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Kjørnes Camping
Dear guest. Join a cultural-historical walk on the fjord path around Kjørnes Gård and Camping.
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"If you know the “Sogna-dialect” and a little bit of German, then you can make your way around the world, but if you go to Constantinople, you will be stabbed to death”! or so the saying goes. My name is Arve and I was raised here in Sogndal. Let me take you on a little tour around Kjørnes or ‘Kjødnes’ as we would pronounce it. It is thought the name Kjødnes originates from when tar was burnt out of tree roots here. We are now standing in a place known as Askad`n, the name comes from the large Ash trees that grow here. In the olden days there was a boat shed here. As you can probably imagine it is not always easy to row on the Sognefjord in all weathers. They therefore built such places to shelter from the weather and the wind. The people who lived here were completely dependent on being able to get to and from Sogndal sentrum, or Saongdalsfjørao as it was known in days gone by, to visit the shops and the church. The bridge that you can see right next to the centre was built in 1958, up until then, all traffic arrived by sea. The bridge that you see today was rebuilt in 2020.
This area is called Pedlastoi and it is another sheltered mooring place. It is named after a farmboy who served here called Pelle. Kjødnes was a large farm in days gone by, but I arrived here a little later. On the hill that you are now passing to your left hand side is a burial mound, dating to the bronze or iron age. Important people were buried in such mounds, with open views, often visible from the water which was at that time the fjord, from all directions. That was so that they could enjoy the beautiful view from the mound after their death You on the other hand can find a bench up there where you can enjoy the magnificent view in real life. The centre of Sogndal is actually just a short distance away from ‘FJØRAO’, those who live here know what that means, and those who don’t always wonder what Fjørao has to do with anything. Many of the people that lived in Fjørao were so called beach dwellers, they lived in small boat houses inside the bay, and made a living from fishing and renting out their labour. In the 1800s the number of tourists began to increase and they began to make money from the tourists, and the tourist industry continues to be important here to the present day. In the 1800’s, an English tourist wrote a description of a typical ‘Sogninger’, as dark and short, with small hands and feet, and a bow legged rocking gait. They reminded him of Neopolitans!
Just such a description was given of Gjest Baardsen, who really put Saogndal on the map. We like to call him Norway’s answer to Robin Hood. He was born in Sogndal in 1791, starting as a petty criminal from a young age, he escaped from prison some 57 times. In the end he was confined in Akerhus Fortress in Oslo, where he wrote about his life. As a writer he managed to paint a slightly different picture of himself, than the reality. Later, there were both songs and a film made about this legendary figure. The house where he grew up is in Fjørao, you can take a walk there by following the fjord path over there.
Before we continue, I would like to tell you a little more about Sogndal: Sogndal is the centre of the region, and altogether there are around 12000 people living in the municipality. In addition we are lucky enough to have around 3000 students. They make Sogndal a lively, colourful town with lots of activity. You can also find the Lerum factory, Nortura and the county administration for Vestlandet in the municipality. In addition, there are well establised businesses which provide the inhabitants with a steady income and job security. In contrast to other towns in Norway, Sogndal is actually one of the few places in the districts of Norway that is growing. People settle here and feel that they belong. In addition to having a job, much of the reason that people thrive here is the beautiful and easily accessible nature around us. In a small radius you can paddle, swim, hike in the mountains, cycle, walk on a glacier, climb (both indoors and outdoor) and visit national attractions – all on the same day. We are situated almost inside the heart of the world’s second longest fjord, have the lively cultural and other offerings of the town, whilst at the same time having peace and quiet right outside our front door. I think that we ‘Sogningers’ are very lucky.
A draug is the ghost of a human who died by drowing, who then drowns others, taking them to a wet grave. Draughammar - This word tells us that this has not always been a good place. A hammar is a steep cliff, and if a draugen is there out on the fjord, then you are probably not going to make it. The sea here can be dangerous when you try to navigate around the tip. Amongst the many who did not make it to Askastoi or Pedlastoi were a bridal party from Kaupanger on their way to Fjørao in 1785. There were 9 in the party who drowned. In 1825 there were 3 youths from Saongdal trying to cross the fjord, but on the way to the other side they capsized. Their boat sank in the storm and was never found. Although they could swim, It was not usual for people to swim at that time, the water was cold and everyday life so busy that they could not waste time on such things.
When you stand here on the headland and look out onto the fjord, to the left hand side you can see a small farm, with a white house and a red barn on the other side. It is called ‘Meisterplass’, although its original name is actually ‘Meistermannsplass’ which means the execution place. There is no definitive information or facts that confirm that the so called ‘meistermannen’ actually lived there, but there is no doubt that corporal punishment was a common practice in earlier times, and there is plenty of documented evidence confirming it. It was the ‘Meistermann’ that physically punished people for their wrongdoings. It could be cutting off a finger, breaking an arm or a bone, or simply beheading people! The pay varied, depending on the punishment. It was a lonely profession, the executioners generally lived away from other people, and now and then they were even convicted of murder, the profession was often handed down from father to son. The last beheading in Sogndal was in 1841 and was carried out by a mobile executioner from Bergen. It took place on Eiggja, one of the farms you can see to the right over the centre of Sogndal, in line with the law, the punishment was delivered where the crime was committed. If you want to experience more drama, you can drive by Meisterplass and carry on to Fimreite. One of Norway’s most bloody battles took place in a bay in Fimreite in 1184, when 2 Kings who were fighting for power in Norway met with their armies amounting to several thousand men. Both of them wanted to be King of Norway, and both claimed a right to the throne. Magnus Erlingsson fell in the battle and Sverre Sigurdsson emerged victorious.
You are now standing at Kjørnesneset, the tip of the headland that sticks out into the fjord. At 220 kilometres long, it is not only the world’s second longest fjord, but also the deepest with a depth of 1400 metres in places. During the 1970’s, the world’s press streamed into Sogn. The reason being that a foreign submarine had been observed in the Sognfjord. The police and the armed forces had received several reports from people believing that they had seen a submarine in the area. One of the most reliable sightings was in the Sogndalsfjorden. Subsequently, 4 frigats, 2 submarines, 10 motorised torpedo boats and 3 helicopters arrived in Sognefjorden to participate in the search. The search continued for 16 days and the hotels were full of journalists from around the world. This happened whilst the cold war was at its coldest, and if the Norwegian Navy vessels had managed to force a submarine from the Eastern Block to the surface, it would have been an extremely dramatic event. A helicopter with sonar, flew right in front of where you are now standing searching for the submarine. Officially, the search results were not given, but the documents stating that there was a submarine in the Sognefjorden were downgraded. The owner of the farm here would rather tell the journalists a story about a bear, so he probably didn’t beleive in the submarine either.
Here is a replica of an old boat hut that was built in the 18th century. It is said that the former master thief Gjest Baardsen had once painted the boat hut. From the hut there was a stone paved road running up to the main house, in the same place as the road you see today. During an autumn storm in 1987, the boat hut was blown over and lay flat in the fjord. But we had drawings of the building and in 2020 it was rebuilt. This time as a gazebo for our guests The main house on the yard of the farm was built in 1736. Kjørnes has the Farm Number 1, and the Plot Number 1, it was previously an officials’ farm, that’s to say that noblemen, military men and lawyers, alternately lived here. Grave finds, indicate that there was a settlement here in Viking times, around 800-1000 AD. The most famous person who grew up here was Hans Paludan Smith Schrøder, Norway’s first missionary in Zululand, he was born in this house in 1817. He left a deep impression both here in Sogndal and in Zululand. He was a close friend and collaborator of King Mpande, and today there is even a «Schreudermuseum» within the Zulu historical Museum in Eshowe, in South Africa. If you are interested in learning more about Shrøder’s story, you can find more information on the wall inside the boat shed. Øystein Rakkenes has written a book «Himmelfolket – En norsk høvding i Zululand» for those of you who would like to find out even more. The school house that is located to the side of the old house was built by Otto Shrøder, the missionary’s father. Here the children from the farm and the surrounding area received tuition. Hans Schrøder was an intelligent, all round student, he was talented both academically and with his hands. The building that you can see today, is a copy of the original and was erected in 1990 as a small detached house. In 1836 there were a total of 13 buildings on the headland, and the next place that we will be visiting is called ‘Turken’, because a drying barn used to stand here in the olden days.
Now we have arrived at the drying barn where they dried corn and tobacco. In addition to traditional agriculture, they also grew fruit and smoked herrings here on the farm. The summers here in Kjødnes can be very warm, but the the air is never completely still, there is always a light breeze, which was cool and welcome to those working on the land. But times have changed and it is now our guests who enjoy our wonderful location and proximity to the sea. A dip in the sea can be refreshing if it becomes too hot. Maybe it was here that the prominent lady Bollette Pavels Larsen sat and collected her thoughts, which she later put down on paper. She was born in the main house on the farm in 1847. She was the youngest of 7 siblings, and her father was a lawyer. He was struck off in 1851 «for serious fraud and abuse of many kinds». As a result, they had to move from the farm. Bolette later married a banker in Bergen and became a part of the cultural circle surrounding Knut Hamsun, Evard Grieg and Arne and Hulda Garborg. She had always enjoyed the Norwegian language and Norwegian literature, and went on to write book reviews that were published in the Bergen Times, as well as carrying out translation work. Of course, as a women at that time, she wrote under a pseudonym. She is also known for having written and published her own books in dialect, namely saognamaol. If you would like to learn more about this admirable lady, you can read more on the wall inside the boat house. In 1864 Kjørnes was sold by compulsary auction. Subsequently, the farm got new owners and since that time, they have run the farm with different uses; agriculture, forestry, fruit production and fishing, were later combined with tourism, which started around 1950. After demolishing some of the old buildings, they rebuilt the farm and renovated many of the original buildings, agricultural usage ceased around 2001, when the focus turned solely to tourism. Right behind you there are two burial mounds which are connected to the Bronze and Iron Ages. Feel free to take a breather on the bench and imagine for yourself everything that might have happened here over the years.
The farm owns a lot of woodland. As mentioned, the name Kjørnes probably originates from ‘tjøra’, the fat or resin from the roots of the pine tree. Tjøra was used to impregnate the wood used for boat houses, houses, trains, fishing nets and also in medicine. Previously, this was probably a side line to the agricultural business. There are two ‘runs’ further up in the woods where the timber was transported down to Kjødnes and to the sea. Some of the timber was cut into barrel lengths, before being loaded on board the sail boats which were moored here at the cargo dock. It was transported to Bergen where is was made into wooden barrels – the predecessor to today’s plastic and metal packaging. Over the fjord you can see Svarteberg. Due to a lack of running water on Kjødnes, people used to row there to wash their clothes in the river, because washing in the river made the clothes whiter. Om du vil kan du no spasere ganske flatt vidare innover vegen til Drogi, den gamle vegen til Kaupanger. Dette var hovudvegen som gjekk gjennom tunet på Kjørnes tidlegare. Ein idyllisk tur i ganske enkelt terreng. Om du vil ha meir utfordring med bakkar opp i skogen og til fjells, tek du første gangveg til venstre, gjennom dagens byggefelt via Kleivadn. Då kan du halde fram like til Hesteggi som ligg på 907 meter. Turen er skilta og merka. If you want, you can now take a stroll further on the mainly flat road over to Drogi, which was the old main road to Kaupanger, and previoulsy ran through the centre of the farm yard at Kjørnes. It is an idyllic walk in quite simple terrain. But if you fancy something more challenging with hills up to the woods and the mountain, you can take the first path off to the left, through what is today a residential development to Kleivadn. From there you can go all the way to Heteggi which lies at 907 metres above sea level. The walk is sign posted and marked. Thank you for following me! And I wish you a good onward journey 😊