Buerbreen
More or less in the middle of the way from Stavanger to Bergen, lies Odda. You may know the town from Netflix series Ragnarok where the action takes place. Odda is also known to many tourists as it lies in the vicinity of one of the most famous Norwegian wonders - Trolltunga.
This blogpost, however, is not dedicated to Trolltunga, which lies to east of Odda. Instead, we will go the other way - to the west of the town. There you will find Buerbreen - a massive glacier and a scenic hiking route which will take you right to the foot of it. The starting point of the hike is a parking lot located about a 15-minute drive from Odda. You will need to pay a parking fee, but it is not very expensive (around 150 NOK), especially when compared to the more popular Trolltunga or Preikestolen. You can see the glacier right from the parking lot - fight from the beginning you know it’s going to be worth it!
The view from the parking lot near Buerbreen.
The hike itself doesn’t take very long - around 2-3 hours. It is significantly less than the hike to Trolltunga, for example, which may take up to 12 hours! Don’t be fooled, though, as the trip, while shorter, is not any less difficult. Along the way you will have to traverse sharp rocks and steep cliffs. Fortunately, most of them have ropes, without which it would be very hard to travel both up- and downhill. Anyway, it was all very fun for us - we felt like we were real rock-climbers!
Keep a tight grip!
A spectacular view of the glacier awaits you after you reach the top. You can walk very close to it and take beautiful shots. However, remember that as is the case with any glacier in Norway, it is forbidden to walk on the glacier itself. It is only allowed with a professional guide and special equipment. Glaciers are not only beautiful, but also dangerous. Treat them with respect they deserve! And let us do so while we can. All around the world, glaciers become smaller and smaller, every year. We guarantee you that even the photos taken from afar will turn out amazing.
