Day 3 initially seemed like it might be an improvement, but the weather soon turned worse - much worse. Although it was no rainier than the day before, it was much foggier as we began our descent down to the fjord - we were descending through the clouds. And, since we were hiking down what was (as far as we could determine in the fog) a sloping dome of rock, we no longer had the easy-to-follow muddy tracks of other hikers to follow. We were totally reliant on the trail markers, which became increasingly difficult to see - at times one of us would stay with amarker while the other would search ahead for the next one (this is the point at which Mark's bright yellow rain pants really paid off - sorry Mark - I know you hated the colour I picked out). All accompanied by the roaring sound of a tremendous, unseen waterfall (it made me a little uneasy to not be able to see the drop-off). I was never so relieved as when we got to the bottom, below the clouds, to level ground. We found the hotel almost immediately upon getting into Kinsarvik. All day long I'd been contemplating how much I'd be willing to pay for a room with a hot shower and a soft bed, and my maximum went higher and higher as the hours went by. Happily they had a room, it was bigger and nicer than what we'd had in Oslo, and cost less. With a hot shower before dinner, a hot meal in the restaurant, and a hot bath before bed, I celebrated our return to civilization.
Photos: Clouds rolling down onto the plateau; a mushroom in the forest at the base of the fjord; our last view of a waterfall before the clouds masked everything
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