Since my first trip with my fiancé in 2014, we’ve been chasing the same sense of natural wonder and adventure experienced in Iceland. It’s become a bit of an August tradition for us to do a cool weather summer trip with a focus on hiking, driving and camping in a rugged and mountainous destination that might be too cold to check out during the winter months. This year we set our sights on Norway. 

EXPERIENCE

We arrived in Oslo and hit the road without venturing into the city itself. We headed North for our farm stay in Vågå, making a quick stop in Lillehammer to check out the Olympic Park relics.

Our first full day was spent tackling the ambitious, Besseggen Hike through Jotunheimen National Park. This is the best way to experience the park’s hallmarks known as Home of the Giants, Norway’s 29 highest peaks. The mountain lakes and bright blue river make this ridgeline hike pretty unforgettable. 7 hours and ten miles also ensured this hike will not escape my memory anytime soon. Another attraction in the park is Vettisfossen, which is the highest waterfall in Norway.

From here we headed for the famed fjords, on a mission to check out the most famous, Geirangerfjord. Once here we did a 3 hour round trip ferry boat ride through the fjord which allowed us to cheaply and effortlessly check out its main attractions, most notably being the Seven Sisters Waterfalls. If arriving by car hit the Dalsnibba View and Lookout at Flydalsjuvet on the way in to get an ariel feel for the landscape.

The adventure continued as with progress towards our first camping destination near Rauma. During this drive we passed through the foggy and barren highlands which reminded us finally of Iceland. From here we traversed down the many switchbacks of the Trollstigen Road, enjoying Stigfossen Waterfall on way.

The second of our hikes was in Vengedalen. We did the Litlefjellet Hike near Rauma. This is a short one hour trek up to a peak that provides a great view of the surrounding valleys. We had the pleasure of watching three skydivers with jet pack make their jump and decent as we enjoyed the sunshine. We stopped for lunch in the town of Isafjorden after the morning hike. This is very near where the Romsdalseggen hike leaves from. This is a hike worth checking out if we ever return. It simply took more time than we had.

The road trip took us to its furthest point with a visit to Ålesund to check out the art nouveau architecture in the rebuilt city. We strolled the shops and harbor and had a quick beer before being on our way. There are several galleries and museums to hit in this town if you’re looking to make a day of it.

The drive continued as we fjord hopped our way down the western coast of Norway, hitting small towns and natural sites as we passed them. Notable stops include Norway’s deepest lake at Hornindalsvatnet and stops for coffee in the charming towns of Loen and Stryn. An unexpected, but impressive stop was at Gudbrandsjuvet to take in several waterfalls converging with incredible power and impress. Another famous fjord to work into this drive is Nordfjordeid near the Sunnmøre Alps.

Another site I was adamant about seeing was the Jostalsbreen Glacier. Upon arrival I realized this glacier is quite large and there are several points which to view various arms of it. We choose to check out the Birksdalsbirk arm surrounded by beautiful waterfalls and high peaks. This arm is in the Briksdal Valley just beyond the Oldadalen Valley near Styrn. This area was so lovely we chose to set up camp alongside the glacial melt river in the valley. From here we cruised through fjord country on our way back down to Bergen.

Bergen was surprisingly delightful. The fish market was the highlight full of many local delicacies. Catch of the day included minke whale, scallops, mussels, shrimp, crab and so many types of fresh fish. Colorful houses of Waterfront District of Bryggen are also worth a stroll. This town is packed with perfectly designed shops and boutiques that would be far too tempting if the exchange rate weren’t so dismal on the Kroner.

We ended our trip full circle with an afternoon night in Oslo. We stayed in the trendy Grunerløkka neighborhood, which I’d recommend for those looking to have a local experience in a hip part of town. There are several museums worth checking out in Oslo, though we did not have time to do this. “The Scream” was on my to do list, but we just couldn’t squeeze it in. Instead we walked to the island to check out the Viking Ship Museum, which we almost made it to before closning. We were very fortunate to catch a gorgeous, sunny day however, so our time wandering the sculptures of Vigeland Park made for a satisfying afternoon.

STAY

While in Norway we exclusively camped and used Airbnb. In doing this we had a few rough nights, particularly a few camping mishaps involving a flat sleeping pad and a blown cooking stove gasket. We also ran into a few adventures with the rental car, getting it stuck in the mud at one sight and killing the battery at the next, lucky for us the locals proved to be handy and friendly.

EAT

As per usual in an expensive city, we managed to cook more than eat out on this trip. In Vaga we cooked one night then checked out a local spot one night, which had impressive burgers at Bokhandel’n Kafe. Our Airbnb host here blew our minds with a morning feasts of fruits and jams from the property and several local cheeses with homemade baked bread.

While in Isafjorden we stopped for coffee and lunch at a wonderful local spot called Centrum Café og Brenneri. We had great pasta and burgers to revive us from our morning hike. In Bergen we ate out in the Fish Market and then went to Thai to complete the meal. The salmon (laks) is to be taken very seriously here, it is wonderful! Sampling whale, elk and moose were other opportunities in the market.

One of the best meals of our trip was in Oslo. Upon arrival I stopped for coffee and mezze in our neighborhood of Grunerløkka. That evening, we had great tea infused cocktails at Tea Lounge then had one of the best sushi experiences of my life at Meny. The salmon here really set this meal off, with a slice of laks on every bite of the chef’s plate.

While we actually managed to stick fairly closely to my original road trip itinerary, we missed a few hikes I would have enjoyed had we had more time. These include the Trolltunga Rock Hike (Troll’s Tounge) hike and the Pulpit Rock. I also was hoping to make it down to the scenic Bondhusvatnet Lake and glacial arm, but with the far distances between destinations, just couldn’t squeeze it all into 5 days.