Hiking Trip to Trolltunga

Kyle and I take the night bus from Oslo bus terminal to Odda, a city close to the Trolltunga trailhead. We've packed our backpacks with enough water,  snacks, and clothing for a day hike. I expect that the bus ride, which leaves around 10pm, will not allow for a scenic view of Norway along the way. I'm mistaken; tonight is one phase away from a full moon, and the fjords and lakeside towns under the moonlight are really magical.

We finally get off the bus in Odda at 5:30am. The sun is not up yet, and the town is still sleeping. We are alone at the bus stop and must wait 3 hours for another bus to take us to the trailhead. We have not packed warm clothes since the weather reports said it would be perfectly clear and in the 60s.

Sunrise in Odda

The bus finally arrives and we wind up through a mountainside neighborhood to the trailhead. There, a guide hands us a trail map and tells us that the funicular steps, which start at the trailhead, are illegal to use. We look up at the steps and notice people all along them who did not heed her warning. We take the trail instead, since the stairs look tedious and too steep, even for someone like me who has no fear of heights.

Steps on the Funicular

The hike is 11km to Trolltunga, 11km back the same way. The first few km consist of going over 2 mountains; on the first, the trail is all rocks and boulders, mixed with some tree roots and mud. The trail is dangerous and tiring, but it only takes us about a half hour to go up.

Trail for the First Mountain

Then we come to where the stairs end at the top. There is a huge flat area where vacation cabins are. It's not a neighborhood with streets or yards, but just cabins scattered throughout this rocky meadow. I assume the owners only go there during winter time to ski.

Flat Area with Vacation Cabins

Next we climb the second mountain, which takes much more time. Most of it is just slabs of rock, and there are too many times when we think we've reached the top only to find there is still more to go. Once we make it to the top, it is relatively flat from there to Trolltunga, but still plenty to go. We follow the red Ts that are painted on the rocks to point out the trail. The trail is a bit crowded, as Trolltunga is a popular hike and it is a summer weekend. We see people from teenagers to people in their 60s, some in serious hiking gear and some in Vans. I recommend to anyone planning this hike to buy hiking boots. The trail is muddy in a lot of places, and running shoes would not cut it. The only thing I had close to hiking boots were my snow boots, and they worked fine.

Sneak Peak of the Fjord Below from the Trail

After about 4 hours of hiking, we finally make it to the Trolltunga cliff! There are already plenty of hikers there eating lunch. We started around 9am and it is now 1pm. We come to the Trolltunga from above, where people are already taking pictures. There is a line of about 4-5 people waiting to go on the cliff itself, so that you can get your picture taken on it without having anyone else in it. 

Trolltunga

After a 1.5 hour break, we start to go back. The way is long, and we see some backpackers set up camp for the rest of the day. We get to the two mountains and begin the climb down. We expect that since it is all downhill from there, it should be easy. We are seriously mistaken, and it takes us more time to go down than it did to go up. By the time we reach the bottom, our knees are about to give out and I walk around the trailhead parking lot like a 90-year-old woman. We make it back by 6:30pm, a total of 9.5 hours including breaks. There are still some backpackers starting the hike at this time, most likely because they want to go when the trail is not so crowded. 

The bus takes us back to Odda bus terminal, where we must wait 4 hours until midnight for our other overnight bus to take us back to Oslo. We sit in the terminal alone, which makes me worried. Eventually it arrives, and we make it back to our apartment in Oslo around 8am. It was a difficult hike, a long journey to and from Trolltunga, but we are glad we made it. Trolltunga is definitely a must-see if you've got the time (and the strength).