We had some idea of the activities to do in Stavanger but we didn't have anything set in stone bearing in mind the fact that the weather would strongly impact our decision to spend on a trip out to explore nature. The next morning, we woke up and headed down for a leisurely breakfast. We checked the weather and it was going to be sunny with rain in the evening.
The husband brought along a schedule for the ferry to Tau for hiking up to Pulpit Rock. Coincidentally enough, the only one we could make was in an hour. We had to get to the dock to purchase the tickets. The husband ran upstairs to pack a bag. I baked a blueberry poppy seed cake and had brought it from home. I was glad that we brought it with us to hike. Meanwhile, I hustled and made hubby a waffle and grabbed some hardboiled eggs and sausages in a napkin for him. Asian instincts kicking in. Fill up before the hike! We sprinted for the bus which thankfully was on time. Hubby enjoyed the remainder of his breakfast on the bus. Crossed our fingers and arrived just 10 minutes before the ferry set sail. Bought the tickets and off we went.
After arriving in Tau, we were loaded onto a bus and being a weekend, there were so many hikers so we had to stand in the middle aisle crammed like a pack of sardines. Nonetheless, we were thrilled. At one point, seeing a sign for a carpark to Pulpit Rock, I thought we had arrived. To my horror, the bus started descending on a windy and steep road. Lower and lower we went. All I could think was do we have to hike all that way back up to make it to the carpark?? It turns out that there was a main bus stop which was much further down. We would cross over the road, go under a tunnel and begin our hike from there.
Oh Lord, this beginning stretch was the most challenging steep climb. Thankfully, I had read Khai Shing's entries which really helped us to know what to expect. I was telling the husband there is about 10-20 minutes of this before the real hike begins. Norwegian families are 'terrer'. The parents and kids had giant backpacks and they were marching up the road like no big deal. Even the adverts we saw on Norwegian tv had children all dressed in proper sporty attire doing very sporty activities. We also passed some playgrounds on the way which looked more like army training bases with giant tires and mature obstacle courses. That picture in the far bottom right, was the carpark from whence we began.
We scaled the sides of giant boulders treading on some rocky steps here and there. Beautiful view.
We finally came to a clearing which had a boardwalk. Thankfully, we knew better than to think we had arrived. We needed to cross over 2 mountains to get to the Rock. It was up and down, up and down and up again.
Sweating away our breakfast. Great workout buttdown.
We came to a flat land with a few small lakes/ponds. Here, without other fellow hikers, we probably would have gotten lost as there was no direct path. We had to scale a giant boulder at one point with no steps. We had to find our footing on any tiny groove and hoist ourselves up onto the boulder and slide down the other side.
Came to a gorgeous viewing point where we could see a long waterfall down the mountain on the left. You could see a glimpse of the fjord from here. A Chinese family probably thought they had arrived, so they sat down to have a picnic.
The final bit was quite steep and we were also starving.
Finally arrived at the top after about 1hr40mins from the carpark. We could see the cruises below.
There were so many tourists on the rock itself. I was worried for them. They seemed so hyper, jumping, posing for cameras. I just could imagine someone missing their step and banging into someone else and over the edge you will go. Always in situations of high excitement and adrenaline, we must take extra care given the level of distraction and carelessness that would surround you.
After a quick lunch of blueberry poppy seed cake, we headed back down to make it in time for the early bus back so that we would still have time to get our dinner. The journey down was no joke on our joints and feeble muscles. I was shaking waist down by the time we got to the steep road. I couldn't feel my legs. Trembling like a leaf. :) It was amazing!
We sent a postcard home.
Grabbed a quick McD dinner (Norway has the most expensive McD in the world by the way) and we crashed into bed. The most satisfying meal and sleep ever!
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