Brekkefossen – Close But Hard To See

Brekkefossen, while certainly not the biggest waterfall in the region, is visible from most parts of the Flåm valley (and from the Flåm Railway) and is the most accessible waterfall from Flåm being less than two kilometres away.

My intent was to visit the falls, up close, on the return leg of my walk to Old Flåm. Unfortunately the bridge across the river just outside Old Flåm was no more – having been a casualty of floods in late 2014 which also made the interior of Old Flam Church inaccessible. To have visited the falls I would have had to go back into Flåm, which I did, and then walk back out again on the other side of the river. Sadly I didn’t do this as it was getting late in the day and, less sadly, I had already had pretty good views of the falls from my walk to old Flåm. Hopefully the attached images bear testimony to this.

Should you wish to visit the falls (detailed on the leaflet I referred to in my general walks review, Go for a walk in Flåm – where you can, incidentally, also see a photograph of the non-existent bridge) be aware that it is graded as a category 3 walk. This grading is based on a steep climb on the last section of the walk. Make sure that you have appropriate closed footwear and be careful if the ground is wet. Other reviews indicate that the views down to Flåm and the fjord are spectacular. Having been in the area I have no doubt this would be true. Allow yourself a couple of hours for the round trip.

The falls drop a total of about 1,790 feet or 550 metres (in a number of drops) but because of the narrow, twisting shape of the gully it descends, only a portion of the falls can be seen from any particular vantage point, including the base were the final drop is around about 380 feet or 115 metres. Apart from my final photo attached the others show a mid section of the falls, that part visible from the valley floor where you actually get the most complete view of the falls possible, albeit that they are a little distance away. I should point out that the close up shots necessitated use of a zoom lens.

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