West Norway is rich in contrasts and offers adventure
Narrow inlet arms, wild mountain passes and long valleys. West Norway is rich in contrasts and offers adventure where nature displays its works of art.
Through the centuries, nature has not only made life easy for people. Humbly subjected to nature's moods, people have for thousands of years settled along the inlets. In Hordaland, right up until 1950, boats were the most important means of communication for almost half of the population, and only 10 per cent lived more than five kilometers from the sea. But people also needed road connections between the parishes. Roads had to be built between the rural districts and market places for the transport of animals and other purchases.
At that time it was also necessary to travel over the mountains for survival. Nowadays we go to the mountains for excitement, adventure and relaxation - and perhaps to get a feeling of how life was before, when people had to conform more to the natural forces. Many of the old paths and traffic routes are today popular areas for walkers.
People are attracted by running water. Many watercourses are tamed, but luckily the sight of a waterfall as it plunges down a mountainside, can still be enjoyed. People become small and helpless alongside the forces which flood out over Vøringsfossen in a sheer fall of 145 meters.
The glaciers have formed the landscape. They have made the inlets deep and given the valleys their characteristic U-shape. Once the glaciers were deserted - today they allure us. With a local guide, a journey over the glacier can give us a short meeting with a time when the whole of Scandinavia was covered in ice.
People who viewed 'West Norway is rich in contrasts and offers adventure' also found interest in following Norwegian articles . . .