Eikelandsosen

"So many and such big potholes as are found at Eikelandsosen, we don't see other places in western Norway, and as beautifully polished as the mountainside is along the river up to Koldal , one would look a long time to see anywhere else. There is much to dazzle a geologist's eyes. If only these features could bring others the same joy!"

Hopslia

Some of the giant trees in Hopslia north of Holme Fjord are as much as thirty metres high. Elm and ash are the most common, basswood somewhat rarer. Relatively soft bedrock, good growing conditions and enough light, help them to thrive just here.

Yddal

Yddal is one of the biggest and finest pine forest areas in the county. The rich forest resources provided an important foundation for the settlement of Yddal. Up until about the 1950s, there were three farms here. Where the lumberjacks couldn't get to, the trees grew very big and can be over 300 years old.

Vinnesleira

Bays that are shallow far out into the sea, with fine sand and clay, are rare in Hordaland. Where they are found, the reason is usually that the edge of the glacier made smaller advances or stopovers when it calved back at the end of the last Ice Age. This is what happened at Vinnesleira.

Bjoreidalen

Bjoreidalen is one of the classic bird localities on Hardangervidda. It is especially known for its wading birds, with as many as 17 of the 19 wader species that nest in Hordaland.

Halne

At Halnefjorden, a few hundred metres east of Halne mountain lodge, lie the remains of two stone sheds – Halnelægeret. Some generations ago the cattle drovers stopped here in the summer; they were the cowboys of their time. But Halnelægeret already had a long history before the cattle drovers came.

Langavassmyrane

The Ruff lek on Langvassmyrane is the only known phenomenon of its kind on Hardangervidda. Every year it attracts hens from the whole plateau. The marsh is also the richest wetland in the county. This green oasis is located in a rocky moraine landscape a few hours walking distance south of Dyranut.

Langebudalen

Støle church

The stone church at Støle may have been built around 1160 probably as a private chapel for the mighty Stødle clan. It is likely that it was Erling Skakke, the king’s representative and father of king Magnus Erlingsson, who built the church.

Mosnes

The permanently-protected Mosneselva River, with its meltwater from Folgefonna, runs out into Åkra Fjord by the roadless and uninhabited Mosnes. Those who once lived here were forced to surrender to the ravages of Nature. In the autumn of 1962 there was a flood so great that the people were driven from their farms.