Chasing Fjords and Summits: 24 Days in Southern Norway

It’s the drama of the fjords that captured us. The water—so pristine and impossibly clear—beckoned us to dive in. Until we spotted floating ice, which quickly made us reconsider. Towering cliffs surround the fjords, creating a landscape that left us in awe of its sheer scale and grandeur. It’s as if the landscape rose high above the ocean and then a gigantic claw ripped out deep fjords. The claw dipped below the ocean depth and then curved inland in a sweeping arc. As we drove inland, the same jagged peaks continued, but the valleys began to rise—as if that colossal claw had arched back up from the earth. (Note: This is purely a visual metaphor, not a geological explanation! But you know how the internet is these days…)

Glaciers still grace the mountain ridges, their icy melt feeding countless waterfalls that cascade over the cliffs. Some are caught by wind and drift into mist before they ever reach the fjord below. Others thunder down in powerful torrents, crashing against jagged rock and leaving us utterly mesmerized by their force.

Driving down a cliff: Lysebotn Road by the Lysefjord

With such dramatic cliffs, it would seem that the waterways are the most logical way to navigate the region—and indeed, we drove our car onto several ferries to cross the fjords. But it was the tunnels that truly fascinated us.

Instead of winding over mountains, many roads in Norway go straight through them—or even beneath the fjords. In fact, Norway is home to the Lærdal Tunnel, the longest road tunnel in the world, stretching 15.2 miles (24.5 kilometers) through solid rock.

At the lookout above Lysefjord, we peered over the edge and tried to imagine how we’d ever drive all the way down to the water. A few hairpin turns were visible below, but the slope seemed too steep to host a road the full distance. After navigating several tight switchbacks, the road suddenly veered right—straight into the mountainside. We entered a tunnel that burrowed deep into the rock, continuing the descent within. Then we encountered yet another sharp hairpin turn inside the mountain, before the road curved back out into daylight.

The Lysebotn Road (Fv500) is an engineering marvel: it contains 27 hairpin turns and climbs nearly 3,000 feet (900 meters) in just 18 miles (29 kilometers). The tunnel we passed through is 3,619 feet (1,103 meters) long, carved straight through solid rock.

Lysebotn itself is only accessible by this seasonal mountain road or by boat via the Lysefjord. Either way, getting there was an adventure.

The tagline of 43BlueDoors is “Find Your Freedom.” My new book The Rhythm of Everything: A Journey Through Nature, Science, and Faith is about our freedom on the road, but also about finding spiritual freedom that doesn’t conflict with science.

Note: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases when clicking on the link above.

The Green Glow

Mist hung in the air above Lysefjord, but we could still see the ferry slowly approaching. While chatting with the man in the ferry office, Trin asked if he had any idea when the rain might stop. He glanced down at his watch and replied humourously, “Around mid-June.”

Bundled in layers—jackets topped with rain shells—we wandered along the quiet waterfront. Steep cliffs plunged into the deep fjord, their edges softened by drifting mist. The water below glowed with a luminous, almost electric green, swirling and shimmering with the movement of the current. The mist created a bubble around us, muffling sound and adding to the otherworldly atmosphere.

The surreal green hue wasn’t from reflection or sediment, but from microscopic algae thriving just beneath the surface. These photosynthetic phytoplankton, rich in chlorophyll, bloom in the nutrient-rich waters of the fjord, especially in spring and summer. Life on the tiniest scale had transformed the entire landscape—strange, beautiful, and utterly unforgettable.

A Mountain Pass

While Norway’s tunnels are feats of engineering, taking the old mountain passes offers a more scenic—and adventurous—experience. Even in late May, snowbanks were higher than our car in places, and the alpine lakes we passed were in varying stages of freezing and thawing. And yes—it was cold!

Hiking in Norway in May

One of our most unforgettable days was hiking to Pulpit Rock (Preikestolen), a towering cliff rising 604 meters (1,982 feet) above Lysefjord. The 5-mile (8-kilometer) round-trip hike features a mix of stone staircases, wooden walkways, and rocky scrambles. It’s not a leisurely stroll, but the reward is breathtaking.

The sense of scale in Norway is hard to describe until you’re in it. You’re small here, but never insignificant. The fjords have a way of making you feel part of something ancient and enduring.

We visited Norway from mid-May to early June. During this time, some high-elevation trails were still closed or unsafe due to snow and weather conditions. For example, we couldn’t hike to the famous Hanging Rock (Kjeragbolten) due to heavy rain, which makes the slick granite dangerously slippery. The Gaustatoppen Summit trail was still partially snow-covered and slushy, but not too deep. 

Some viewpoints were completely fogged in at first, but we learned to wait a bit—more often than not, the mist cleared and revealed sweeping views of the valleys below.

One major upside of visiting during this shoulder season? Few crowds. Even the most iconic hikes felt peaceful and unhurried.

Expenses for 24 Days (in USD)

Norway is expensive. At one point, we paid as much as $9.50 USD per gallon of gasoline! We originally booked an electric car—EVs are the norm here, and charging stations are everywhere. But when we arrived to pick up the car, we were told there were no electrics available. We settled for a hybrid. The hybrid gave us great fuel efficiency, and on the bright side, we didn’t have to wait at charging stations.

Our total transportation costs—including the car rental, tolls, gas, and parking—averaged $61 per day.

We kept our lodging costs down to $47 per night, mostly by staying in cabins. They were clean and comfortable, though restrooms were often shared. Only one place charged extra for hot showers. There, we boiled a pot of water in our room and took a Filipino shower.

Most cabins had either a small burner or access to a shared kitchen, which allowed us to prepare our own meals. Our average food cost came to just $16 per day.

Across all our travels, our average daily cost has been $51 USD. Here’s how that breaks down by continent (Norway not included). For a deeper dive into expenses by continent, check out our total cost of travel breakdown post.

The experience is priceless

Find your blue door to freedom!