Nigardsbreen

Nigardsbreen is a spectacular blue arm of the Jostedalsbreen ice cap reaching down the Jostedalen valley to a milky lake. A small boat ferries visitors across the lake to a trail beneath the ice, and guided groups rope up to walk onto the glacier itself, crampons crunching on ancient blue ice.

Background

The glacier sits in Luster Municipality, some 30 kilometres north of Gaupne, just west of the Jostedøla river. Its name, the Nigard glacier, records a disaster: in the cold first half of the 18th century the ice pushed forward about 4 kilometres between 1700 and 1748, burying nine farms, ni gårde in Danish. By 1748 it covered about 48 square kilometres. The Breheimsenteret museum stands 11 kilometres to the south in the village of Jostedal, and besides the boat across Nigardsbrevatnet a bus also takes visitors to the glacier.

Source: Wikipedia, "Nigardsbreen"

What you'll find

• The blue ice tongue - the vivid blue glacier reaching down the valley.
• The lake boat - the little ferry across the meltwater lake to the trailhead.
• Guided ice walks - roped trips onto the glacier with a guide.
• The glacier centre - the visitor centre on the changing ice.

When to go

Summer, when the boat runs and guided walks are offered; the warm months are the only sensible season on the ice. Book guided walks ahead in peak weeks.

What to expect

Reaching the ice involves a boat, a walk and, to go onto the glacier, a paid guided trip with equipment - it is not a drive-up view. The glacier is retreating, so it changes year on year. It is deep in a side valley, so it takes real driving to reach.

Nearby

The Jostedalen valley and the Sognefjord frame it; Lom and Jotunheimen lie over the mountains.

Key facts