Norway - Trolls, Fjords, and Mountains
Day 1&2 – Travel and Recovery
As with most international trips, The flight to Oslo was an over night trek with a layover in Stockholm. On top of that, my usual flight anxiousness kept me from sleeping on the flight so the jet lag really set in. After landing, my rental apartment wasn’t quite ready so I was forced to explore the city center for a few hours as I waited. Luckily I managed to survive, meet up with my travel companions once they arrived and spend the first night in Oslo relaxing and preparing for the days to come.
Day 3 – History Lessons
After a full night sleep, we set off for the Norweigian Museum of Cultural History. Hoping to learn about the countries past, seeing the Gol Stave Church, and and getting some fresh air since the entire thing is outdoors. This place is huge, and we easily could have spent an entire day here. But after a few hours, we decided to walk a bit down the road to the Fram Museum and learn about the Arctic Explorations and see the ships used for those journeys. Again, this place had a lot to show and I certainly learned a lot. Unfortunately, the Viking Ship museum is closed for renovations so I will need to go back in the future for this stop.
Afterwards, we took a shuttle boat back to the city center for some lunch, then decided to use one of the many public trains to head over to the Vigeland Park and see some very unique statues. Once the sun set, we walked back to the apartment stopping by the Royal Palace and the Parliament Building, then finally turning in for the night.
The Royal Palace shortly after sunset
Day 4 – Art and Exploration
The weather today started out being uncooperative, but luckily we were near the Munch museum and decided to start out here to wait the rain out. For anyone unfamiliar like myself, this is the museum and artist who painted the famous “The Scream” painting, which is on display rotating between the original paint, print, and crayon with small differences between each. This museum is massive, including a set up of the artists apartment with hidden models and rotating exhibits of other artists. Be ready to spend some time here to take everything in.
Once through the museum, we headed out for a quick lunch and walk around the business district of the city. Stopping in and out of some tourist shops, seeing the Oslo Cathedral, and just roaming around in some light rain - we were determined not to let the weather stop us immediately. After a few hours though, we decided the best decision was to head back to the apartment to watch some TV and relax to prepare for our long commute to Stavenger the following morning.
Day 5 – A Long Commute
For the first time, I got to drive an electric car - or in this case an SUV and I’ll admit I wasn’t sure how that would work out. Luckily Norway is laid out in a way that this wasn’t a problem and charging stations are everywhere and (usually) available. I’m hoping I can get one or two more years out of my car now but I can see myself upgrading to electric in the future.
Once we were outside the city it was rolling fields, farms, and luckily some sunlight. We had a few stops planned along the way so we were bound to see a lot of sights. The first stop is the “Sister Churches” and adjacent runestone Granavollen. The story of these two neighboring churches is that two sisters disapproved of each other and the best solution was for each to have their own place of worship - however the likely cause was that there were just two churches built here which isn’t uncommon for the middle ages. After a bit of fresh air, we set off for our next stop on our journey.
After a couple stops to stretch our legs some more, we made it to Flesberg Stave Church. Tucked away in a small town, we were also gifted with a pasture of cows watching our every move rattling bells around their necks as they walked. Once we got our fill, took pictures, and bonded with the cows a bit, we set off for our last planned pit stop - the Heddal Stave Church. After viewing a small museum in the visitor center giving some more background, we were then able to see and walk inside the largest stave church in Norway. The preservation of this church (and all the rest we visited this trip) was on full display with engravings and decorations dating back 800 years. This visit is not free, but worth the $10 admission price.
At this point, we were about to set off on our straight shot to Stavenger and the longest drive of the trip. This was also the part of the drive where we got to climb over and through mountains and brave some enormous switchback’s on narrow roads. Ultimately though, nothing can go perfectly smooth for an entire trip. After driving for a few hours we came upon some construction and a road closure that would be in affect until the next morning. Our options at this point were to wait it out and hope a local hotel had vacancies or push on with a detour. After consulting google maps and trying to decide if our backup route was open or in the same predicament we decided to push through with a 4 hour detour. At this point the sun was setting as well so to play it save we charged up the battery, grabbed dinner, and stretched our legs one final time before setting off. This drive was something else, once the sun was fully set it felt like we were driving through the abyss on top of the mountain - nothing but black other than what our headlights revealed with only an occasional car. We were in as remote an area as possible so we were putting a lot of faith in our rental car to not break down or to lose charge.
But ultimately, around 1am, we made it to our apartment. We hastily parked, unloaded our stuff, and went right to bed.
Overlook from the top of a large switchback - shortly before learning about the road closure
Day 6 – Rainy Hike
After getting to the apartment significantly later than usual, we wasted no time - skipping breakfast, not drinking a lot of water, and setting off into the rain to hike Pulpit Rock like unprepared amateurs. As a fun little treat, once we got to our car we found the best souvenir of all - a parking ticket! I won’t go into great detail about the hike itself, it’s certainly doable in a day but be prepared to be tired. There are a few “staircase” zones where your legs will feel the burn but if you can get past this the rest of the hike is easy by comparison. Unfortunately on our day, it rained…..the whole time. So much so that once we reached the summit the clouds/fog/mist did not give us the eye opening views we were hoping for.
Once this hike was finished, we were absolutely starving and wanted to eat and our bodies were craving Burger King. We made our way Fargagaten - a touristy shop area with tons of restaurants and shops. We ate some food, walked around the area for a bit (luckily the rain started to break), and just took the rest of the day easy ultimately returning to the apartment, eating dinner, and watching some TV relaxing on the couch. This worked in our favor though so I could spend some time drying my camera gear and do some laundry.
Day 7 – Stavenger
Hindsight is always 20/20, and once we woke up and saw clear skies and sunlight we wished we pushed pulpit back a day - but the forcast was constantly changing so it’s hard to say with 100% certainty what the weather will be doing.
We walked to a local convenience store for a little breakfast, I went and paid my parking ticket making sure I could keep it (it’s framed and hanging on my wall), and we set off to the Museum of Archaeology. This museum had tons of exhibits ranging from jewelry, settlement layouts, more runestones, and even a section about Bogs and their importance to the overall ecosystem. After some time, we set off back to Fargagaten for lunch and to see the area without rain and clouds giving us a chance to have Norwegian street tacos. Apparently, Norway is all in on tacos and they are borderline part of their modern culture…..and also delicious.
After eating, and not wanting to waste our sunlight, we grabbed the rental car and set off for Sverd i fjell, a large monument of three swords built to commemorate the 872 battle of Hafrsfjort. Right on the waters edge (technically connected to the ocean) you can walk right up to the monument to grab pictures and enjoy the watery scene. Not wanting our only beach to be this one, we used the remainder of our daytime to drive down to Sola Beach - too cold to swim but nice enough to walk around on the sand. Additionally there are some old bunker ruins you can walk up to.
Now with the sun setting we set back to our apartment, grabbed dinner, and wandered a little more around Fargagaten for our final night in Stavenger.
Day 8 – Prepare for the Troll Tongue
Leaving Stavenger, we set off to Odda to prepare for my hike up to Trolltunga the following day. We had a few stops along the way but plenty of time. This was a pretty unique drive in that we started in long tunnels under the water, island hopping, and taking the E39 ferry across the water. After a bit of driving we made an impromptu pit stop in Ølen at the Rosemalling Troll Souvenir shop. As it turns out, one of the first and few certified world master is here for her artwork, so naturally I had to buy something. After this expensive stop, we drove a bit longer to Langfoss - a huge 612 by 62 meter (2007 by 206 ft) waterfall on the fjord.
Since we still had time until we could check into our Hotel, we went a little past our needed route to see Røldal Stave Church. While in this tiny town, we had our usual Shell Hot dog for lunch and charge up the car which would get us past the next couple days. This church was not open to go inside, but still an interesting stop.
At this point, we headed to Odda and check into our hotel. This tiny town is tucked at the bottom of a huge fjord with mountains towering up either side. We killed a little time walking along the water, grabbed dinner, then went back to the Hotel for me to meet with my guide for the next day. After trying out a few local ciders and socializing, we turned in for the night which was mostly me trying to dry more clothes and pack my bag for the large hike to come.
Day 9 - Overnight on the Mountian
In the morning I broke off from my travel compatriots, and set off to hike up and camp overnight atop Trolltunga. Similar to Pulpit Rock, this hike would reward me with a sunset view of the valley below. The history of this particular location is that a Troll stuck his tongue out at the sun at sunrise, turning him to stone - so in essence the rock you’ll see protruding from the mountain is the tongue.
This hike was a bit more challenging than Pulpit, with the hardest part about 1 km from the start with a large incline up a rocky staircase. Once past here though, it’s basically a highway all the way to the summit. With isolated lodges scattered throughout the mountain top, it was an empty landscape with small ponds and occasional creeks used to refill our water. After about 4-5 hours of hiking, we made it to our campsite and took a break. We could see the tongue, but we still had about a 1 km hike to reach it. Luckily for this hike, the weather was tolerable - only a small amount of rain but the temperature did drop once we were at the high elevation.
But after some rest, snacks, and 2 games of euchre we set off for the ultimate overlook.
As the sun set, we trekked back to our campground for dinner, socialized amongst the group, and called it a night. We had to make sure we layered up, sealed off our sleeping bags, and prepared because it began to snow and the temperature dropped even more. Walking out of the tent at night was another unique experience - think deep sea video with nothing but blackness and white specs floating around. Unfortunately since it was snowing, the clouds never broke and I could not see a clear, light pollution free sky.
Day 10 - Hike back to Civilization
The group woke up at sunrise, we ate our breakfast and set off back to the starting point. There really isn’t much to say about the hike down except the weather was much nicer with some sunlight. But after 3-4 hours, we were all back at our cars and went our seperate ways.
I drove off to Ullensvang to meet back up with everyone and we spent the rest of that day at our fancy hotel rotating between their sauna and heated pool. I was in desperate need of some rest and relaxation so this was an appropriate reward.
Day 11 - Confusing Roads and Extra Tolls
Once all awake and packed, we set off again for the next destination on the west coast of Norway - Bergen. But we had one detour first a little bit out of the way to see Vøringsfossen, another massive waterfall. On the way though to our apartment we stopped off at Fantoft Stave Church quickly before they closed. Again, small fee but worth it to see the inside. Unfortunately this is a rebuilding of the original church which was burned down a few years ago in an act of arson.
At this point we set off for our apartment, but the roads were less than simple. We must have made about 3 loops around the city missing our exits or taking the wrong turn. Not sure how much more in tolls this costed us, but after some confusion and yelling at google maps we finally found a parking garage and made it to our room. It was approaching closing time for most businesses so rather than try and do much, we went to the local Kiwi to grab dinner and snacks. For once, we decided to cook a meal rather than a quick meal so we teamed up for burgers and fries, topped off with some TV.
Day 12 - Bergenhus, Bryggen, and Goats
Today was the day to see the city - the sun was shining, weather was warm, and we were full of energy. We walked a bit through the streets to first tour around Bergenhus Festning, a stone fortress and museum about the city of Bergen and WW2. Walking through the halls of this 13th century stone structure allows you to see and experience the history that comes with it. Walk through the grand halls, narrow stairways, and learn about the defensiveness of the structure in a self walking tour for a small fee, ending at the top of a watch tower that overlooks the modern day port.
Overlooking the harbor from Bergenhus Tower
After a couple hours of roaming the grounds, hunger set in as usual. One thing we knew going into the city was we wanted to try out the 3 Kroner spot we’ve heard about. Basically, a hot dog shop that charged 3 kroner back in the day. Prices have gone up since then, but nothing that should stop you from buying one of their hotdogs. I myself grabbed a reindeer hot dog - I should have gotten two! One word of warning, the birds here know there will be food so cover your food and looking up has some built in risk. After this main course, we still had a sweet tooth so went next door to McDonalds for some ice cream before riding the tram up to Floyen Station overlooking the whole city. While up here you get a clear panoramic view of Bergen, as well as a chance to pet some goats! There are hiking trails, campsites, and other things to see but for us we decided not to go that route. After walking around a little bit, petting the goats, and taking in the view, we headed back down the mountain tram and walked through the narrow alleys of Bryggen. This old wharf has colorful buildings and was used as an old fish market. It’s no longer just a fish market, but instead scattered with small shops and restaurants you can walk in and out of at your leisure. While we were there a few of the buildings were covered with renovations and construction work being done.
We reached closing time, so began the trek back to our room, grabbing a quick dinner from Kiwi. In typical relaxation fashion we ate, watched some more TV, and called it a night before setting off to our next location.
Day 13 - Fjord Sight Seeing
Leaving Bergen was easier than trying to find a place to park near our apartment. Once outside the city, the rest of the commute was smooth sailing as we again drove through and over tall mountains, and along large fjords. Ultimately we made it to our next city of Leikanger. We got to our room, checked in and decided to optimize our time and dive over to see the Kaupanger Stave Church. This wasn’t open to the public, and had an electric fence around to prevent deer from coming on the grounds, but you can easily see it from the street. Since we could go inside or get any closer, this was a short stop for us. We eventually left, and headed to our sauna reservation in Sogndal.
When we first showed up to the Sauna, we weren’t sure what to expect. Build on the back of a fruit picker, this wood fired sauna was right along the water giving us a good view and easy access to a cold plunge, which we all partook in to make sure we can say we jumped in the fjord. After a couple hours, our time was up, and we set off back to the hotel. Since we were in a pretty remote area, there wasn’t much to do that was still open so we fell back into our routine - quick dinner, watch some TV, and off to sleep.
Our view from the Sauna - and our cold plunge zone
Day 14 - Final Stave Churches
We had one more day in the area, and two final stops we wanted to reach. We weren’t in any particular rush for once so we leisurely woke up, grabbed breakfast, then began a quick jaunt to Solvorn to take the ferry over to Ornes to see the Ornes Stave Church. This church is a designated UNESCO world heritage site, and built in a small farm community. A guided tour gave us a very in depth history lesson of the church, it’s history, and the region itself and why it was such a prosperous area at the time of the churches construction. One item to note, or at least for the dates we were there, there is only one boat that goes back and forth an hour intervals. So there is some risk you could miss the return boat depending on how fast you walk or how much time you spend in the town. We managed to make it back in time, but i’m sure there were others not so lucky.
Back at our car, we set off on a bit of a drive to see our final Stave Church - Borgund. Stopping in Sogndalsfjøra for a pizza lunch first though. This is a unique stave, with dragon carvings on the roof, the near jet black exterior color, and is one of the most well preserved stave churches in Norway. Once inside, you can see original flooring through a small opening (new wood floors are installed to walk on) as well as the usual artistic carvings throughout. Additionally there is a visitor center and museum here included in the price of the ticket which goes into the history of Stave churches as a whole and Norway’s past.
We finished up here sooner than originally expected, so there was time to kill. We headed back to Leikanger and walked around the fjord front streets, visiting the town’s stone pillar, and seeing their area a bit more before heading back to our hotel. We could not finish our pizza lunch, so it was an easy decision to have leftover pizza dinner before cleaning up and turning in (with some more TV watching).
Day 15 - Back to Oslo
Since we had our final long drive ahead of us, and finished early the night before, we decided to leave a bit early to optimize our remaining time in Oslo. The drive itself was uneventful, with only one or two stops to stretch and charge our battery if needed. We reached the city with no hassle, and parked at central station to then walk to the Oslo Historical Museum before they closed. This museum was large, with multiple floors of exhibits ranging from early days of Norway, old artifacts from the viking days, and in our case a Japan exhibit with full suits of samurai armor. This is another museum you need to plan for 2-3 hours to see everything, maybe more to read all the details.
As they approached closing time, we worked our way back to the city center to check into our apartment and return the rental car. It was a weeknight, so the final things we wanted to see were now closed so we simply relaxed until dinner, which we decided would be Sushi in central station so I could experience the rotating belt. I managed to eat one plate of every color/price and the bill quickly rose. But you can’t put a price on good sushi.
Day 16 - More History and the Ultimate Sauna
Our final day in Norway. To kick it off, we walked our way to Akershus Fortress since it was closed the last time we were in the city. This enormous grounds has multiple museums going over the history of the fortress from a military location, a prison, Nazi control in WW2, to modern times. We managed to see it all as well as some nice views overlooking the city from the fortress walls.
Since we were in the final day, it was also our last chance to buy our souvenirs and gifts. Since the weather was significantly nicer than last time, we roamed the business district once more stopping in shops and spending our last bit of travel money. By now, we’ve done everything we set off to do but still had a few hours to kill before our final pampering. So we just filled the time with some more roaming, last minute time seeing the city, and eventually back to the apartment to try and finish all the remaining food and snacks we’ve been traveling with since we can’t take it home with us.
The Opera House on the Oslo shoreline
But finally, it was time for our splurge, and we set off to The Well. This large building is home to one of the most unique experiences i’ve had. With saunas, pools, showes, a japanese onsen, steam rooms, etc it’’s unfortunate we only had an evening pass. I don’t have pictures of this place since phones and cameras are not allowed, but it very quickly rose to one of the top three things I got to do and experience on this trip. I could have stayed for a few more hours no problem.
After the pampering, we were all as relaxed as possible after 2 weeks of this trip. We caught our bus back to the city, walked back to the apartment, packed our stuff, and spend our remaining time relaxing a bit while eating some more of our food before bed.
Day 17 - Homeward Bound
Today doesn’t count. With a 7am flight, we were on the express train very early in the morning, made it through security, and at our terminal before the sun rose. We said our final good byes, last minute inside jokes, and went our seperate ways back to the US and routines. Luckily/unluckily the return flight lands the “same day” so I was able to get back home, reset, and still make it into work Monday morning to the surprise of some co workers.
As a whole - This trip was an experience. Although there were periods the weather was less than forgiving, the trip as a whole was a wild success. I only saw a fraction of the country and what it has to offer, and I’m sure I could spend another 2 weeks there and not have any overlap (minus the well that’ll always be on the to-do list while I’m in the area). As with most of my other trips, this will have to go on my list of places to revisit if and when I get a chance.
