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Nordre Saulo

1,768 m

Norway, Sweden

Also known as Nordre Saulo – Nuortta Sávllo, Nord-Saulo, +1

Nordre Saulo – Nuortta Sávllo · Nord-Saulo · Nuortta Sávllo

Elevation
1,768 m
Prominence
1,053 m
Difficulty
4/10
Alpine hike
Best Season
Jul–Aug
Routes
1

Routes

1
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Approximate line — not for navigation

An automated check found that parts of this line could not be matched to mapped trails, so it may stray far from the real route. Use it for planning only, with a map and a guidebook.

Why? 8 check notes
  • danger scan: Alep Sávllojávrásj → Nordre Saulo: straight line 1677 m (limit 200 m)
  • danger scan: Alep Sávllojávrásj → Nordre Saulo: sustained 58° > 40° on a straight line
  • last routed vertex 1677 m from the summit (closed by straight)
  • 100% approximate geometry
  • ascent 1489 m vs net gain 1165 m (+28%)
  • DIN time up 7.18 h vs published 4.5 h (+60%)
  • low confidence 0.37
  • Tjoarvihytta → Stjernevatna: dem (snap_failed, 9.3 km)
SACT4ScrambleNormal route

Sources differ: Red (demanding) (Peakbook / Norges beste toppturer (Otto Lund))

A long, pathless day from the Tjoarvihytta tourist hut (600 m): the marked path towards Mavas for 3 km, then over the heights of Gårro, north of Stjernevatna and between the Sávllojávrásj lakes (840 m), and 900 m up the steep west-north-west ridge, entering a cairned cleft at about 1,400 m to the saddle between the two tops. About 26 km and 2,000 m of ascent return; 9.5 hours.

Elevation Profile

approximate line
5001,0001,5002,0000 km2.557.51012.5TjoarvihyttaNordre Saulo
Distance
≈ 12.5 km
one way
Ascent
≈ +1,489 m
−324 m lost on the way up
High Point
1,768 m
Time Up
≈ 7h 11m
DIN 33466
Time Down
≈ 5h 37m
DIN 33466 · same way back

Drive from Sulitjelma about 5 km south towards Jakobsbakken, then about 10 km along Balvasselva to the self-service hut Tjoarvihytta (600 m, about 11 km from Sulitjelma; the road is normally open from around the turn of June/July). Follow the T-marked path towards the Mavas huts in Sweden for about 3 km, then leave it and cross the heights of Gårro on the south side of point 1011. Pass some small lakes, with the sharp little top Ballek coming into view, continue north of Stjernevatna and go between the lakes Alep and Lulep Sávllojávrásj (about 840 m) at the foot of the mountain. Local advice is to climb the steep ridge directly west-north-west of the main summit, starting it from the north-west. The line is obvious up to about 1,400 m, where a cleft in the mountainside begins; its entry is marked with a small cairn. Climb the cleft to the saddle between the two tops (about 900 m of ascent from the lakes). From the saddle the main summit (1,768 m), on the border, is to the south; the Norwegian north top (1,756 m) is about 350 m to the north. Lingering snow on the east side and in the gullies may call for crampons, and the border commission of 1762 described the mountain as 'unclimbable' because of its snow, ice and steepness. Return the same way to the lakes. From there Otto Lund and Inger Lise Innerdal found it easiest to head for the south side of Stor-Dorro and Litj-Dorro and follow the path to the road 3–4 km north of Tjoarvihytta. The 2008 party took 4.5 hours from the hut to the main summit and 9.5 hours in total (26 km, about 2,000 m of ascent). In June 2020, with the road still closed by snow, a party skied in over Kjelvatnet to Stor-Dorro instead.

Start

Tjoarvihytta603 m

  • None to Tjoarvihytta; the nearest village is Sulitjelma.
  • Parking at the trailhead

Stages

DayStagekmm ascentm descentTime
1Tjoarvihytta → Nordre Saulo12.51,4893247h 11m

Waypoints

  1. Hut:
    Tjoarvihytta603 m
  2. Feature:
    Stjernevatna858 m

    Pass to the north

  3. Feature:
    Alep Sávllojávrásj837 m
  4. Summit:
    Nordre Saulo1,768 m

Key Passages

  • Leaving the marked path for the pathless heights of Gårro
  • Steep west-north-west ridge from the Sávllojávrásj lakes
  • Cairned cleft from about 1,400 m to the saddle

Equipment

0/5 packed
Technical
Safety
Footwear
Clothing
Navigation

Downloads

Route confidence 37%

Overview

A steep, isolated twin-topped mountain on the Norway–Sweden border south of Sulitjelma and the highest point of Junkerdal National Park. Its 1,756 m north top is in Norway, the 1,768 m main summit on the border; the highest point of the whole Norway–Sweden boundary lies on the ridge between them.

Nordre Saulo (Lule Sami Nuortta Sávllo, the name on Swedish maps) rises almost 1,000 m from the lakes at its foot on the border between Saltdal in Nordland and Arjeplog in Sweden. It has two tops about 350 m apart: the main summit (1,768 m) on or just across the border, and a lower north top (1,756 m) wholly in Norway. In 2023 the Norwegian and Swedish border commissions established that the highest point of the Norway–Sweden border is on the ridge between them, at 1,752 m, now marked by the small border marker 236Au1. With a prominence of about 1,050 m for the main summit, it is among the 100 most prominent mountains in Scandinavia, and it is Saltdal's highest point.

There is no path to the top. The usual approach starts at Tjoarvihytta, a self-service tourist association hut at the end of a summer road south of Sulitjelma, and crosses pathless upland past several fishing lakes before climbing the steep west-north-west ridge and a cairned cleft to the saddle between the tops. It is a long day of about 26 km and 2,000 m of ascent.

The summit view reaches north to the Sulitjelma glaciers, Suliskongen and Blåmannsisen, south to Sør-Saulo in Sweden and west towards Beiarn and Svartisen. The slopes around the mountain are known for their northern alpine flora.

Climbing Notes

Plan a 9–10 hour day with about 2,000 m of ascent, most of it pathless. You need good navigation (map, compass, GPS), confidence on steep, loose ground and in a narrow cleft, and clear weather, since route-finding to the cleft depends on seeing the ridge. Snow lingers on the east side and in the gullies well into summer, so carry crampons and an ice axe before August.

Tjoarvihytta (9 beds, DNT key) makes a good base; the road to it usually opens around the turn of June and July. Early in the season, with the road closed, parties ski in from the Sulitjelma side. Respect national-park rules and keep away from reindeer.

History

The Swedish geographer Olof Tresk mentioned the mountain in 1640 as 'Norre Saulowarra'. In 1762 the border commission described it as 'aldeles ubestigelig' (quite unclimbable) because of snow, ice and steepness and set no cairn on it; the border here was only marked in 1960, with cairn 236Aa (1,670 m) in the saddle. New RTK measurements in 2023 placed the border's highest point between the two tops, and a marker was built there.

Season

Best Jul–Aug
  1. January: Not advisable
  2. February: Not advisable
  3. March: Not advisable
  4. April: Possible
  5. May: Possible
  6. June: Possible
  7. July: Best (best window)
  8. August: Best (best window)
  9. September: Good
  10. October: Not advisable
  11. November: Not advisable
  12. December: Not advisable
Jan
Winter; polar twilight
Feb
Winter
Mar
Winter; road to Tjoarvihytta closed
Apr
Ski approach for experienced parties; steep, avalanche-prone upper mountain
May
Spring snow; long ski approach
Jun
Road usually still closed; snow in the cleft
Jul
Road open to Tjoarvihytta; snow patches remain
Sep
Autumn colours; first snow possible
Oct
Early winter
Nov
Winter
Dec
Polar night

Access & Permits

Hut Booking
Tjoarvihytta (Sulitjelma og Omegn Turistforening) is self-service, open all year, 9 beds, locked with the standard DNT key; no booking required.
Fees
  • Overnight fee at Tjoarvihytta (DNT member prices; pay by the 'Hyttebetaling' app, Vipps or giro, no cash)
Rules
  • Junkerdal National Park: national-park regulations apply
  • The main summit and the saddle lie on the Norway–Sweden border; no border formalities apply on foot
  • At Tjoarvihytta dogs are allowed only in the newer hall, in the dog cage
Getting There

Sulitjelma; Fauske

Bodø (BOO)

  • Car: from Sulitjelma about 5 km south towards Jakobsbakken, then about 10 km along Balvasselva on the road to the Balvatn dam to Tjoarvihytta (normally open from around the turn of June/July)
  • No public transport beyond Sulitjelma

Hazards

  • Remoteness
  • Weather
  • Rockfall
  • Exposure
  • Avalanche

Huts & Shelters

1

  • TjoarvihyttaHutUnstaffed

    9 beds · Open all year (self-service); road access usually from late June/early July

    Website of Tjoarvihytta

    600 m
Researched from 7 sourcesConfidence67%UnreviewedUpdated 8 Oct 2026
Sources & Caveats
  • merged with Wikidata/OSM names
  • Main summit on the Norway–Sweden border, the highest point of the border (Kartverket 2023).
  • The skeleton point is the lower Norwegian north top (1,756 m); the main summit (1,768 m) is about 350–380 m south on the border. The skeleton prominence (1,018 m) belongs to the main summit, and the range 'Sulitjelma' is wrong (Junkerdal National Park, Saltdal). Logged in skeleton-issues.md.; Otto Lund's 2008 report describes the northern top as the higher (1,768 m) and the southern as lower; Kartverket and Wikipedia say the southern main summit is higher. Kartverket (2023) is followed here.; The route description rests on two accounts of one 2008 ascent; no technical grade or official descrip
  • normalizeGrade of the easiest researched route
  • Main summit 1768 m (Kartverket 2023); the OSM node is the lower Norwegian north top (1756 m), 380 m north. Junkerdal National Park, Saltdal, not Sulitjelma.
  • coordinates: 1 osm
  • Main summit (OSM node 11455133480, not in the peak extract; Kirmse summit within 3 m).
  • Main summit 1768 m over the 715 m saddle near riksrøys 238 (no.wikipedia, Fakta om Norge); Kirmse ~1030 m.
  • 0% OSM trail graph, 0% short gaps between OSM fragments, 87% DEM least-cost, 13% straight (approx)
  • elevation from copernicus_glo30