Stave Church and rain

Dramatic but damp scenery

Heddal stave church

interior

painted walls

me in the ambulatory

plenty of waterfalls

Thursday August 8

Stave Church and rain

We woke up early this morning hearing thunder, so packed up the tent and had breakfast before it started to rain around 7.00 am.  We drove west from Oslo into an area called Telemark.  This is mountainous and sparsely inhabited, full of mountains, lakes, fjords and forests.  It poured all morning so we didn't see the tops of all the mountains but we saw a lot of waterfalls!

We visited Heddal stave church.  Stave churches are made from wood and were built in the middle ages.  They only survive in Norway.  Heddal was built in 1250 and the wall paintings and alter screen are from the 1600's.  There is a covered ambulatory ( a sort of corridor) all around the church between the outside and the actual nave and around each doorway into the church are amazing carvings.  Beside the church was a cafe with wifi so we stayed there a while before continuing south west.  We found a freedom camping site beside a lake where we pitched the tent.  The sun came out in the evening and it was very peaceful there.