Natural sights of Norway do not leave anyone indifferent. The harsh but beautiful nature of Scandinavia, fjords deeply cutting into the land, cold and crystal clear lakes, mountains, covered with a hat of snow in winter and summer, glaciers glistening with white - seeing all these stunning landscapes, you will suddenly forget about low temperatures. It is no secret that Norway owes its rugged coastline to the sea.
These glaciers, crawling with tongues from the mountains, pushed the earth's firmament, and the formed lowlands were already occupied by water. In this article we will consider only one glacier, but a special one. It changes colors depending on the weather. And it's called Brixdsalsbreen. How to get to this natural attraction and what to look for, read below.
Where is briksdalsbreen located
The hero of our story - the chameleon glacier - is just the northwestern language of a much larger massif, consisting of snow pressed over centuries. South of the Nur Fjord, Jostedalsbreen National Park is spread over 1300 square kilometers. Visitors will not find trees or bushes there. And even the moss is not there. Because the whole natural park consists of the largest in continental Europe, the Jostedalsbreen glacier.
Tourists, as has already been said, are most interested in its north-western language, which changes color depending on the weather, the Brixdsalsbreen glacier. How to get to this attraction? It is located in the county of Sogn og Furane, in central Norway. An independent traveler should come from the main city of the region, Leikanger, to the village of Alden. Further along the road 724 you need to follow along the shore of Lake Oldevat. So you get to the parking lot, near which there is an information tourist point. Behind it begins a hiking trail. After three kilometers, this path will lead you to Brixdsalsbreen.
What is interesting about glaciers
Northerners most often like to relax in the southern countries, where the sun, sea and palm trees. Indeed, in their opinion, there is nothing interesting in the accumulation of ice, even if large. But these lovers of tropical exoticism are fundamentally wrong! After all, the Briksdalsbreen glacier, as well as its neighbors, Brendal and Melkevol, is not last year’s snow. These natural formations arose several tens of thousands of years ago. In the ice age, Europe was covered by a powerful snow shield. The climate has changed so much that where cypresses and myrtle are now growing, the tundra was in that era. It is easy to guess what the Scandinavian peninsula was.
Then the planet Earth became noticeably warmer, but the ice sheet in Norway was so huge that it began to create a microclimate. During the short northern summer, the snow did not have time to melt, and over the long winter it accumulated more and more. Under the weight of the upper layers, the lower ones began to be pressed, turning into ice. But as the climate changed, a solid shield fell apart. Eternal snow remained only on the tops of the mountains, where altitudinal zoning determines low temperatures. Accumulating there, the glacier slides down the gorges, forming “tongues”. Thus, what we see is snow that fell thousands of years ago.
When to visit Norway Glaciers
Jostedalsbreen and one of its languages, Briksdalsbreen, are an unforgettable magnificent sight. But this kingdom of ice is best observed when daylight hours are long. The severe beauty will remain almost unnoticed in the winter, when everything around will be already covered with snow. In addition, the polar night will not give you the opportunity to view the glacier completely.
The best period to visit is June-early July. Then the daylight is the longest, and the weather in Norway pleases with a cloudless sky. But, in principle, the glacier can give wonderful views at other times of the year. Permanent excursions to Brixdalsbreen take place from April 15 to mid-October. But even outside this half-year season, you can order an individual tour.
Tours to Norway from St. Petersburg
There are several ways to visit the Briksdalsbreen glacial tongue. The most hassle-free, but also the most expensive, is a tour to Norway. But not all organized trips to this Scandinavian country include a visit to Jostedalsbreen National Park in their program. You should study in detail all the offers from the travel agency. And even if you buy a cruise on the fjords of Norway, this will not guarantee that you will be taken to a glacier.
There is a 13-day tour with a very eventful program that starts and ends in Riga. To the capital of Latvia, travelers from St. Petersburg are delivered by bus. The tour “Norwegian Voyage” is called, and it costs 46 thousand rubles. From St. Petersburg, you can get to Brixdalsbreen and Jostedalsbreen National Park as part of the 10-day journey of The Fjords Legends (Carmine Travel Company). Such trips are organized only in the summer months and cost from 47 thousand rubles.
Information for independent travelers
Tour participants to Norway from St. Petersburg and other cities will be brought to the national park by bus, and they will be delivered to the very bottom of the glacier in electric vehicles that move along a high-quality dirt road. The guide will tell you everything and show you the places where you can take the most spectacular photos.
But what if you arrived at the beginning of the path leading to the glacier, not as part of an excursion, but on your own? You have two options. First: climb a three-kilometer path for your two. The road is not difficult, even a small child can overcome it. Moreover, on the sides of the trail there are open pens where horses, goats and roe deer live. The climb to the glacier is not very steep, but it is still recommended to take comfortable shoes.
Well, if you are too lazy to go along the path, then you can take one of the electric "troll cars", designed for seven passengers. The path to the sights begins from the mini-hotel "Mountain Lodge".
Walking
At the tourist information you can get a map of the area. The Briksdalsbreen Glacier differs from other Jostedalsbreen glaciers in that it is almost not affected by the destructive effects of global warming. Of course, on your way along the trail you will find signs with inscriptions that at this point at the beginning of the twentieth century there was still eternal snow (and now it is not there). But scientists stated that, despite the concerns of environmentalists, over the 90s of the last century, the glacier did not become smaller, but, on the contrary, increased its power.
In two and a half or three hours it is quite possible to walk around those beauties that are accessible to tourists who came to the glacier without a guide-instructor. This category of visitors is allowed to walk along a path fenced on both sides. You cannot step on the glacier itself. It is dotted with deep cracks and dips. Sometimes huge boulders break away from him and crumble down with a roar.
Briksdal Lake
But even from the path, that is, from a completely safe place, a natural attraction can be considered very well. It looks impressive. The Briksdalsbreen Glacier slides down a frozen waterfall, which is two and a half kilometers long. Despite the apparent static, he still moves. In the reviews, tourists are advised to be here in the early morning or to stay until the evening, when crowds of visitors leave, and extraneous sounds no longer distract.
Then crackling and rustling will be heard. This ice river slowly but inexorably slides down to dissolve and nourish melt water Lake Briksdal. The mirror of this reservoir lies at an altitude of 346 meters above sea level. Like a glacier, the lake changes color depending on the weather, pleasing the eye with all shades of blue. Then the water, overcoming the natural dam, rushes down a stormy stream. Following the path, you can admire the numerous cascades and a waterfall. Travelers do not advise swimming in the lake and the river. The reviews mention the high fines that are levied on those who descended from the fenced path.
Individual tour
For a fee, you can explore the Briksdalsbreen Glacier nearby. To do this, you need to order a special tour with a guide at the tourist information point. You will be given appropriate equipment and shoes, instructed. Excursion participants climb the steep slopes of the glacier in one bundle with a guide. After all, a frozen river abounds with dangerous cracks several tens of meters deep. In addition, ice is not always strong.
Therefore, in order to climb the slopes of Brixdsalsbreen, a tourist must be in good physical shape and unquestioningly obey the orders of the instructor. This extreme excursion begins on the shores of the lake. Since the trip is associated with high risk, it is carried out only in the summer. Yes, and that can be canceled at any minute due to changing weather conditions.
Glacier trekking
Jostedalsbreen Park also offers other excursions in Norway. The most popular among tourists is Glacier Hike. This glacier trip is not as extreme as the previous one. But the excursion program is more extensive. Tourists are offered to see not only Brixdalsbreen, but also the neighboring languages of the huge mountain glacier - Melkevol and Brendal. At the same time, the physical preparation of the excursionists does not matter. Indeed, in order to inspect the vast area of ice, tourists are put on special electric cars of seven people each.
These machines are capable of moving on slippery and steep surfaces. In total, there are eleven such cars in Jostedalsbreen Park. This tour lasts an hour and a half. Tourists in the reviews claim that this trip is very interesting. It is gratifying that for children under seven years of age it is absolutely free, and half the price is paid for a child under 14 years of age.
"Ice Safari"
This excursion in Jostedalsbreen National Nature Park is a river rafting. The rafting is organized only in good weather, when the water level is high, but the course is not very stormy. All tourists in the reviews characterize this alloy as the most risky and the most fun. You do not have to, struggling, climb in conjunction with the instructor on the glacier slope. Rafting, rather, resembles a little scary attraction in an amusement park. Only it does not last five minutes, but as much as half an hour.
Tourists sit in inflatable rafts on Lake Briksdal. So all cascades and small waterfalls will provide rafting participants with unforgettable impressions and emotions. But, like in an amusement park, children are not allowed on such an attraction. The glacial safari ends in the farthest place from Brixdalsbreen.
Jostedalsbreen Park
Despite the beauty of wildlife, a tourist infrastructure is developed around the Brixdsalsbreen glacier (Norway). An impressive tourist center is built at the entrance to the trail. The Mountain Lodge Hotel is attached to it. If you spend the night in it, you can get to the glacier before the arrival of sightseeing buses with crowds of tourists. There is also a restaurant and several souvenir shops.
Brixdalsbreen is the most comfortable language of the Jostedalsbreen mountain glacier. Two roads lead upstairs. The first, asphalt, is intended for electric cars. It is gentle, but long. There is also a walkway. It is a steep dirt path interspersed with steps. Motorists arriving at the glacier in their vehicles can leave the car in the parking lot. Other languages in Jostedalsbreen do not have such a developed infrastructure. But on the shores of Lake Olden, into which the Brenedalsbreen Glacier flows, there is a wonderful camping called Grita.
Practical tips
Tourists recommend that before you go to the national park, you should familiarize yourself with the detailed weather forecast in Norway. If the sun shines during a visit, you're in luck. Firstly, you will see a rainbow at the waterfall - a spectacle that impresses with its beauty. Secondly, the glacier itself will shimmer in all shades - from pale azure to saturated ultramarine.
Tourists recommend taking appropriate shoes and climbing to the Kattanakken rock (Cat's Neck). The track lasts about four hours, during which you need to rise from 130 meters above sea level (the level of the information center) to 1458 m. From this height you will have an amazing view of the glacier, lake and the whole valley.