A MEMORABLE NORWEGIAN SOJOURN ( SECTIONS 6-12)- i)THE BUS JOURNEY FROM BERGEN TO AL ii) THE TRAIN JOURNEY FROM AL TO OSLO AND OSLO TO ANDALSNES iii) THE JOURNEYS TO GEIRANGER, DALSNIBBA, STRANDA & BRIKSDAL

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:    
I acknowledge my gratitude and  thanks  to Google, Wikipedia , the various blog spots,  magazine articles and travel guides for the inputs provided by them all the four countries of Scandinavia- Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland . The information provided by them has vastly helped me to connect to connect my photographs with the history linked to these places.

               Though I visited all the four Scandinavian Countries almost 5 years back, in October 2010, I could sit down with determination only in 2015 to compile this blog.  Better late than never!  Five years could be a  period long enough for many of the old landmarks to yield place to newer ones. So in that sense my blog may already have become outdated in some places . It could require an updating with new photographs. If it does, then I shall certainly do the needful-- --provided I happen to revisit these countries (by the Grace of God, certainly !)   Travel often makes you acknowledge humbly the role of the 'Invisible Hand'. This  term extends beyond just the economic forces that  many economists are often inclined to refer to !

          Through this blog post, I thank my various friends and relatives   for their overwhelming  warmth and hospitality during all the occasions when they hosted me at their homes . I also thank them for by sparing their valuable time for me and escorting me around in new places, helping me to accomplish  sight seeing in otherwise remote and difficult places. I also thank my various co-travellers from different parts of the world for their enjoyable company,wit, humour and camaraderie during our journeys together. They made each of my  sojourns very memorable ,without an exception.

      I request viewers to please excuse me for the poor photography. Scandinavia was the first time when I handled a compact digital camera for an  intensive use. I was not familiar with the subtle nuances of photography in changing conditions of light and weather. Also our  sightseeing bus did not stop at many a place to enable us to take better shots under static conditions (without the interference from rain-splattered or dusty windows).

           Sadly,  time, tide and sightseeing buses /trains wait for none!

             
A MEMORABLE NORWEGIAN SOJOURN ( SECTIONS 6-12)

 i)THE BUS JOURNEY FROM BERGEN TO AL 
ii) THE TRAIN JOURNEY FROM AL TO OSLO AND OSLO TO ANDALSNES 
iii) THE JOURNEYS TO GEIRANGER, DALSNIBBA, STRANDA & BRIKSDAL

                                      Section 6- 

The Bus Journey from Bergen to Al;  a tale of a truncated train journey and shattered childhood dreams.
(Viewers are requested to excuse me for the poor quality of photographs. They were taken from a closed air-conditioned bus with the heavy rain outside and condensation  of the  air inside  literally 'dampening' the spirit of my travel on an October morning.)

Before setting out for Norway, I had feasted sumptuously on travel guides on railway journeys of Europe and was eagerly looking forward to a dream ride on the renowned 489 kilometre long Bergen- Oslo railway line Bergensbanen that runs east to Voss, Geilo, Honefoss, and Oslo. In particular the journey in the mountainous Voss- Myrdal- Finse- Haugestol section is famed for its variety of unparalleled scenery of steep climbs, canyons, coniferous forests and fjords section, not to forget its engineering marvels.  It was with this school boyish excitement that we landed at Bergen station much in advance, mentally preparing ourselves for the visual delights and for a busy session of photography en route.

What we were not prepared for was that part of this line (and unfortunately the most scenic part) gets closed for track repairs after the summer season. The notice at Bergen station regretted the inconvenience caused to passengers on account of the closure of the section between Bergen and Al from 27^th September onward (which incidentally was the date we had set out from Delhi). 
        It is therefore important to plan the train journey in this section between mid May and mid September. The alternative bus arrangements by the Norges Statsbaner (NSB) from Bergen to Al were not sufficient to mitigate my disappointment, because of my emotional links with the railways as an ex-railway man.

            We left Bergen at 7.45 hours .For the major part of the journey from Bergen to Aurland (191 kms) the bus travelled by the E16 ( Europavei or European Road) highway. After Aurland, the bus turned into the RV50 route (Riksvei or Primary Route 50) to take us to Al.

          As is the case with most mountain sections, no bus trip can reward you with the visual treat of unspoiled wilderness, in the same measure as that of a train journey.  The bus normally goes through the more populated places and hence less wooded sections on less steeper inclines. That robs off a bit of the thrills and excitement.  Also, while travelling by rail one is always within the sight of the fjords for the first 86 kilometres, since much of the line has been built on a shelf blasted out of rock faces rising from the water. To dampen our spirits further, the continuous drizzle left the windows rain-splattered. This factor coupled   with the high speeds of the bus prevented us from enjoying a clear view of the countryside and taking good photographs.

               Since we turned off from the E16 highway at Aurland, we missed the opportunity of having the feel of travelling in through the Laerdalstunnelen, the longest road tunnel in the world. The Laerdal Tunnel is a 24.5 kilometre (15.2 miles) long road tunnel connecting Aurland and Laerdal in Sogn og Fjordane county on the European Route E16 , the main road between Oslo and Bergen.  It represents the final link on the new main highway connecting Oslo and Bergen without ferry connections and difficult mountain crossings during the winter. But  travel through tunnels can be very unexciting and depressing (unless you are a habitual troglodyte!). I  personally did not feel any sense of deprivation in not having travelled through the Laerdal tunnel. In any case we had traversed through sufficient number of tunnels between Bergen and Aurland and one was yearning for natural daylight.

                 As is the view of many travelers, the scenery between Bergen and Voss by road may not be as fascinating as the one encountered by one during a train journey. It is at Voss that the major divergence between the road route and the rail route takes place. The Voss- Myrdal – Finse is a steep ascent, with Finse being the highest station on the route at 4,009 feet. Incidentally, the snowline of Norway is only 3,000ft. We had to be content getting vicarious pleasure of the stark beauty of Finse and other stations by glossing over their photographs in travel books. We had to give a miss to the skiing/ hiking centres of Haugestol and Geilo.

              However between Voss and Gudvangen, Mother Nature started unfolding its delights one by one. Gudvangen is a popular tourist destination in the Aurland area. It is located at the end of the Naeroyfjord where the Naeroydalselvi River empties into the fjord. Southwest of the highway leads to Voss , while  northeast  of E16 leads to  the Gudvanga Tunnel on its way to Flam.

              Turning into the RV 50 route we went through Aurlandsdalen Valley. It is located in Sogn, close to Aurland and Flam at the inner part of the Aurlandsfjord, a 29-kilometre long branch of the 204 kilometre long, Sognefjord. It combines the natural beauty of glacially carved valleys with diverse, abundant plant species. The old farms and mountain dairy farms (regionally called ’stols’) are popular tourist attractions. This glacially-formed valley stretching from Vassbygdi, to Geiteryggen is approximately 40 kilometres long and is one of the best-known tourist tracks and most popular hiking trails in Norway. The lowest and most picturesque part of the valley, from Vassbygdi to Osterbo (Oystebo) is approximately 20 kilometres long.

           Since the route from Aurland to Hol has been the shortest connection between western and eastern Norway since prehistoric times, this valley has been an important connection line for commercial journeys and cattle drives through and along the valley and over the surrounding mountain highlands. By this road, it was possible to avoid the ferry over the Hardangerfjord and the Hardangervidda , which was difficult to keep open in the winter time.

               I understand from reports that the environmental impacts of the hydroelectric development of the Aurland river system have adversely affected the great waterfalls in the valley. The flow and force of the waterfalls is said to have been substantially reduced. There are impacts beyond the loss of scenic beauty as well. The Aurlandselvi River is no longer one of the finest salmon rivers in Norway and traditional farming methods for which the valley was once famous are virtually extinct.  Like the most of the other valleys, Aurlandsdalen has started feeling the brunt of traffic, tourists and gradual urbanisation.

              In November 2000 the new Laerdal Tunnel between Aurland and Laerdal on E16 opened the route of a new main road between Oslo and Bergen, reducing the impact on Aurlandsdalen and limiting further strain. But the environmental changes are essentially irreversible.

Crossing Geiteryggen we entered yet another beautiful valley, the Hallingdal Valley. The whole stretch of this lovely valley is punctuated with numerous rivers and waterfalls cascading down the mountains. We passed by the lake of Strandavatn in Hol commune. The town of Sveingardsbotn is located on this lake.  The Hallingskarvet mountain ridge dominated the landscape. There are 100 kilometers of cross country ski trails at Hallingskarvet and many famous resorts are located very close to this ridge. They are, to name a few, Finse, Geilo and Filefjell. Ironically though the drizzle enhanced the beauty of the rolling hills, it did not bode well for taking good photographs from a non-stop bus and that too when it was pouring cats and dogs throughout the way !

We passed through Birkelund Camping which is a favourite with the campers who come here for rock climbing, mountain biking, fishing trips or for relaxing walks amidst the unspoiled and breathtaking nature. Many of the guests spend their time fishing in the river where fish are abundant. One can still find traces of mountain dairy farming along State highway RV50 route.

At the closing stretch of our journey we passed through  Hol, a famous ski resort  offering a great deal of  summer activities such as go carts, white water rafting, rallying and rappelling to name a few in addition to the usual fare of winter sports. Though the rain splattered windows, at Hol I could manage to catch a glimpse of a small red-coloured church. I later came to know that it was of 18^th Century vintage. 

 How green was my valley! The seductive charms of Hallingdal Valley

Gushing waterfalls, endless stretches of fjords, green valleys with sheep grazing, thick coniferous forests changing colours of autumn- all visual delights which sadly my camera could not capture in the bad weather with the glass splattered windows of the fast moving bus coming in way of a good shot. This place was located close to Birkelund Camping.

 
A  farm house in Hallingdal Valley

Men may come, and men may go but I go on forever! The beauty of a gurgling brook in Hallingdal Valley captured through the haze of a frosted window.

                              The 18^th Century church at Hol

                                                   
                                                                             Section 7:
  The train ride from Al to Oslo

  Our bus journey terminated at Al after covering the distance of 250 kilometres from Bergen in exactly 4 hours.   I was now restless to experience the romance associated with Norwegian rail journeys for the remaining 246 kilometres from Al to Oslo. Al is located in the Hallingdal valley in the Buskerud province. While many sights en route could not be captured on my simple compact camera owing to the high speed of the train, they remain firmly etched on my mind . They however left behind a strong desire to do the entire Bergen –Oslo stretch by rail only during favourable summer  weather. ( God willing !).

                           The station building at Al resembled more of a small warehouse. The changing colours of autumn in the forests of the rolling hills lent a distinctive charm to this quiet town.

As simple and uncomplicated as they can get; both the name and the building for a railway  station.  All in all ,only two letters – AL. And coincidentally, I seemed to have donned clothes that matched with the colours of the building!

                          The  changing colours of autumn in the woods surrounding   Al station

 The Bergensbanen  train that took us from Al to Oslo.  The railway line runs east to Voss,  Geilo, Honefoss  and Oslo .

     En route scenery from Al to Oslo taken from the moving  train

The  fast paced bus travel through the lovely Hallingdal valley with its enchantingly lovely coniferous forests did rob  away some of the romance of the  mountain journey Stepping on to the  Bergensbanen train gave me the exalted feeling of a pilgrim entering  a much acclaimed sanctum sanctorum of a shrine after a seemingly endless wait

                       We left Al at 12.30 hours after a 45 minute halt at Al. The landscape from Al onwards was decidedly different. The forests were a riot of changing colours of green, yellow and red. After Gol the train ran along a ledge between Austvoll and Fla giving a grand view of the Hallingdalselva River. The Hallingdalselva  (Hallingdal river or Halling valley river) in  Hallingdal valley  and traditional district  in  Buskerud county in  Norway flows into Lake Kroderen  or Kroderfjord from the north.  It discharges via the Snarumselva (Snamum river) at the south end of the lake. The lake stretches for about 41 km north from the village with the same name and  has a surface area of  about 43 square kilometers.

 We next passed  Honefoss  a city in Buskerud county  located north of lake  Tyrifjorden.  It is an industrial center of inner Ostalandet containing several factories and other industry. After Honefoss , the train skirted  the boundary of Lake Tyrifjorden, where the river Begna forms the waterfall of Honefossen, giving the town its name . It reminded me of the rail journey  in southern coastal Orissa alongside the shore of Chilka lake . We were now approximately 65 km from both Oslo centre and Oslo Gardermoen.   
            As we approached Oslo or train stopped at Drammen. This place originally consisted of three small  seaports . Drammen’s unique geographical location made the city a historical centre for seafaring, ship building ,log driving , and timber trade and, more recently, for paper and pulp industries.

At  Oslo Station

                                                                        Section 8:  
 Oslo to Dombas by Dovrebanen (Dovre Railway) 
(This was journey carried out not only by a high speed train but also in the darkness, with the sun having set at 4 p.m. Hence , photographs could not be taken by me to illustrate this portion of the journey.  Viewers may please excuse me for this shortcomng.)

Owing to the transshipment of 3 busloads of passengers into the train at Al, we arrived into Oslo 50” late after a three hour ride. That left us with barely 30 minutes for loitering around Oslo station before commencing the next 340 kilometre stretch from Oslo to Dombas on the Dovre railway.  It was past 4 P.M. when we left Oslo and therefore the longer part of the journey was to come under the spell of bad light or darkness. 
     “Keep ogling at the view of countryside never taking your eyes off the window .Make hay while the sun shines!” I instructed myself all through the daylight hours of the journey. It was a desperate attempt to mentally record all the sights. Being no photographer myself, I could not prevent the flash of the camera from getting reflected on the window panes and spoiling the shots..

            After Lillestrom , we passed a long tunnel to be welcomed by the gently undulating landscape dotted with conifers and birch. The high speed line continues as far as Eidsvoll, after which it joins the original track. The river Vorma follows through this town closely. Vorma is a 30 kilometers long river that flows from Lake Mjosa via Minnesund to join with the Glomma (the longest river of Norway) at  Arnes. Vorma was so named because it was a "warm" river that never freezes, whereas  both the Glomma and the  Gudbrandsdalslagen freeze routinely. Our train ran close to  the shore of Norway’s largest lake , Mjossa (  with an area of 342 sq kilometres).

              Mjosa is  Norway's largest lake, as well as the one of the deepest lakes in Norway and in Europe  as a whole (after Hornindalvatnet).  We were now about 100 km north of Oslo. The cities of  Hamar , Gjovik and Lillehammer were founded along the shores of this lake. Before the construction of railways, the lake was an important transport route. Today, aside from minor leisure boating and the steamship Skibladner (the world’s oldest paddle streamer) there is no water traffic on the lake.
           Most of  the shores  of  Lake Mjosa are dominated by rolling agricultural areas, among them some of the most fertile grainlands in Norway. Dams built on the dis tributary of Vorma over the years have raised the level by approximately 3.6 meters in total. In the last 200 years, 20 floods have been registered and they have  added  seven meters to the level of Mjosa. Several of these floods had inundated the city of Hamar.

Darkness had already set in by the time we reached Lillehammer, the famous ski resort which hosted the Winter Olympics of 1994. My feverish ‘ogling through the window’ session had to be terminated now. I was not narcissistic enough to admire the reflection of my own face on the window pane; it being the only ‘sight’ available for me.  
         One had to be content with noting down the names of stations which flashed by on the indicator. My Norwegian co-travelers were too polite and well behaved and so a deathly silence of a graveyard prevailed in our coach. When not preoccupied with their laptops, they talked  amongst themselves in whispers. No guffawing, no music systems, no vendors trading their wares, no noisy children prancing about in the aisles as in India! Oh my dear motherland India! It took only a short sojourn abroad to miss your sights, smells and sounds!

             I had no idea what good scenery we had missed in the darkness. Obviously it was not possible to cover all parts of Norway during daylight hours. “Once is not enough!” as rightly observed by the writer Jacqueline Susann! I resolved to work even harder and save money for making a second trip to Norway to travel by  train during day and rest in hotels by night, exactly the reverse of what a  prudent  budget -traveler does .But  to get those enchanting  views of the breathtaking Norwegian countryside , this was only  a small sacrifice to make.

        We reached Dombas at 20.30 hours. The village of Dombas lies in the Dovre municipality in upper Gudbrandsdal. It is an important junction of roads: leading to Oslo in the south, to Andalsnes on the sea in the west ( via Lesja) and to the old capital of Trondheim in the north.

                           Section: 9 
 Dombas to Andalsnes by Raumabanen ( Rauma Railway)

The Raumabanen train between Dombas and Andalsnes was already waiting at the platform and we had barely enough time to hop into it. We were on the last leg of our journey to Andalsnes. Paeans have been written about the magnificent views that this 114 kilometre stretch is blessed with. We passed through the Romsdal Valley which features some of the most spectacular scenery in Norway. The river Rauma flows close to the railway track throughout its entire run.  The sharp descent at a gradient of 1 in 50 on to Trollsveggen ( The Troll Wall), one of Europe’s tallest cliffs and the views from Kylling Bridge were the famed sights that we missed because of the night journey.

This feeling of deprivation only strengthened my resolve to make a second trip to Norway to travel by train , and that too by daytime only, duly checking the timings for sunset well in advance !

                The Raumabanen between Dombas and Andalsnes

It was almost 10 P.M. when we reached Andalsnes, the terminus of the Raumabanen railway in the Rauma municipality of More og Romsdal county. My classmate, Sundari, was on a day long fast  on account of the ongoing nine day Navaratri period during the Indian festival of Dussehra. Despite this she and her friend Smita took the trouble of driving all the way from Alesund to pick up me and my friend  from Andalsnes station . Along the way, relaxing in the backseat of the car, we indulged ourselves with piping hot home cooked Indian food prepared by Sundari and Smita.  Our hosts epitomized the modern Indian superwomen who double up efficiently both  as software professionals and also as custodians of the Indian traditions in culinary, hospitality and spirituality in a foreign land!

 We had a strange feeling of 'home-coming' as we entered our hotel room  in Alesund at midnight. We had stayed sufficiently long enough in Alesund to designate  it as our 'adopted home'!  Any further protraction of our stay would have definitely triggered of  an ‘identity crisis’ in me :   'Indian Born, Imagining Being Norwegian'- IB IBN (sounding almost like the first name of the  famous  Moroccan traveler Ibn Batuttah) !

                                                           Section 10- 
The trip to Geiranger and Dalsnibba and back to Alesund

It would be a sacrilege to return from Norway without seeing the Geiranger. In 2005, the Geirangerfjord was included in UNESCO's World Heritage listing and the next year it was voted first by National Geographic Traveller Magazine among all National Heritage sites world-wide. Formed during the last Ice Age, the Geirangerfjord has been shaped by nature, changes in temperature, water and wind. This fjord stretches for 62 miles through steep mountain slopes on either side and is home to some of the most spectacular scenery in the world. These features are the reasons for Geiranger being rated as the best travel destination in Scandinavia by Lonely Planet. Today, Geiranger is the second largest cruise ship port  in Norway, visited by 160 cruise ships every summer. Altogether about 700,000 tourists visit Geiranger each summer.

 The village of Geiranger lies at the head of the  Geirangerfjord, a branch of the Storfjord. It is a small tourist village in  the municipality of Stranda in  More og Romsdal county. The city nearest to this village is Alesund . The Coastal Steamer (Hurtigruten) plies daily round trips from Alesund to Geiranger and back from April to mid-September. Since we had come in the off-tourist season we had to take the road route to Geiranger.

We drove from Alesund to the ferry crossing at Magerholm. There our car was transported across the Storfjorden to Orsneset by the ferry. Back on to the road at Orsneset we crossed the quiet and beautiful towns of Sykkylven , Stranda and Hellesylt in that sequence. These villages warrant a little introduction.

Sykkylven is a municipality in the county of More og Romsdal in the Sunnmore region . It is surrounded by the beautiful alpine mountain  range Sunnmoresalpene ( Sunnmore Alps) and is well known for its furniture industry.

Hellesylt lies at the head of the Sunnylysfjord, a branch of the Storfjord. The more famous Geirangerfjord in turn branches off from this fjord near Hellesylt. The village is surrounded by mountains and valleys. The standard of living is said to be one of the best in Norway. At Hellesylt we boarded the Fjord cruise for Geiranger.

Geirangerfjord extends for about 17 kilometres between Geiranger and Hellsylt. The fjord is only 250 metres at its widest point. The ferry trip takes just over an hour from Hellesylt. Almost throughout the whole of its length, the fjord is bounded by steep towering mountains reaching more than 1000 metres in height.

The waterfalls in this region are to be visualized against the background of the local folklore spun around them. During the entire background narration accompanying the ferry ride , I tried (albeit unsuccessfully I must admit) to view the streams of water with a romantic twinkle in the eye. I am not sure whether the fault lay in the depleted flow of water in October or with my innate no- nonsensical earthy Virgoan idiosyncrasy ! Nevertheless, the entire ride had an ethereal aura about it.

The Seven Sisters Waterfall (De Syv Sostrene) consists of seven separate streams, with the tallest one having a free fall measuring 250 meters. According to legend, the seven sisters dance playfully down the mountain. From across the fjord, on the opposite mountain, a single waterfall known as ‘Friaren’, (the Friar) or also ‘The Suitor' flirts playfully. Though this hapless man proposed marriage to all seven of them he was refused by each one ! (Can the middle-aged viewers recall similar predicament had been echoed by ‘Boney M’ in their song about Bahama Mama having six daughters and none of them being married yet!).

     Like many a spurned lover, the Suitor took to the bottle, the tragedy being reflected in the bottle shape of the waterfall at the bottom (Could this be the Norwegian version of our own Indian  hapless Devdas ?). The 'Seven Sisters' and 'Suitor' waterfalls on opposite sides of the Geiranger fjord are said to be one of the greatest natural beauties of the world. 
        Another waterfall that is eye-catching during the summer season is ‘Brudesloret’ ( The Bridal Veil). It cascades like a watery veil from an outcrop straight down into the fjord.

 One can have a glimpse of some farm houses tucked away on the plateaus. Knivsfla is an abandoned farm on the mountain shelf above the Seven Sisters. The Skagefla is an abandoned farm on a mountain plateau across the fjord from Knivsfla. The Horvadrag is an abandoned farm above the Bridal Veil. .

Each year in June, the Geiranger hosts the ‘ From Fjord to Summit’ event . It comprises a half marathon run and a bicycle race, both starting from the sea level at the fjord and ending at the 4,900 foot high summit of Mount Dalsnibba  near the lake Djupvatnet. Since there is still a lot of snow left in the mountains at that time of year, the race qualifies for "From Summer to Winter" title.

As has been Mother Nature’s law of evolution no beautiful object can be immune from the risk to its continuity. Beauty is only transient in nature. Geiranger is under constant threat from the mountain Akerneset which could erode into the fjord. A collapse could cause a tsunami that could destroy downtown Geiranger. 
    Are we to take these grim forebodings with the philosophy of King Louis XV of France, “Apres moi, le deluge!”?  Or, are we to take solace from the words of the economist John Keynes - “In the long run, we are all dead! ’

Picture of Geiranger Fjord during  autumn in the month of October. During the months of May and June , the scenery is even more awesome with snow caps at the top of the mountain, greener vegetation and  more copious torrents in the waterfalls. In that respect  our photos could not capture those popular aspects  of beauty of the place as advertised in the tourist brochures. The waters of Geiranger remained as azure blue as ever.

The appearance of the 'Seven Sisters' waterfall, which consists of 7 separate streams, is heavily dependent on rainfall and the thawing of the snow. It , therefore, might be elusive in the off-season periods.( like October, the month we visited the falls).

The waterfalls have an average drop of about 250 metres and make an impressive sight when water levels are high. These factors also influence the distinct clarity of each of the seven cataracts. The waterfalls are usually at their most magnificent during the thaw between May and July.

Friaren (‘The Suitor’), the lone waterfall lies on the opposite side to ‘De syv sostrene’ ( Seven Sisters) waterfall. It does not have the height of the Seven Sisters Falls, (the tallest sister having a height of 250 meters above sea level) but  it possesses a lot of capacity.
 

While cruising nearby Friaren one can easily feel the intense mist from the waterfall. As it tumbles down the mountain, it divides revealing the bare rock is visible in the middle of the waterfall giving the appearance of a bottle.  Friaren or The Suitor, as per the folklore, was forever wooing   the seven sisters - on the opposite side of the fjord, but he was always rejected.  Eventually he became so dejected that he took to the bottle instead (and hence the justification for the vague resemblance of the waterfall to the bottle !).

Brudesloret  (Bridal Veil)  is possibly the most famous waterfall in Norway. The waterfall tumbles down into Geirangerfjorden ,  just west of The Seven Sisters waterfall. Unfortunately,  we went in October and were disappointed by ( in my opinion) by the trickle of a waterfall.   Visitors are advised to visit Geiranger between May and July to see the above waterfall in its full glory.  

My October photograph of the Bridal Veil should be termed appropriately as the "Bridal Veil of the ‘brash’ bride’ " with the bare rock uncovered by a poor trickle. This is to differentiate it from that of the  ‘bashful’ bride of the summer months from May to July, when the full flow does not allow you to have even a fleeting glimpse of the rocky mountain .

Helvetsjolet ( Hell’s Cravasse) is a rock formation cutting deeply into the mountainside above the fjord.


A farm settlement along the Geiranger fjord. Some of the farms were inhabited and farmed as recently as the 1950s & 1960s

                                  Dalsnibba

After the completion of the Geiranger cruise, we next headed towards Dalsnibba, the next logical halt for a first time visitor to the region. It is a 4,900 ft high mountain located at the end of the Geiranger valley, about 7 kilometres (4.3 mi) south of the village of Geiranger. It is often covered by snow even in the summer ( the snowline of Norway being only 3,000 because of its northerly latitude close to the Arctic Circle). Before approaching the summit of the mountain, one has to cross Lake Djupvatnet . Dalsnibba offers a very good view and is therefore a very popular tourist destination. The 'From Fjord to Summit' race from Geiranger to Dalsnibba is held in June every year.

Views from the peak of Dalsnibba. This photo was taken in the 

first week of October. A couple of weeks later this place would 

have been covered with snow.

Lake Djupvatnet  at  Djupvasshytta, 1030  metres above sea level,  5 kilometres short of Dalsnibba

From Dalsnibba we left by the State Highway road 15 also called Riksvei (RV) 15 for our return journey to Alesund. We passed through the towns of Hjelle and Erdal  to reach Stryn, where we rested for a while for our coffee  break.

Stryn, a busy and developing small town at the tip of Nordfjord, is at the junction of roads which connect inner Nordfjord with the rest of Norway. It is famous for its beautiful scenery with glaciers and majestic mountains running into the mirroring lakes. Most of the valley glaciers in Stryn are originating from the great Jostedal glacier ( Jostedalbreen) between the  Nordfjord and  Sogn areas. It is therefore known for its all year glacier skiing. Ramnefjellsfossen, a free-falling waterfall, is located in the municipality. Stryn also has the largest linden forest in Northern Europe. The largest lakes are Oppstrynvatnet,  Lovatnet and Oldenvatnet.

Stryn has one of Norway's best known skiing facilities. It offers excellent skiing conditions in the summer, with lifts and tracks for all types of skiing.

                                                                                           Section 11: 
Stranded at Stranda ( the failed trip to Briksdal!)  

Except for maybe Georgi, the lone American born person in our group, none of us had the foggiest idea about skiing. Therefore In the normal course of events, the ski resort of Stranda would not have warranted more than a few minutes halt for a coffee break or refueling.  However, Destiny ensured that we did justice to the beauty of the place by temporarily throwing aside our watches and soak in the beauty of the place to our hearts’ content. 
           This was triggered by the most unusual circumstances leading to our car having a breakdown at the gas fuelling station. While refueling our car, on account of a momentary lapse of concentration, one our colleagues accidentally poured petrol into the diesel driven rental car! We therefore had to immediately terminate our journey at Stranda itself and wait for the tow truck to come and haul away our car to Alesund!

            If one was  inescapably destined to get stranded en route, then I thank my stars that it had to be in Stranda. “Bliss in Captivity” if one may describe our predicament! The alpine area at Strandafjellet, is one of the few places in the world where one could actually ski from the top of a mountain and go the whole way down, to the fjord. Every year roughly 250 skiers (of a particular category called telemark skiers) come together in the race Alperittet from 4,000 ft above sea level and down to the fjord. 
             Tourism is, of course, a very important business in the whole district.  But apart from this, the making of furniture and textile products is also an important industry that gives good work to many people. There is also a lot of aqua farming and many fish processing factories in the municipality. We were told that there is almost no unemployment in the area.

Cosy nooks in  Stranda, which truly  lived up to its name ( at least  for us) !

The loading of our car on the tow-truck. It added a new, rare and unexpected dimension to our 'multi- modal transport experience' in Norway! We were closer to ‘Cloud Nine’ on our return journey from Stranda to Alesund, perched atop this vehicle!

Riding in high heavens !  Country side scenes in the Stranda region taken from the top of the tow-truck.

                                                                                      Section 12:
             The Trip to Briksdal Glacier

 The powerful Briksdal Glacier is a part of the Jostedal glacier ice field, which is the largest glacier on the European mainland. It is located at the end of the Olden Valley. The wild glacier swoops down from a height of about 4000 feet to the lush Briksdal Valley.

        Getting to Briksdal is half the fun. On our way we passed by the beautiful lakes of Oppstrynvatnet, Oldenvatnet and Loenvatnet. I leave the pictures  of the reflection of the mountains in the  tranquil blue waters  to speak for themselves.
                                                                            

                                      Oppstrynvatnet lake

                                        Oldenvatnet lake

Loenvatnet Lake, also known as Lovatnet, is a lake in the

 municipality of Stryn in Nordfjord in the Sogn og Fjordane

 .  The lake is surrounded by steep and dangerous mountains

and has witnessed killer tidal waves a couple of times after 

landslides .

 Briksdal Glacier (Briksdalsbreen) is one of the most accessible and best known of the 50 glacier arms of the Jostedalbreen glacier.  In turn, this glacier is a part of the Jostedalbreen National Park. Incidentally, Jostedalsbreen (Jostedal Glacier) is the largest glacier in continental Europe having a total area of 487 square kilometres (188 square miles).

                  Located in the municipality of Stryn in Sogn og  Fjordane county, Briksdal glacier lies in Briksdalen (the Briks valley) at the end of the Oldedalen valley. It terminates in a small glacial lake, Briksdalsbrevatnet, which lies 1,135 ft above sea level.  

             Briksdal glacier attracted international attention in the 1990s, as it was growing at a time when other European glaciers were in decline. In 2006 Briksdalsbreen retreated by 479 feet. Glaciologists speculate that the size of the glacier was then  at its smallest since the 13th century.  At the time of our visit in 2010,there were widespread
 apprehensions that further strong receding would be seen in 2013. As Briksdalsbreen is now very narrow at some stretches, there is a possibility of it temporarily disconnecting from the Jostedalsbreen. Therefore, ice climbing was  terminated because of this threat during the time of our visit.

                   The route to Briksdal passing through the Stryn and Loen river systems is characterized by large contrasts and spectacular scenic variety. In my opinion, this place offers Norway in a nutshell! Gushing streams, rivers and waterfalls cascading down steep mountains deep into the valleys, fjords, farms and traditional agricultural landscape, barren mountains and high peak glaciers, you name it and  this place has it all. 
                    Whoever had coined the phrase “Paris is that part of the earth nearest to Paradise” would have retracted  from his earlier statement had he visited Briksdal.

The reflection of Briksdalsbreen  in the small glacial lake, Briksdalsbrevatnet

The tracking of the receding of Briksdal glacier over the years. The changing patterns of the glacier has been the focus of study of many glaciologists.

Sheep (above) and Alpaca  ( below) at an agricultural farm en route to Briksdal. Notice the sod on the roofs of the farm. It helps to improve insulation during winters.

The visit to Briksdal also marked the end of our forays into the Norwegian countryside. The next day we were to leave for Oslo and thereafter to Stockholm, Copenhagen and Finland en route to India.  The departure from Alesund signaled the commencement of the ‘urban phase’ of our tour.