Cats & dogs

It’s not raining. It’s pouring. And not just pouring, but cats and dogs. And it goes on and on and on. The campsite was sort of flooded. You could decide yourself if you’d find a place that suits you. There was one spot just behind the swings that was kind of okay. Not more than okay, but there just was no other campsite around. And it was only okay until I laid down and noticed that I had to hold the mattress to not slide off. The storm continued in the night. Every corner of the tent was flapping.

At some moments I could vaguely see the contours of the grand, impressive and beautiful fjords. Superfluous masses of water roared down from all the waterfalls along the way.  Almost everything I watched from my car as getting out would immediately soak me.

Well spirited, full of faith (and maybe slightly stubborn) I continued my way to the next campsite. With a friendly (or pitiful) smile I was offered the option to first go and see if I wanted to pitch my tent in a swimming pool (they did not phrase it exactly this way). So I ordered a hot chocolate and a burger, sat down and thought. I called campsites with cabins, then hotels, but of course I wasn’t alone going for this option.Everything I tried was full. Or way too expensive. A couple of girls were looking for an alternative as well. They seemed friendly and quiet. I proposed to search together. I had seen a hotel room for 3, which would be affordable if shared. They turned out to be three girls and thought it was too expensive. But the idea to search together was good. We ended up finding an Airbnb place around the corner that had a view over the fjord. When the sun was setting, the clouds disappeared. From a warm and dry living I made sure I didn’t miss a second from this stunning sun set.

Getting up early after a good night’s rest is not difficult. I jumped out. Gathered my stuff and was ready for one of Norway’s highlights and I wanted to be up there early. Relatively early. It turned out that early is 5am. That was too early for me. On my way back I would discover what it meant to be out ‘only’ at 7.30, as busloads of people were coming up.

Preikestolen is a steep cliff which rises 604 metres above the Lysefjorden. Atop the cliff, there is an almost flat top. The 4km climb up takes you through different mountain landscapes. In this country I continuously feel that I have arrived to the land of fairies, trolls and gnomes. This hike emphasises this feeling from the first steps almost to the end, mostly because of the furry moss softly covering the giant rocks and long fallen trees. And then you’ve reached the top and are just stunned by the breathtaking view. I sit down and slowly look around to make sure every bit of the now sunlit landscape creates a lasting impression.