Áhkátjåhkkå
1,983 m
Sweden
Also known as AkkatjåkkåAlso known as
Akkatjåkkå
- Elevation
- 1,983 m
- Prominence
- 1,069 m
- Difficulty
- 5/10
- Easy alpine
- Best Season
- Jul–Aug
- Routes
- 1
Routes
1A remote, rarely documented ascent of the highest point of Sarek's Ålkatj (Oalgásj) massif: from the Skárjá valley junction in the heart of the park up Áhkávágge, then onto the ridge that runs east from the summit, steep at first, to a flat summit plateau with a snow cap.
About 86% of this line is approximate (no mapped trail; drawn from the terrain). Check it against a map before relying on it.
Why? 8 check notes
- ascent 4922 m is 3.2× the net gain 1535 m: the line probably detours down and back up (not a traverse)
- 86% approximate geometry
- low confidence 0.3
- Änonjálmme → Akka Fjällstuga: dem (snap_failed, 1.6 km)
- Akka Fjällstuga → Ruohtesvágge: dem (snap_failed, 35.1 km)
- Ruohtesvágge → Mikkastugan: dem (snap_failed, 6.3 km)
- Mikkastugan → Áhkávágge: bridge (snap_failed; one off-graph gap, 9.8 km)
- Áhkávágge → Áhkátjåhkkå: dem (snap_failed, 2.9 km)
Elevation Profile
approximate line- Distance
- 55.6 km
- one way
- Ascent
- +4,922 m
- −3,389 m lost on the way up
- High Point
- 1,983 m
- Time Up
- 30h 08m
- DIN 33466
- Time Down
- 28h 05m
- DIN 33466 · same way back
Áhkátjåhkkå is reached only after a multi-day walk into the centre of Sarek. The usual entry to central Sarek from the north is the summer boat from Ritsem across Áhkájávrre to Änonjálmme and the STF Akka huts, then south through the trackless valleys to Skárjá, where Ruohtesvágge, Áhkávágge and Rapadalen meet near the locked Mikkastugan cabin (emergency telephone). From Skárjá follow Áhkávágge south-west between Skårvatjåhkkå and the Ålkatj massif. Axel Hamberg made the first recorded ascent on 5 July 1896 from this valley by a ridge running east from the summit; the start of the ridge was very steep, and he wrote that he might not have got up without soft snow on the slope. Above, the summit is a flat plateau with a snow cap on its east side; a small, crevassed cirque glacier lies on the east flank and a small ice cap on the south slope. Hamberg suggested that the summit would be easier from the small glacier west of the top that descends towards Álggavágge, and that a pass might link that side valley with Áhkávágge to allow a round trip. No modern description of either line was found. Descend the way you came.
Start
Änonjálmme448 m
- Bus to Ritsem from Gällivare (summer), then the boat across Áhkájávrre to Änonjálmme and the Akka huts.
Stages
| Day | Stage | km | m ascent | m descent | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Änonjálmme → Ruohtesvágge | 36.7 | 3,570 | 2,235 | 20h 58m |
| 2 | Ruohtesvágge → Mikkastugan | 6.3 | 28 | 1,010 | 2h 55m |
| 3 | Mikkastugan → Áhkátjåhkkå | 12.6 | 1,324 | 144 | 6h 17m |
Waypoints
- Trailhead: Änonjálmme448 m
Summer boat landing from Ritsem
- Hut: Akka Fjällstuga469 m
- Feature: Ruohtesvágge1,783 m
Long valley leading south to Skárjá; wild camping
- Waypoint: Mikkastugan801 m
Locked cabin with emergency telephone at Skárjá
- Feature: Áhkávágge1,054 m
- Summit: Áhkátjåhkkå1,983 m
Key Passages
- Steep start of the east ridge
- Summit snow cap
Equipment
0/7 packedDownloads
Route confidence 30%Overview
The highest summit (about 1,983 m) of the Ålkatj (Oalgásj) massif in the western heart of Sarek National Park: a flat-topped, snow-capped mountain between Áhkávágge, Sarvesvágge and Álggavágge, days from the nearest road and seldom climbed.
Áhkátjåhkkå (Swedish Akkatjåkkå, older Akatjåkko) crowns the Ålkatj or Oalgásj massif, the extensive high ground between Sarvesvágge, Rapadalen and Álggavágge in western central Sarek. It should not be confused with Áhkká (Akka), the large massif north of Sarek in Stora Sjöfallet National Park. The flat summit plateau with its snow cap on the east side makes it easy to pick out from afar; small glaciers cling to its east and south flanks, and the massif as a whole holds some of Sweden's largest glaciers.
Because the massif is hemmed in by other high massifs, reaching its core takes extra days, and very little has been written about climbing the summit since Axel Hamberg's time. Expect a multi-day wilderness trip with fords, boulder fields and steep snow, and no paths, huts or mobile coverage.
Climbing Notes
This is an expedition-style objective for experienced, self-sufficient Sarek walkers. Plan at least a week with tent, stove and food, and be ready to ford glacial rivers and navigate in fog by map, compass and altimeter. Carry an ice axe and crampons for the steep snow at the foot of the east ridge and on the summit cap, and a rope and glacier kit if you intend to use the small glaciers. No guiding service specific to this summit was found.
History
The geographer Axel Hamberg made the first recorded ascent on 5 July 1896, from Áhkávágge by the ridge running east from the summit, and described it in his 1922 Swedish Tourist Association guide to the Sarek mountains, giving the height as 1,983 m. Later maps gave 1,974 m; Lantmäteriet's laser-scanned terrain model puts it at about 1,983 m.
Season
Best Jul–Aug- January: Not advisable
- February: Not advisable
- March: Possible
- April: Possible
- May: Not advisable
- June: Possible
- July: Best (best window)
- August: Best (best window)
- September: Good
- October: Not advisable
- November: Not advisable
- December: Not advisable
- Jan
- Polar night
- Mar
- Ski expeditions only
- Apr
- Ski expeditions; long days
- May
- Thaw; unsafe river ice and snow bridges
- Jun
- Snowmelt floods and high rivers
- Jul
- Main season; Hamberg's ascent was on 5 July with soft snow on the ridge
- Sep
- Autumn colours; early snow possible
Access & Permits
- Hut Booking
- There are no huts in Sarek. The STF Akka huts at Änonjálmme lie outside the park; Mikkastugan at Skárjá is locked and serves only as an emergency telephone point.
- Fees
- No fee to enter the national park; the Ritsem boat and STF huts outside the park are paid
- Rules
- Sarek National Park regulations (NFS 2013:10): no hunting, fishing, motor vehicles or motorboats, and no watercraft of any kind in Sarek
- Dogs only on a lead from 1 January to 30 April, or on Kungsleden; otherwise not allowed
- Aircraft may not land or take off, or fly below 2,000 ft, without County Administrative Board permission, so helicopter drop-offs must be outside the park
- Organised group tours need County Administrative Board permission
- Do not disturb grazing reindeer or reindeer herding
- Getting There
Gällivare; Ritsem is the nearest road end
Gällivare Lapland Airport (GEV) or Kiruna Airport (KRN)
- Road or bus from Gällivare to Ritsem
- Summer boat from Ritsem across Áhkájávrre to Änonjálmme and the Akka huts
- Alternative entry from Kvikkjokk to the south
Hazards
- Glacier
- Crevasses
- Avalanche
- River crossing
- Remoteness
- Weather
Huts & Shelters
1- 469 m
Akka FjällstugaHut