Whilst blessed with blue skies and sunshine for the vast majority of my trip, day 3 was a grey exception. Yet Norway still dazzled under brooding skies. It was time to leave Loen behind and take the scenic route to Sæbø… Well ok, pretty much every route in this part of the world could be described as the scenic route. But somehow the long route doesn’t do it justice!
The Panorama Road takes a route along the north shore of the Nordfjord, rising to 550m above sea level with spectacular views to match. The beauty of travelling off Norway’s beaten track in early season is that the road stretches out before you with barely a vehicle to share it with. I met just a handful of cars coming the opposite way in the 50km of the Panorama Road! There are plenty of pull-ins leading to walks and the beautiful Tvinnefossen falls can also be found along the route. I enjoyed stopping for a picnic in tranquil surrounds overlooking the Nordfjord. Even the drizzle stopped so I could gaze over the fjord from a bench as I munched away:
After refuelling at Nordfjordeid, I continued driving up to Folkestad to take my first ferry trip. Believe the hype – the ferries are so easy to use! Norwegians describe the ferry crossings as part of the road network and this is absolutely the case. Roll up in line (if you are early you can get out for a walk whilst leaving your car in the queue) then drive on and pay with card or cash. Finally enjoy the ride, either in your car or preferably up on deck! It was raining again by this point but I wouldn’t have missed the sea air in my nostrils and the wind in my hair for anything.
Disembarking on the Volda side was quick and easy, so soon I was on the road to Sæbø. There is one part of the drive along Rv655 where you come over the crest of a hill and there before you stand the magnificent Sunnmøre Alps. I had to pull the car over so I could get out and drown in the view. Any trip of scenic western Norway creates a problem – are there enough superlatives in English, Norwegian or any other language to adequately convey the beauty of these views? The ominous grey skies were swollen with rain but somehow they created a feathery blanket atop the range of jagged peaks reaching for the sky.
After checking in to my hotel (complete with turfed roof) I took the ferry which crosses the Hjørundfjord and serves the small communities up and down the fjord. I did this as a foot passenger and was able to buy a round trip for 41NOK. Three times a day this ferry deviates from the Sæbø – Leknes crossing to do a round trip from Sæbø to Standal and Trandal. This was a great opportunity to use the ferry to take a mini cruise and appreciate the views of this very peaceful and undeveloped fjord area:
The Hjørundfjord is probably the the most rugged yet peaceful of the fjords I have visited in my two trips to Norway. There are no major cruise ports on its shores and although in Autumn the Hurtigruten ships make a detour here, for the most part just a single small car ferry ploughs its furrow across the fjord on regular crossings to connect up the road network.
After a long scenic drive I settled in for an early night punctuated by sunshine and showers. Nature put on one last great show for me before I called it a day…
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