Spring is the season of joy in Fjord Norway

We call it springfulness, and it is created when our brains are filled with hormones in step with the growing light of spring. Endorphins, serotonin, tryptophan and dopamine have been proven to increase in our bloodstreams when Fjord Norway is bathed in the bright warm shades of spring.

Since spring in Fjord Norway starts early and lasts for a long time, and because the weather can swing from one extreme to the next, this strong sense of joy is particularly strong here. From early February, perhaps even mid-January, Fjord Norway’s fields are ready to be ploughed, before anywhere else in Norway. A long joyous spring then follows, and a long list of fantastic experiences awaits you across Fjord Norway.

Dramatic waterfalls

When the snow melts in Fjord Norway, billions of litres of water cascade down the mountains to the fjords. The countless waterfalls are never bigger than in May and June. Standing in front of one of these waterfalls in spate gives you a real rush.

Many of the biggest waterfalls in Norway are on the Sognefjord, where Vettisfossen in Øvre Årdal is the tallest with a free fall of 275 metres. You can see Norway’s biggest free-flowing waterfall from a platform erected on the edge of the cliff above it or you can walk up through the wild Utladalen valley and look up and admire it in all its glory.

Feigefossen in Skjolden in Luster is almost as tall and is another magnificent sight in spring on the Sognefjord. At the very end of the fjord, you can experience Kjosfossen in Aurland, whose WOW factor has led to the Flåm Railway making a special stop there. A sight that is guaranteed to get your serotonin pumping.

The Hardangerfjord is also jackpot for experiencing the frisky spring waterfalls of Fjord Norway in combination with fjords, mountains and glaciers. You can take the Rv 13 road from Kinsarvik up through the Husedalen valley to join a waterfall safari on the Kinso river below Nyastølfossen waterfall – guaranteed to get your adrenaline and serotonin going.

Check out our customised waterfall safari, a carefully planned route that starts and ends in Bergen and takes you to some of the most spectacular waterfalls in Norway.

Peak season for adrenaline

Spring is definitely the best season of all for adrenaline-filled activities like rafting, waterfall abseiling or glacier walks in Fjord Norway. Since many people have yet to discover how great Fjord Norway is early in the season, the crowds at tourist attractions are smaller the longer it is to midsummer.

In Loen innermost in the fjord, you can take the Loen Skylift, one of the world’s steepest cable cars, which transports you in a mere five minutes up to the top of Mount Hoven, 1,011 metres above sea level. You can enjoy panoramic views to the south, east and west from Hoven Restaurant on the top.

Skiing + sailing/surfing/cycling

When the fruit trees are in bloom and the snow on the mountain peaks sparkles in the spring sunshine, a special creature appears in the fauna of Fjord Norway. This is the frisky skiing enthusiast, a serotonin-rich species that spreads quickly and is seen until May/June. Either on skis and snowshoes making their way to summits that can’t be reached in winter, and speeding down the mountainsides – which is known as ski touring. Or all smiles in light attire on cross-country skis across mountains and plateaus. When spring comes to an end, the frisky skiing enthusiast disappears and is replaced by the ordinary summer skiing tourist.

Spring experiences in the fjords

Everyone who has lived in one of the towns and cities along the coast such as Bergen, Ålesund and Stavanger knows that spring is more than just dandelions popping up and sitting in a T-shirt in an outdoor bar by the sea. Although that in itself is enough to increase the level of serotonin in our blood in this part of Norway, spring is more than just pleasure and euphoric hormones. A fjord cruise from Vågen in Stavanger to the Lysefjord is particularly lovely in spring. The Lysefjord then opens its treasure trove of hiking routes in the mountains, the fish are ready to bite in lakes and rivers, and the Pulpit Rock is much easier to get to as the snow melts.

Flowers burst into life

The great local variation in climate and geography means that a lot of the roads in Fjord Norway are closed during winter. From Setesdal and Sirdal in the south to the Hardangervidda mountain plateau, the Sognefjellet, Jotunheimen and Romsdal mountains in the north of the region, the roads are marked by poles sticking up from the snow during winter. In late spring, the snowploughs use these poles to navigate and find the road many metres below.

As soon as these roads have been cleared and open, you can drive on bare asphalt between towering snowbanks while the sun streams in through your windscreen. Cycling between the walls of snow also makes for a magical experience, preferably dressed in shorts and a T-shirt in the spring sunshine.

Regardless of the mountains, fjords and waterfalls, spring in Fjord Norway is about the joy of life. Surrounded by flowers and trees, birds and fauna that awaken to life after the winter and show the true colours of Fjord Norway: A cacophony of life, flowers, colour and joy that can overcome the melancholy and brush away the worries of those lucky enough to be there.