142 FORESTRY OF NORWAY. 



Sogndal fiord, with its weird scenery, its fruitful tracts, 

 and transverse valleys, over which farms are scattered. . . 



' From the Sogndal the scenery of the Sogne is superb. 

 On the northern shore rises Storehog, 3,830 feet ; opposite, 

 Blejen, 5,400 feet ; and the fiord between them is about 

 two miles wide, and 2,900 feet deep. Many of the moun- 

 tains rising from the fiord are torn ; in some places birch, 

 fir, or pines, are seen to a great height ; and a solitary farm, 

 a saw or grist-mill meets the eyes. Fifteen miles above the 

 Sogndal fiord, on the northern shore are the small hamlets 

 of Lower and Upper Amble, and Kaupanger church. 

 These are situated on the shores of a lovely bay of oval 

 shape. The lower hills slope gently towards the sea, and 

 are clad with woods to their very tops ; while groves of 

 different trees, the elm, the linden, the birch, and other 

 trees, grow here and there. Two beautiful streams fall 

 into the sea, and on their banks are little grist-mills. 

 Meadows, yellow fields, and patches of potatoes were scat- 

 tered round the farms. On a sunny day the place is 

 exquisitely beautiful. How many of these picturesque 

 spots one finds upon the fiords ; they burst upon you when 

 least expected. A little farther, entering the Lyster fiord, 

 one beholds a beautiful and extensive panorama of moun- 

 tains and water. Snow and glaciers meet the eyes in the 

 higher regions ; while a farm, a hamlet, or a church, shows 

 that men live by the sea in the midst of this grand and 

 stupendous nature. 



' Some ten or twelve miles inland, on a promontory on 

 the eastern shore, is Urnaes, from which an excellent view 

 of the fiord presents itself, with its ranges of hills and 

 spurs coming down to the sea. On the western shore 

 opposite Urnaes, is Solvorn, picturesquely situated in the 

 hollow of the mountains. 



' We are here amongst mountains and glaciers, and 

 waterfalls are not awanting. At the mouth of the Lyster 

 we enter Aardal, a continuation of the Sogne, and its most 

 eastern extremity. At its entrance rises the Bodlenakkeii 

 2,990 feet, and on the opposite side the Boermolnasse, 

 3,860 feet, with still higher mountains beyond them. 



