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*** NORWAY 2014 - WEEKS 2~3 *** |
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This week's
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Flora and Fauna of SE Norway |
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On a dreary wet morning, we left Oslo's eastern suburbs to join the E6 highway, the road that would lead the length of the country all the way up to Kirkenes in the far north. Before leaving home, we had registered with the Norwegian Autopass system for automatic road tolls payment via credit card, and had already passed through a number of toll 'bom-stasjons' around the city. Still unsure of how the payment system worked, we pulled into an Esso station with the 'Kr-service' sign; the fluently English-speaking lady helpfully reassured us that the system worked efficiently, and we could check our deductions statement on the Autopass website. Continuing north on E6 through dreary, rain-soaked forested lowland, we reached the southern end of Lake Mjøsa, and here the road works began, 20 kms of new road construction and tunnel boring along the lakeside, reducing E6 to a narrow, mud-covered single-carriage-way with 50kph speed limit, with traffic crawling amid heaps of rock debris and diggers. We eventually were able to turn off onto Routes 3 and 25 to the small and unassuming town of Elverum.
Elverum and the Norwegian National Forestry
Museum: Elverum's claim to fame was that King Håkon VII and the
Norwegian government had fled here to this small town from Oslo after the German
invasion of April 1940, refusing to acquiesce in German demands for the
country's surrender to blatant aggression. A memorial in Elverum records this
event. Our reason for coming to this forestry town amid the timberlands of
Eastern Norway was to visit the Norske Skogs-museum (National Forestry Museum).
Having been so impressed with the Finnish equivalent forestry museum and
arboretum at Lusto near to Savonlinna, our disappointment here at the Norwegian
Forestry Museum was even more frustrating: the admission charge was excessive
(80 NOK even for seniors), displays were pretentious but superficial,
commentaries ill-informative, and the small, poorly labelled arboretum scarcely worth
bothering with in pouring rain. All in all, the Norwegian National Forestry
Commission could
Elverum Camping: having shopped for provisions in Elverum's Co-op, we headed for Elverum Camping, a long-established family-run campsite on the banks of the fast-flowing Glomma River just south of the town. The owner welcomed us in fluent English, saying to settle in and he would be there in 10 minutes; his helpful and hospitable manner set an example which many other campsite owners could well follow. With a nightly all-inclusive charge of 200 NOK including site-wide wi-fi internet, luxurious standard of heated facilities, and beautiful riverside setting even in pouring rain with the temperature bitterly cold, Elverum was an admirable site (see left). It rained all night and the following morning the air temperature was so cold that the rain fell as sleet; for the first time in southern Scandinavia, we were reduced to wearing full arctic gear for warmth for our day in camp with the heater on all day. In full waterproofs Sheila took an exploratory walk along the river bank searching for beaver lodges in the shallows by the river islands but found only gnawed birch trunks. Despite the wretchedly inhospitable weather, Elverum Camping will probably not be bettered during our travels around Norway and fully worthy of our highest rating (Photo 1 - Elverum Camping). Norwegian National Railway Museum at Hamar:
we left Elverum on a gloomy, wet
and bitterly cold morning with freshly fallen snow lying in the forest edges as
we drove westwards to Hamar, an important railway junction on the shores of the
lengthy lake Mjøsa, which now hosts the Norsk Jernbane (National Railway) Museum.
The museum's role is to document Norway's railway history in the context of
Norwegian social development since the mid-19th century, and the extraordinary engineering feats
required both to build a railway infrastructure in Norway's ruggedly mountainous
terrain and to maintain operating during the severe winter conditions. Railways
in Norway developed piecemeal starting in 1854 with the line northwards from
Oslo built by
British
engineers and navvies, with the transportation of timber and agricultural
produce being the main impetus. The rail line from Oslo to Trondheim via Røros
opened in 1880, with the route over the inhospitable Dovre
We were greeted at the
museum reception however with disappointing
news: the collection of steam locomotives was closed at this time of year and
museum restricted to a few displays with no reduction in the 80 NOK admission
charge.
Norway's Museum of Road Building and Tunnel
Construction at Hunderfossen:
continuing north alongside Lake Mjøsa
on E6 towards Lillehammer, we turned off on a minor road which climbed through
pine woods to reach Hunderfossen Camping, an over-pretentious but soulless, over-expensive
campsite set alongside the main Trondheim railway line where, unlike the steam
monsters seen at the railway museum, modern electric rail-cars glided past.
After a cheerlessly wet and chill night, the rain stopped but low cloud still
clung to the surrounding hills with streaks of snow still
So pleasing have been the flora and fauna which we have photographed during these 2 weeks, that we have included a separate photo-gallery of the wild flora and fauna of SE Norway and the mountains of Jotunheimen and Dovrefjell.
Lake Mjøsa, Gjøvik and Route 33 to Fagernes
Camping:
our plan was to camp that night on the western shore of Lake Mjøsa but
Sveastrand Camping was clearly an enormous holiday-camp jam-packed full with
wall-to-wall static caravans, spilling over into the lake-side area allegedly
reserved for visitors; in summer this place would be sheer bedlam. We managed to
find a secluded area overlooking Lake Mjøsa (see right), and the following morning with
A parking area enabled us to stop and admire
the spectacular mountain views ahead across snow-fields towards the northern
Jotunheimen peaks (see above left) (Photo
10 - Jotunheimen Mountains from Valdresflye plateau). The distant bulky mass of snow-covered Bessfjell dominated
the northern skyline, but from here it was impossible to distinguish the
so-called Peer Gynt's Ridge
(Besseggen). We clambered up onto
the snow fields
A nostalgic day up at Gjendesheim by frozen Lake
Gjende in the Eastern Jotunheimen Mountains: after a bitterly cold night with the chill northerly wind
turning rain to sleet, we woke to a weak sun which soon brightened to give
perfect weather for our day up at Gjendesheim; in readiness for the anticipated
conditions in the higher mountains, we dressed in multi-layered full arctic
gear. The distant snow-covered peaks glistened in bright morning sunshine
as we began the long re-ascent of Sjodalen, pausing to photograph the
snow-covered, frozen Lake
Sjosalsvatnet; it was a glorious
scene worthy of our next Christmas card
(Photo
17 - Frozen Lake Sjosalsvatnet). We turned off up to the mountain hut of
We walked over to the closed and deserted
Gjendesheim hut (Photo
23 - Gjendesheim mountain hut), and from its partially snow-coved terrace took further photos
looking along the length of the lake and its enclosing array of peaks (Photo
24 - Lake Gjende from terrace of Gjendesheim hut) - another
nostalgic moment standing here by the hut at which he and his friend Andrew
had stayed in 1968 before going on to climb Glittertind and Galdhøpiggen (see
right); see the
gallery of photos from
Paul's
1968 Jotunheimen expedition.
Heidalen: the following morning, we began the long, winding descent of lower Sjodalen with
Route 257 perched on a shelf high above the river gorge way below and
spectacular fell-country rising on the far side of the valley. Altitude and
therefore
Gudbrandsdalen: continuing down valley above the spectacular gorges of the white-water Sjoa river, we re-joined the E6 highway, here busy with speeding cars, heavy trucks and speed cameras and turned south down the Gudbrandsdalen valley to the small town of Kvam. Here in the churchyard a CWGC memorial and union flags honoured 54 British soldiers killed in April~May 1940 in the bitter fighting around Kvam (see left), with a meagre and ill-equipped British and Norwegian force trying to stem the superior armed German advance north along Gudbrandsdalen (Photo 27 - CWGC memorial at Kvam). The names of these 54 men of the Yorks and Lancs, Kings Own Light Infantry and Worcestershire Regiments were inscribed on the cross of remembrance here at Kvam cemetery by the wooden parish church. We again paid our respects before continuing our drive down E6 to keep our appointment to visit Ringebu Stave Church 30kms south.
Reaching the church, it was clear that major restoration work was being carried out to replace timbers of the tower and spire since the huge wooden structure was swathed in scaffolding (see left) (Photo 28 - Ringebu Stave Church). Although the church was not officially open at this time of year, we had arranged a visit with the verger, Mr Lars Smestadmoen, who gave us details of stave church construction and the history of Ringebu Church. The vertical staves were certainly sturdy as was the planking forming the nave walls. We managed to take photos of the gloomy interior and of the ornately coloured Baroque altarpiece and pulpit (see below left), and Sheila was invited to play the new organ, built with the tone of a Baroque instrument by a Swedish organ builder (Photo 29 - Ringebu Stave Church organ). We were very grateful to Mr Smestadmoen for arranging this special visit for us; he continued with his work planting out the carefully tended graveyard while we walked across to photograph the huge wooden church's exterior despite the gloomy weather. Hundorp Viking Age grave mounds:
having shopped for provisions in the Rimi supermarket in Ringebu village, we
drove back along E6 up Gudbrandsdal valley to Hunsdorp where, in the grounds of
a former farmstead now the Dale-Gudbrandsgård hotel, 6 Viking age burial mounds
and stone circle marking the
Crossing the snow-covered Rondane National Park: turning from E6,
Route 27 immediately climbed steeply gaining significant height above
Gudbrandsdal valley floor; as the height increased, so the birches showed less
developed new leaf. As we passed through the small village of Venabygd
with its neat church perched high on the hill-side, the clouds began to break
and a bright sun shine through. Further height gain brought us above the tree
line as the road flattened onto the high snow-covered plateau top with superb
views to the
Route 27 followed the river through pine woods along the valley bottom, but the bright sun of earlier had now given way to gloomy cloud obscuring what would have been the magnificent views of the distant snow-covered Rondane peaks. Continuing down valley, the long road through hill-farming pastures led eventually to the junction with Route 29 at Folldal. The little town clustered around the road junction seemed an unnoteworthy place, but we spotted a sign pointing to Folldal Gruver-Museum. Curiosity prevailed and we followed the signs steeply uphill to end at what clearly had been a copper mine. The mining museum, like the long-deceased mine, was closed this early in the year, but we found a brochure which told a little of Folldal Gruva's history: the mine had operated from 1748 until 1970 producing sulphur, zinc and primarily copper, with a 35km ropeway to transport ore to the railway at Alvdal. We saw a little light industry in the town outskirts, but mining had clearly been Folldal's principal source of employment, as its crest with gold coloured pick axe showed; with this now long gone, today it seemed a sad-looking little place. The mountain-inn at Kongsvoll: the
final 30kms along to re-join E6 at Hjerkinn was a long and tedious drive
particularly in gloomy weather. Before turning south on E6 to Dombås for
tonight's campsite, we diverted 12kms northwards to the former mountain-inn at
Kongsvoll, now a hotel which doubles as the Dovrefjell National Park Information
Centre. This section of E6 crosses the wild fell-land plateau of Dovrefjell
which in today's gloomily overcast conditions did indeed feel a bleak and
inhospitably exposed place, with snow-fencing to protect the road from winter
wind-driven snow drifts. The E6 ran across the high plateau paralleled by the
Trondheim railway line, and descended to the Kongsvoll inn near the tiny
station-halt on the railway. The road across Dovrefjell which continued past
Kongsvoll into the precipitous defile of Grivdalen had long existed as part of
the pilgrims' route towards St Olav's tomb at Trondheim. During the 18~19th
centuries as horse and carriage transport developed, staging-inns were leased by
the Crown to farmers at Kongsvoll, Hjerkinn and Fokstua to accommodate pilgrims
and travellers along the Gamle Kongeveg (Old
Bjørkhol Camping, Norway's friendliest and
most hospitable campsite: armed with this information, we headed south
on E6, passing through Hjerkinn and continued across the wild, snow-covered
Dovrefjell plateau with its frozen lakes. A steep winding 5km long hill brought
us down spectacularly to the cross-roads town of Dombås. Continuing for a
further 6km into the upper Gudbrandsdal valley, we reached Bjørkhol Camping
which Lonely Planet had spoken of as being one of the country's best value and
friendliest campsite. We were indeed treated to a right royal Sharing Norway's National Day celebrations
with the communities of Oppdal, Dombås and Dovre at Hjerkinn on Dovrefjell:
we were up early to be away at 9-00 am to drive back up through Dombås and join
all the local cars heading to Hjerkinn; the weather was far from festive on this
special day, gloomily overcast with a bitingly cold northerly wind blowing
across the bleak Dovre fells. Reaching Hjerkinn, marshals directed the 100s of
cars and buses bringing participants from all the 3 distant communes into
parking areas on the fellside dirt road which led up to the Snøhetta viewpoint.
Everyone was wearing their Norwegian national costumes and waving their flags,
and we in all our layers of arctic gear against the bitterly cold wind joined
the gathering crowds of celebrants from Oppdal. With their local bands,
drum-majorettes and school groups led by their banners, they formed up into
their parade that would process down E6
An afternoon on Dovrefjell at the Snøhetta
look-out and first encounter with wild musk oxen: after the gloomy
conditions for this morning's National Day celebrations, as we walked back along
the fell-road to where George was parked the sky was beginning to brighten; it
looked likely to be a sunny afternoon for a walk up to the Tverrfjell look-out
point for the views across to the Dovre mountain heartland
of Snøhetta. We kitted up and began the long uphill walk on a good footpath up the bare
fell-side. As the gradient steepened, the path
Fokstumyra Marshes nature reserve:
on a gloriously warm, sunny morning, at least here
down in the lower valley, there was for the first time this trip a real feeling
of Spring in the air, with the birches now coming into full leaf. Waving 'Ha det
bra' to Anne-Ma, we finally left Bjørkhol to drive back up to Dombås, turning up
the E6 long hill beyond the town. Our first stop today was the nature reserve of
the Fokstumyra Marshes, and on a quiet Sunday morning we turned off E6 to the
parking area by the little Fokstuga station-halt on the Dovrefjell railway. The
weather was perfect with blue sky, little wind and warm, bright sunshine. We
kitted up with boots and gaiters given the
The board-walk built 2 feet above the marshes was
generally well-maintained, and we made good progress around the first section,
turning westwards to reach the bird observation-tower. Clambering up into this,
we took up position with binoculars for the open views across the marshland
towards We continued further around the marshland circuit, but here greater areas of soft, residual snow totally obscured the line of the board-walk; even following the boot-prints of earlier walkers, it took little to falter from the narrow boards and sink deep into the snow-covered marsh. There was no way we were going to complete the circuit with dry feet, and we returned to the railway line and the car park. In such perfect conditions, this had been a superb afternoon enjoying of the bird-life and the peaceful snowy conditions of the little-known Fokstumyra Marshes (see right) (Photo 41 - Peaceful snowy conditions at Fokstumyra Marshes).
You can pay over £30 to be taken on a commercial musk oxen safari, and here we were stood peering through our binoculars and photographing 6 of the hefty wild creatures as they grazed the fell-side. A selection of our musk oxen photographs is given on our Flora and Fauna of SE Norway
Next week, we move north to visit the historical city of Trondheim with its Gothic medieval Nidaros Cathedral associated with the cult of St Olaf Norway's patron saint, see Tirpitz's anchorage and memorial to RAF crews at Fjættenfjord in the inner recesses of Trondheimsfjord, visit the site of St Olaf's death on the Battlefield of Stiklestad, drive the long E6 road north to Mosjøen and Mo i Rana, cross the Arctic Circle on the snow-bound barren wastes of Saltfjell, descend to the fertile green valley at Rognan and the site of yet more WW2 German barbarism, visit the collection of historic aircraft at Bodø's Aviation Museum, and continue ever northwards to Skutvik ready for the ferry-crossing to the Lofoten Islands. Join us again shortly for the next edition and add the site to your Favourites. Next edition to be published quite soon
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CAMPING
IN NORWAY 2014 - SE Norway and Lillehammer, Eastern Jotunheimen Mountains,
Gudbrandsdalen, Norway's National Day (17 May), Rondane and Dovrefjell National Parks:
spend its public funding to better effect, and we told them so. 
mountains not
completed until 1921. The south coast line to Kristiansand was not completed
until 1938 and the continuation to Stavanger only in 1944.The northern main
line was the last to open with the final stretch from Fauske to Bodø not opening
until 1962; parts of the line's civil engineering construction was by Russian
and Slavic slave labour under German WW2 occupation. The rail route to Bergen
over the central mountains was completed in 1909 with the highest point of the
line at 1,222m, and the extension from Myrdal at 866m down to sea level at Flåm
on the Sognfjord was opened in 1941. These lines served to develope the
burgeoning ski trade and tourist industry.
The
sadly inadequate display took all of 10 minutes, and the reception lady, clearly
sensing our frustration, offered to arrange for Svein Krogrud, one of the
museum's project advisers and himself a retired railway man, to show us the
modest collection of steam locomotives. The first of the engine sheds contained
an early electric loco used in the 1930s on the Oslo~Drammen line, and 2
mid-20th century express passenger steam locomotives (see left). The next shed
housed the pride of the small collection, one of five massive 2-8-4 4-cylinder
engines weighing 153 tons and built between 1935~41 by Krupps of Essen for
hauling passenger trains on the Trondheim line over the treacherous Dovre
Mountains, hence they were called the Dovre Gubben (Dovre Giants) (
evident on the slopes; but at least the forecast showed improving weather over the coming days. Our
first stop this morning was the Norsk Vegmuseum (Museum of Road Construction) just along the lane, run by the Statens Vegvesen (State Road Authority). This
tells the story of both constructing the road network in Norway's challenging
terrain and maintaining it over winter. Uphill on the craggy fellside, the
Fjellsprengnings-museum (Rock-blasting Museum) is a 240m section of road tunnel
giving insight into the construction of road tunnels through Norwegian
mountains. And more to the point, the museum was free-entry. But disappointment
again: the museums were only open at weekends in May. We could walk around the
outdoor displays on a trail through the pine woods under the towering cliffs of
the craggy fellside, but there was little to see other than a few pieces of road
building or maintenance machinery and mini-skansen of road-associated buildings.
We walked the circuit anyway since the natural forest floor was just beginning
to come alive again after the winter snows with a covering of lingonberries in
tiny bud and bilberries with fresh green new leaf and globular pink early flowers. The
track-way circled back higher up the fellside with displays of modern
snow-clearing equipment, monster dumper-trucks (see left) and the portal of the
tunnel-building simulation of the Rock-blasting Museum (
Lillehammer's 1994 Winter Olympics Ski-Jump: rejoining E6 back to Lillehammer, there was little reason for turning off into the town
other than to investigate the giant ski-jump which was visible above the town
for miles around. Lillehammer is one of Norway's foremost ski-resorts, and won
its bid to host the 1994 Winter Olympics. The Norwegian government invested a
massive 2 billion kroner in sporting facilities and infrastructure: ski-jumps,
ski- and bob-sleigh runs on the hill slopes above the town, with stadium and
chair-lifts, all of which remain in use today. From the TIC by the railway
station, we established the best route to approach the ski-jump and wound our way
uncertainly up the steep hillside to the foot of the enormous jump which
careered down the slopes above. The lane continued uphill to the huge
landing area at the foot of the ski-jump. The main ski-jump drops 136m with a landing-slope angle of 37.5°; the speed on take-off is a terrifying 86 mph, and
the 1994 gold medallist's longest leap was an astonishing 104m. We walked up to
the perimeter overlooking the landing area, giving us a clear view looking
straight up the entire length of the jump (see right) (
the
air warmer and not a breath of wind, a hazy sun lit the hills on the far side of
the lake with a small church reflected in the still water. Through
the small industrial town of Gjøvik, we turned westwards onto the quiet Route
33, gaining height gradually into forested rolling hill-farming countryside.
Snow still lined the north-facing shaded side of the road under pines, while
wood anemones covered the verges on the sunlit side.
The road descended into a
broad lake-filled valley just beyond the small settlement of Dokka, and hazy
sunshine heightened the contrasting greens of the mixed pine and birch woods
covering the side hills: the glum, dark of the pines and the fresh pale green of
the birches' new leaf. Beyond Etnadalen with its fast-flowing white-water river,
the road climbed more steeply on sweeping narrow bends with increasing amounts
of snow and frozen, snow-bound lakes. Over the watershed of this shoulder of
hills, we began the long descent into the lovely valley of Aurdalen and the
junction with Route 16, the main Oslo~Bergen road, which continued high along
the valley side. Rounding the end of Strondafjorden, we reached Fagernes and
pulled into the lakeside campsite. Their website claimed that 'the most idyllic
spots were reserved for visitors', and it was true: at the far end we found a
peaceful, secluded corner terraced into the wooded hillside and overlooking the
lake (see left). The girl on reception was insistently helpful sorting out password for the
site-wide wi-fi, the setting was indeed idyllic, and facilities first class with
well-equipped kitchen and beautifully furnished common room; the only down-side
was cost at 250 NOK but we negotiated an inclusive price for the luxurious showers
(usually extra), and enjoyed a productive day in camp at this worthy site.
The Valdresflye pass (Route 51) over the
eastern shoulder of the Jotunheimen Mountains: our onward route from Fagernes would take us over the 4,500 feet high Valdresflye pass (Route 51) which
crosses the eastern shoulder of the Jotunheimen Mountains. See the 
Hegge Stave Church: scattered
hill-farms dotted the hillsides lining the lower valley where the surface of
lakes, even at this low altitude, were still partly frozen. At the northern end
of the farming settlement of Heggenes, we paused to walk up to Hegge Stavkirke
(see right). Hegge stave church was built around 1281, the
capitals of its 8 columns were carved with faces, one having just one eye
resembling Odin as if the pagan gods were condemned to the demeaning role of
supporting the new Christian church's roof. The carved altarpiece dates from
1782, and the story goes that 4 farmers from Hegge, after trading cattle in
Gudbrandsdalen, were lost in a storm on their return through the mountains. They
swore that if they returned home safely, each would donate the value of a cow
for a new altarpiece. They kept their promise and a new altarpiece was ordered;
bringing it home however on a sledge in the winter snow, they lost the figure of
Judas which was found the following summer its paintwork faded (
Crossing the snow-bound
Valdresflye:
reaching the ski resort of Beitostølen the sky cleared to give bright warming
sunshine, and with the weather now looking good these were ideal conditions to
continue over the highest part of the Valdresflye plateau. The road now gained
height becoming a tarmac mini-canyon enclosed within snow-banks 2~3m high on
both sides, with snow-poles poking out above the snow-banks (see above left), pines and birches
on the hills standing out among surrounding snow fields, and ahead the 1608m
peak of Bitihorn towering over the road (
open to traffic from April~October must be a nightmare, with constantly changing weather conditions and still so much
residual snow. The tarmac ribbon of road carved through
snow-banks wound around sweeping curves to a high point and began the descent to
the inn at the eastern end of Lake Bygdin; but despite the lake's huge length,
today it was totally frozen and indistinguishable amid the covering of snow
fields (
the narrow
ribbon of road levelled onto the plateau top to approach the highest point at
1,389m (4,555 feet), where the sign marking the pass' high point was half buried
in a snow bank (see above right) (
which stretched away into the distance marked with ski trails
with the afternoon sun glistening on the shiny crust of the snow (see right) (
A
hospitable campsite, the
Jotunheimen Feriesenter:
starting down the descent from the plateau in long sweeping curves,
we reached a
view point looking along the shapely length of the Knutshö crested ridge-line
(
river. Below the tree where
pines covered the lower slopes, we turned onto Route 257 at the road junction of
Randsverk and 2kms further reached tonight's campsite Jotunheimen Feriesenter.
Here we were welcomed by the delightfully hospitable Petrita
who has kept the campsite single-handedly for 27 years, and who insisted on
helping us find solid ground where the snow had recently melted (
Gjendesheim, closed at this time of year, at the eastern end of Gjende set high
above the frozen, snow-covered outflow of the lake, and rounding a shoulder of
the hillside, spread out ahead was the glorious spectacle of Gjende's full
panorama (see right): the length of the lake was totally frozen and snow-covered, and
surrounded by magnificent mountains enclosed on the northern side by the
bulky massif of Veslfjell and the crest of Besseggen just visible at the far end.
The southern side of the lake was enclosed by the low summit of Gjendeshö and
peeping out above this the higher peaks of the
Knutshö crested ridge. In the distance at the far
end of Lake Gjende, a spectacular array of the central Jotunheimen's
snow-covered peaks glistened in the bright sunshine. At the foot of these
mountains would be the distant mountain huts of Gjendebu and Memurubu, 2 of the
huts used by Paul on his 1968 Jotunheimen expedition (
Despite our concerns about the weather, there
was not even a hint of the arctic north wind and the sunshine was quite warm
lighting the frozen surface of the lake. The 2 boats, which in summer run the
length of the lake to Gjendebu and Memurubu huts, were today ice-bound at the end
of the lake and surrounded by snow (
Glitterheim, the hut used in 1968 prior to the climb of Norway's highest mountain, Glittertind. Sheila however, ever the
botanist, had spotted another gem: the curious but spectacular lone Spring Pasque Flowers dotted amid the snow-crushed fellside grass
(see left) (
Climbing some way up the fellside path,
we were soon crossing patches of soft snow into which our boots sank, but the
awe-inspiring views from this higher vantage point looking along the length of
Lake Gjende made the slog spectacularly worthwhile (
Whereas in summer the lake
when viewed from above would have been its characteristic vivid turquoise colour
from all the glacial sediment from its sources, today it was flat white from its
ice and snow crusting. Returning down to George parked by the hut (
temperature make such a noticeable difference in the timing at which
the birches come into leaf in the early springtime. High up at Gjendesheim and
even here in the upper part of Sjodalen, birches were still in tight bud giving
the trees a bare wispy appearance; as we reached the lower Heidal valley, the birches covering the valley sides were just breaking into pale green
leaf whereas later in the day down in Gudbrandsdalen the trees were almost in full leaf. Up in the higher reaches
of Sjodalen, the opposite steep fell-sides showed clearly the distinctive
boundaries of the tree-line: rising up from the river gorge, the valley bottom
was filled with gloomy pines, which part way up gave way to wispy birches, and
beyond this the higher fell-tops were bare and still covered with snow. Route 257
dropped via hairpins to the long lower valley of Heidalen with hill-farms dotted
along the valley-sides and pastures along the broad valley floor. At Heidal, the
main village and service centre for the
valley's farming communities with shops
and school, we parked by the wooden church where the graveyard gate had a
Commonwealth War Graves Commission plaque. A search of the
carefully tended graveyard eventually revealed among local graves a lone
distinctively shaped CWGC headstone of British soldier, Private W Fletcher of
the Sherwood Foresters (see right); he was part of a small British contingent, which along
with Norwegian troops had attempted to delay the German advance northwards after
the April 1940 invasion, and died of wounds here on 2 May 1940. We stood to pay
our respects at the lone grave of a man whose home in Notts was so far from this
beautiful Norwegian farming valley.
Ringebu Stave Church: just beyond
the modern village of Ringebu, a lane led steeply uphill to the huge wooden
stave church set high on a flat hill-top overlooking the valley. Norway
converted to Christianity around 1000 AD and during the medieval period some
1000 wooden stave churches were built. Ringebu Church, one of the largest of the
28 surviving stave churches, was built around 1220. The characteristic defining feature of Norwegian wooden stave-churches is the timber framework of vertical
posts (staves or stolpe) set into the ground on stone plinths which supports the
roof structure and around which the timber planking of the nave is attached; no
nails were used in the construction all joints being dove-tailed. Following the
Lutheran Reformation, Ringebu Church was rebuilt to its present cruciform shape
with its red-painted wooden tower in 1630, and in 1717 the church interior was
painted with Baroque decorations. The
church continues in use today as Ringebu's
main parish church.
local Thing (Council) had been discovered. The
site had been farmed from time immemorial, the most renowned land-owner being a
Viking warrior-chieftain name Dale Gudbrand whose grave the best preserved of
the mounds is said to mark. He and his pals of the Hundorp Thing had been
unenthusiastically converted to Christianity in the early 11th century AD by
King Olav II Haraldson. St Olaf as he later became had rampaged through Central
Norway with proselytising zeal imposing the new religion by force or trickery on
the reluctant pagan farming folk who eventually sided with Olaf's enemy to
finish him off at the Battle of Sticklestad in 1030 AD; more of that in the next
edition. Back along E6 we found Frya Leir Camping; the place
was run by a friendly young Pole from Krakow who welcomed us for a night's stay
at the
all-inclusive price of 200 NOK including site-wide-wi-fi. Daylight was beginning to linger
later and later now, and even in the early hours it never really became dark.
Our plan for the following day was to cross the high fell-land of Rondane
National Park, and given the uncertain snow conditions on Route 27, we again got
helpful advice from the national road conditions helpline 175: the road was
clear with no known problems.
distant Rondane peaks. Beyond the large settlement of Venabu,
although the road was cleared of snow, banks of snow again lined each side. On a
bright morning, it was a superb setting with clear views across the snow-fields
of the Rondane's shapely mountains. Passing frozen lakes, we advanced through
the snow-banks across the highest reaches of the Rondane plateau, pausing
frequently for photos of the snowy wilderness and distant mountains (
surrounded by pine
trees. It looked so perfect, we were tempted to stay; if ever we pass this way
again ...
King's Road). The current owner at Kongsvoll was a mine of information about Dovrefjell:
disappointingly she said
the footpath we had planned to follow was still snow-bound and inaccessible, but
gave us details of another walk on well-established path from Hjerkinn up to a
look-out point on Tverrfjell with views across to the Dovre mountain heartland
of Snøhetta. We also took the opportunity to ask about Dovrefjell National
Park's wild musk oxen population. Late spring was in fact the most promising
time of year to see them when males come down lower in search of better grazing
and females to calve, and we stood the best chance of seeing them just opposite
Kongsvoll or on the walk up onto Tverrfjell.
welcome by the
owner Anne-Ma Hoelsbrekken and her husband Terje (
enclosed by snow-covered fells. We happily settled into this wonderfully
peaceful and hospitable campsite after our long day.
to link up with similar
processions from the other 2 communes (see above right) (
In the dull light and misty rain, we followed the
procession along E6 taking photos as best we could trying to keep lens free of
rain spots, and joining in the shouts of 'hoorah' as groups passed us. In
today's hurried and over-sophisticated world, the celebrations were all delightfully straightforward
with bands playing (see left) and participants proudly waving their flags and banners oblivious to the
drizzle and bitingly cold wind. As we approached Hjerkinn, the Oppdal procession
joined up with those from the other 2 communes who had paraded along E6 to the
south and from Hjerkinn to meet up at the junction, a sea of national costumes
and waving flags against the proud backdrop of the snow-covered Dovre mountains
in the gloomy fell-land light. The merged crowds drifted up towards Hjerkinn
station where a stage was set up for the continued celebrations.
Family groups
and individuals all waving their flags greeted one another, and we met up with
Anne-Ma from the campsite. A well-known Norwegian actor recited a dramatic piece
about King Harald and 'Gamle Dovre', and the official events concluded with the
singing of the national anthem which we hummed along to.
crossed increasing amounts of
residual snow and running melt-water (see right) (
The E6 was deserted now after this morning's festivities, as we returned to Dombås and down to the lower valley to Bjørkhol Camping to settle in again. Anne-Ma's 2 little grandchildren still dressed in their national costume were
playing on their granny's trampoline. The younger 5 year old whose name we
managed to establish was Inge came over and could not understand why these
curious adults failed to respond to her chattering. Anne-Ma introduced us to her
daughter and granddaughters (see right) who were around 1 year younger than our own
granddaughters, and in the bright afternoon sunshine they pointed out a golden
eagle soaring over the high fells enclosing the valley. Our stay at Bjørkhol
Camping had indeed been a memorably happy one, and long should we recall this
lovely campsite and its owners' unassuming hospitality.
unexpected amounts of residual snow
and set off with cameras and binoculars (see left). A 7 kms board-walk pathway circles the
marshes with a bird observation-tower part-way round. The approach path crossed
under the railway line by a low tunnel almost blocked by snow and ice, and the
sun glistening on snow and lighting the stunted birches provided rich
photographic opportunity (
partially frozen lakes against the back-drop of the Dovre mountains to
the west. Over the next couple of hours, we saw a crane stalking among the
marshes with its long curving neck and bulky tail-bustle, a male hen-harrier
with its black-tipped long pointed wings patrolling the skies and occasionally
swooping into the marshes for prey, gulls and a kestrel soaring over the lake,
and a black-throated diver with its distinctive silhouette sitting on the lake
edge. We also heard the distinctive crescendo-call of curlews across the lake.
A close encounter with Dovrefjell's wild musk
oxen: the following
morning, with the weather now disappointingly overcast, we headed NW on E6
across Dovrefjell past the still partially frozen lakes to follow the
fast-flowing river down towards Kongsvoll. As we approached the mountain-inn, we
pulled into a lay-by, scouring the fells for possible sign of the musk oxen. We
had been told of a point on the far side of the river, where it was possible in
safety to stand quite close to the grazing beast. Following a track under the
railway, there ahead on the fell-side were some 6 musk-oxen, and protected
by a fence, we moved to within 100m of the beast which continued grazing totally
oblivious to our presence (
The musk ox (Ovibus muschatus), a truly prehistoric beast which has
changed little in 2 million years, is a bovine ruminant herbivore which bears
little resemblance to any other animal; its only known relative is the Takin of
northern Tibet. They weigh up to 450 kgms (almost half a ton) with high
shoulders giving the impression of a humped back, and enormous low-slung head
with broad, flat horns curving outwards. The body is covered with a thick coat
of shaggy hair over a matted fleece of soft fur as protection against arctic
winter temperatures. Only the bottom of its legs and enormous hooves protrude,
giving it a tank-like appearance. The females have calved in springtime, and the
herd grazes the arctic high fells and tundra eating continuously during the
summer to build up a protective layer of fat for the coming winter, when they
stand for hours perfectly still to conserve energy, almost like standing
hibernation. They are not inherently aggressive animals unless disturbed, when
their defence against threat is to attack. Despite their weight and bulk, they
can charge at speeds of up to 60kph. As an illustration of their speed
potential, the human world record for 100m stands at 9.5 seconds; a charging
musk ox can cover this distance in 6 seconds, and you are advised not to
approach on the open fell-side closer than 200m! They inhabited Norway from the
last Ice Age, but became extinct around 2,000 years ago, surviving
naturally only in Greenland and Arctic Northern Canada. A few musk oxen were
re-introduced to the high fells of Dovrefjell National Park after WW2 and since
then the wild herd has grown to around 100 beast.
We had identified a campsite for tonight a short
distance along E6, and tuned up a fell-land dirt-road leading up to Furulaugli Camping where the owner treated us
to an un-smiling, ill-gracious non-welcome; what a contrast with the welcome we
had received at Bjørkhol. Anne-Ma could make a fortune teaching other campsite
owners and their staff the elementary commercial common sense of basic courtesy
and a smile! It was another of those campsites where all the basic facilities
cost extra, but we settled in for a night's stay. The camping area set high on
the fell-side was still bare after the recently melted snow, but on a sunny,
windless late afternoon, the westward view faced Dovrefjell's skyline and we heard the first cuckoo of this Spring. The sun settled late below
the glorious mountainous horizon, and although it stayed light that evening, we
were treated to the trip's first crimson sunset with silhouetted birches (
