Jeff: 3 hikes in 3 days

The next morning we got up and headed down to the jetty area of the town where there was swimming opportunities, a large diving board and hot showers. Given that it was early and not quite warm enough for a cold swim we had a shower and then headed on to the next location for a hike at Brufjell which is supposed to have pot holes in the rocks from glaciers. When we started the hike the mist was still rolling in and as we climbed we managed to climb into the mist as it was continually up to start with. From the signs we had planned to take the whole circular route but we quickly met a family who said one part of the walk was closed so we had to change routes onto the other side. As we continued the walk there was an optional detour to a view point which we took to see a small light house on the cliff edge which gave some great views and we met a Italian water dog, who was very nervous of new people with a nice couple also doing the walk.

We continued on the walk (getting a little lost sometimes) and some of the walk got a little sketchy with grab handles and sheer cliff sections. There was a climbing section which gave me a little panic attack due to the sheer cliff climb needed and the fact that there was nothing to protect you from the edge. I got over it and made the climb and we continued on until we got to the section where the path splits, an easy path with a lot less to see or the expert one. I was thinking how can it get much harder! But I also knew that it probably could given the Nordics love of outdoors. We (including the swiss couple with the dog) all decided that we would give the start of the black trail ago and see how it was before we turned onto the other path. We got down the first bit which was fine and then we rounded the corner and saw a big yellow warning sign saying steep decline, descend at your own risk. That was enough to put me off and the dog couldn’t do it either so I stayed at the top with the Swiss woman and the dog while Rich and her partner headed on down. We were chatting and I was getting lots of attention from the dog while we sat there for what seemed like ages waiting for them to reappear. In the meantime we saw 1 group come up and 1 couple try to go down and swifty retreat back saying it was too slippery. Luckily they did both eventually resurface and looked a bit hot and sweaty and explained that the route down was difficult and was slippery and steep with no safety precautions, if they slipped they were in deep trouble. There were handles in the rocks which acted as ladders to climb up and down next to a waterfall to help negotiate the steep cliff walls. There were 4 potholes in total that they went to and they progressively got bigger and had good views out to sea. While I would have loved to have seen the potholes I’m also happy I didn’t attempt it as it doesn’t sound like something I would have enjoyed

Once the boys had rested for a short time we all headed back off (firstly in the wrong direction) and onwards on a small section of loop before returning to the path and some of the steep climbs we had already done.

Once back we headed to the van and had lunch as the walk was longer than expected and we were starving and then packed up and headed to our stop for the night in Jossingfjord. We stopped along the way to take some pictures as the scenery around here is amazing and once at the stop for the evening we got our swimsuits on and went for the cold dip we missed this morning before having dinner.

The next morning we got up fairly early to discover that the washing we had left out was dry but Rich’s walking trousers were missing. We could not figure out where they went (it wasn’t windy and they weren’t anywhere near the van) and after 10 minutes of looking we gave in and headed down the road a little to the view point and start of the next hike called Kobolten which is a little version of Kjeragbolten and is essentially a boulder stuck between two cliff faces. The hike is supposed to be a moderate hike ability wise which should make it similar to yesterday’s hike but without the expert section of ladders and it started just off the car park and took us up through the hills and over many boulders for just over 2km (4km round trip). It was very beautiful with views over Jossingfjord but it was hard going. We eventually got to the boulder and Rich, with trepidation, got onto it for some photos and quickly got back off and to the relative safety of the cliff. We had a short break and enjoyed the views a little more before heading back to the car park. We walked straight past the car park to the next place on my list which was tunnelsto which is a road tunnel with a sectioned off footpath within the tunnel and here are some spaces for people to rent (or bring their own) hammoks and spend the night. The footpath section has large holes overlooking the fjord and the waterfall and it was lovely to look at but I was more than happy to spend the night in the van where it was warm.

We then headed back to the van and down to Helleren where there are some houses which have been there since the 1800s (although they believe that there have been settlements there since the 1500s) and are sheltered by a large overhanging rock. This rock gives them shelter, so they have never had proper roofs. we walked around the houses (only one was open) and it was interesting to see the history but then we headed back to the van and continued on to a town called Egersund where we again managed to have a free hot shower, get some shopping in before we headed to our stop for the night at Trollpikken.

The next morning I made Rich get up early and get the last hike done as it was a family friendly 4.5km (round trip) easy route and while there were some boulders to climb over it was a quick 40 minutes to Trollpikken (which translates as Troll penis) and you can see why its got that name when you look at it. Rich managed to climb on it and I took some photos and then and then I climbed up there. It wasn’t an easy climb, I had to climb up one set of boulders, down to another set and then back up and the height differences between the boulders was larger than me but eventually (and with Rich’s help) I made it up there and before I had a panic attack about the height and lack of solid ground he popped down, took a photo and came back up to help me back off and back down to the ground. Afterwards we hot footed it back to the van in around 25 minutes, as it was down hill, and drove off to Stavenger which is the fourth largest city in Norway with a stop for breakfast and a swim in a lake for Rich. Once we got to Stavenger we parked up we walked into the old town which had a large tour group from a cruise liner walking around so we didn’t stay in that section too long (although long enough for Rich to spot the water slide on the cruise ship which is clear as you come out of the side of the ship before you head back in.

We then carried on walking around the town and walked to Fargegaten which is the most colourful street in Norway and carried on around the city seeing murals and popping into some shops. We managed to find a shop and got Rich some new hiking trousers (which weren’t too expensive) and in the shop was a beautiful puppy who I had to fuss. I could have stayed with her all day, she was soo sweet but onwards we must. We walked around for a couple of hours before heading back to the car and driving on to Sverd I fjell which are three large swords in stone near the town. This was also where we were staying for the night with lots of other campers including two sets of Brits (we don’t see them often)

The next morning we went for a run around the lake and past the swords before using the outdoor gym (only the second one we have found in Norway) going for a swim in the lake and then bundled ourselves in the van and headed off towards our next destination in Preikstolen. We plan to spend the afternoon at a camperstop and have an early night before a very early morning walk to pulpit rock tomorrow. In the meantime we have WIFI for the first time in weeks so we are catching up on admin and actually getting time to upload photos.