Summer Hols – Part 2 – Around Flåm

Posted by @ 2:21 pm on Friday 22nd August, 2008.
Categories: Great Escapes

Click on any of the pics to open up a bigger version in a lightbox thingy.

 After negotiating a fair few of the road-tunnels on the rush from Bergen, we arrived at Flåm in the evening. At the campsite we were welcomed warmly by our hosts who gave us a choice of places to pitch. We chose a place with a view over the village, got the tents set up just as the light began fail and were soon sound asleep after a trying day.

The next morning we took a few pics of the view over to the harbour:

 

and of the cliffs overlooking the campsite:

 

then we went exploring on foot, making our way down to the edge of the fjord:

 

We found that Flåm is a great place, a jewel of a harbour village built around the southern tip of Aurlandsfjord. There is a quaint mix of the historic and the modern:

 

and the kids enjoyed the place:

 

The relaxing Scandinavian atmosphere was enhanced by the Latin American influence (and live Samba music) of the crew of the Cisne Branco, a Tall Ship moored in the harbour for a few days:

 

We were welcomed on board by the Captain to have a look around and to take photos of his rigging:

 

Here's a pic of the pointy end:

 

and a pic from the far side of the harbour:

 

where we got a better view down the fjord:

 

and found another of the racing Tall Ships, the Christian Radich:

 

Back at camp after nightfall, the view was worth another picture:

 

The next day we went for a walk up the valley, passing through pastureland:

 

playing Poohsticks (you're never too old for this):

 

and gaining sufficient height to get a good view over the valley-bottom:

 

We were on the way up to the Brekkefossen waterfall:

 

when the trees thinned out to allow a better view of the valley below:

 

One more pic of the waterfall:

 

and then we had to start back down the valley alongside the Flåm River:

 

to the harbour, where yet another of the racing Tall Ships, the Lord Nelson, had moored up:

 

The next morning we were treated to a bit of luxury - the QE2 backed into port while we were having breakfast:

 

Later we learned that this was the last voyage for her before she becomes a floating hotel, so we went off to the harbour to see her. On the way there, we found this coach parked up. No further comment necessary:

 

After some negotiation with the security gate staff, I was allowed to take this pic unhampered by the security barriers:

 

but I had to squeeze the lens through a gap in the wire grid fence  (and get a telling off from a different security officer for doing so) to get this shot:

 

Soon it was time to queue for our seats on the Flåmsbana for a 20km train-journey high into the mountains to Myrdal, a gain in altitude of 864m. Here's a sample of the scenery along the route:

 

and here's another:

 

and here are some purple-tinted people:

 

After passing this:

 

and this:

 

the train stopped at the Kjosfossen waterfall for a while:

 

so that we could take pics:

 

We disembarked at Myrdal and watched the train return to Flåm:

 

before leaving the station:

 

to spend the next hour exploring our surroundings:

 

which involved negotiating this dodgy flight of steps:

 

and throwing the kids into the river:

 

We walked down the valley:

 

past this magnificent view of the route back to Flåm:

 

to the next station (Vatnahalsen) to catch the next train back. From there we could see Reinungavatnet:

 

and lower down we passed these cliffs, which looked good for climbing:

 

That was our last day at Flåm. We had an early night in preparation for the mad 207-mile dash across Norway to Oslo the next morning, to catch the ferry to Copenhagen.

To be continued...

3 Responses to “Summer Hols – Part 2 – Around Flåm”

  1. sally says:

    what fantastic photos... looks a great place to go on holiday

  2. BG! says:

    Sally, I would go back there tomorrow if I could. There's so much around there that we didn't do or see. Next time, we'll stay in Norway for the full fortnight, probably using the local ferries to cover a greater area. Besides, I've a hankering to drive through the Lærdal Tunnel (24.5 km) and back over the Snow Road. http://home.no.net/lotsberg/da.....unnel.html
    More pics soon!

  3. AlanR says:

    Ah, Been there, done that as the phrase goes. Been on that tall ship as well when it was moored in Bergen. We found everything superb and like you we would love to go back and do more.
    The first thing that crops up is the expense. Hellishly expensive. We had 17 days there and was totally skint by the time we got back to Bergen. We just had enough money for a beer each and dinner consisted of a shared packet of biscuits. Still, i have done it.

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