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| Norwegian Fjords |
UNESCO has included the two magnificent Norwegian fjords Geirangerfjord and Nærøyfjord on its World Heritage List.
The Geirangerfjord and Nærøyfjord now enjoy the same recognition as the Great Wall of China, the Great Pyramids of Egypt, Zambia’s Victoria Falls and the Grand Canyon in USA.
Carved by ice
Now included are not just the two famous fjords, but also two large, virtually unspoiled areas, each of more than 500 km2. It is worth noting that between them lies Jostedalsbreen, the largest glacier on the European mainland. The fjords of Norway were carved out during a succession of ice ages, by the massive forces of the vast ice sheet that once covered most of Northern Europe. Hard bedrock was sculpted at the rate of half a metre every thousand years.
Honoured by travellers each year
UNESCO is hardly alone in viewing the Norwegian fjords as exceptional. In 2004 National Geographic Traveler Magazine named these fjords “the best unspoiled travel destination in the world”, and that same year, the respected American newspaper Chicago Tribune included Norway’s fjords on its list “Seven Wonders of Nature”.
Other sites on the list
In addition to the newly added fjords, five cultural attractions are also on the World Heritage List: Bryggen (the old Hanseatic wharf in Bergen), the 12th century Urnes stave church, the petroglyphs at Alta and the old mining town of Røros – and last year the Vegan Archipelago was added. The first two are located in Fjord Norway, the western part of the country.
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