Another journey, or rather, voyage this year was to Norway via Bremerhaven in Germany. I had traveled along the coast of Norway on the Hurtigruten Tour in 2011, but most of the fjords aren’t part of the tour (and Geiranger is not called at due to ice and avalanches). This voyage – on a smaller ship, not one of those 6,000 passenger monsters – concentrated on the fjords of south-western Norway. Bus tours to some of the most scenic sites were offered while the ship was at anchor. In for some spectacular Norwegian landscape? *grin*
We start with one of the many waterfalls. This was on a tour from Bergen to Øystese at the Hardangerfjord, across the Eikedalen/Kvamskogen area popular for its skiing resorts. It’s not always possible to take photos out of the moving bus, but besides the longer official stops, the driver added a few what he called 'Japanese stops' ("five minutes for photos and don’t dither").
The waterfall is also called Eikedalsfoss or Brudesløret (bridal veil, since it looks like one, but there’s another fall with that name in Norway). The Eikedalselva river falls 79 metres into the valley; measured by laser. You can get closer to the fall, of course, but for a quick stop the roadside parking lot is sufficient. We got some time at several more waterfalls during the tours.
I liked how this photo came out, with the sun shining into the ravine between the mountains.
And here is one of the valley.
That’s one of the falls we got time to explore: the Steinsdalsfossen ('fossen' meaning waterfall) near Norheimsund. It is part of the river Fosselva which springs from the Myklavatn Lake 814 metres above sea level, and empties into the Steindalselva (you may have guessed that 'elva' means river). The waterfall developed when the Fosselva changed its course in 1699; its height is 50 metres.
What makes this fall a tourist destination is the fact that you can walk behind the fall without getting wet. So here’s a photo from that angle.
The Hardangerfjord which is located east of Bergen, is 180 km long – making it the second largest fjord after the Sognefjord (more than 200 km). The shores alternate between mountains and more gently sloping districts where orchards thrive; the apples of Hardanger are famous in Norway.
The weather was a mixed affair that day, clouds and sunshine, a few raindrops, and an overall rather hazy atomsphere that veiled the more distant mountains, turning them into fairy tale shadows.
Next stop was Flåm in the Aurlandsfjord which is a branch of the Sognefjord. The tour included taking the Flåm Line to Myrdal and another train further to Voss, then changing into a bus that would take us up to Stahlheim and then along the Nærøyfjord (another branch of the Sognefjord) back to Flåm, going through several long tunnels on that last part.
The Flåmsbana is a 20 km long railway between Flåm at the fjord and Myrdal which is at 866 metres above sea level, so no wonder the gradient can be as steep as 5.5 percent. The railway connects the district of Sogn to the train line from Oslo to Bergen that stops at Myrdal. Construction started in 1924, but it took until 1940 for the railway to be operational. Not an easy terrain to build 20 tunnels and a bridge.
Even the Flåm line got a 'Japanese stop', at the Kjosfossen. Its fall is 225 metres, so it’s one of the more spectacular ones. The fall continues under the railway bridge to the other side and powers a small power station for the railway. Norway gets its electricity cheap due to the many waterfalls.
It was the only day with lots of rain, so the photos tended to turn out a bit darker and melencholic.
A stop during the bus part of the tour: Tvinde Waterfall. It is one of the prettiest falls due to its many strands and cascades. The waterfall ist 110 metres high (other sources say 152 metres). It is one of the falls that sometimes runs dry in summer, so we were lucky that it was displaying quite nicely.
Legends say that the waterfall can give you back youth and well ... potency. Obviously, people believe in that since there are some filling up bottles with water from the fall, we were told.
There has been a way from the eastern provinces around Oslo and Telemarken to the Vestlandet around the fjords since the Middle Ages. It led from Voss to Stahlheim and down to Gudvangen at the end of the Nærøyfjord, and from there to the Sognefjord and the open sea by boat. In 1647, it was elevated to Royal Postway between Oslo and Bergen; Stahlheim farm became a postal station and inn.
Since 1865, Gudvangen could be reached by steam ships, and horse carriages would bring people up to Stahlheim. It was the beginning of the tourism in the area. The German emperor Wilhlem II regularly spent some time there; he was a great Norway fan.
Stahlheim is situated 330 metres above sea leve, the Nærøy Valley about 100 metres. The Stahlheim brook passes the hotel and thunders down as 126 metres fall below (you can see the brook and the edge, and the river below, but not the fall itself).
I had loaned an umbrella to protect my camera, and went a bit wild about photographing those dramatic clouds, lol, while most of the others had a coffee at the hotel.
Flåm is a documented settlement since 1340, but the village became popular only with the builing of the Flåm railway which soon attracted tourists who got there by steamships. Nowadays, the number of cruise ships allowed in the harbour is limited per day, bringing the overall number down to 170 per annum (it was more than 300 at the peak).
St. Peter seems to have felt bad about that rainy day and brought the sun out for most of the rest of the voyage. So we got Ålesund in the sunshine and warm weather, and most of the Geiranger tour the next day as well.
The tour to the Dalsnibba Mountain and up the Eagle Road with its spectacular views was a hightlight of the cruise. Those winding roads are bad enough with a car, but the bus driver got us around safely albeit it looked dangerous at some points.
That is one of the few photos I took from the bus that turned out ok. Serpentine roads, a swaying bus, and reflections on the windows don’t make it easy. But we got several stops, so it was no problem to catch a lot of breathtaking views – life and on camera.
The road up to the Dalsnibba is called Nibbevegen. It starts at Djupvatnet (1035 metres above sea level) and leads to the summit of Dalsnibba at 1476 metres above sea level. This is the highest road in Norway; 5 km long, with a gradient of 10%.
The Dalsnibba offers a spectacular view to the Geirangerfjord which is 7 km away (though the distance by road is about 20 km). Due to its height the mountain is often covered by snow far into summer, and frequently wreathed in clouds. We were lucky since the clouds were only on one side, leaving the view to the fjord clear if somewhat hazy.
A skywalk with an iron grid floor and a glass guardrail has been built on the mountain some years ago, offering an even better view to the Blåbreen (also called Blåfjell) glacier and the Geiranger valley. A descent of 500 metres under my feet was not my favourite spot, but I did enter.
Just some picture spam.
This is the typical postcard motive, the view to the Geiranger Fjord from the parking lot at Flydalsjuvet. Everyone stops there for a photo and so did we.
The zigzag band at the lower right corner is the Eagle Bend road which leads to another famous viewpoint. I was on the smaller of the two ships.
The gorge itself looks quite spectacular as well, though I could not find any information about it; everything Google offers is about the viewpoint. But there is a – rather tricky – way down the cliff of the gorge to Geiranger.
Next was up the serpentine road called Eagle Bend to a viewpoint on the other side of the fjord. Another winding road with a gradient of 10% (bus driver in Norway looks like a fun job). The viewing platform is 620 metres above sea level. A bit crowded at times, but really worth it – and it wasn’t so bad when we got there.
The Geirangefjord, together with the Nærøyfjord – though the latter follows a different was to the sea via the Sognefjord – are part of the UNESCO world heritage. The Geirangerfjord is only 15 km long, but those 15 km are really spectacular since the fjord is so narrow, with steep mountain slopes on both sides.
And more picture spam.
The Seven Sisters is the most popular waterfall along the fjord, though at the time we got there some of the sisters were on holiday. At its heighday in spring, seven falls thunder down into the fjord close to each other.
The last day of the cruise the ship anchored in Stavanger with its charming old town. Walking those lanes, you won’t imagine that the city is the centre of the Norwegian oil industry, but when the ship approaches the city, you can see the modern harbour, oil platforms and such.
Well, I brought home some 1,500 photos of fjords and mountains, so there will be more pictures in the future.
Das sind beeindruckende Bilder. Aber in der Wirklichkeit ist man bestimmt noch wesentlich mehr beeindruckt. War bestimmt eine sehr interessante Reise.
ReplyDeleteLieben Gruß von der Silberdistel
Oh ja, die Wirklichkeit ist noch beeindruckender, liebe Silberdistel. Aber die Fotos sind trotzdem eine schöne Erinnnerung.
ReplyDeleteDas sind wirklich außergewöhnlich schöne Bilder. Sie fangen die Stimmung und die Landschaft perfekt auf. Da haben sich die "japanischen Stopps" ja gelohnt. Lg Kasia
ReplyDelete