The Norwegian Fjords

Saturday 23 July

The torrential rain we awoke to this morning ended shortly before we left Oslo, but grey skies hung around all day, reflecting the mood here as the city and country tried to come to terms with the extent of the massacre that occurred yesterday - the true extent of which has only emerged this morning. 


We had a bit of fun and games trying to leave Oslo as we had programmed the GPS to find us a local supermarket. Unfortunately it zoned in on the one in the city. This was bad for 2 reasons. Firstly, there are a lot of road works going on in the city at the moment (actually in a lot of the country) so the GPS didn't have the right co-ordinates. And secondly, it was directing us to the area where yesterday's explosion happened which of course was blocked off and being patrolled by armed soldiers. We quickly got out of there, reprogrammed the GPS and were on our way.

We drove through some beautiful country today on our way further north to our first stop, Otta which is close to several national parks. Beautiful large rivers, rapids, lush forests, cute villages (with obligatory house colours) and several old houses with grass roofs like the historical ones we'd seen at the Norsk Folkemuseum in Oslo just days ago. They are called sod roofs, and the original idea was to put weight on the roof to compress the log walls, to cut out drafts, and make the cabins warmer and stronger.

Pulling off at a rest stop for lunch, we were just about to head off again when a distressed looking woman and her son approached us. She was so stressed out (maybe from the Oslo events) and didn't want to drive any further herself, but needed to make it to Lillehammer. She wanted one of us to drive her ute while the other followed in the motor home. Unfortunately as Bill is the only driver between us we couldn't help her but suggested she rest for awhile to settle her nerves. Of course she didn't and took off again, but we saw her pulled over a little further down the road. Hopefully she made it to her destination without incident.

The rain recommenced when we arrived at our camp site at Otta Turistsenter. This camp site is quite basic and not only includes hot water in the price but huge mozzies too. It's not too bad really and it's only for one night. We are right on the Otta River with gorgeous alpine mountains in the background. Probably due to the overcast conditions, it isn't as cold here as we thought it would be.

The most fantastic news of the day being that Cadel Evans has won his first Tour de France following the time trials today. Amazingly he only won one stage this year but pulled out all stops in the end to win. Woo hoo.

And tragically though predictably, Amy Winehouse' young life ends at 27 like so many other troubled yet extremely talented singers before her.

Sunday 24 July

Rain, but we are on the move again today heading to the most northerly point in our trip and the most northerly fjord in the Sogn and Fjordane county, Nordfjord.

Not too long into the 3 hour journey the rain stopped and the roaring rapids running alongside the road began and stayed with us for most of the journey. The water is clear and blue and must be absolutely freezing. The towering mountains and valleys resulting from glacial erosion millions of years ago were magnificent and we made several stops to take photos. 

There were plenty of holiday cabins nestled in the lush green landscape, making this one of the most picturesque drives we've ever done. Thankfully there were 4 tunnels carved into these giant mountains which shortened the trip considerably. But these tunnels hadn't been carved out by huge equipment like for the Clem 7. These looked like gigantic caves that had been dug out by hand, and there was much water leaking out of the rocks onto the road and us.

Our camp site at the Stryn Camping is a small one and relatively well priced. The town centre is only meters away so we went exploring and found a huge number of shops and cafes. Stryn is obviously a central hub to surrounding towns, so very well provisioned. However after a visit to the Tourist Info centre we found out you can't actually do anything from here, you have to drive or catch a bus to go hiking, see a glacier or do a boat ride on the fjord.

After lunch the sun cam out so we went for a hill walk into the forest. Signage was terrible but we managed to find our way. It's surprisingly not that cold here which is amazing as we can see ice on the mountain tops, but when the sun is out it's lovely and warm.

Monday 25 July

We've decided to move to what will definitely be our most northern camp in our trip, to Geiranger where we can do a boat ride on the fjord.

But first we want to see a nearby glacier so upped stumps and set off for another picturesque, yet windy, drive to the Briksdalsbreen glacier (well, to the car park below). The steep climb most of the way kept us warm but no-one told us we'd get soaking wet at one particular section as the rushing rapids tumble behind the path and water sprays meters in the air. Never mind, we had more of a hill climb to do before reaching the glacier so dried off. 

As with all glaciers, it has receded considerably over the centuries but is still a sight to behold. There is so much blue within it (ice crystals reflecting only the blue in the colour spectrum) it really is spectacular. A quick feel of the river confirms the water really does come from the glacier and is glacial. There are hundreds of waterfalls of varying sizes spewing off the surrounding mountains not only here but along our drives for the past two days. This is beautiful country and the temperatures much cooler now in this region. It's also goat country so saw quite a few today.

After another drenching on the walk back to the car park, we had lunch then set off for more windy travels towards Geiranger for the night. It is a very steep descent into Geiringer at the base of the Fjord.  The camp site, Geiranger Camping, is very busy and it's been raining steadily for the past few days so our spot is surrounded by mud but right beside some raging rapids. It's totally gorgeous (apart from the mud). You have to pay extra for showers but who cares. We both want a nice hot shower tonight and Sylvi needs to wash her hair (the onboard shower just doesn't cut it for pressure). Sylvi is also fighting off a bit of a lurgy but so far it's not too bad.

Tuesday 26 July

We are having a lay day today as we've decided to take the ferry tomorrow to Valldal which will accomplish two things. Firstly we'll travel the fjords and secondly it will take us a different way out of the Fjords. It should also be clearer tomorrow so better to view the waterfalls along the way.

So after a leisurely start to the morning we sloshed through the mud to explore the little township just a few hundred meters away. There are two enormous cruise ships in so lots of tourists bustling about. The ships are parked out in the bay so passengers are ferried ashore and then either take the bus to the glacier we saw yesterday or stay in town.

We decided it's far too cold in the motor home at night so both bought some very attractive Norway slippers then went for a walk to the waterfall not far from our camp site – not in the slippers though – they are for indoors use only. The amount of water cascading down after the recent heavy falls is incredible.

Following all the other tourists up the hill, we visited the local church built in 1842. It's a cute little white wooden church, very simply decorated inside with the cemetery in the surrounding grounds. A little further up the hill is the Norsk Fjordsenter providing examples of the sod roof houses we've seen still in use today as well as information about this beautiful fjord landscape actually included on the UNESCO list of natural and cultural heritage sites since 2005.

The cruise ships were both due to set sail at around 6pm so we settled ourselves at a good vantage point to watch the action. All passengers were accounted for and both were able to leave as scheduled after the 3 regulation blasts of their horn and 3 unexpected cannon blasts on shore. It's a little disconcerting these days hearing cannon blasts or gun shots.

Wednesday 27 July

Although there was plenty of low cloud first up, we could tell it was going to be a glorious day and our trip along the fjords spectacular. The ferry had quite an inefficient paying system as there are staff at the dock making sure you're lined up in the right place as you wait an hour or two to make sure you get on, but you only pay after the ferry arrives and as your just about to drive aboard. In the end, it all happened fairly quickly, setting sail only five minutes later then scheduled.

The clouds had indeed lifted so we were on the top deck but rugged up as if going to the snow because the wind chill factor makes the temperature around 5 degrees. At least it felt that way. They had commentary in 3 different languages including English and told us of the many farms which previously ran along the length of the 3 fjords we travelled – Geirangerfjorden, Sunnylvsfjorden and Nordalsfjorden.

The farm buildings are still there and some are used as holiday homes now. The threat of avalanche in winter was a major factor in them being abandoned as working farms. How they were able to farm on such slopes is amazing, but apparently fruit trees and potatoes thrived as well as goats. The highest peak of the surrounding mountains is 1000 meters above sea level and the highest farm was at 450 meters. To compare with something we can relate to, Mt Tibrogargan at the Glass House Mountains is 364 meters.

Two of the largest waterfalls, Seven Sisters and Bridal Veil, were gushing due to the recent heavy falls. The Seven Sisters has a 250 meter free fall into the fjord and is spectacular.

The trip took a little over 2 hours and was thoroughly enjoyable on such a beautiful sunny day (how lucky are we?!). Heading off at Valldal, which is famous for their local strawberries which are abundant and delectable. There are plenty of stalls along the road so we stopped and bought a huge punnet for 35 Norwegian Krone (about $6 Aussie).  They were huge and fabulously yummy.

Any fans of “Top Gear” will know the road we took – Trollstigen – to be very spectacular, windy and occasionally hairy with tight hairpin turns. There is a lookout at the top where chaos reigns. In Oz there would have been security, traffic controllers, barriers etc, but here anything goes but it seemed to organize itself reasonably well and we were soon off downwards. Sylvi was hanging out the window taking photos of the road below and more waterfalls while Bill kept his eyes firmly on the road. It's a very busy road and the size of our vehicle made the hairpin turns a bit challenging. It was great to experience.

After leaving Fjord country behind, we tried to travel on as long as possible today to shorten the distance tomorrow towards Gothenberg, so we didn't arrive at our camp site Camping Mageli - at until 7:30pm. The sun is still blazing so not a problem.

Thursday 28 July

Awoke to a beautiful day and the sound of distant cow bells. This really is a beautiful, peaceful camp site right by the Lagen River. But today we travel 4 hours back to Sweden as we are staying with friends from Gothenberg Friday night.

Arriving at our camp site at Selater Camping (just over the border from Norway, and 2 hours from Gothenberg) at around 4pm, we headed off for a walk after setting up. 

The designated walking track within the forest is marked with strips of yellow plastic tied to trees and much of the path is very boggy following the recent rains. It was a nice walk anyway with giant mushrooms being the highlight. We are still waiting to see a moose, but as in Canada last year we believe they only exist in zoos.  

More Norwegian Fjord photos here.