Day 29: Flåm

On Day 29 we drove north to Flåm, a tiny village in Flåmsdalen, at the inner edge of the Aurlandfjorden. The village sits at 61st parallel north, which brings the phrase "North of 60" to mind, thanks to a childhood spent watching the CBC. For reference, in Canada the 60th parallel constitutes the mainland boundary between the three northern territories and BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. Meanwhile, Toronto is sitting cozy at 43.40 degrees north, Vancouver at 49.13, and Edmonton at 53.34. Dave and I talked about this during the drive, and we both agreed that Flåm would be the furthest north we'd ever been.

Each drive through Norway is breathtaking

We left Odda a little after 11:00 am and were keen to power through the quick 2.5 hour drive to Flåm. Of course, because of our eagerness, we were stopped 30 minutes into the drive by a nice highway worker who informed us the road was closed until 12:45 pm, due to construction. Undeterred, I asked Dave to look up an alternate route. Turns out alternate routes aren't really a thing in Norway, and the detours Google suggested would add 2+ hours to the trip. Perturbed, we accepted out fate and sat in the car for a little over an hour and waited. To the construction teams credit, at 12:45 pm on the nose the road cleared and the line of waiting vehicles was able to drive through.

In spite of the delay, we arrived in Flåm just before 3:00 pm making good time. We checked into our hostel, changed into warmer clothes, and then made our way down the to docks for the days main event: a fjord safari!

It turns out Flåm is a popular destination for cruise ships

We've spent much of our time in Norway driving along fjords, hiking the the edge of them, and generally admiring them from afar. But today I was excited to enter the narrow rivers and see them from below: the most dramatic perspective.

Dave suited up!

We booked the fjords safari through Fjord Tours, and were greeted by our friendly guide, Jonathan, on the dock. He went over a short safety briefing with our group, and then instructed us to "suite up". This meant: toques, gloves, goggles, a life jacket and a full florescent safety suite. Once we were all dressed in matching gear, we made our way into the small rib boats waiting in the harbor. For the next three hours, Jonathon showed us around the Aurlandfjord, the Sognefjord and the Naerøyfjord, the latter being a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site and the number one natural heritage site according to the National Geographic Society.

Here are some photos, which only begin to capture the magic of the place:

 

Two hours later, our guide pulled the rib boat in to dock in the little town of Undredal, a cozy settlement on the water's edge, where 60 people and 500+ goats live. Not surprisingly, Undredal is known for its goat cheese production, and we had the chance to meet a local farmer, learn about their cheese production process, and taste some of the goods.

The Undredal farmer who taught us about their goat cheese production process

Local cheese and jams for tasting

Their specialty is a brown cheese, which is made by removing the curds from the goats milk, and then caramelizing the remaining whey over several hours to create a cheese that takes on a caramel colour. We also got to taste several local jams, made from berries I had never heard of before, and can't remember the names of.

After eating our full of goat's cheese and jam, we returned to the rib boats and made our way back to Flåm. On our guide's recommendation, Dave and I enjoyed a pint at the local microbrewery, Aegir Bryggeri, before returning to our hostel to get some work done. And just like that, there's only one day remaining before our journey to Australia. The last stop on our Norwegian trip is Bergen: famous for it's fish market and colourful houses.

Until then,
Heather