To hike in the mountain during the summer is a truly amazing experience. Nature is grand it provides a coolness that is hard to find in any other place. And that's exactly why my girlfriend and I decided to spend 2 weeks traveling around in the Swedish and Norwegian mountains.

​

We started our trip by going to Funäsdalen where we stayed for a week. The first day was a chill day with a boat trip on Funäsdalssjön where we got to see the beautiful views of Funäsdalen, Funsäfjället and the mountains around plus the small sand beaches along the shore provided perfect places to stop for a break. Our second activity was to hike Guldtur 9, Gruvturen - Lillskarven, which is an 11 km hike with a total elevation gain of 500 meters. It starts in Tänndalen and goes up through the woods for a while before you reach the high alpine, The views are really good immediately from the start and the trail has a nice grade. Once you reach the top are you treated with 360 degrees of great mountain scenery which reaches as long as you can see. As you descent does the hike take you past Andersborgsstugan where it is perfect to stop for a cop of coffee or something to eat before continuing on. This hike is only one of many hikes that you can find around Funäsdalen and they all provide a great experience.

The next activity was to climb to the top of Funäsdalsfjället. On Topsport is it possible to rent equipment and then it's just to follow the marked climbing trail up to the top. The climbing is fun and not too technical which means it suits the majority of people plus it is possible to choose easier paths on some sections if you are uncertain. On the way up to the top are there constant views over Funäsdalen and Funäsdalssjön and it's a fun and different way of getting to the top.

The last activity is almost a most if you come to Funäsdalen and that was to visit the Musk ox at Myskoxcentrum. Here they provide a guided tour to the Musk ox enclosure and you have a chance to get very close to these incredible animals.

 

After Funsädalen was it time to head towards Gjendesheim to hike Besseggen but on our way there did we do a quick stop in Røros since we drow though it. Apart from a very cool old church is the old city center really lovely to walk through. When we finally made it to Gjendesheim where we welcomed by scenery that is hard to beat with views out over the lake Gjende which is totally enclosed by high mountain tops. Unfortunately did illness and unstable weather stop us from hiking Besseggen but just spending a couple of days at Gjendesheim gave us memories we won't soon forget.

 

The next stop on our trip was Bergen which is located on the west coast of Norway and the trip there treated us with lots of fjords and a drive through the world's longest car tunnel, Lærdalstunneln. With its 24.5km and constant grade was it surely a special experience to drive through it. In Bergen did we take one day to explore the city center where the old tree houses in the Bryggen district offered a really special setting. The second day did we go up to Ulriken during the morning to get a proper view over Bergen and thanks to the gondola was it a smooth trip both up and down the mountain and the scenery was amazing.

​

To finish off the trip did we drive to Gaustatoppen to hike up to the old Nato-station which is located on the top. But since the road between Bergen and Gaustatoppen did take us through some truly incredible landscape where the trip just as amazing as the destination. We passed really cool winding tunnels, lots of fjords and mountain lakes, and the waterfall Vøringsfossen which definitely is worth the stop to check out. In order to get to the top of Gaustatoppen do you either hike or you could take the train that goes up through the mountain. Depending on if you want to hike both up and down or take the train one of the ways is it possible to park the car a bit differently since the main hiking route starts a bit south of the Gaustabanen where the train goes. It is totally fine to start the hike from Gaustabanen's parking lot but this trail is a bit steeper in the beginning before it connects to the main trail. No matter which you take will it be very rocky since the whole mountain is basically just a big pile of rocks of the bigger sort. We choose to hike from Gaustabanen since we wanted to take the train down to not put too much strain on the knees and joints plus we wanted to see how the train track through the mountain looked. This was absolutely a good call since the train ride down the mountain was really cool and gave the whole experience that little extra.   

​

The Swedish and Norwegian mountains are truly incredible and they have so much to offer so this trip just made me want to explore even more and it won't take long before a similar trip will take place.