This is a walk I can do from home, but today I joined a friend and got a ride to the public parking place which makes the walk considerably shorter. The weather was warm already at 9 am, so it was nice to not have to do all of the climb to the starting point in the hot sunshine.
Skarnsund Bridge from the path to Ørdal Nature Reserve.
The first part of the walk goes around some farm fields and we could see Skarnsund Bridge. Note that we are considerably higher than the level of the bridge. Nice weather and a good view from here.
Ørdal is a farm perched on the edge of Skarnsund. Some of its residents were out in the fields as we passed by. When walking by, one has to be careful not to get between mother and babies, and one should also be careful about where one puts one’s feet. The mothers have bells on them so one can hear them at a distance They usually move away when people approach.
Mother with two lambs who would be at most two months old, perhaps younger.There is the usual sign that gives information about the area.
Ørdal Nature Reserve was established in 1992 and its purpose is to preserve a coniferous forest area which is only slightly affected by human activity. It also has a distinctive flora. The area is on a very steep hillside on Skarnsund. The area is shown on the map on the sign.
As one enters the nature reserve there is a sign to indicate that. The sheep are not in the nature reserve. One has to go through a gate and the reserve is fenced to prevent the sheep from entering.Rhododendron in bloom
Among one of the interesting plants that is found in this forest, is a very large rhododendron. The reason for doing the walk at this time of year is to see it in bloom. Some years it has an enormous amount of blooms on it. I felt that this year, it has, just like the one in my garden which is not by any means the same size, very few blooms, but lots of new growth.
Picture taken 26 June 2018. Two years ago there was a much richer blooming. This also shows the immense size of the bush.Even in the woods there can be many directions to go. Downhill, i.e. straight ahead, leads down to the fjord, which is where we went today. The path that goes off to the right in the picture goes along the hillside, to where there are several cabins and a road that would take you to civilization. The path that goes uphill to the left, leads to the remains of a human dwelling from a century or more ago. Also note the box on the tree in which there is a book to write one’s name in.We walked down to the fjord where we rested and drank water. We had done the easy part of the walk so far, mostly downhill. Now we just had to climb back up to the level of the sign for the nature reserve and the level of where the car was parked.Undergrowth under the tall trees.It seemed like nature was making a bit of a fence so that walkers did not fall down the steep slope.The path is easy to follow and there is lush vegetation in the shade of the trees. I often take pictures when climbing up the steep slopes. It’s a good excuse to stop for a minute or two and get my heart slowed down.Galium odoratum. The Norwegian name is myske and the English name is sweet-scented bedstraw or woodruff. It grows where there is very little light and covers the ground.The check-in point – 40 points for this more challenging walk.
One Reply to “Inderøy Walk – Ørdal Nature Reserve”
One Reply to “Inderøy Walk – Ørdal Nature Reserve”