Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The largest settlement, with a population of only 1,500, is
Stryn,
the capital
of the upper Nordfjord district.
Olden
is one of the best centers for excursions to the Briksdal Glacier. Its pop-
ulation is 800. Even smaller is
Loen,
with only 400 residents. Loen lies at the
mouth of the panoramic Lodalen valley and is used by many as the gateway into
the national park. The village itself is touristy and of little interest but it makes
a good refueling stop for some of the most dramatic excursions in Norway.
ESSENTIALS
GETTING THERE
Stryn is your gateway to the area, as it is linked by pub-
lic transportation to major cities in Norway.
Nor-Way Buss Ekspress
(
&
815-
44-444;
www.nor-way.no) travels west from Oslo at the rate of three times daily,
taking 8
1
⁄
2
hours and costing 525NOK ($75) one-way. There are also three to
five buses daily from Bergen, taking 6 hours and costing 380NOK ($54) one-
way. The buses also stop at Olden and Loen.
Motorists leaving Geiranger (see below) can continue south to Stryn, taking
the ferry across the Geirangerfjord to the town of Hellesylt, the trip taking less
than an hour. From Hellesylt, take Route 60 into Stryn. Once at Stryn, you can
drive immediately to the east to Loen or south to Olden. Distances are short—
for example, Loan lies only 10km (6
1
⁄
4
miles) from Stryn.
VISITOR INFORMATION
The
Stryn & Nordfjord Reisemål
(
&
57-87-
40-40;
www.nordfjord.no) is most helpful, dispensing information about tour-
ing the entire area, including hiking trips into the national park. It offers a free
booklet,
Guide for Stryn,
outlining trips and cycling routes, and it also rents
mountain bikes at the rate of 50NOK ($7.10) per day. In July it's open daily
from 8:30am to 8pm; in June and August daily 8am to 6pm, and September to
May Saturday and Sunday 9am to 4pm.
There is also
Olden Tourist Information
(
&
57-87-31-26
) in the center of
the village, open June 10 to August 15 from 10am to 6pm daily.
SEEING THE SIGHTS
In addition to the wonders of Norway's largest glacier, Jostedal, the little towns
and villages of Olden, Loen, and Stryn are also good bases for trips on the
Nord-
fjord
, which is the only fjord to rival the scenic wonders of Sognefjord.
The panoramic Nordfjord, with its deep-blue waters, penetrates inland from the
coast for 100km (62 miles) before it abruptly halts at the glacier itself. If you
have a car, you can
drive the length of the north bank
along Route 15
almost to the head of the fjord at Loen. This is one of the grand motor trips of
the fjord country. In the distance are snowcapped mountain peaks, and along
the way are many grazing pastures, fjord farms, and rock-strewn promontories.
JOSTEDALSBREEN NATIONAL PARK
Jostedalsbreen is an ice plateau, spreading across 487 sq. km (783 sq. miles)
dominating the inner Nordfjord district and stretching out in the direction of
Sognefjord and the majestic Jotunheimen mountains. Sprawling northeast from
Route 5 to Route 15, it plunges a total of two dozen “arms” into the neighbor-
ing valleys.
In certain parts, the mammoth ice mountain is 400m (1,312 ft.) thick, reach-
ing up to 1,950m (6,397 ft.) above sea level. Wildlife includes reed deer, elk,
brown bear, and smaller creatures such as hares and elusive squirrels.
For years until the advent of modern engineering, the glacier formed an
almost impenetrable barrier between the east and west of Norway.
