TEMPO.CO, Norway - Linking the country’s high central mountains with the famous west coast fjords, the 108km Sognefjellet Road is one of Norway’s most spectacular drives.
Norway’s mountains, fjords and forests are known the world over; their splendour is certainly no secret. But arguably, one of the most impressive ways to see them is by traversing the Sognefjellet Road (pictured), known as the ‘Road over the Roof of Norway’. One of the 18 National Tourist Routes that showcase the country’s exceptional natural wonders, Sognefjellet Road traverses 108km of fertile valleys, piercing lumbering mountains and deep lakes, linking the country’s high central mountains with the famous west coast fjords and skirting the northern edge of Jotunheimen National Park along the way.
Sognefjellet Road begins tamely enough, leaving the busy mountain town of Lom and running alongside Bøver River. Gentle valley views are peppered with occasional glimpses of the high snow peaks ahead. Buried under metres of snow for much of the year, the road is only open between May and September. When I traversed the first half of the route in early August, the lowland meadows were full of purple flowers.
With a name that means “Home of the Giants”, 1,151sqkm Jotunheimen National Park is home to more than 275 mountains that reach higher than 2,000m, including 2,469m-high Galdhøpiggen, the highest mountain in northern Europe. At 2,403m, Store Skagastølstind is Norway’s third highest mountain and it dominates the view for a large part of the drive along Sognefjellet Road.
Located about 37km west of Lom, just off Sognefjellet Road, Krossbu Turiststasjon mountain lodge (pictured) acts as the starting point for a wealth of varying walks through Jotunheimen National Park. From the lodge, the most frequented short walk is the 6km return hike to the foot of Smørstabbreen glacier. Longer walks include a three-day hike across the breadth of the park via the Skogadalsbøen and Vettisfossen overnight huts.
Although Jotunheimen National Park lies south of the Arctic Circle, its altitude – like much of central Norway – is high enough that a typically Arctic climate prevails and Arctic wildlife and plants dominate. Summer is very short (July to mid-August) and winter is long and hard. In the foreground of this photo, resilient flora add colour to an otherwise forbidding scene.
One of the road’s most visually arresting points is the often-frozen Smørstabbreen lake (pictured) at the road’s highest point, about 49km west of Lom. At 1,434m-high, Sognefjellet is often considered the highest mountain road in northern Europe. Perhaps inspired by the beauty of this region, 19th-century Norwegian poet Aasmund Olavsson Vinje described how the world was once roamed by giants and trolls, but when man discovered fire he chased the creatures north until they fell off the edge of the Earth. The tears they shed on their way north froze into central Norway’s mountains and lakes. On a sunny day, the lake is one of the country’s many incredible sights. And few things compare to seeing a beautiful sight, from the very top – the very roof – of Norway.
BBC | SB
