Wanna get high?
A precarious new “floating” staircase dangling above a Norwegian fjord is the newest — and perhaps scariest — way to appreciate the country’s unparalleled natural beauty, if you dare.
A whopping 2,591 feet up, the new “Stigull” ladder, a 131-foot-long climb in midair, is the latest draw for adrenaline junkies to the little town of Loen, located in Norway’s northwest.
“It might make most people’s legs tremble a bit,” Per Helge Bø, operations manager of Løen Active, told CNN Travel.
From afar, “it looks like people are floating in the air,” Helge Bø said.
Loen is located in the Nordfjord region, prized for its dramatic landscapes. The 120-step ladder is the latest leg of the area’s expanding via ferrata climbing route.
Via ferrata is Italian for “iron path” — the term is used to describe climbing routes that use cables, ladders and other guideways to assist mountain climbers.
The new ladder — mounted at a 45-degree-angle — is part of that course. To even reach it, you’ve got to get part of the way up Loen’s Mount Hoven, an adventure in itself.
Still, if you can hack the heights, Helge Bø said that the views are more than worth the trouble.
“If you dare to look around, you can take in the spectacular fjord landscape with the glittering fjord and the majestic peaks, with the massive cliff face and narrow gorge right beside you,” he said.
And while you don’t score as many adventure points, you don’t have to subject yourself to the iron path to summit the mountain, which is served by one of the world’s steepest cable car — there’s even a restaurant at the summit.
You’ll definitely save a buck — most hikers on the Via Ferrata Loen pay a whopping $160 for the privilege, which includes the services of a guide. The experienced can go it alone, but will still pay an equipment fee of about $46.
If you’re game, don’t worry if you’ve never done anything like this — the route’s bark is apparently worse than its bite.
“All climbing in Via Ferrata Loen, including the Stigull, takes place while you are securely attached to a wire,” Helge Bø explained.
“Climbing the ladder itself is not difficult, but the exposure and the sense of accomplishment you feel when climbing there are immense,” he said.
