Norwegian Highlights

Around Sognefjord

A weekend around Sognefjord

This is a personal narration of a three day trip I have made to the Sognefjord - perhaps the most spectacular region in Norway. This presentation will take you from Otta to the Sognefjord and to Aurland, our goal, and further to Hol. You'll find a detailed description of the route at the end of this page, but first let's take a look at some of the highlights. (or go directly to the slide show).

Highlights

May 30. Across Sognefjell mountain range. In late May there is usually still lots of snow along the road, and I was looking forward to seing this again. It is a peculiar feeling driving here when all you see is a wall of snow. But, alas, this year there was almost no snow left, and I was rather disappointed. But there was nothing I could do about it. Crossing the mountains is nevertheless one of the most magnificent in Norway.

On the other side of the mountain range you'll come to the very bottom of the Sognefjord. Actually, this part of the fjord is called Lustrafjord. I wanted to see the famous Urnes Stave Church, and I had to drive along a rather narrow and curvy road to get there. Along the way I took a break to see the second highest waterfall in Norway, called Feigumfossen, 218 meter free fall. Easy access up to the waterfall, less than 30 minutes on foot.

Continued to Urnes to see the church. I had planned to take the ferry from Urnes over the fjord to Solvorn, thus saving 60-70 km of driving. But, the ferry was taken out of traffic for repair.

At Urnes I parked my car and headed for the church. It is very pretty, and one of the walls contains decorations (reliefs/carvings) that very clearly must be from the years 1000-1100. It's best to take a photo of this wall late in the evening, at 9-10. At this time at night the setting sun will shine on the wall. Reluctantly I had to leave before the evening came. More info about the church.

Due to lack of ferry transportation, I had to drive back to Skjolden. There I continued to Gaupne, which is a good starting point for a tour up Jostedalen to some of the many glacier arms of Jostedal Glacier. Then to Sogndal, and to Kaupanger where I made a small detour to see another stave church. After this trip I have seen approx 10 of all stave churches in this country. Continued to the ferry crossing at Mannheller. Spent the night in Lærdal, from where I took a pretty photo of the sunset.

May 31. I went up early to cross another mountain pass over to Aurland, which was my ultimate goal for the weekend. The crossing is only 45 kilometers long, and should be done in less than an hour, but I used more than 4 hours. Mostly because I had to stop to take pictures at so many places. The scenery is spectacular, especially when approaching Aurland.

In a couple of years (year 2000?) the longest road tunnel in the world will open between Lærdal and Aurland, 24 km long, 7 km longer than the St. Gotthardt tunnel. I do not welcome this tunnel, because it will deprive many tourists of some very beautiful viewpoints only accessible along the road.

Approaching Aurland and the hightlights of the tour turn up around every corner. I've been here once before, but I couldn't remember that the scenery is so fantastic and so filled with contrasts. I'm very glad that I made this trip, and I will return in due time.

If I hadn't known better I would have guessed that the picture on the right showed a piece of the Aurland Fjord, but that is wrong. We are actually looking into a valley that stretches eastwards from Aurland, appropriately named Aurland Valley. The small lake we see is called Vassbygd Lake.

Now came the time to do what I like the most, seing the landscape by foot. I decided to take a day's hike into the Aurland Valley. I have heard and read so much about this valley, how beautiful it is etc. And I must say that after hiking in this valley, all I have heard and all I have read is true. It has left a permanent imprint in my memory, and I will most certainly come back again, soon.

The valley is narrow, the moutain sides are steep, and the wilderness is outstanding. There are traces of avalanches everywhere. There has never been a glacier here that could have formed the valley.

I went for an hour and a half until I came this far into the valley. I'm standing in front of the house at Almen, an old house in the valley. As you can clearly see, the house is located behind a large rock. That was to save the house from avalanches. People living here could not have had an easy life, it's a rather tough place for making a living. The noice from the waterfalls nearby is deafening. It is said that the people used to talk loudly, I can easily understand why.

30-40 minutes from Almen we get to an old farm called Sinjarheim. In fact it is possible to see up to Sinjarheim from Almen. The path leading up here is very steep and you should be prepared for a rough ascent. But once you're up there you will realize that it was worth the extra effort. It's almost flat here, compared to the rest of the valley. Don't go too close to the edge though, you may find that falling 200 meters down into the river is more than you could handle.

Afterwards I went down the valley back to my car. I took a rest for an hour or two and layed down in the grass for a tan.

After my little rest I continued to Flåm. A tour by the Flåm Line is a must when you're here. I skipped it though. Instead I decided to go by car as far as possible into the Flåm Valley. There is an old road here, but it is unsuited for larger vehicles like camping wagons or the like. You should note that this road is very popular by hikers and cyclists, drive carefully, or you may end up with a cyclist on your wind shield.

It is not possible to drive all the way into the valley. Nevertheless I think it was an excellent tour. I had to walk the last four kilometers to reach the bottom. Here the road starts curving upwards towards Myrdal train station. It is yet another three kilometers. And what do you know, I walked all the way up to Myrdal. Afterwards I drove back to Flåm were I spent the night. I was very tired and immediately fell to sleep.

June 1st. Time to return to Trondheim. Before leaving I took some pictures of the Flåm River and the church in Flåm. I also took a detour to Undredal and had a look at another stave church. It doesn't look like a stave church, though. It is the smallest of Norwegian churches, 3.7 meters wide.

Then I started on my long journey back home. I chose to take the road to Hol, yet another mountain pass. This road was not as spectacular as the other mountains I had passed during my trip. It was a pleasant surprise, nevertheless. I encountered lots of nice photographic spots. At this time I was running low on film, so I had to be very careful not to waste film. I will return for more...

Route description

From Oslo you just follow E6 up to Otta where you take a left turn and procede on road 15 to Lom, which in itself is worth a visit. There is yet another stave church here. From Lom you must change direction to road 55 across Sognefjell. This is a magnificent mountain crossing packed with beautiful scenery. You may find it worthwile to spend a night at one of the many old and traditional hotels in the Bøver Valley. On the other side of the mountain range you will come to Skjolden. Here you may take a detour to Urnes to see the Urnes Stave Church. Continue on 55 to Gaupne. If you want to see the Jostedal glacier you can take a detour up the Jostedal Valley.

From Gaupne continue on 55 to Sogndal. Here you must change to road 5 bound for Mannheller and take the ferry over to Fodnes. Continue through the tunnels to Lærdal. You may take a detour eastward (30 min.) to see the beautiful Borgund Stave Church. From Lærdal continue west on E16 for about 5 kilometers and take a left turn for the mountain crossing over to Aurland. In a couple of years the E16 road will go in a 24 kilometer tunnel to Aurland. I will most strongly encourage you to take the mountain crossing, though.

In Aurland you may take a day hiking in the famous Aurland Valley. From Aurland continue to Flåm where you should take a tour by the Flåm Line. You should also consider taking a trip by the tour boat on the Aurland Fjord. This trip may leave a permanent impression on your memory (i.e. you will never forget it).

From Aurland you can either take E16 in direction Voss and Bergen, or you may take road 50 and cross the mountains to go to Hol. From Hol you have at least three options to get back to Oslo, if that was your origin. (Option 1: Hol - Geilo - Kongsberg - Drammen - Oslo, Option 2: Hol - Gol - Hønefoss - Oslo, Option 3: Hol - Gol - Fagernes - Dokka - Gjøvik/Hamar - Oslo)

More info on the Sognefjord

Here is a good guide over Sogn and Valdres, and here is the guide for the Sognefjord.

More info about stave churches in Norway.

Next: Across Sognefjell