Lærdal

Lærdal (Norse: Lærardalr) is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located on the south side of the Sognefjorden in the traditional district of Sogn. The administrative center of the municipality is the village of Lærdalsøyri. The old Filefjell Kongevegen road passes through Lærdal on its way to Valdres and later to Oslo.

Region
Lærdalsdalføret has side valleys and large mountain areas that offers rich opportunities for hunting deer, reindeer and elk. The highest mountain peak is Høgeloft at the border to Hemsedal.

There are dozens of mountain lakes near the fjords of Lærdalselva and Lærdalsfjorden, arms of Sognefjord. Lærdal River, popularly called "The Queen among salmon rivers", is one of the country's most famous large salmon rivers internationally.

During the Viking Age, the beach town at the bottom of the valley (today Lærdalsøyri) emerged as a marketplace after the establishment of the Vikings' Lusakaupang on Kaupanger in Sogndal municipality. Coastal farmers came with herring and fish and exchanged goods with the mountain farmers from Valdres and Hallingdal. The Lærdalsmarknaden was first mentioned as early as 1596, having held an annual festival event with dance and Norwegian national music against a beautiful western landscape backdrop.

Harald Sæverud's Ballad of Revolt is based on the invasion of Lærdal by the Germans during World War II. There are a number of World War II bunkers that litter the area, many still intact, and one with Nazi graffiti in it. That bunker is on the North side of the valley in route to Mjålkeflaten.


 * Lærdal