Waking up in everlasting daylight can be a little disorientating, especially when you don’t know how long you have slept. A peek out the curtains showcased a mildly misty morning where sun rays were silently painting themselves across the terrain. Inspiration quickly followed to explore outside and take advantage of the sun for the first time since leaving Oslo. A short trek through some vegetation led us to a beautiful bridge which made passage possible across the rapids below. Spending time in the fresh morning air listening to the sounds of birds scampering around the crackling branches and the sound below this sturdy wooden bridge will always be one of those experiences that we ponder when looking back.
The sun rays flickered as a gentle sun shower, sweeping its way through the artistic valley like a musical composer’s baton. The rain felt light on our skin, much airier than we are used to backing in Australia. It was almost a mist that would soon dry from the air alone. We turned around and caught a glimpse of the lake being sprinkled by the water drops amidst the patches of sun. If the stay here had not already been worth it, it definitely had been now. The walk back to the cabin had a sense of peace that I had not felt for quite a long time. It really helped me reflect on what my values in life have always been.
We were enjoying this morning more than enough to want to stay a while longer though, with a lot of distance to cover, we had to eat up and pack up. The car left Haukeli and drove over the mountains to Haukeliseter fjellstue. This area was much higher up than the camping grounds and encouraged a vastly different climate. Everywhere we looked was white with snow yet gazing up at the sky was still quite familiar from our morning walk over the wooden bridge.
We parked at a cafe for curiosity’s sake more than anything. This cafe had an outlook over the mountains beyond and felt extremely cosy. The wooden interior and layout was a treat to be surrounded by. Arne had also mentioned that his sister in law had designed the interior of the cafe which brought on an even deeper sense of satisfaction. It wasn’t long after gazing out the window that Arne made his way over to Katie with some concentrated Elderflower drink. Elderflower! We love that stuff. Apparently, the ingredients to this one are local and abundant, what a gift to receive! Thanks Arne!
The further on the roads we went, the more this landscape became alive. It was difficult not to take my gaze off the landscape while journeying in the backseat of our noble companion. We decided to make a short stop at Røldal briefly to take some photos. In this town, they like to do off-piste skiing because there’s so much snow in the winter. It is up high, has incredible slopes and encapsulated by wilderness as far as the eye can see. I could only imagine the sense of freedom the skiers must feel when riding down the slopes.
The car went on and on and the yawns began. I felt like I was starting to dream as we found our way deeper into this untouched wilderness. It wasn’t long after that when I thought that I must be dreaming. We rounded a corner and saw white mist, quite dense flooding over the road and a sound of a roaring giant looming somewhere nearby. This was a part of the trip I was very excited about though at the time I had no idea it was just around the corner. Our car entered the portal of mist and as the wipers cleared our vision, Låtefoss was upon us. This gigantic flood of raging water smashing its way down from the mountain peaks just off the side of the road sent chills of excitement through every bone in my body. If it wasn’t enough already just to see this army of water from the side of the road, another unequalled torrent of water was also rushing down to battle from a great outlet in the rock face just on the other side of the road.
We found ourselves almost floating over this siege of water that was being thrashed around rocks, broken into the tiniest formations of mist and masking our face with what was once part of snow and ice from further up above the cloud line. I could barely get a full breath in as my heart was begging my legs to move faster up the muddy hill to get a closer glimpse of Låtefoss and feel the trembling ground beneath me. It was fairly easy to climb up the side of this waterfall, through some vegetation and a somewhat maintained pathway kept visible by those who just want to feel the energy a bit more up close and personal. We were only about halfway up when the sun broke through the clouds casting an incredible rainbow through the mist that seemed almost like we could reach out and grab a pot of gold from. I looked below the rainbow and wondered, was it really worth the gold? Slipping off the edge seemed inevitable and I realised that the sight was better than the pot of gold anyway.
It was difficult to leave the waterfalls, though we felt that the energy surrounding us would stay with us for at least a little while. With this in mind, we decided to head back to the car and let the air con dry pretty much everything that had left the car in the first place. We made our way to the town of Odda, which was very picturesque. One thing I find about the towns in Norway is that they are designed to fit the landscape very well. The colours, the layout and the style of homes only encourage the sense of untouched beauty. We travelled along Hardangerfjord where we saw a lot of cherry trees that seemed over-encumbered with cherries and also lots of apple trees.
We met up with Hardanger Bridge which directed us into a town called Voss. This area is known for its extreme sports and it’s easy to see why. Again it is surrounded by perfect slopes for downhill snow activities which all point to this lovely small town. It was easy to find a place to have lunch. We opened the door to Tre Brør Kafé to seek out a menu. Katie and I both landed on the potato chickpea curry and it was absolutely delicious, one of the best we’ve tasted. We chose a table out in the sun which to our surprise felt quite warm to bask in even against the cool air. We all agreed it was a much-needed break from the acoustics of the car’s interior and finally got to stretch out a bit. The hour we woke up seemed like a very distant memory by now. This town had its streets girdled with bright and colourful flowers which seemed to give a sense of happiness to the people who live here.
Moving on! And up! It is a winding journey from here. The sun was out still and the car climbed its way up and around the corners. Upon reaching the top we were overlooking the town of Flåm from a popular architectural structure named Stegastein. This architectural marvel was a popular place for selfies as it outlooks over the incredible emerald water below. It juts out over the edge of the rock face with a glass barrier at the end. I felt quite safe on here even though I was basically floating up above the land below where people would almost be too small to see.
Hey wait a second, I thought we were as high as we could go here? Nope. I could hear the car let out a groan as it had some more climbing to do. It would have been cheeky to tell the car to chill out when the outside temperature warning came on indicating we were at 2°c. The top was flat, icy, snowy and had pools of crystal clear water. I so much wanted to stop and explore though given the nature of the road made things a little tricky to park in a safe place. I am sure I will dream of exploring it sometime anyway. Going down was easy and led us into a tunnel that seemed to go on for about 5-10 minutes of driving. It just kept getting deeper and deeper and I had wondered about lava spewing from the walls as it felt like going down deep beneath the Earth’s crust. Much to my surprise though, the light began to shine through what seemed to be another portal. The car flew out of the tunnel with such elegance into a new type of landscape. The green dream was back. Not only that but the sheer scale and epicness of the towering rock face just to the side of the road gave me neck cramps gazing not even halfway up. I had to stop, it hurt to look. No photo, painting or memory can quite relive the experience of this fjord.
My breath was beginning to calm down and I realised we had found another town called Lærdal. It’s a quaint little town with lots of coffee shops. There seemed to be a market on which was proven by the lack of car park spaces. There was a local shop on the corner highlighted by the sun so we felt the desire to check it out. The shop hosted a variety of local produce and drinks. Katie bought gooseberry jam and an elderflower sparkling drink. We were beginning to yawn again, the hour was late and we were hungry. It was time to set sail to our destination for the night.
The car ride was quiet now, I was wondering what everyone would be thinking and whether our thoughts were synchronised or not. After all, we had just been through a rapid change of scenery multiple times throughout the day that seemed like three days in one. Oh look, there it is!
The sky was a bit gloomy as we drove into a camping ground in Olden at around 10 pm. The first thing that caught my attention was the lake. This lake, one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen, was on the doorstep of our cabin for the night. The mountains lingered over the lake and sometimes revealed underneath a cloud layer, paths of snow that were guessing there way down and slim waterfalls which were so distant that you could barely see the water moving were delicately placed in the most special places of the mountain. It was dreamful to track my eyes up and around corners finding open spaces of snow just above rock faces. I imagined that maybe some yetis live up there amongst the clouds and casually gain a glimpse of the land and lake below.
All of our eyes were flickering with sleepiness. It was time to recharge for the day ahead. Good night!
To read our other travel posts, click here!
Also, check out our YouTube Video on Norway:
