Fjord fiesta - Scanorama

FJORD FIESTA
Trondheim
Kristiansund
Atlantic Road
White-knuckle ride:
Storseisundet bridge
Bud
Molde
Ålesund
Åndalsnes
THROUGH EIDSDALEN the
slopes get steeper and
Norddal
greener. Our car struggles
through the sharp curves, but
Eidsdal
it’s the other cars that start to look unsteady.
The traffic is slow here but only because the
drivers are too busy looking at the fjord below.
Geiranger
They stop here and there, veer into
our lane.
It’s not that surprising really. The views over
Geiranger fjord, a deep bay with dark blue water
pushing through lush towering mountains,
are the best yet. One of the Hurtigruten coastal
steamers, a lifeline for the fjord communities,
motors out of an idyllic village in the upper reaches
of the bay. I saw exactly this image on a postcard
when I was a child.
Toineke Westen and Hugo Meiland chase twoyear-old
Jasper back off the road.
The family packed their trusty Toyota Land
Cruiser a month or so ago, and have driven
through Denmark, Sweden and Finland. Now
they are on their way home to Holland.
“We were just quarreling about what it was
most like. Hugo says the Rocky Mountains. I
think Austria,” Westen says. “Either way, it is a big
contrast to back home, which is completely flat.”
They have been living in their rebuilt Land
Cruiser. “We have bought fresh salmon and reindeer,
and prepared it in the campsite kitchen. Although
we can’t tell Jasper that the reindeer meat
comes from those cute animals we saw in northern
Sweden.”
Down in Geiranger, you can tell this isn’t tourist
season. During the summer, the 150 or so cruise
ships that stop at the harbor discharge more than
300,000 passengers. Today, the 240-strong population
has the village to themselves. Our chances
of finding bacalao seem slim.
A small white timber house by the harbor looks
like it belongs in an outlet village. The sign says
Posten, which makes it sound like a post office,
but inside people are eating. The waiter shakes
Trollstigen
THE FACT SHEET
WHERE TO STAY
Thon Hotel Kristiansund
Clean, bright hotel standing on the site
of an old klippfisk dock. The jetty looks
out over Kristiansund harbor. Doubles
from €120.
Fiskergata 12, Kristiansund.
Tel: +47 71 57 30 00.
www.thonhotels.no
Rica Seilet Hotel
Dubai’s Burj al Arab in miniature, a glass
sail tethered to Romsdal Fjord and
Aker Stadium. Doubles from €165.
Gideonvegen 2, Molde.
Tel: +47 71 11 40 00.
www.rica-hotels.com
Hotel Union
Luxurious family-owned hotel reminiscent
of the Alps’ classic spa hotels. Insist on a
room overlooking Geirangerfjord. Doubles
from €200.
Geiranger.
Tel: +47 70 26 83 00.
www.hotelunion.no
Juvet Landscape Hotel
The only flat screen in your stripped-down
pine cabin is a floor-to-ceiling window
tuned permanently to the nature channel.
€195 per person, including breakfast.
Alstad, Valldal.
Tel: +47 95 03 20 10.
www.juvet.com
WHERE TO EAT AND DRINK
Smia
Kristiansund is Norway’s bacalao capital
and Smia does the best and most authentic
in town.
Fosnagaten 30, Kristiansund.
Tel: +47 71 67 11 70.
www.smia.no
Posten
Unassuming on the outside, this brasserie
measures itself against Noma – and
delivers. Perhaps its Michelin stars are in
the mail.
Geiranger.
Tel: +47 93 04 49 14.
www.brasserieposten.no
Villa de Sving
Hippie-chic café with the best cappuccino
in western Norway.
Geiranger.
Tel: +47 97 64 94 78.
www.geiranger.no
56 FEBRUARY 2013 SCANORAMA