Lærdal travel guide

Lærdal is a municipality in the county of Sogn og Fjordane, Norway.
Lærdal was established as a municipality January 1, 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt). Årdal was separated from Lærdal in 1860. Borgund was separated from Lærdal in 1864 - but again merged with Lærdal January 1, 1964.
The valley of Lærdalen is long, running from Hemsedal in east to the Sognefjord in west. About 1200 of the 2200 inhabitants mostly live in the main area of Lærdalsøyri; the rest in the small villages Borgund, Ljøsne, Tønjum, Erdal, Vindedalen, Frønningen and Strendene.
Lærdal has long traditions in farming, the lower region of the valley is great for vegetable crops, and because of the dry climate, it was one of the first places in Norway that started using artificial irrigation. Despite having an inland climate, the water in the fjord keep the winters from getting too cold.
Lærdal has a local hospital that gives medical help for it and seven of the surrounding municipalities. The hospital, together with Opplysningen 1881, Østfold Energiproduksjon A/S and Norsk Hydro Aluminium Production Facilities in Årdal, are the biggest work employers for Lærdal.
The Old Lærdalsøyri is an area with old, protected houses dated up to 200 years old.
The River Lærdalselvi, known by the Norwegian King (Harald V) as his second Queen, also draws a lot of sportfishers to Lærdal. After an attack from the salmon parasite Gyrodactylus salaris in fall 1996, the river is now regaining its salmon and trout and is fully fishable. (...) more....