Driving Home from Work in Norway: Super Sightseeing

By Marina Aagaard, MFE

After work, a weekend workshop in Bergen, Norway, as there was no ferry leaving Bergen on that day, I opted for driving from Bergen to Langesund at the south coast in order to catch a ferry back to Hirtshals Denmark; almost a day of driving to catch a ferry … and some sights for sore eyes.

Norway, the longest European country, is not easy to drive in, though, due to the lovely landscape of mountains high, rivers deep and fjords, lakes and waterfalls.

What seems a short distance on the map, is a one- or two-day trip! The roads are long and winding and speed limits are (understandably) low … and rigidly enforced with radar controls everywhere.

It is a country-crawl to say the least; and it does not help, that you have to get out of the car every few miles to take photos of this and that …

Oh-oh, car weight is 3 tonnes plus, so this means ‘find another way’!
And that meant ‘going deeper underground’ …

Norway is full of very long – and big – road tunnels (including the longest in the world, Lærdal Tunnel, 25.61 km/15.23 miles) like this one with a roundabout!

Coming out from the tunnel: A surprise!

No ferry? No, a brand new bridge: Hardanger Brua, at 1.380 meters one of the longest suspension bridges in the world, 30 meters longer than the Golden Gate Bridge,
officially inaugurated 17th of august 2013.

Norway’s most famous waterfall: Vøringsfossen in Måbødalen.
A fall of 182 metres; 143 metres a direct drop. It is mesmerizing …
and scary standing on the edge (right side of photo), no railings! 

Norway in a nutshell, spectacular landscapes of rocks, water and ice – here Hardangervidda National Park – and ever-changing weather; Fog and rain … again.

At last! After driving for many hours without seeing a proper hotel and restaurant, only campsites without amenities, it was a bliss finding Lampeland Hotel, Lampeland,
nice food, comfy bed and big healthy breakfast, too!
Note: In the Norwegian countryside you cannot expect to find accommodation and food easily: Come prepared and bring money, prices are high even in the ‘outback’.

From the wild into the silver-mining city of Kongsberg, home of The Mint of Norway.

With ‘outdoor fitness’ next to the city centre … rock building climbing … 

… or balancing on slacklines (or the edge of a bench) in the park.

Yes, this day almost at the end of the journey,
the sun came out … by the Gea Norvegica Geopark
(Scandinavia’s first UNESCO recognized geopark).

A tourist board trick?

Never mind.
I’ll be back!