Hjerkinn - Bergen Part 3

July 14: Hiking Besseggen (14 km)
The night indoors was very warm - and I missed the privacy of the tent a little bit - but it was good to avoid having to pack up the tent, etc, before catching the boat to Memurubu. We started the day with good helpings of oatmeal on a cloudless morning, and got the 8:30 boat (which we had pre-booked - I can understand why it is recommended after seeing the number of people there today!).

From the boat

It’s a short ride about halfway down the long lake and you get increasingly good views of the mountains on the boat. The start of the hike is pretty steep, but quite easy terrain - and very rewarding as the snowy peaks and glaciers become more visible. It’s a popular hike, so you are never really alone, but it’s quite nice to see so many people of all shapes and sizes who are out enjoying nature’s beauty. Plus, it’s a popular hike for good reason: the views are stunning and the walk is a nice, manageable length.

After the initial climb, the path goes over a series of small peaks, mostly on a pretty wide ridge. I think I took hundreds of photos - hopefully a few turned out! We took a lunch break for the small downhill which proceeds the long climb - and I really do mean climb, all four limbs were needed at some points - over a series of false peaks before reaching the top of the ridge. That section felt like it could be a bit treacherous on a rainy or windy day, but it is definitely doable in the direction we chose (which is also the direction which does not require you to catch a boat at the end).

The steep part

The descent of 4 km (and about 700 m, since the peak was at 1743 m) felt a bit long, but not as “airy” as the ascent. We lucked out with the weather today and could really enjoy a “classic” hike. A bit of ice cream and warm showers just made it even better! We cooked dinner and tomorrow’s lunch down by the river, and we are all re-packed for an early start to see if we can catch the 9:05 boat across Bygdin (which is 20 km and one mountain pass away).

Some more views from the hike..

July 15th: Gjendesheim to Håglimo (90 km)
The short version of our day: mountain pass, boat ridge, gravel roads next to lakes, and the milk road.

The day started early, with Dražen waking up naturally at 5:15, which is a rare occurrence to begin with. We got on the road (being as quiet as possible in the common room!) by 6:30 and faced the first challenge of the day: Valdresflye. The mountain pass is about 400 m of climbing and we reached a new record elevation by bike: 1389 m! It was a pretty ride, too. The descent went quickly, and we reached the pier in Bydgin in good time.

Made it!

From the descent

The boat ride on M/B Bitihorn is a fun little adventure in itself: 2.5 hours along a mountain lake (at 1066 m) in a 106 year-old riveted iron boat with wood interior. The boat makes two trips in each direction every day, and a lot of people stop partway to go hiking. We took the boat the whole way, from rocky peaks to views of snowy peaks at Eidsbugarden.

From the boat

M/B Bitihorn on its way back to Bygdin

The sun came out while we were onboard and we eventually warmed up from the chilly downhill. The destination is a picturesque collection of cabins and a gravel road leading over a short hill to... another lake! Tyin is at 1089 m and gravel road is just perfect for cycling - the surroundings look like a mountain postcard (the mountains of Jotunheimen), the road is pretty flat, and traffic is extremely light. Tyin is about 10 km long, so we got to enjoy it for quite some time.

A big descent awaited us after the lake: first to Tyinkrysset (groceries and a new spare tube for the trailer - on a Sunday! I was in shock), then further down along E16 to Vangmjøsa. We turned off the main road and followed a new gravel road along a new lake for about 10 km. This represented a change from our original plan - we were supposed to stop and camp on the opposite side of the lake (a 10 km detour today and another 10 km tomorrow) but we found ourselves at the intersection so early that we decided to push a bit farther instead.

The roads we were on today are all part of the old “milk road’ used by farmers. The gravel road stayed next to the lake for a while, but eventually climbed further into quiet farmland, looking down to the valley below. Along the way, we saw some of the attractions - such as the old flour mill at a stream where we stopped for (much needed) refueling. The flour mills were first in use in the area in the 1300s, and one point there were 69 of them on the same stream!

We stayed on the milk road since the cycling was so pleasant. At first, it seemed like a mistake (we had just climbed 300m, and now it’s going up again?!) but the road then rolled along quite gently before dropping us out at E16 and the river only a few km from the campsite which was our new destination.

We are both pretty tired after a long day, and a bit disappointed that Croatia couldn’t take home the World Cup trophy! On the other hand, they had a good run, and we had a great day, so there’s not much to complain about.