Preikestolen (Pulpit Rock)
Stavanger, Norway > Jorpeland, Norway
We woke up in the middle of the night to the sound of an intense rainfall hitting our tent - it was quite the “thrashing.” We reluctantly got out of our sleeping bags around 9:00 AM after a group of runners rallied around the tent camping spot - we weren’t feeling quite as motivated as they were.
We packed up our stuff after breakfast, drying off what we could and using several methods to pull one of the tent stakes out of the ground - it was lodged into a tree root. Go figure.
We drove to Preikestolen (Pulpit Rock), parked at the lower lot and started our trek. It was about five miles round trip plus some extra climbing near the top. Fortunately, the rain held off. We overdressed a tad and she’d our layers about five minutes into the hike. The trail was heavily trafficked and well maintained. It wasn’t too difficult, but we had to be careful where we stepped since the entire trail was made of rocks.
The viewpoint over Lysefjord was stunning and people were sprinkled all over Pulpit Rock. We climbed above to get a better view, and we went up the hard way after missing the easy trail. We had a snack and enjoyed people watching from above, especially the Instagram wannabe superstar.
There were several dogs too, including a pair of golden retrievers and a chocolate lab. Makes us miss our sweet boy at home. Mom said he had a busy day, cheering dad on at the gravel bike race and helping pick out their new couch for the cabin.
After we returned from the hike, we modified our plans and booked a last-minute AirB&B, even though the service and cleaning fees were ridiculous, tacking on an extra 30% to the nightly rate. We made a lasagna backpacking meal and mixed in extra beef, had candy for dessert and then shared a pack of Yum Yum noodles to top it off. Matt also had a can of pickled minced fish, which looked like cat food, and canned mackerel in tomato sauce, with crackers.
Matt learned how photoshop and applied that new skill to several Preikestolen photos, removing hundred of people - this will come in very handy in the furture!
Right before we headed for bed, we found a sheep tick on the floor. We’ll inevitably be paranoid for the rest of the trip.
Accommodations: Jorpeland, AirB&B
