Troll ladder

On paper, this road is only a 5-kilometer section of the route with a mean four-letter RV63 index somewhere in Western Norway. But for those who visit here at least once, these 11 turns will forever remain in memory. And not at all for the reason that it seems at first glance.

(Total 28 photos)

Source: Journal/artemspec

1. "Incredibly dangerous serpentine!" - this is how journalists, bloggers and other ethnographers from all over the world write about this road. And, I can assure you, it really is. But the reason lies not at all in the insidiousness of the "mother-in-law's tongues" of this amazing road. Driving pleasure is unlikely to be obtained here - after all, in the high season, traffic on Trollstigen is quite dense, up to 2,500 cars a day. Endless minibuses quietly crawl uphill and downhill, sharing the roadway with tourist buses and campers. Everyone travels calmly and calmly. There is no question of dialing the permitted 80 km/h.

2. But even at minimum speed, the views of the valley and mountains, seasoned with serpentine meanders and waterfalls, are very distracting from driving. You need to be completely focused so that when you open the next magical panorama, you don’t crash into the stone fangs enclosing the canvas.

3. There are many motorcyclists from various countries on the RV63, but Norwegians are the most common. For them, a three-day "real boar" RV63 ride is a great way to spend the weekend. One of the stern gray-haired Norwegian bikers (a sysadmin in life) told me over an evening beer that the day before, looking at native beauties, he almost caught a concrete block on this road.

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5. Therefore, if you want to enjoy the views, do just that - park your car on one of the special sites available in abundance, take a breath, and admire how the bright sun hides behind the pass.

6. Norway loves classic cars, so you can watch a similar scene with your own eyes, find yourself in these parts.

7. The history of this road, laid between the towns of Åndalsnes and Valldal, is reminiscent of the history of Norway itself. For the benefit of the prosperity of fair trade and other communications, at the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th century, it was decided to build the most technically difficult road through a steep pass with a vast plateau lying in the middle between the mentioned settlements.

8. Even then (more than 100 years ago), Norwegian officials were clear about the entire tourist potential of this road. Therefore, the considerable price of the issue did not frighten anyone.

9. Years of research went on, concepts, presentations, appropriations, project, working documentation were gradually embodied ... Then construction began, which lasted almost 8 years.

10. The work was carried out in very difficult conditions - from October to May it snows in these parts, and the temperature drops below -20, in addition, the workers were threatened by constant rockfalls. But all this was just another ordinary test for the descendants of the Vikings. As a result, the road through the Troll Pass was built in 1936, and has existed to this day without significant changes. And it will live for hundreds of years.

11. The certificate of acceptance of the site was signed personally by King Haakon VII of Norway. It was he who had the right to give a name to this masterpiece of engineering art of the early 20th century. The king ordered to name this object Trollstigvegen, that is, the expensive "Troll Ladder".

12. Over the past 10 years, the Troll Road has been slightly expanded, and new elements of engineering protection of the territories have been installed. However, in some places the width of the road narrows to 3.3 meters, therefore, according to the legislation, the passage of vehicles over 12.4 meters long is prohibited here. The road is covered with snow and closed due to increased danger.

13. In the middle of the road there is a graceful bridge over the Stigfossen waterfall, which brings down streams of water from a height of 180 meters.

14. Each stone here lies for a reason, but has an inventory number.

15. The top of the Trollstigen pass bears the name of Stigröre and has a height of 858 meters above sea level. The slope of the road averages 9%.

16. The serpentine is surrounded by frowning mountain peaks, which bear the names traditional in the monarchical tradition (King), Dronningen (Queen) and Biskop (Bishop).

17. At the top of the pass, mountain ranges battered by bad weather and eternity rise into the sky.

18. As a matter of course: trails for trekking and biking are laid everywhere on the plateau.

19. Small wooden houses look like toys.

20. The aesthetics of simple architecture, waterfalls, red grass, the whistle of the wind and the mountain air that fills you - and it deceptively seems that a person lives here in a continuous symbiosis with harsh nature.

21. Campervan is the best way to travel around Europe if you are on a budget. Even wealthy Europeans prefer not to spend money on hotels, and they bring a house with them (at worst, they rent it on the spot).

22. View of the Isterdalen valley.

23. Norway below is not at all like the one that opens beyond the pass. At the bottom it looks like the Urals, at the top it looks like the Khibiny.

24. The views from the top of Trollstigen are not spoiled by the presence of a person - rare buildings on the slopes only allow you to feel the scale of the mountains.

25. It's amazing how white it will be here in winter - however, in September the snow has not yet hidden all the beauty of the moss and the play of light and shadow.

26. There are cafes and souvenir shops on the pass. Pay attention to how carefully these modern buildings fit into the surrounding landscape.

27. Lambs graze around as if descended from fairy-tale illustrations, as if they do not know anything about the danger emanating from a person.

28. And what is there, beyond the pass? Oh, that deserves a separate post. Stay tuned!