The best thing Norway offered us was the nature – beautiful, untouched, sometimes quite rough and wild. No wonder that our top 7 Norwegian sights include mostly natural sceneries and trekking routes.
Kjerkeneset
Not many people know that this place actually exists. If you find Nordkapp too crowded you might be delighted by Kjerkeneset. How to get there and what to expect is described in our article Three things you should know before visiting Nordkapp.
Ånderdalen
A small island Senja located to the north of Lofoten hides the national park Ånderdalen. We will always remember the trekk we made here. The place was for us almost exotic – bogs, forests, mountains, fjords. A short teaser offers this short video as well. More details we introduced in our article A perfect day in the Ånderdalen national park.
Lofoten
Of course it is not possible to skip Lofoten when listing the Norwegian top sights. For a long time we did not understand why this place is so popular among the visitors of Norway. During our visit we finally got it. On the first sight the answer to this question might seem quite clear. The reason why people love Lofoten is their unique natural scenery and the architecture that fit to it in a perfect way.
Or it is the romantic atmosphere of their fishing villages that fascinates visitors so much and makes them come back again and again.
After spending some time on these islands it suddenly became crystal clear to us. Lofoten are simply a perfect opposite to what most of us experience in our daily life. There is no possibility to get overwhelmed by various impulses and perceptions. Here you cannot find any skyscrapers, shopping malls or office crowd being always in a hurry.
There are no cars roaring down the streets with high speed. There are no highways at all. Here the life flows with its own pace.
Even the thousands of tourists arriving during the summer as well as during the winter cannot change it. This is where peace and harmony are in power. Life here is submitted to the nature and the nature creates a stunning background to life.
Snåsavatnet
On our way from the north of Norway to Trondheim we passed by the Snåsavatnet Lake. The main road E6 runs along its northern coast. We however decided to leave the main road and we drove along the southern coast of the lake. That was definitely one of the best decisions we made during the expedition.
After weeks spent in the inhospitable and rough arctic areas we felt as if we had arrived to Tuscany. Lumpy landscapes, small farms on the hills surrounded by fields, herds of cattle, wild flowers.
We decided to stay overnight on one of the lake’s beaches. We did not experience anything more romantic during the whole experience.
Romsdalseggen
If you are not afraid of heights the Romsdalseggen trek is definitely something you should do. The views awaiting you on the top of the mountain ridge are incomparable with anything else we have ever seen. On our blog you can find an article where we inform on our Romsdalseggen trek in more detail. It is called Romsdalseggen and Trollstigen. We also prepared a video teaser and a short summary in the following paragraph.
The trek is about 11 kilometers long and it takes approximately 8 hours to get from its starting point in Vengedal to Åndalsnes. The overall altitude of the trek is 970 meters whereby the highest point is located 1 222 meters above the sea level.
Normally, you would take a bus from the Åndalsnes tourist information center/Norsk Tindesenter to the parking place at Vengedal (9km). The bus drives daily at 9 o’clock in the morning. The trek goes along the mountain ridge. We however did it the other way round. We started the trek directly in Åndalsnes and hitchhiked back to Åndalsnes from Vengedal. In this way we saved 15€/person for the bus ticket and we could walk in a very comfortable way since we had the sun behind our back all the way.
Mount Hornelen and Bremangerlandet
On our way through Norway we stopped at the Mount Hornelen as well. It is the highest sea cliff in Europe. Its peak is in the height of 860 meters above the sea level. We decided to reach it although it meant to overcome the altitude of 1 770 meters. The reward was worth it. The breath-taking views from the top of the cliff as well as the dose of adrenaline we got when looking down to the sea surface. It was so close yet so far. We have more to say about our adventures at Mount Hornelen in another article on our blog named Mount Hornelen – trek to the Europe’s highest sea cliff.
We explored also the surroundings of Mount Hornelen and recommend the island Bremangerlandet about 30 kilometers to the west. Again we got a tip from the locals and did not regret that we followed it. On the Grotle beach we enjoyed an almost perfect beach day. Why only an almost perfect? Well, the beach was indeed beautiful – white and fine sand, clear sea, azure waters, absolute silence and privacy. The weather was amazing too, it was however not hot. And so it was almost impossible to survive on the beach when dressed in the swimsuit only.
The children were the only ones who did not care of the water or air temperature.
Vestkapp
One of the most impressive experiences. At least for us. Vestkapp. Maybe this place is really so magical and maybe we were only lucky to be here when it was most beautiful.
We decided to go to Vestkapp on the basis of recommendation of the locals we met at Mount Hornelen. We set off in the afternoon whereby the weather was terrible. It was a typical inverse weather – foggy and wet. The whole way from the Mount Hornelen to Vestkapp our car was driving through thick burls of fog. Its crew was not anymore able to imagine what to expect at the end of the journey.
And the result was indeed unexpected. After the final ascent the fog wall suddenly opened and all at once we could see the clear sky and the stars above us. We reached the top of the cliff – our final destination. There was nobody except of us and the sheep. Absolute peace all around us. The fog tossed about in the deep reminding us of a stormed sea. It was however absolutely silent.
On one side the horizon was colored with the orange rays of the sun setting down. On the other side it was illuminated by the white light of the full moon. We stood there speechless fully aware of the uniqueness of the moment.
We described our Vestkapp experience in more detail in the blog Vestkapp – no way to get more western in Norway.
More photos from Norway on www.tomaskozik.com.
