5 Sights & Landmarks in That You Shouldn't Miss

In Stodle, as at Grindheim, we are able to observe the connection between the church, cemetery and a pre-Christian burial ground. The long church was the Viking chieftain Erling Skakke's private chapel from about 1160. The stone section was built in Romanesque style, and the timbered nave was extended around 1650. An altarpiece and a crucifix from 1636 can also be found here. The baroque pulpit dates from about 1600 and the two church bells from the Middle Ages. In front of the church is a burial mound and stone monument. On the edge of the large Stodle terrace, with its magnificent view over Etne parish and the fjord, about 15 burial mounds remain today. These were erected for the people of Stodle farm, and excavated finds bear witness to continuous habitation from the Bronze Age to the Viking Age, a period lasting some 2000 years. Helgaberget (Holy Rock) at Stodle is covered with rock carvings. Information board. Ample parking. Open Sundays: 19.00-13.00. For guided tours, please contact Church office, tel. 53 77 11 70.

The current church at Grindheim dates from 1783, although there has been a church on the same site for much longer than that. The church features incredibly beautiful rose-painted decorations, produced by Tore Asbjornson Risoyne. The basic motif is the well-known acanthus vine, which was widely used in rose painting and wood carving. The church was decorated in 1791, but in 1898 the decorations were painted over, because it was felt that the congregation spent too much time looking at them during services. In 1941 the decorations were uncovered as part of a major restoration project, and the inside of the church now provides a wonderful example of Norwegian rose painting. Opening times: guided tours in the summer months. Please contact the tourist office for further information.

Gjerde Church erected in 1676. Features include distinctive wall decorations. Rune stone adjacent to the church.

- A family-friendly trip to akra with the scent of horses, campfire and mountain pastures. Crossing the fjord by boat to the quay in akra, we drive up the steep forest path to the mountains, where Trygve and his assistants are waiting with the horses. Th

Eikemo is situated on the road less side of akrafjorden. At three small farms they have goats and some sheep. Nessesary transport is by boat to Vinskjer by E-134. Thick ice on the ford during witertime causes great problems.