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Direktlänk till inlägg 17 augusti 2022

WEDNESDAY 8/17/2022

Av EvaLena Hallgren - 17 augusti 2022 18:03

Good evening friends. It's now 7 pm and we're settled at a campsite in Voss, and we'll be here two nights because it's time to do laundry again.


It was still raining when we got up and it had been raining all night. Everything around us is dark gray and that always puts a damper on things. Mom said it can only get better and Lucy is keeping us dry and warm.

Our First stop was a town called Honefoss which has a waterfall in the middle of the town and has been essential to settlement in the area and the development of the town. The first industrial activity was the watermill, which dates all the way back to 1337. In the 1500s came the sawmills, which over the years grew into a large-scale industry. Hence, it was around the waterfall that most people lived and worked. Hønefossen has played a key role in the development and prosperity of Hønefoss from early on.

   


The town’s first public power plant was put into operation in 1920. In 1936, the wood-pulp grinding activity ended, and since then the waterfall has only been used for energy production. The demand for power increased as the years went by, and in 1977 the Hønefoss II plant stood ready to produce clean hydroelectric energy.
 The minimum water-flow requirement means that approx. 80 million m3 of water is led past the power plant, something that represents approx. 15 million kilowatt hours. Enough renewable energy for 1000 private homes

 

 

Under the bridge was some really cool art and it was also a place to stay dry for a while because

I do hate getting wet but Mom says we can't let a little rain stop us from going out to explore ............oh well

 

   

Walking around town we did get hit by a real downpour so we sat under a store awning for a while. Nothing is open yet and the town is deserted.

 


This town has sculptures we understand and a kind we much prefer


 


Driving along in poring rain at slow speed next stop was in a town called Flå............it's nothing here except this troll

Still raining and I know Mom hates driving then, but we'll keep going 


 



The next stop is in Hagafoss and there's nothing here either except this wooden church built 1924

  


Oh, and there was an outdoor museum too but that was closed for the season. We just peeked over the fence.

 


After this stop, there are no more towns for a long stretch, because we're now driving on the Hardangervidda 
an area that covers approx. 8000 km2 and is Northern Europe’s largest mountain plateau.  It has broad plains and rolling hills. In the west, the mountain range is more dramatic. Here are good fishing opportunities, lush flora and various wildlife species, and spectacular waterfalls. Hardangervidda’s highest point is Sandfloeggi, at 1721 m (5 646F.) above sea level. This is home to the largest wild reindeer flock in Europe, as well as other Arctic mammals and birds such as the Arctic fox and the snowy owl. No animals will be out in this rain except us.

We parked on the plateau and enjoyed a quiet night although it was pretty cold. Mom got inspired to cook a "real" meal for a change 

 

 

 

 


Notice those long sticks? they are there so the person who drives the snowplow knows where the road is when it opens in spring.

     

 

 

No animals Mom said. what is this on the road then?

Goats and sheep are pretty common running around on the roads so the speed limit is low 80k and in villages 60 and 40km  

   

 

There are over 1000 road tunnels in Norway and Mom thinks we have driven through half of them already (a slight exaggeration). Today's longest was 7,5 km ( ca 4,4 miles) and in the middle, there was a roundabout 

 

 

 

As Norway improves its road system there are more openings each year. Some tunnels are often long 24 km narrow and many are unlit............I know Mom is scared of driving in tunnels even though she tries to deny it I can hear her heartbeat and hear her sigh of relief when she sees the light at the end. The Laerdal tunnel is a 24.51-kilometer-long (15.23 mi) road tunnel that Mom has driven through once with Dad and said back then "never again" It is the longest road tunnel in the world, succeeding the Swiss Gotthard Road Tunnel.

If possible we will avoid it this time.

  


The further east we are going the more dramatic the scenery but since it's all foggy we can't see the top of the mountains.


     


These are roads you need to drive slow and to take time to stop and enjoy the power of nature .............it's magical


   


Down the hill and around the bend to our surprise was a gigantic cruise ship. We parked and went for a walk. 

The town name is Eidfjord a town with a population of 950.

 

The only reason this town is still alive is because of the cruise ships making a stop here. Mom said it was very much like an Alaskan town she visited there's nothing here. We walked around watching people coming off the ship to do ?????

Mom chatted with a guy who was waiting for his group to take them out in kayaks. It's windy cold and raining only a real diehard would do it on a day like this.

He waved when we left and not one person had shown up and I don't blame them.

   


All the interesting things we could find here were a couple of sculptures........as we drove around the fjord Mom had to stop and take a picture of the ship because it looks beautiful. We are both glad we travel with Lucy instead

 

  

It's a little chilly now around 60 F but it feels good and I get to sleep under the covers to keep Mom warm.


I agree with Mom "Norway is gorgeous, even in bad weather"


 



Wet kisses Ya All


Henry 


 

 



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Kommentar

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