Norway Road Trip Photo Gallery - Trondheim to Ringebu

I had split the long drive back to Oslo over 2 days to give added flexibility to leisurely make many stops along the way. While there was some road construction in Trondheim that slowed things down a little, there wasn't much traffic otherwise along the drive south. First stop is Granasjoen, a serene lake to stretch your legs. The surrounding mountain roads are quiet and scenic as I headed south. . Lunch was served at Oppdal, where there is a large mall with a food court upstairs. This town is famous for winter sports and a good base to nearby ski slopes. During the summer, you can take advantage of many hiking trails in the area. It is theoretically cheaper to buy food at supermarkets as opposed to gas stations, but prices are already expensive to begin with. After refueling, I continued down the E6 highway, then diverted to route 29 to the east side of Rondane National Park. The Norwegian Scenic Route starts at the intersection of routes 29 and 27 at Folldal. There are a few stopover points along this stretch of road. Strombu's rest area has a nice rooftop terrace next to the river with the mountains in the background. Rondane was established in 1962 as Norway's first national park. This route runs 75km along its east side on routes 27 and 219. Sohlbergplassen is a nicely-built observation area to view Atnsjoen Lake. The view inspired Harald Sohlberg's famous painting “Winter's Night in Rondane” in 1914. Further south, Atnbrufossen used to host a sawmill and hydropower station, and is now a museum. A 24km roundtrip detour on route 219 leads to Solliakirke, a wood church built in 1738. At the time, the law forced residents to go to church twice a year, and this church was built to serve the local population so they won't need to make the long trek to Ringebu. With no government support to build the structure, locals had to do everything by themselves. Then it is an easy drive back to route 27 to continue south towards the E6 near Ringebu. The Rondane is one of the country's 18 scenic drives and there is more information on the route and stops on the official website. Ringebu is famous for its stave church, which sits uphill from town and dates from the 13th century with renovations in he 17th This type of church structure was once common in Norway with over 1000, but now only 28 remain.