Geirangerfjord, the beautiful fjord where The Wave was filmed

One is more than used to disaster movies that Americans film often. If it is not a super earthquake it is the aliens, but a meteorite, but a zombie plague. The theme is disaster and annihilation and whoever can for himself.

It is striking then that the Norwegians venture into the same film genre, but they have done so with the film The Wave. We saw it in theaters in 2015 and some of us enjoyed it later on Netflix, just to see a disaster thriller in a language other than English. And at least on my part, to also enjoy the beautiful scenery of the Norwegian fjords.

The Geirangerfjord

Norway has many beautiful fjords but one of the most touristic is that. It is situated in Romsdal County, in the More region, and has about 15 kilometers long being also an arm of another fjord, the Sunnylvsfjorden and this one in turn of another greater one, the Storfjorden.

Since 2005 it is a World Heritage, an honor that it shares with another nearby fjord. Has some wonderful waterfallss like the famous Seven Sisters Waterfall. These are seven separate streams that form seven waterfalls, the highest of which reaches 250 meters. They have this picturesque name because a legend weighs on them that tells of seven sisters who danced under the mountain while courting them from above. Another famous waterfall is the Monje waterfall. Both are facing each other.

The fjord it has very steep and sharp mountain walls around it and the arm of the sea is very narrow so the combination is overwhelming. If we add to that the waterfalls here and there it is wonderful. Although in other times people settled here, in mountain farms and villagesToday there are many of them abandoned.

Some can be reached on foot, on these excursions outdoors that Norwegians love so much, or by boat. The walks are risky since there are no bridges and the trails are often stuck to very high cliffs. Some of those that are usually visited in summer are Knivsfla, Blemberg or Skagefla. Currently there is a cableway ferry that serves as a tourist promenade that runs along the fjord between two small settlements such as Geiranger and Hellesylt.

The wave and the possible tsunami

Beyond that The wave is a movie is based on events that could happen. In fact, a true event is recounted at the beginning that took place in April 1934. Then the rock slide from the mountain in effect produced a tsunami that destroyed the village of Tajford killing about 40 people and before that, early of the twentieth century, something similar happened. In fact, it is always possible for it to happen again.

The truth is that the small village of Geiranger, a tourist destination, is built at the end of the fjord at the mouth of the Geirangelva River. The Akerneset mountain that is getting into the fjord It is under observation all the time, as we see in the film, because if it were to collapse, it would surely produce a huge tsunami that would destroy not one city but several in just 10 minutes.

The mountain has a crack that expands at a rate of two to 15 centimeters each year and they do not stop trying to calculate how it can be, when and what consequences can be foreseen if 1500 meters of mountains separate from the fjord.

Geologists estimate that if the landslide were to occur it would be about 50 million cubic meters (double the two landslides of the XNUMXth century): the rocks right into the water of the fjord would cause a huge wave, a tsunami, about 30 meters high that would devastate the entire coast in its advance.

A group of buildings that can be seen from a distance is striking, and that is formerly there was a farm here that today is abandoned. The location is surprising and has been preserved because it represents something typical of the harsh life in the fjords, but the truth is that the location is quite scary: it is sore only by water, it is only 100 meters above sea level and on a steep slope that is susceptible to avalanches ... Although its builders took it into account and it is observed how the roofs of the buildings are at the height of the slope so that a possible avalanche can slide through them, it is still scary ...

It all adds up to a disaster movie so one of Norway's latest box office hits was born (it was even selected to be presented as Best Foreign Film for the Oscars…). The movie was filmed in Geiranger  and the interior part in studios in Romania. The investment was almost six million euros and if we think that in Norway it sold 30% more movie tickets than Jurassic World… it was a success!

Visit Geiranger

If you liked the movie this summer you can take a tour of the Norwegian fjords. The port of Geiranger is the third largest cruise port in Norway and in the four-month tourist season it receives from 140 to 180 ships.

250 people is the stable population of the place but in summer more than 300 thousand tourists arrive throughout those warm months. There is a varied accommodation offer, both from five star hotels and camp, so you can choose where to sleep according to your pocket. How do you get there? Pus on cruise it is an option: the Hurtigruten is a coastal express that links Bergen with Geiranger.

You can also arrive By plane from across the country or by bus from Bergen, Oslo or Trondheim. Also you can take the train from Oslo although the trip is almost six hours. From Trondheim it takes a little less but you always have to take the bus up the mountain road to finally get there. And what tourist activities can you do?

Well you can kayaking, in fast and dizzying catamarans, go hiking, take boat rides and enjoy the Northern European sun that only shines this bright in summer. And it is worth saying, it is a destination that can disappear at any moment.


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  1.   Anonymous said

    Hopefully it doesn't happen like the Vajont Dam disaster in Italy, the movie is pretty much what actually happened there.