Norwegian fjords -- Voss to Hellesylt to Gjovik

Waterfalls on way to Voss

We left the capitol city of Oslo and ventured through twisting roads and endless tunnels to the tiny town of Voss. Along the way, we encountered snow, waterfalls and fjords. Some of the highlights of never ending bus rides were random stops for landscape vistas. Even though it was the middle of July, old snow still clung to hill sides. There were stout cabins with green roofs dotting the countryside. These are used on a trust system by cross country skiers during the winter. The skiers just leave their credit card info. When the house owner passes by, they charge the appropriate amount for electricity and water used. The green roofs are beautiful to see in the summer -- covered with grass and flowers.

Breakfast view from Voss hostel

We first stayed in the small town of Voss, about an hour outside of Bergen. It's only selling factor is that the hostel that we stayed on is directly on a beautiful fjord. The patio and breakfast balcony both overlooked the tranquil fjord while the mountains reflected in the calm water. For breakfast, we ate berries, greens and vegetables that were grown at a farm across the street. Next to the farm is the oldest remaining building in the town. It is a wooden hall built in 1295 AD. There is also a tiny, picturesque, wooden church. Although there are several memorials, busts and sculptures scattered around town, they were not of well known Norwegian figures.

Glacier melting down side of mountain

The next morning, we stopped just outside Voss at a magnificent waterfall. Then, we drove on to remaining snow for a few snowballs. Finally, we boarded a ferry through fjords. The highlight of this ferry was it's treat of folded over pancakes with powdered sugar frosting inside (25 NOK). For lunch, we stopped at a glacier! It was slowly melting into a pool below the mountain. This is part of Jostedalsbreen National Park. Did you know a glacier is compressed snow that clings to a side of a mountain? A group of cows wandered past just as we were finishing our lunch. Our night was spent in the even smaller town of Hellesylt (population 260). At least there were several hiking paths above the town up onto the mountain. Be prepared with lots of bug spray and good hiking shoes. There were lots of mosquitoes; and, the paths are not much more than mossy rocks with overgrown grass.

Waterfall on side of fjord

Following our evening at Hellesylt, we board the ferry that took us through the Geiranger fjord. It was breathtaking. There are still abandoned farms located along the fjord. However, it is now part of a park. Due to snow run off, there were multiple waterfalls along the sides of the mountains. After the ferry ride, it was only a short ride to Lom for lunch. Lom is the sight of a wooden stave church from the 14th century. It is usually open for tours (40-45 NOK); however, since there was a funeral while we were there, it was closed. This didn't stop me from wandering around the outside fence to get a few good pictures (and, a serious allergic reaction from something in the grass). After lunch, we drove on to Lillehammer. The bobsled training track is open for tourists to try a run. Groups of four go down with a driver in front. Forty of our group decided to participate, for a total of ten teams to compete for the fastest time. One of the groups came in at 1:01, a speed one of the workers hadn't seen in 10 years. Of course, it helped that our pushers didn't have to jump into the bobsleds after pushing.

Lom wooden stave church