Briksdalen, Coastal Norway
Hunkered beneath towering walls, red houses dot the fjord shores. Green, tended fields sweep upslope. Ominous evidence of rock slides separate house from house, and we track the level of danger by the trees: dark conifers mark the more stable slopes, quick-growing alder brighten the slides. Above, tufts of clouds give depth and texture to the peaks. Even so far from the northern shores of Norway, there is dramatic beauty.
A clear sky enticed us to get up early and board buses to visit Briksdal Glacier, a phenomenally scenic spot just outside of the town of Olden. Our local guides pointed out trees blasted by a huge storm, a church that winds had moved from its foundations and so was now staked to the earth, and spots where avalanches had shut the road for days.
Despite all this, our view of Olden was idyllic. Placid lakes reflected the tall peaks that still had a bit of snow still clinging to their shadows. Cows on their federally-mandated two-month holiday from the barn lounged in the sun.
Light had not yet reached the deep valley leading up to Briksdal Glacier, so we bundled up and strolled into newer and newer landscape revealed by the glacier’s retreat. An unexpected highlight was a dipper hopping on a mossy rock by a torrential waterfall. These small birds are daredevils. The world can be frozen around them, but as long as a bit of river is open, they can survive. They eat small invertebrates that live in the riverbed or, as this brave soul was demonstrating, in the mosses and grasses along the banks.
We’ve been to wild lands and seen strange beasts on this voyage, but an encounter with a more familiar creature can be just as moving, just as important, even, than with something unique and “other.” Today on the trail, nearly all of us stopped to spend some time with a group of goats that were in a big pile along the trail. Some bolder individuals ambled up to the fence and nuzzled our fingers, but most were content to burrow into the warmth of their clan.
After we warmed up with a sumptuous spread of cakes at the visitor’s center, we descended again to Olden, stopping at the old church before getting underway.
Sun shone through the afternoon, enticing us out on deck between bouts of packing. The good weather even tempted us to detour into Hyenfjord, a beautiful inlet that today proved to be irresistible. Sheep grazed the steep hills and the village at the head of the fjord seemed quaint beyond reason. We lingered and gazed then reluctantly turned toward Bergen. Norway seems to be sending us off in grand style.
