Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
seasons here, and unlike most other urban hotels in Norway, weekend visits are
more, rather than less, expensive than weekdays.
N-2646 Gålå.
&
61-29-83-00.
Fax 61-29-75-01. www.wadahl.no. 99 units. Mon-Thurs 650NOK-775NOK
($92-$110) double; Fri-Sun 2,000NOK-2,550NOK ($284-$362) double. AE, DC, MC, V. Closed Nov-Dec and
May Mon-Thurs.
Amenities:
Restaurant; bar; large outdoor pool; indoor pool; outdoor lighted tennis courts;
sauna; horseback-riding facilities; activity center for access to hiking, hill climbing, and cross-country skiing.
In room: TV, dataport (in some), minibar.
4 Lom
¡
& Jutunheimen National Park
£
62km (38 miles) NW of Otta; 180km (112 miles) NW of Lillehammer
Continuing northwest from our last stopover at Vinstra, we turn off the E6 onto
Route 15 heading west into Lom, which lies in the center of the Jutunheimen
National Park. In one of the most colorful settings of any rustic little village in
Norway, Lom straddles the Prestfossen Waterfall and the Bøvra River. A village
of great and traditional charm, despite heavy tourist traffic, Lom has retained
much of its log-cabin architecture and boasts a stave church from 1170.
Some 905km (562 miles) of its municipal border is covered by glaciers and
mountains, the most important and dramatic of which are
Glittertind
at
2,452m (8,044 ft.) and
Galdhøpiggen
at 2,469m (8,100 ft.).
Most of Jutunheimen National Park, one of the greatest parks in Norway, lies
in Lom municipality. Lom can also be your gateway to the fjord country, as two
of the grandest fjords in Norway, Geiranger and Sognefjord (see chapter 11), are
a short drive to the west.
ESSENTIALS
GETTING THERE Nor-Way Buss Ekspress
(
&
81-54-44-44;
www.
nor-way.no) buses pass through Lom from Oslo at the rate of three per day, cost-
ing 475NOK ($67) one-way and taking 6
1
⁄
2
hours. From Lillehammer or Vin-
stra, continue northwest along E6 until the junction with Route 15, at which
point you head west into Lom.
VISITOR INFORMATION
For information about the area, including hik-
ing, head for the
Jutunheimen Reiseliv
(
&
61-21-29-90;
www.visitlom.com),
in the Norsk Fjellmuseum (see below). You can also purchase hiking maps here,
which are necessary if you plan to tour Jutunheimen Nasjonalpark.
SEEING THE SIGHTS
In the center of Lom,
Stavkyrke
(
&
97-07-53-97
) dates from 1170 but was
enlarged in 1635 when it was restyled in a cruciform shape. In 1667 two naves
were added. The church is admired for its early-18th-century paintings and
Jakob Saeterdalen's pulpit and chancel from 1793. Charging 35NOK ($4.95)
for adults, and free for children under 15, it is open mid-June to mid-August
daily from 9am to 8pm.
An even more impressive sight is the
Fossheim Steinsenter
, 2686-Lom
(
&
61-21-14-60
), with Europe's biggest and most varied exhibition of rare and
stunningly beautiful rocks, along with gems, minerals, and fossils, plus jewelry
on sale. Part of the museum is devoted to exotic geological specimens gathered
from all over the world. The owners take pride in the national stone of Norway,
thulite, which was first discovered in Lom in 1820 and is now quarried. (Man-
ganese gives thulite its reddish color.) Admission is free, and the center is open
from mid-June to mid-August daily 9am to 8pm. In the off season, it is open
Monday to Friday 10am to 3pm.
