October 5th, 2013

Our second day in Norway we decided we would take in the natural beauty and hike to the top of one of the fjords.  My dad decided the two hour hike up the hill was probably a better choice for us than the eight hour hike up another hill.  The hill/mountain we were going to be climbing was Preikestolen. Needless to say I am so glad we picked the shorter hike.  The car ride there was almost as beautiful as the hike itself.  Driving through the mountains was amazing.  There are waterfalls everywhere along with small little lakes.

(Norway)

(Norway)

(Norway)

(Norway)

(When in Norway, Do as the Italians Do. FIAT.)

(Norway)

(Ferry Ride Over the Fjord)

(Ferry Ride Over the Fjord)

The hike began with a more or less straight uphill climb.  It only took about 10 mins for my legs to be throbbing in pain and on the way down, I was pretty sure I would never walk again.  The path was sometimes flat but most of the time was just some random rocks that you had to climb up.  It rained most of the time while we were going up so I was soaking wet by the time we made it up.  The hill we climbed was Preikestolen and it really did take a solid two hours to get up there.  Once we were at the top we were officially above the clouds and could hear the rain below us.  Although we didn't get to see very much because of the fog, it cleared for about 10 mins so we could see the fjord for a bit.  Oh, and did I mention I didn't know we would be hiking so I did this all in my Toms?  It was rough...

"Preikestolen or Prekestolen, also known by the English translations of Preacher's Pulpit or Pulpit Rock, and by the old local name Hyvlatonnå (the carpenter-plane’s blade), is a massive cliff 604 metres (1982 feet) above Lysefjorden, opposite the Kjerag plateau, in Forsand, Ryfylke, Norway. The top of the cliff is approximately 25 by 25 metres (82 by 82 feet), almost flat, and is a famous tourist attraction in Norway. The tourism at the site has been increasing, around 2012, the plateau was each year visited by between 150,000 and 200,000 people[1] who took the 3.8 km (2.4 mi.) hike to Preikestolen, making it one of the most visited natural tourist attractions in Norway."

(And so it begins...)

(The Hike)

(The Hike)

(The Hike, a Rare Flat Part)

(The Hike)

(The Hike, the Not So Flat Part)

(The Hike)

(The Hike)

(The Hike)

(The Hike, A Marsh/Bog On Top of the Mountian)

(The Hike, Climbing Up a Waterfall)

(The Hike)

(The Hike, the Swimming Area)

(The Hike)

(The Hike)

(The Hike)

(The Hike, So Close)

(The Hike, Looking Down Toward the Water)

And we made it! (Like I said, there was a lot of fog.)

(Preikestolen)

(Preikestolen)

(Preikestolen)

(Preikestolen)

(Preikestolen)

(Preikestolen)

(Preikestolen)

(Preikestolen)

(Preikestolen)

(Preikestolen)

(The Descent)

(The Descent)

(The Descent)

(The Descent)

(The Descent)

(The Descent)

(The Descent)

(The Descent)

(The Descent)

(The Descent)

(The Descent)

(The Descent)

(The Descent)

(The Descent)

(The Descent)

(The Descent)

(The Descent)

(The Descent)

(Done.)

After we made it all the way back down, after I only slipped once and twisted my knee a tiny bit, we decided to just drive around the countryside for a bit.  We ended up driving up along the side of the fjord we had just climbed up to and you could not see the tops of any of the mountains, confirmed that we were indeed among the clouds.  Near the end of our drive along the fjord there were some sheep grazing on the side of the road.  I attempted to pet one and it ran away, it was a very sad moment in my life.  After that we headed back to the hotel, ordered food in and rested, knowing that tomorrow we would wake up so very sore.

(Norway)

(Norway)

(Norway)

(Norway)

(Norway)

(Norway)

(Norway)

(Norway)

(Norway)

(Norway)

(Norway)

(Norway)

(Norway)

(Norway)

(Norway)

(Norway)

(Norway)

(Abe's Future Home)