Borgund Stave Church,The Lærdal Tunnel, High View of Aurlandsfjord, Kayaking at Flåm on the Fjord

8/3/2024

1 Comment

Still heading towards Bergen, but we have multiple highlights to experience today.

The scenery continues to be its own highlight today.

"Borgund Stave Church is a former Catholic Church and later the Church of Norway in Lærdal Municipality. It was built around the year 1200 AD as the village church of Borgund, and belonged to Lærdal parish until 1868, when its religious functions were transferred to a new Borgund Church, which was built next to it. The old stave church was restored, conserved and turned into a museum. It is classified as a triple-nave stave church of the Sogn-type and the grounds also contain Norway's sole surviving stave-built free-standing bell tower."

The inside of the church had very little room for its parishioners.

The "freestanding" bell tower

The new church, holding 175, in its resplendent coat of red paint...

Back to the scenic drive...

"The Lærdal Tunnel is a 24.51-kilometre-long (15.23 mi) road tunnel connecting the municipalities of Lærdal and Aurland. The southwest end of the tunnel is approximately 117 kilometres (73 mi) northeast of Bergen. It carries two lanes of European Route E16, and was the final link completing the main highway that now enables car travel between Oslo and Bergen with no ferry connections and no difficult mountain crossings during winter. It is the longest road tunnel in the world, succeeding the Swiss Gotthard Road Tunnel."

"There are signs every kilometer indicating how many kilometers have already been covered and how many still to go. To alert drivers who become inattentive or start to doze, each lane is supplied with a loud rumble strip at the center."

"Its design takes into consideration the mental strain of driving through a long tunnel. It is divided into four sections, separated by three large wide carve-outs (with parking space available) at 6-kilometre (3.7 mi) intervals. While the main tunnel has white lights, the caves have blue lighting with yellow lights at the fringes to give an impression of sunrise. These caves are meant to break the monotony, providing a refreshing view and allowing drivers some relief. They are also used as turnaround points, and as break areas to help alleviate claustrophobia during the 20-minute drive through the tunnel."