Hiking areaNorway · NO
Midsund
On the island of Otrøya, a short ferry hop west of Molde on Norway's Atlantic coast, the Midsund hiking area has earned a reputation that far outstrips its size: it is an eldorado for mountain-lovers, where steep peaks plunge almost straight into the sea and the summits hand you a 360-degree panorama of ocean, islands and the outer Romsdalsfjord. The reason so many visitors make the crossing is Midsundtrappene, a network of hiking trails whose steepest sections are paved with thousands of hand-laid stone steps built by Sherpa craftsmen from Nepal. The signature climb leads up to Rørsethornet, where well over 3,000 stone stairs carry you from the shoreline car park at Rakvåg all the way to the 659-metre summit cairn. It is a workout that quickens the pulse, and the reward at the top is among the most beautiful views in the whole region, a must-see for sunrise and sunset. But the Midsund peaks offer more than one staircase and more than one kind of day out, from an easy 45-minute stair walk to the viewpoint at Aksla to a full, exposed traverse across the spine of the island.