Møysalen

On a glorious day in July I hiked to the top of Møysalen (1262m), the highest peak in Vesterålen. It is a magnificent hike and one of the best day hikes in Norway. Indeed, it is definitely in the top 10 of the best hikes I’ve done so far.

I had booked a guided tour and if you’re thinking of hiking to Møysalen I highly recommend you do the same. Even in July there many snow patches and near the top you have to cross a glacier. The tour starts at 8:30 am at the visitor centre of Møysalen National Park in Hennes and ends early in the evening. At approximately 25km the hike is also pretty long. If you book the guided tour a motor boat will drop you off at the end of the fjord, which I found pretty exciting in itself, thereby cutting the distance by 2-3 km.

In the distance you can see the fjord. At this point we'd already hiked more than two hours and climbed about 500m.

The mountain to the left of the "sharp" peak is Møysalen. Still quite some way to go. Already the views are pretty awesome.

Views along the hike to Møysalen — The views get better and better

Final climb to the top of Møysalen — Ridge to the top of Møysalen

The final stretch of the trail to the peak of Møysalen (top right corner) leads along a ridge with some narrow passages. It flattens near the top.

One of several snow fields we had to cross

Near the top of Møysalen — This is near the top of Møysalen

As it is the highest peak in the region the top of Møysalen offers amazing 360º views

In the distance you can see Sortland and the bridge covering the fjord. The next day I could see the top of Møysalen from the window of my hotel in Sortland. That too was a pretty good feeling.