Sherpa Trails: Munketreppene, Hardanger

Craftsmanship from Nepal to Norway

During the last fifteen years, Sherpas from Nepal have restored old traffic routes and established new trails in about 200 Norwegian hiking destinations. Based in the Himalayas, the Sherpa people are regarded for their strength and enormous respect for nature and life on earth and have a 1000-year tradition of stonework, a craft that is on the verge of extinction in Norway.

Adapted to the landscape

With simple tools and beautiful craftsmanship, the Nepalese stone workers break the rock and build paths by hand, adapting them to the natural lines of  the terrain. There is great variation among the different  projects. In some places, wide trails have been built to withstand many hikers and high visitor numbers. While in others, hikers will be diverted into less vulnerable terrain.

In Munketreppene in Hardanger, the Sherpas have restored an old and formerly important route originally built by English monks in the 1200s. The trail is made up of 616 steps made of large rocks and goes from the village of Lofthus, known for its extensive fruit production, to the entrance of Hardangervidda, Norway’s largest national park.