Breheimen National Park

Breheimen, the home of the glaciers, covers about 1,670 square kilometres between the Jostedalsbreen ice cap and the Jotunheimen massif, and it takes in a wide range of country in that span: glacier arms and high ice in the west, deep green valleys such as Mordalen and Fortundalen, and dry pine forest and reindeer plateau in the east around Skjak. The park was created in 2009. The Sognefjell road, the highest mountain pass in northern Europe at 1,434 metres, runs along its southern edge between Lom and Skjolden and gives easy access to trailheads. Old summer farms, drove roads and the Sunndalen valley route through to Jostedalen carry a long history of movement across this ground.

History

Breheimen was first proposed as a national park in the government's Second National Park Plan of 1986, adopted by the Storting in 1992, and after a planning process from 2005 the park was established in August 2009. In summer 2011 a well-preserved man's coat of about 300 AD was recovered from a melting glacier here, the oldest surviving garment found in Norway (Wikipedia, Breheimen National Park).

Highlights

• The glacier arms - ice reaching down from the Jostedalsbreen side.
• The Sognefjell road - northern Europe's highest pass along the park edge.
• The green valleys - Mordalen, Fortundalen and Sunndalen cutting through.
• The old drove routes - paths and summer farms used for centuries.

When to go

July to September for walking, when the Sognefjell road is open and the passes clear; the road usually opens in May and closes with the first heavy snow. Autumn colour in the valleys is strong in late September.

Before you go

Glacier travel here requires equipment and skills, and unroped walking on ice is dangerous. The Sognefjell road closes without much warning in early or late season storms. Lodges are scattered and distances between them are long.

Nearby

Jostedalsbreen lies west, Jotunheimen and Hurrungane south; Lom stave church and Skjolden are the road towns.

Key facts