Trolltunga

Trolltunga
The view of Trolltunga and Ringedalsvatnet with glimpses of the Folgefonna glacier in the background.
Highest point
Elevation	604 m (1,982 ft)
Coordinates	60°07′51″N 6°45′15″E / 60.13083°N 6.75417°E / 60.13083; 6.75417Coordinates: 60°07′51″N 6°45′15″E / 60.13083°N 6.75417°E / 60.13083; 6.75417
Naming
Translation	Troll tongue (Norwegian)
Geography
Trolltunga Location in Hordaland
Topo map	Hardangervidda Vest (2010)
Geology
Mountain type	Granite penetrated by glacial erosion

Trolltunga (Troll tongue) is a piece of rock jutting horizontally out of a mountain about 700 metres (2,300 ft) above the north side of the lake Ringedalsvatnet in the municipality of Odda in Hordaland county, Norway. The cliff is located east of the Skjeggedal area, about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) east of the village of Tyssedal and the Sørfjorden (a branch off of the main Hardanger Fjord).

The cliff is part of the precambrian bedrock and was formed during the ice age, approximately 10,000 years ago, when the edges of the glacier reached the cliff. The water from the glacier froze in the crevices of the mountain and eventually broke off large, angular blocks, which were later carried away with the glacier. Along the cliff itself, a gneiss, there continues to be deep cracks. The trail to Trolltunga also passes through the bedrock and washed slippery hillsides in the background also containing gneiss.

Trolltunga is available for hikers from approximately mid-June to mid-September. According to the Norwegian Trekking Association, a fit adult can do the hike in 8 to 10 hours in total, while the local tourist office rates it as a 10 to 12 hour hike and that the hike should start before 10:00 am. The hike is about 22 kilometers, with a height difference of about 900 meters. The Norwegian Trekking Association rates the hike as "challenging", requiring good endurance as well as proper hiking boots and equipment.

Trolltunga is located 17 kilometres from city centre in Odda, Hordaland, a county in Western Norway. The city of Bergen, the second largest in Norway, is located about 190 kilometres from the site via main roads. To reach the trail from national road 13, turn eastward in Tyssedalen away from the fjord up towards Hardangervidda, and drive the narrow but good road about 7 km up Skjeggedal. The road to the site ends at a parking facility near the dam at the end of Ringedalsvatnet 443 meters above sea level. There is a car park where Mågelibanen (a trolley car) started, though it is no longer in operation. The path up to Måglitoppen begin on the right of the cart path on the stairwell. There is a steep trail that rises about 410 meters up the first 1.5 kilometers up to the Måglitopp. Here the track surfaces slightly out before raising up Gryteskaret, another 330 meters to the highest point on the first part of the route 4 kilometers from the starting point, at Trombåskaret (1183 meters above sea level).