The Fjords, Fjærland, and the Nigard Glacier

High tundra between Hardangervidda and Jotunheimen

Greetings! Finally, the recap of the Glacier Trip!

I found out about this trip through Hiking in Norway from the Special Events at the University of Oslo. With promises of 'deep green fjords surrounded by steep mountains with the Jostedal Glacier on top of it all,' I signed up as soon as I had the chance.

Friday:
We drove 8 hours through central Norway to reach our destination, the sleepy 'book-town' of Fjærland. Due to a van breakdown, our group had a brief but plesant stay in the resort town Hemsedal. We were able to fit in a bit of sightseeing, and I found this on a tourist information board at the visitor center:

Ah, the irony. 

Hemsdal markets itself as the "Scandinavian Alps" but the road into the town felt more like Hwy. 96 along the Klamath River. 

One of the highlights of the journey to Fjærland was taking a ferry across Sognefjorden. At 204 km, Sognefjorden is the largest fjord in Norway. In places, it reaches over 1,000 meters in depth!

For a cool panoramic video from the ferry, click here. 

Amazing towns were scattered along every branch of this fjord.

My guide informed me that this is the town where most of the Vikings were from- "You know, the ones who stole, raped and killed all of those people"

We got to our hotel and settled in. A big day awaited, so we all hit the sack pretty early!

Home away from home!

Saturday:

We visited the glacier museum in Fjærland and watched a film shot by helicopter over the glacier. A brief visit into the town brought us to the famous Mundal Hotel.

This hotel was built in the late 1880's. Many European elites (aka royalty) were coming to the area to see the glacier, but would only visit for the day and leave with the last ferry. Farmers in the valley pitched in to build the hotel so that visitors would stay. Thanks to a convenient change in the ferry schedule, guests stayed an entire week in Fjærland, which was a huge boost to the economy of the tiny town. It is still in use as a hotel, but don't forget your wallet! It is a pricey stay. Walter Mondale (Vice President to Jimmy Carter) is a descendent of the family that started the enterprise. 

Then, we were off to the trailhead for the big hike! We were headed to the Flatbrehytta hut which was about 1,000 meters of elevation gain in 4 km.

Flatbrehytta Trailhead

The weather was less than perfect, but as our guide kept telling us, "It can get much worse than this!" 

Incredible fall colors

The scenery was not ruined by the mist and fog. Even the rain added an element of beauty.

And when the clouds parted, it was incredible.

We were able to get a peek at the glacier, but the biting wind coming off the ice kept us from standing around for too long.

This glacier moves 3 meters a day! I could feel how powerful it was, even from a distance. This glacier literally shapes the landscape around it. The trail had to be continuously re-routed because of landslides and erosion. We were hiking on massive moraines created by this beast. Everywhere you looked was a reminder that nature was in charge.

We reached the hut after four hours of hiking, and stayed at the top long enough to throw on extra jackets and gloves, swallow a sandwich, and drain our water bottles. We booked it down before the weather turned and were back at the trailhead by 7 PM.

Well- deserved lasagna and salad dinner

Sunday:

We drove an hour from Fjærland to a trailhead at the base of the Nigard Glacier. We suited up with harnesses and were given crampons.

After a short scramble, we were at the foot of the massive Nigard Glacier.

The shear size of the ice field and the complexity of the surface (crevasses, melting pots, ice tunnels) made me glad to have a knowledgeable guide at the end of the rope.

The glacier walk was awe-inspiring. I felt pretty inconsequential up there- my tiny existence as one little human didn't mean much compared to this mighty glacier. The ice I was walking on was thousands of years old and has seen much more than my 20-year-old self. There are millions of tons of ice stretching for hundreds of kilometers. It was a nice reminder of my role in the vast scale of things.

All in all, the trip was a huge success. It was pretty pricey, but completely worth it. It was a great taste of life in Western Norway, and I spent just enough time in fjord country to have me longing for more.