Plan B – Norway

Position: 60°23’59.5″N 5°19’09.2″E

Ginger and I have been friends since we were eight-year-olds living at West Point. She eventually moved to Albuquerque giving us the opportunity to reconnect whenever I’d be out visiting my parents. Plus it was great having an old friend living so close when we moved in with Dad last year.

Ever since we began our adventures on Aleta, Ginger has been saying she’d like to come sail with us. But something always came up. While we were preparing to leave for Sweden a few weeks ago, she decided this was her window to join us and booked a flight. Mike and I arrived in Sweden and began preparations for getting underway. Aleta’s mast was re-stepped and in the process one of her shrouds broke. We weren’t going anywhere until that got fixed. (More on this in an upcoming post.)

Time for Plan B

In the meantime, Ginger was already in Amsterdam waiting to be told where we’d pick her up. I suggested she fly to Copenhagen, and I’d meet her with a rental car. Since we couldn’t sail, Plan B was an epic girl’s road trip. The closest we came to sailing was spending one night on Aleta in the marina.

Our choices were to head north or head south. Having lived in Germany in the past, Ginger chose north. We said goodbye to Mike (who stayed behind to work) and headed for Norway.

As soon as we crossed the border the landscape changed, getting more scenic the further we traveled. We spent our first night in Fredrikstad. Founded in 1567 by King Frederick II, it is Northern Europe’s best preserved fortified town. Wandering around the old town transported us back to the 1700s. All the more so because it appeared completely devoid of other tourists.

We took a free ferry over to the city center in search of dinner. Not many places are open on Sundays, but we eventually found a pub with surprisingly good food. Then a big thunderstorm suddenly blew in, bringing cold winds with it. The publican gave us blankets to keep us warm. Since we were a third of their clientele, I think they went out of their way to make us happy.

Hardangervidda

We originally planned to head to Oslo the next morning, but with only 9-10 days we decided to push all the way to Bergen and maximize our time in the fjords. The eight hour drive took us across the Hardangervidda, Europe’s biggest mountain plateau. It is also Norway’s largest national park.

Winter runs from October to June up there. Checking our route we saw there were some road closures, but since it’s been the warmest May in 140 years of record keeping, the primary road was still open. The entire plateau is above the tree line. A vast barren moorland dotted with ponds, lakes and rivers, much of it covered in snow all year round. Water lay frozen everywhere except where fast-moving streams cut through the ice.

The weather was cloudy and gray giving the expanse an otherworldly appearance. We drove slowly along the narrow, twisting highway marked on either side with 15-foot snow poles. Eventually my ears popped as we descended into the lush green valleys and fjords towards Bergen. It seemed like cascading waterfalls covered every part of the landscape.

Bergen

For the next several days we based out of a lovely Airbnb near Bergen, just 25 minutes by tram to the city center. Bergen is a delightful coastal city in the southwest corner of the country. Norway’s second largest city, its population is less than 300,000 and it feels much smaller. It grew into prominence as a trading center around 1020CE. The Bryggen, a series of colorful Hanseatic buildings that line the harbor-front, is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The city is surrounded by seven mountains with numerous islands dotting the waters. Almost everything in the area is on a fjord or bay. The city felt busy, but most of the tourists seemed to be from a Viking cruise ship tied to the quay. The fish market has been operating since the 1200s. Wandering its stalls is best done on a full stomach or you’ll drop a small fortune. The ride up the Floibanen funicular takes you to the top of Mount Fløyen and offers expansive views of the city. At the top, a multitude of trailheads fan out for hikers and bikers. We picked a trailhead at random and, except for a few friendly cashmere goats, in a few minutes we were alone in the woods. The goats were not shy in the least and enjoyed being petted.

The hike back down to the city weaves through handsome stately homes on steep lots with occasional staircases cutting through gorgeous parks. Even if you don’t use Bergen’s excellent public transportation, you can easily cover the main sights on foot. We checked off everything on our must-see list in fairly short order.

Hardangerfjord

We left bright and early for Norheimsund. There we caught a ferry for a cruise up the Hardangerfjord, the third largest fjord in the world. Stretching over 110 miles, it has a maximum depth of 2900 feet. A light rain fell as we boarded. We were surprised to find there were only six other passengers on a ferry with capacity for 120. The scenery was stunning. Even with clouds obscuring the snow-covered peaks it looked like we were in a painting.

The region is known as “the kingdom of waterfalls’’ and as the sun emerged it was obvious why. We didn’t see another boat for hours, giving us a sense of what it must have been like hundreds of years ago. Sheer mountains, glaciers and picture postcard villages popped up along the shoreline as we made our way north to the village of Eidfjord, five hours away.

There we hopped on an electric bus (Norway is considered the electric vehicle capital of the world – another thing making it such an attractive country!) that took us to the Norwegian Nature Centre and then for a hike around the Vöringsfossen, a standout among the countless waterfalls. Traveling southwest under the muted sun, the cruise back to Norheimsund was equally spectacular with the reverse perspective.

Solstrand

Before working our way back, we decided to splurge on a night at the Solstrand Hotel and Spa. The hotel was built in 1896 by Norway’s first prime minister and has been managed by the same family for 100 years. We spent hours relishing some of the nicest pools and saunas I’ve ever seen. All of them with gorgeous views of the fjord and the Kvinnherad Alps, from both inside and outside. Relaxed and revived, we savored a delectable locally sourced three-course dinner that was the highlight of the excellent food on our travels. If you ever find yourself in the area, I can’t recommend it enough!

Undredal

Our drive east took us north of the Hardangervidda on an equally spectacular route through the West Norwegian Fjords and two majestic national parks: Nærøyfjorden Verdsarvpark, a World Heritage Site, and the Valdres. I kept thinking eventually we’ll come around a corner and the scenery wouldn’t be as striking, but it never failed to amaze me. We meandered along without a plan, stopping at the places that looked the most interesting. Since I was the driver Ginger was responsible for occasional Google searches about the areas we passed through. Suddenly, she cried, “Goat cheese! There’s a village nearby that’s supposed to have the best goat cheese in the world…or at least in all of Norway.” We pointed our car down the one lane road toward the fjord and Undredal: population 100 people and 500 goats.

We parked at the end of the road, near the center of the village. Other than two camper vans, the place looked empty. The only sound was the rushing turquoise waters of the river flowing into the Aurlandsfjord. We walked into the only open establishment, the Undredal Brygge Restaurant. Perched on the water’s edge, the building was half dock and half restaurant.

The proprietor, a Frenchman, apologized when we tried to order the cheese sampler plate. He explained they hadn’t received the afternoon delivery from up the road and he only had enough for his daily 6:30 cheese tasting. We immediately signed up for the tasting and went in search of a place to stay. The town’s hotels were in fact two apartments for rent. Ours was huge. Sited at the end of the village, it had a porch overlooking the water and a large sauna. Good thing too, because at this point I was feeling slighted if we didn’t get a sauna with our room.

Brunost

At 6:25PM a large Zodiac inflatable boat tied up to the dock and about 15 tourists clad in matching red water gear and lifejackets climbed out and marched into the tasting room. The goat cheese was nothing like we expected. There were a few hard, somewhat salty cheeses that tasted like a Manchego, and Brunost, a soft brown cheese regarded as one of Norway’s most iconic foodstuffs. The brown color comes from the milk sugars caramelizing after boiling. It is a taste that must be acquired. There was also goat sausage for tasting (hard pass). Once the boatload of tourists left, the proprietor asked what we thought of the Brunost? I told him it wasn’t my favorite and I laughed when he said he didn’t care for it much either. His fabulous beetroot goat cheese (chèvre) salad made up for it.

Lillehammer

After a leisurely morning coffee on the porch watching a thin line of wispy morning clouds cutting across the fjord, we enjoyed a last sauna before hitting the road for Lillehammer. Our drive took us past the Borgund Stave Church, built in 1150. Norwegian stave churches are the oldest preserved wooden churches in Christianity. The Borgund church is considered the most distinctive in Norway. Resplendent with detailed carvings, including dragon heads on the rooftop, you can’t miss the smell of woodsmoke as you wander around it.

The draw of Lillehammer is its outdoor activities. In winter you can find every type of snow sport. In summer, it offers cycling, hiking and roller-skiing, popular with the legions of cross-country skiing enthusiasts. The big tourist attraction is the Olympic Park, site of the 1994 Olympic Winter Games, and many World Cup events. The Lysgårdsbakken Ski Jumping Arena is the crown jewel.

There were only a handful of runners/walkers as we roamed around the hill. You are free to go wherever you want. Climb the roughly 1000 steps to the top of the ski jump and imagine what it’s like with 35,000 spectators filling the seats. I climbed a short way up and gained a whole new appreciation for how nuts you must be to fly down a 35 degree slope on long heavy boards. The snow somehow gives it a false sense of a more forgiving landing. Layers of plastic strips under the snow means jumping can be done all year round now. I would have loved to have seen that.

Inspired by all the activity we went in search of bikes, only to learn the summer rental season doesn’t start until the last week in June. Instead, we shifted gears and headed to Oslo for our last day.

Oslo

Our Airbnb was north of the city and only a 30-minute drive to the airport in the morning. We parked the car in the quiet suburban neighborhood and walked a couple of miles to the bus stop. Our driver explained that we couldn’t buy tickets on the bus, but to take a seat and do it online. Every region in Scandinavia now has an app for local public transportation. Once translated, they’re generally easy to use. Norway, however, is the exception.

We got off at what we thought was a train station, only to find it was another bus station. We were lost. Fortunately, we met a lovely young military man named Fredrick who was on his way to work. With his help we managed to buy tickets and get on a bus that dropped us in the heart of Oslo.

Scooters

Being a Sunday and the warmest day of the year so far, it was bustling. We wandered aimlessly for a bit then paused for a cold beer. Tired of walking, we decided it was time to try electric scooters. The kind that have proliferated everywhere in Europe.

It’s a brilliantly simple concept. Download an app, enter your payment information, set your skill level to beginner (so you won’t exceed 15kph), then scan the QR code on one of dozens of scooters lining the sidewalk. The scooter activates and tells you how many kilometers it has left on its charge. The app only instructs you to wear a helmet and have fun. Once again, we relied on the help of some 20-year-olds to show us how to push start it and where the accelerator was.

Laughing our way through the jerky starts and kangaroo stops we eventually got the hang of it and had a blast. While it would have been more fun if we didn’t have to dodge all the people and trams, it’s a fantastic way to get around. We spent the rest of the late afternoon in Aker Brygge, Oslo’s harborfront pedestrian area. There you can see the Akershus Fortress and watch ferries coming and going. After a last excellent seafood dinner, we knew it was time to make our way back.

Bells

The flaky transportation app repeatedly sent us to the wrong stop and we started to worry we would miss the last bus home. On top of that, we only had about 10% charge left on our phones. We grabbed a couple of scooters to get to the train station faster. As I took off, Ginger shouted hers wasn’t working so we had no choice but to double up. Me in front, Ginger hanging on behind. Her job was to reach around my waist and ring the bell and warn people of our approach. My job was to figure out where we were going. I’m sure we were a sight.

We eventually made it and boarded a train to the suburb and just caught the last bus out. The driver said kindly our tickets weren’t valid, but he’d take us where we wanted to go. We fell into bed about 11:00PM, but it was too hot to sleep. No one in Norway has air conditioning. The alarm rang at 4:00AM and I dropped Ginger at the airport in plenty of time to catch her flight home. Then I drove seven hours back to Aleta and Mike in Landskrona. What a trip!

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