bridge, wearing only light clothes, and even though I again moved at speed I did not feel that warm. At the fall the angle of the brilliant sun gave rise to a little rainbow in the spray, and after feeling the moisture for a short bit I climbed up to the crest. From there I followed a smaller path alongside Sieberjåhkå, where it could be discerned. Just after a nice patch of bushy grass with a perfect bathing place I turned up through a shallow "rift" in the rises that lined the stream.

After that the ground was more wet and/or uneven at times, but progress was easy. Now it was starting to feel warm when there was no wind, and the swarming flies had noticed my presence at last. My (primary) goal was the top of Gådotjåhkkå and I ascended slowly, but due to the gentle slopes and low height of this fjeld I had some trouble ascertaining just where this top was from below. Eventually the passage of a couple of brooks helped me to get my bearings, and I shifted direction accordingly, now going up the slope more directly. At times I walked on grassland which was pleasant enough, but the flies had grown in number and level of annoyance, so I took out the repellant to fight them off.

I proceeded up in the trickling source flow of a rocky stream and then went over an adjacent area of flat rocks protruding from the ground. Soon I was high enough to spot a rocky mound some distance ahead, and assuming this to be the top I walked towards it. As I did so the border fjelds suddenly appeared, and soon thereafter a group of bold Norwegian peaks came into view, some of which I actually recognized from my arrival at Fauske earlier. I had now discovered another, slightly higher rise of cliffs behind the first one, and I climbed up onto it via a snowfield at 11:00.

Following Sieberjåhkå...

...upstream

A faint rainbow...

...in the waterfall throwing itself into...

...the canyon

Guvtjávrre from the crest

Upper Sieberjåhkå

There were some of those

Rock ptarmigan

Rávdoajvve far ahead

Guvtjávrre far behind

Northeast

More quartz

Western Sarek

Oh my

Rocky top

The view was simply breathtaking, with the remote western region of Padjelanta National Park stretching out before me towards Norway, meeting the high and jagged peaks there. Lakes of various sizes broke the undulating green-brown with their deep blue surfaces, and of these I must say that the sight of Slahpejávrre with Reinoksfjellet behind it was just perfect in every respect. Across Sállohávrre large parts of Sulidälbmá rose on the horizon, and to the right of it the enormous Blåmannsisen sprawled out its masses. Drawing the eye to the west was the instantly recognizable pointed shape of Gasskatjåhkkå with its intriguing patterns of ice and snow, and in the opposite direction the peaks of Sarek National Park formed an impenetrable wall, with the great Áhkká massif as an isolated northern emissary.

Gådotjåhkkå may not be much of a mountain itself, but with such an unbelievable outlook on such unspoilt vastness, it ranks right up there at the very top of summits worth climbing, and I count this spot as being among the greatest in the fjelds. Earlier I had had some thoughts on continuing down to Ábmelvárásj or perhaps Bajkasjávrre before stopping, but it was now abundantly clear that this was where I would make lunch camp. After photographing quite extensively I therefore took off my boots and sat down, and did not move much for about three quarters of an hour, letting my mind do the wandering as my eyes tried their best to absorb the sight.

I then moved over to the top cairn, leaning against which I had my lunch, and then I surveyed the area with my binoculars; I did not see anything save Nature itself, which under the circumstances felt just right. After eating a few cloudberries that grew at the eastern edge of the rise I just sat still for another long while, but ultimately the peace was disturbed by a herd of reindeer coming over the plateau to the south.

Southwest (Sállohávrre)

West

Northwest

North

Northeast

East

South

Closeups: Sulidälbmá, ...

...Blåmannsisen, ...

...Gasskatjåhkkå, ...

...and Reinoksfjellet/Slahpejávrre

Panorama over Sulidälbmá

Panorama over Gasskatjåhkkå, Ábmelvárásj, Sávtsasj, Reinoksfjellet and Slahpejávrre

Peace out, man

Golden

Áhkká, Queen of Lapland

Sarekkian row

When I left at long last I did my best to sneak past these reindeer, which had taken up position due west of my position, and I actually succeeded in my endeavor; some of them observed my passing intently, but none bolted. I followed the beginning of another brook, and after crossing a second one I came upon an area offering great campsites with a perfect view towards Gasskatjåhkkå through a dip in the nearby rises. I rounded a tarn on unstable ground and then passed below the 981 rise, going out onto another cliff-hill overlooking the valley beneath Bajkas, and then proceeded to the northernmost hilltop on the gentle ridge. I walked down to a marked edge below which a rock field stretched out, so I made a sharp turn to the east and started going down the grassy slope diagonally.

Some reindeer close by

Reinoksfjellet and Slahpejávrre

How about waking up to this sight?

To round

Sharp fjelds closer to the coast

Amazing, is it not?

Bajkasjávrre below

A bit of Sarek

Áhkká rising

Sieberjåhkå flowing through flat land

Here I had a cooling headwind, but the lower I got the weaker it became. After a bumpy portion I followed the nearby brook downwards at a distance, finally crossing it just above the confluence of two courses. I continued down to Sieberjåhkå, near which there was heathland nicely suited for walking, so I mostly kept close to the water. In the stream there were many places with flat, polished rocks and little falls, and several inviting spots for bathing. I found another small path that had probably arisen by way of reindeer, but when the brink grew steep I climbed up to the edge and then continued a bit further away from the stream past Slädojågåsj.

At the outflow of the next little brook on my side I got close to Sieberjåhkå again, and right there were some terrific campsites. I continued alongside the water until I reached the bush-grass, from where I followed the path to the head of the waterfall. A slightly different descent was followed by an identical walk along the border of the national park back to the cottage around 14:15.