Tuesday 24 August 2010

ABC Wednesday, F for Flåm Railway, Norway




When we were in Bergen in 2005, we decided to travel to Flåm. First by an ordinary train and we had to change trains in Myrdal and wait there for the Flåm train. We were glad when it arrived for it was cold waiting in the snow.


When I think of the Flåm Railway in Norway,I think of the number 20. It took 20 years to build the railway, it has 20 tunnels and it's 20 kms long.
Travelling in this train we passed waterfalls and the Kjos Fall was especially very spectacular.We stopped there for a while to take photos. There was a woodnymph, dressed in red singing, trying to lure all the male passengers away.;)

The Flåm Railway, which passes through the beautiful, narrow Flåm valley, is regarded as a masterpiece of Norwegian engineering. Work was started in 1924, the railway was finished during the war.
The most time-consuming work was on the tunnels. These were excavated manually. Only two of the twenty tunnels, which have a total length of 6 km, were excavated using machines.
The steep mountainsides were a major challenge, the solution being to build hairpin tunnels in order to equalise the big differences in altitude on the steep mountain. The danger of avalanches and rock falls also constituted a problem. To avoid these hazardous stretches, the line crosses the river and valley three times during the journey, but it does not cross the river on bridges. Instead, the river is led through the mountain in tunnels underneath the railway line.



With thanks to Denise Nesbitt, who created ABC.For more interesting ABC posts click on the logo in the sidebar or Here. This week we are looking for words beginning with F.

39 comments:

The Weaver of Grass said...

This brought back memories as we did Norway in a Nutshell a few years ago - very well organised - and the farmer was not lured away by the nymph!

Sylvia K said...

Such a fantastic trip and such a beautiful place! Love your photos as always! Hope you have a wonderful week, Wil!

Sylvia

Vinay Leo R. said...

ur photos are very beautiful, Wil :) as always..! have a good week..

My ABCW Post

Jo said...

A wonderful trip and vivid description for us all to share it with you. Kind regards. Jo (Khartoum)

Kay said...

Oh wow! I've never been to Norway and your photos really make me want to go. Sigh...

Cezar and Léia said...

Bonjour dear friend,
Adorable pictures, I like a lot your slide, well done!Norway is a wonderful country, we have visited Oslo last July and we loved the place.I wish I could also visit this Railway so interesting place!
Well...maybe next time! :)
hugs
Léia - Bonjour Luxembourg

Leslie: said...

That would have been a spectacular journey on this train! Looks a bit chilly, though. Hope the train was heated! :D

Miss_Yves said...

Ce chemin de fer permet d'admirer de superbes paysages: merci de nous les montrer!
Et merci de votre vixsite sur mon blog

Rune Eide said...

I should have thought of that one myself! But on the other hand - I don't think I could have done it any better. I take of my hat.

Gigi Ann said...

The slide show was fantastic. The waterFalls were spectacular, just beautiful. What a great trip you had on the Flam Railway.

photowannabe said...

Truly amazing scenery. The waterfall is stunning.
Perfect choice for the letter F.

Hildred said...

This does remind me of the Spiral Tunnels in the Canadian Rocky Mountains, - fantastic engineering and beautiful scenery.

anthonynorth said...

Beautiful photos, and some railways are great feats of engineering.

Carol said...

Beautiful photos in this slide show. What a wonderful trip.

Anonymous said...

What a joy in the middle of the night. Thank you for this beautiful journey.

daily athens

Annelie said...

Norway is a wonderful and beautiful country!
I been there a few times and it´s amazing...
Nice post!

Annelie E
ABC Wednesday tem

Roger Owen Green said...

I love train travel, and this would be a lovely sojourn.

On behalf of ABC Wednesday team, thank you! - ROG

Carver said...

What a wonderful sequence of shot. The scenery is all so beautiful. Thanks for letting us travel on the Flam railway through your shots.

Gayle said...

Thanks for giving us a seat by the window on your train travels! Marvelous photos. (I wrote about a train this week, too, but it doesn't go anywhere!)

George said...

The scenery is absolutely gorgeous. I really like those waterfalls (and the wood nymph). Thanks for a wonderful post.

Ann, Chen Jie Xue 陈洁雪 said...

20 20 20 20, is it a special number for the Norweigians. I admire you for being well traveled and retaining a lot of knowledge.

I admire Laura for her determination, but I think her parents are stupid to let her take such a great risk. Now she has gone ahead, we can only pray for her safety.

New Zealanders are proud of her even though she was only born in New Zealand and lives in Netherlands.

Arkansas Patti said...

Oh, I'd love to take that trip. What beautiful scenery. Thank you so much for taking us along.
Amazing to think those tunnels were done by hand.

Roger Owen Green said...

BTW, Reader Wil, my ABCW post is always the one at www.rogerogreen.com; it's listed on the Linky as Ramblin w Roger.

Carolyn Ford said...

Wow, 20 tunnels in 20 km...I hope they were all short or the whole trip would be enclosed! How amazing Norway must be!

Tumblewords: said...

Fantastic post! The train takes a beautiful trip.

Wendy said...

Hi Wil! So sorry I never got back to your email you send me. Time has been crazy lately. Another gorgeous "ABC" post, every time I visit your blog, have a big smile on my face...Beautiful pictures for "F"!

Vicki Lane said...

Breathtaking scenery! How nice to see a nymph!

Marina said...

I can only imagine the view...!

Indrani said...

The shots too good and the info very interesting. It must have been a lot of dedication and hard work for the Norwegians.

Anonymous said...

I have only traveled in the Far East, so the places I see from Europe and the Middle East will have to wait for another lifetime. lol

I like your photos of these kinds of places and things. I am thankful for that.

SandyCarlson said...

These are some outstanding photos. Thank you.

Marja said...

Wonderful Wil I love train rides and we already made several here but that one is absolutely amazing and the landscape and waterfalls are beautiful. What a gorgeous country

Paulie said...

WOW! It was gorgeous!!!!!!!!!

Anette said...

Hi! I came to visit via our mutual blog friend , Marina, and what do I see: Lovely photos and words about my homeland! Sending my Greetings from Anette in Norway!

Janice Thomson said...

Such delightful scenery! Here the passenger train is almost a thing of the past - our grandchildren will probably never know what a train ride is like...As always beautiful photos Wil

Arts Web Show said...

It's amazing some of the engineering feats that have been achieved over the centuries.
This sounds very impressive

Etje said...

Het weekend is weer begonnen en laat ons hopen dat het ook een droog weekend wordt.

Groetjes

Patty said...

Hope you're having a wonderful week-end.

Etje said...

Is hier nog steeds aan het regenen, maar vandaag zou het normaal de laatste dag zijn, hopelijk komt dit dan ook uit.