Norway Day 20 ~ Hiking in Dovrefjell-Sunndalsfjella Nasjonalpark

So we could get a parking spot at the trailhead, we set the alarm for 6am and were on road by 6:30am. By 6:35am, we were parked and having tea/coffee. 😀 Again, we slept great – even through some rain and periodic heavy gusts of winds.

We started our hike at 8:30am - the specific trail was the Moskusstien: the Musk Ox Trail. This is the area of Norway's only Musk Ox population and we were hoping we could see one or two.

We started along the subalpine birch forest....

.....which eventually opened to tundra-like land.....

(It has to rain A LOT for us to put on our rain pants - and it POURED!!!)

The Musk Ox Trail is officially a loop, but one can veer-off towards Hogsnyta for views......

.....and this is where we saw about five musk oxen from very FAR away.

We continued back along the tundra-like area.....

...back into the subalpine birch forest.....

Eventually walking over this bridge over a roaring stream....

....past the cutest (yes, still used) train station....

....back to the E6 (the main road) to finish the loop.

We were done by 11:45am and it was a good hike - rainy and super windy at the top - yet lots of fun. 

We did need to dry some wet clothes however.......

So every time we had breakfast out, we always saw these waffles on the menu and they were always popular, so today we had waffles at a nearby restaurant - meh. 

(That's strawberry jelly and crème fraiche on top - the typical waffle topping in Norway.)

We then drove two hours to Andalsnes, thinking we may hike again tomorrow as well.....

(One can never pass-up the opportunity to dump the toilet cannister! 😆)

We parked in a parking lot in the middle of the very walkable town that allows 24 hour parking through the EasyPark app.

We wandered the town....

.... and eventually had Thai food for dinner - both dishes were great – actually some of the best curry we've had. Brad enjoyed a local strong beer.

 Today's route.....