Fjords and mountains around Geirangerfjord and Alesund, Norway

During a short holiday based in Alesund in Norway, we did a day trip touring the surrounding fjords and mountains. Ålesund is a town and municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, is part of the traditional district of Sunnmøre.

From Alesund, we headed east to Sjoholt and then Stordal, passing a very long lake, then through tunnels and around mountains to Liabygda, along another lake to Linge where we had a ferry crossing. Views whilst driving -

Waiting for the ferry and the crossing -

We continued on, going through a valley with a lake -

Then up into the mountains and as we descended the other side we stopped at a major view point. There were stunning views down to Geiranger and the fjord. This is part of the UNESCO World Heritage site, West Norwegian Fjords – Geirangerfjord and Nærøyfjord. 
"Geirangerfjord and Nærøyfjord, set 120 km from one another, are part of the west Norwegian fjord landscape. The two fjords, among the world’s longest and deepest, are considered as archetypical fjord landscapes and among the most scenically outstanding anywhere. Their exceptional natural beauty is derived from their narrow and steep-sided crystalline rock walls that rise up to 1,400 m from the Norwegian Sea and extend 500 m below sea level. The sheer walls of the fjords have numerous waterfalls while free-flowing rivers cross their deciduous and coniferous forests to glacial lakes, glaciers and rugged mountains. "
"The starkly dramatic landscapes of Geirangerfjord and Nærøyfjord are exceptional in scale and grandeur in a country of spectacular fjords. These fjords are among the world’s longest and deepest, and vary in breadth from just 250 m to 2.5 km wide. Fjord, a word of Norwegian origin, refers to a long, deep inlet of the sea between high cliffs formed by submergence of a glaciated valley. These two West Norwegian fjords are considered to be classic and complementary examples of this phenomenon, a sort of type locality for fjords that still display active geological processes."

 The town of Geiranger -

We went down to Geiranger -

I was surprised to see jellyfish and starfish in the water, as well as seaweed.

Trolls feature prominently in Norse mythology, this is a Geiranger troll

From Geiranger we went up into the mountains again and stopped at another viewpoint

 View of the hairpin road we had descended earlier -

This blue sky didn't last as we climbed higher and came to the snow area

At this lake, 1030 m asl, we paid a toll to go up a new road to the summit of a hill. Unfortunately the clouds were down and it was sleeting and there was a strong wind so it was no good for photos.

Our next stop was at a thundering river and a long waterfall -

From here we went alongside many long lakes, past Stryn and several villages

We then had another ferry crossing before reaching back in Alesund

© Liz Price