Autumn Along the Akerselva

Autumn 

Autumn is my favorite time of year. So, one afternoon a while back, I traded in my books for my camera and headed to the river-walk; hiking up near Kjelsås in northern Oslo to take in the sunshine and nature.

Bridge over the Akerselva at Bjølsendumpa.

The Akerselva runs through Oslo and has paths alongside it from Maridalsvannet lake all the way down through the city center.  It's a nice scenic route to take into the city center, or to go out to the forests. 

Autumn time in Nydalen.

On this particular day, I wanted to head up to the forests, so I took the path headed in the direction of Nydalen. Historically, Nydalen has been an industrial hub in Oslo. Today it still very much has that old factory feeling with lots of old brick buildings dotted along the river. There are also lots of new buildings springing up in the Nydalen/Storo area, making it very modern, and in my opinion; lacking in charm.

Along the Akerselva in Nydalen.

In the northern part of Nydalen, there is a dam over the Akerselva, creating a small lake where people can sit around and enjoy picnics or go swimming.

Bridge over the Akerselva.

In some parts of the Akerselva there are pathways along both sides of the river, but in other areas the paths turn into residential streets and move away from the river.  Many bridges over the river make it easy to get across to different paths and on to where you need to go.

Light shinning through the leaves.

Autumn is my favorite season for a few reasons. Not only do I love when it cools off and becomes sweater weather, but I absolutely adore the leaves changing colors; making natural rainbows which color the ground and trees.

Dam and bridge over the Akerselva at  Brekkedammen park.

While the distance was fairly short, it took me quite awhile to walk because I kept stopping to take photos. The furthest I had gone before had been across the bridge over the dam in Brekke. Now, it was time to push on and explore what lay beyond the dam.

In Brekkedammen park.

Situated near the neighborhoods of Brekke and Kjelsås; Frysja or Brekkedammen park is a nice little park offering many picnic areas, shores to fish or swim from, and of course places to hike. It was fairly quiet and peaceful when I walked through the park, but on the weekends and in summer it would be much more crowded.

Brekkedammen park with a view of the dam in the background.

I really enjoyed getting to walk through Brekkedammen alone minus the occasional jogger. The park is also situated next to the Norwegian Museum of Science and Technology.

Statue in Brekkedammen park

There were a few artist studios located in old brick buildings along the shore. It sure would be a lovely location to work from, being so close to the trees and river. 

Brekkedammen park.

I kept heading north through the park into Kjelsås, enjoying the scenery as I walked.

Bridge over the Akerselva in Brekkedammen park.

There was just one main bridge in the middle of the park in addition to one at the beginning and end of the park.

Brekkedammen park near Kjelsås.

Some of the trees had such vibrant and magnificantly colored leaves.

Shadows.

The paths of Brekkedammen park.

Sunlight illuminating the leaves.

In case you haven't yet realized, I'm obsessed with color; especially the way light shines on and through leaves. Lighting conditions change all the time, so I love seeing the different colors and changing looks of plants.  I also love the shade of green made when light shines through leave.

Leaves in the sunlight.

I walked up to Maridalsvannet lake, but couldn't get up to the lake because the road is currently closed for a huge tunnel construction project. Instead, I turned around and began making my way down along the path on the other side of Brekkedammen park.

A rainbow of autumn leaves near Kjelsås.

 Being out in nature is very calming to me. At one point, I came to the most beautiful spot. The leaves were all different colors and glimmering in the sunlight. It truly looked magical, but sadly the photo above doesn't do it justice

The forest changing colors near Kjelsås.

Little bridge in Brekkedammen park.

As the sun was beginning to set, it was time to head back towards Brekke and down along the Akerselva on my way home.

Pathway going along the river in Brekkedammen park.

Brekkedammen park was absolutely gorgeous with the changing leaves and setting sun. I definitely hope to make it back to the park to check it out during other seasons, and if I'm lucky; before all of the leaves are gone.

Behind a dam in Nydalen.

On my way home, I stopped by the lake in Nydalen to marvel at the sunset creating a soft glow against the trees. Sadly, I went back today and most of the leaves have already fallen from the trees and now rest in the lake.

Leaves along a building in Nydalen.

It was truly a lovely afternoon in Oslo. I can't wait to enjoy the leaves and take in the nature more this season!

Drammen Day-trip: Kjørterudjuvet & Gamledammen

Autumn Adventures in Drammen!

View of Drammen from the mountains.

On Wednesday the sun was shining and the forests were beckoning. It actually was a pretty warm day (19C or around 66F), especially considering the prior week had been fairly cold (37F in the morning with a high of 52F for the day). Needless to say, I wasn't going to spend my day sitting inside.

Hiking along.

My friend and I took a train to Drammen which is just to the west of Oslo. Trains come every twenty minutes or so, and typically the ride takes about 35 minutes. We were a bit delayed because there is construction going on, so it actually took us closer to 45 minutes to arrive.

1.5km uphill to Gamledammen.

Once we arrived to the Drammen train station, we walked to the torg (square) and caught bus #3, getting off at Turheisen. This is where the adventure really began. Our main goal was to hike up Kjørterudjuvet, which is a gorge where there are different ladders and ropes. We asked a couple of Norwegians for directions and one pointed us to the trails.

The trek up to Gamledammen.

There were lots of hiking trails, so we ended up walking past the path we were supposed to take to Kjørterudjuvet. It was such a beautiful walk with all of the lovely leaves and pleasant weather, so we didn't mind going in the wrong direction. Eventually we returned to the place we thought the trail was at and began hiking up along the slope and side of the gorge, thinking eventually it would lead us to the right trail with the ladders and such.

Looking down at the gorge.

It was a long hike to the top, and the Norwegian who gave us directions passed us on his way down. He asked if we had gone to the gorge, which made us realize this wasn't the path we thought it was. We were already a good chunk of the way uphill, and he told us there was a nice lake at the top, so we hiked on, thinking we could go to the gorge after seeing the lake.

View of the gorge from above.

The hike was long, but I actually prefer walking uphill then downhill, so it was quite nice. Also, there were tons of blueberry plants along the paths. Most plants were bare, but I stopped wherever I could to pick the few blueberries I did see.

Gamledammen.

At the top, we were rewarded by beautiful views of the fall foliage around Gamledammen lake. There were a few other visitors having picnics around the lake, so we settled around a different side; resting and snacking too.

Photo-op in front of Gamledammen.

We arrived to the lake around 14:30 and after a short rest, did a little exploring around it before getting ready to make our way back down, in an attempt to yet again find the path to Kjørterudjuvet.

Bridge to an island in Gamledammen.

Gamledammen is essentially a man-made lake, formed by a dam which prevents too much water from flowing through the gorge. Virtually every river in Norway is dammed to produce hydroelectricity.  In Gamledammen there was a little lake in the middle that one would have to swim or boat out to. There was also another island accessible by bridge.

A rainbow of foliage at Gamledammen.

I will feel so sad when all of the leaves are gone, because the colors are so stunning now.

One of the islands in Gamledammen Lake.

After exploring the top of the mountain, we were all set and ready to head back to the bottom. There were signs about being careful in the gorge and entering it at one's own risk, so we were curious to see if we could go down via Kjørterudjuvet. After a little bit of looking around for a path down along the rocks and stream, we found a dry place to walk and began our journey.

Gamledammen lake.

Goodbye Gamledammen, hello Kjørterudjuvet. We were very lucky we could get to Kjørterudjuvet from the lake, because time was running out to do what we originally came to.

The rocky side of the gorge of Kjørterudjuvet.

In the gorge, there was no real trail, just a steep and rocky landscape to navigate. The descent was slow-going; having to check for lose rocks and avoid running water in particular areas.

My friend repelling down in Kjørterudjuvet.

The first real "obstacle" we came to was a series of two ropes tied together to help us repel down the gorge. My friend went first; choosing a steeper and wetter path. I went last and crossed the water much higher, not getting wet at all.

The first ladder we came to on our descent.

Next, there was a ladder to help us descend. The ladder was really two metal ladders tied together, but it was a bit sketchy because one of the rungs was broken on it. Needless to say, I had one hand on the blue rope along the gorge's side, and one hand on the ladder in case things went wrong.

Navigating the rocky landscape down.

Later on, we came to a second and final ladder. This one was of welded metal and looked like it had been there for a long time and was designed to be there. It was also much sturdier and less scary to go down.

View of the water which runs out from the gorge.

Overall, I think we had an advantage going down the gorge, and was very glad that we were able to see Kjørterudjuvet after all, because I was beginning to think we wouldn't have the time. We were also fortunate, because we finished around 18:00 when the sun was beginning to set, making it difficult to see inside the gorge.

Sun setting over the hillside. 

We briefly stopped to take some photos of the setting sun on the trees in the forest and then hiked back down to the bus stop to head into the city.

Hiking in Drammen.

The bus ride back towards the center of Drammen took about fifteen minutes. It felt nice to get to sit for a bit since we'd been on the go for many hours. Since it was still a nice day I wanted to try to do a little bit of sightseeing around the city center before heading home.

Fall leaves near Turheisen bus stop.

The sun was setting fast so we decided to get off at a stop near one of the bridges we had seen on our bus ride in the morning. We had a short walk from the bus and through a park to the Drammenselva (Drammen River).

One of several bridges crossing the Drammenselva.

We walked across Ypsilon Bru (Ypsilon Bridge), enjoying the peaceful sunset on our quick sightseeing tour. There were a few boats and rowers practicing in the river, but otherwise things were pretty quiet.

Rowers on the Drammenselva.

As the sun set, it started getting colder so we took just a few photos before heading in the direction of the train station.

Rowers practicing on the Drammenselva.

My first impression of Drammen when we came in on the train, was that it seemed like a factory town. In reality it seemed like a nice, charming town outside of Oslo, surrounded by hills covered in forests and lakes.

View of Ypsilon Bru in the background.

Tusen takk Drammen for a nice autumn adventure!

Gressholmen Island

An Autumn Island Adventure

 The ferry backing away from the Island.

Island hopping is an easy day-time adventure in Oslo. At the harbor, several Ruter boats leave periodically throughout the day ferrying visitors between the islands in Oslofjord. It's very convenient, because the same ticket or pass for transportation on the bus, metro, etc., works on the Ruter ferries too.

 Detail of the rocky island surface & pathways.

During the summertime many islands are accessible by ferry, but as the seasons change, the shops and cafes close down, and the ferries no longer go to every island. Before it get's any colder, I wanted to get out and take advantage of the beautiful weather and the colorful changing leaves.

Plants on Gressholmen. 

So today, I decided to catch the ferry to an island. By chance when I was walking up, the ferry to Gressholmen was about to leave, so rather than waiting in line to catch a boat to a different island, I got aboard this one.  The ride took about 20 minutes, and there was one prior stop to a nearby island before arriving at Gressholmen. The ferry comes back every hour, and on the way back to Oslo harbor makes three other stops at different islands where people can get on/off to hike around.

Black rocks and mussel shells littering the beach.

Gressholmen translates directly to "Grass Islet." Today the island is connected to Rambergøya meaning ''Raven Rock Island," and Heggholmen or "Hagberry Islet" (named for a Hagberry flower). Together, the three joined islands make up a nature preserve, with a unique variety of plants, animals, and terrain. 

Along the shore of Gressholmen. 

The ferry drops visitors off at Gressholmen, where there is a short hike through the forests to get down to the shore. During the summertime, there is also a cafe that's open with snacks and refreshments.

The changing leaves make the hillside look aflame. 

 The other two islands which are now connected to Gressholmen can be easily reached by dirt/rock paths. Just a side note, some trails are accessible for wheelchairs, but the majority of the island is very rocky and hard to get around if you can't walk.

Looking through the fields on Rambergøya. 

There are dozens of little trails running up along the sides of the island and along the shore. Fortunately, it wasn't windy, nor very crowded so it was easy to wander and explore the majority of the island in a couple of hours.

The rocky sides of Rambergøya. 

I didn't see many animals on the island, maybe just one or two birds the entire time. Otherwise, everything was very quiet, calm, & peaceful.

Narrow & rocky pathway leading up the hillside. 

Looking back on Rambergøya Island. 

Opposite side of Rambergøya. 

Beach on Rambergøya.

The nature really was lovely and diverse. It's surprising how different one side of the same island can look compared to the other.

Thousands of tiny shells alone the beach.

Gressholmen beach was covered mainly with mussels. Yet, despite being just a short distance away on the opposite side of the island, Rambergøya was primarily covered in tiny orange shells.

Boating around towards Heggholmen.

The island is a poplar place to go fishing, and many go kayaking or boating around in Oslofjord and stop by the different islands to rest and have a picnic.

Looking out over Oslofjord. 

 Gressholmen harbor.

Heggholmen is directly next to Gressholmen before you get to Rambergøya. However, I didn't end up going over there till after I had explored the other part because I thought it was a more residential area. In general, there are several cabins spread along the shore near Rambergøya and Heggholme, but not really on Gressholmen. 

View of the Gressholmen harbor from Heggholmen. 

Gressholmen is home to a small boatyard which was once an airport for seaplanes from 1927-1939.

View of Oslofjord from Heggholmen.  

Heggholmen's chapel. 

Also on the edge of Heggholmen is a wooden chapel looking out into Oslofjord.

Flower on Heggholmen. 

There were all sorts of different flowers on the islands of all different colors, shapes, and sizes.

Leaves changing colors on Gressholmen. 

Despite it being a bit chilly, I really enjoyed the getting to explore the island and see all of the different colored leaves. This is my favorite time of year, and I had a lovely visit to the island.

View of Lindøya Island from Gressholmen.

If you ever visit Oslo, I highly recommend taking a ferry around and getting off at the different islands. Each spot has its own unique nature and charm, and it is very easy to catch a ride on to the next island. I can't wait to visit them all!