Living on the Edge

Continuing northwards. The next stop is the small village of Flåm. The short 170 kilometers suggest a short travel time, but shortly after leaving Bergen, it becomes clear that this route could take up the whole day. On the one hand, this province seems to have taken lessons in road construction from Rogaland, and on the other hand, constant stops are made due to the abundance of scenic photo motifs. Additionally, I get to learn about another energy-saving development by the Norwegians, the unlit road tunnel. What would trigger a moderate identity crisis at the responsible road construction office at home seems to bother no one here. Most tunnels, and on this route there are almost 50 kilometers, are either very poorly or not illuminated at all. A remarkable experience when one of the locals has forgotten to turn on the lights and is coming towards you in the tunnels, mostly consisting of just one tube. Luckily, on this route, the Gudvangatunnel, with 12 kilometers, the second longest in Norway, is also located.

Flåm itself offers little to the ambitious tourist besides a souvenir shop and the Flåm Railway, one of the steepest railway lines in the world... except for a small craft beer brewery, which according to some locals is apparently the best in all of Norway. The Ægir BrewPub, as the name of this single-family house with an integrated brewing kettle, is nicely located at the harbor, and that settles the course of the evening. Unfortunately, after tasting the brew's product, the statement 'the best beer in Norway' does not necessarily give hope for what the rest of the country has to offer when the illegally imported reserves of domestic beer run out.

Camping here is pretty awesome though. Wedged between high mountain slopes and the fjord, there is almost no wind and virtually no 'Norwegian Air Force,' as the locals kindly call their summertime mosquito plague.