Barknar is a Nord pilgrim who has made the mountain path above Ivarstead his personal hobby. He isn’t a monk, a guide or a hermit – just a man who likes to walk the 7,000 Steps, stop at each etched tablet and think about what it means, and maybe bring home some game while he’s at it.
Where to find them
Look for him along the lower stretches of the 7,000 Steps leading toward High Hrothgar, or back in town at the Vilemyr Inn, where he’ll happily recommend that you enjoy the inn’s hospitality too.
Personality & relationships
Barknar is friendly but brief. He warns travellers to watch for wolves on the way up, and if you ask about the Greybeards he admits he never climbs high enough to meet them – they don’t take visitors anyway, and the folk who make the trek mostly leave food and supplies rather than stop for a chat. Once the monks shout “Dovahkiin” across the land, he’s as puzzled as everyone else about what it could mean.
Good to know
Steal from him and he may send Hired Thugs after you. Should you relieve him of his belongings by other means, his loot is ordinary apart from a quiver that holds well over a hundred iron arrows – the pilgrim clearly takes the hunting part seriously.
Also in Ivarstead
Race, level, class and factions read from the Skyrim game files; story details checked against community wiki articles and written in our own words.
