Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
GAMLE STRYNEFJELLSVEGEN: A
DRIVING TOUR FROM STRYN
This spectacular 130km route takes a comfortable four hours. Head eastwards from
Stryn along the
Rv15
as it runs alongside the river that descends from Lake Strynev-
atnet, then follows the lake shore itself. It's an inspirational ride with mountain views
as impressive as anywhere in the country.
After 20km, stop to visit the
Jostedalsbreen National Park Centre (Jostedals-
breen Nasjonalparksenter;
www.jostedalsbre.no
;
adult/child Nkr80/40;
10am-4pm or 6pm May-mid-Sep)
in the village of
Oppstryn
. There's a worth-
while and informative 10-minute film about the glacier plus exhibits illustrating ava-
lanches and rock falls and a variety of stuffed wildlife. Outside, enjoy its unique
garden with more than 300 species of endemic vegetation, each labelled in Norwegi-
an, English and French. A cluster of picnic tables offers a spectacular vista over the
lake.
At an interpretive panel and sign 17km beyond the National Park Centre, turn right
to take the
Rv258
. It took a team of local and immigrant Swedish navvies more than
10 years to lay the
Gamle Strynefjellsvegen
(old Stryn mountain road) over the
mountain. The road, considered a masterpiece of civil engineering at the time,
opened to traffic in 1894. For more than 80 years, it was the principal east-to-west
route in this part of the country. Until well into the 1950s, a team of some 200 work-
ers, armed only with spades, would keep it clear in winter, digging through several
miles of metres-high snow.
The climb to the high plateau is spectacular, enhanced by thin threads of water
tumbling from the heights and a trio of roaring roadside torrents carrying glacial
melt. There are several stopping points as you ascend this narrow strip. Savour, in
particular, the viewing platform above Videfossen, where the water churns beneath
you.
Some 9km along the Gamle Strynefjellsvegen, you reach
Stryn Summer Ski
Centre (Stryn Sommerskisenter)
, a bleak place outside the short season. But from
late May until some time in July, it offers Norway's most extensive summer skiing;
most of those photos of bikini-clad skiers you see around were snapped right here.
The steep ascent behind you, continue along a good-quality unsurfaced single-
track road that runs above a necklace of milky turquoise tarns overlooked by bare,
