Trekking straight into Middle Earth
It was during a 3 day visit to
Norway that I have made some of the most beautiful and memorable moments of my
life.
This escapade into the very lap
of Mother Nature has been quite an offbeat experience for me, since I have seen
from up close, both the sheer beauty as well as harsh reality of delving deep
into this wonderland. It was like a roller-coaster ride from calm & serenity
to absolute adrenaline rush and back.
Fjords of Norway
Our first day in Norway itself had
begun with such splendor; it had left us impressed the moment we set foot at
the place. We cruised through the intricate fjords of Western Norway that were absolutely
marvelous to say the least. Fjords are deep but narrow extensions of the sea
lined on either sides with steep mountains and surrounded by dramatic mountain
scenery. Apparently, these fjords in Norway were carved millions of years ago
by Glaciers that were more than 3 Kms thick!
Sailing through these tranquil
fjords, we could see beautiful snowcapped mountains jutting up and beyond into
the clouds. We realized these were some of the very same peaks that we have
witnessed from the skies while flying to Norway. It was truly a magnificent
sight, staring into the marvelous landscape of the fjords. This picture here
speaks a thousand words…
Trolltunga – To heaven and back on a 22km trek through hell
After the comfortable sail
through the fjords, our day 2 plan was to conquer one of these beautiful
snowcapped mountains surrounding the fjord. Little did we know that the very
mountain that looked so at peace and welcoming could prove to be so harsh and
painful to scale. But… we did conquer it after all!
Trek to trolltunga, hands down,
was the highlight of the vacation. Trolltunga (Troll's
tongue) is a piece of rock jutting out of a mountain from a point which is
2300ft above the ground. We were a group of four, carrying our backpacks which
had our jackets, sunscreen and 2 snickers & cereal bars for lunch. We began
with a grueling and steep climb onto a mountain, clambering up uneven rocks
taking the support of old worn-out ropes and getting breathless every few
seconds. This went on for over an hour, many a times during which we asked
fellow trekkers how much distance we have covered. Just when we were hoping
that we might have at least covered 3 to 4 kms of our 11 km upward hike, we
heard the sounds of a strong stream gushing about. We had a good drink from the
stream and spotted a sign across this stream. We crossed the stream and found
to our dismay that we have till then, covered only 1km and were left with 10kms
more to go! That was when we actually realized the true nature of our daring
expedition.
We went on, and the path became
less steep but more slippery because of all the streams that were flowing down
from the top of the mountains. We carefully waded through this for 4 kms to
reach another point where we saw the first traces of snow. This showed we were
indeed reaching the top of the mountain. The snow was getting thicker, but at
places there were streams flowing under the glacier. One wrong step, and we
could fall through the snow and get carried away under the glacier by the
furious streams roaring past underneath. We hiked carefully across this expanse
for few more kms when we reached a point where we had an amazing view of the
fjord below. We took time for a cereal bar and then started out on our way.
Pure is the synonym for the water which I drank out of the streams on these
mountains.
This was when we reached a point
in the path, which I named as the ‘Torture Path’. We had to walk on a narrow
path around a mountain covered with thick snow, with the fjord clearly visible
thousands of feet below. Just a slip would be enough to cost us our lives. 3
more kms after this path, we had our first glimpses of the much awaited rock –
trolltunga. We forgot all our hardship once we reached this place – no words to
describe the view. We spent an hour there and started back on this impossible
path. It took us a total of 12 hrs time, hell lot of determination and strength
to complete this trek. Truly a confidence booster!
Fläm - The most beautiful train journey in the world
We woke up to the sweet pains of
trek from the previous day, but went on to discover more in this land we were
in love with. We were not disappointed. We took the Flamsbana which is one of
the steepest train-lines in the world beginning from ocean level to the top of
a mountain. We had spectacular views in this journey, from steep mountain
ranges to breathtaking waterfalls cutting through the mountains with such force
that will fill you with fear and wonder.
There is a halt in this journey
when passengers can get down to a bridge to admire a colossal waterfall gushing
down the mountains. It was here that I saw something that just blew my mind.
Water was coming down with such force that there were droplets of water
everywhere and we were wet in a second. The sun was shining particularly bright
that day. It was when the sun met these droplets that a fantastic, vivid
rainbow has formed across the falls. This rainbow was so close to the bridge on
which we were standing that we could in fact put our hand across it and had the
colors play on our palms! We touched the rainbow!! This was definitely a grand
conclusion to our amazing journey through Norway.
At the end of our third day, we
left the place thoroughly enthralled hoping to be back some time…
For those of you who enjoy the
blues and greens of nature, Norway surely will go into your diary as a
‘Blissful Paradise’! – Do Not Miss!!
