» At the 11th Kilometer: Finally, Trolltunga!
*The last photos were taken by Daniel. He put on some safety harness and stood several meters below the cliff to get this kind of angle!
Apart from worrying about all those people, I was also worried for myself.
After all, I DO have a fear of heights and I swear to you that at that time, every ounce of my being was filled with second thoughts… but of course, I did NOT do a rigorous 11-hour hike just to chicken out!
Getting to it was quite easy — somewhere at the back of the tongue is a slight drop with metal steps embedded on the rock to assist people going down. Once I landed and waited in line, I glanced towards the tip and I was surprised at what I saw: Trolltunga didn’t look too scary anymore.
Yep, there are nice rugged sites surrounding Trolltunga that are Instagram-perfect, so do take your time to explore such!
Waiting for our turn took about 20 minutes (I’ve heard that during high season, it can take about an hour!). Also, this waiting area has NO safety railings — in order to keep the natural beauty of Trolltunga — so because of that, please mind where you’re standing, where you’re walking, and where you’re stepping on.
From afar, I couldn’t make out the tongue so clearly (me being near-sighted and all) — but as we went nearer and then through the crowd of people who were resting on the back of the tongue’s rocky plateau, Trolltunga swiftly came out in plain view before me… and my jaw dropped to the floor!
It was absolutely incredible beyond words!!! As I ogled at it all, I couldn’t help but feel butterflies in my stomach. In fact, I sometimes couldn’t bear to watch if someone would sit on the ledge or do a ‘jump shot’ because I had ghastly thoughts that they would fall down — which of course, I hope they wouldn’t!
After we had our fun, I knew that it was time for us to go; so I gave a nod to my friend and told him that I was ready to go out to the tongue. *gulp*
It was also narrow, but not too narrow. It was wide and sturdy enough for people to walk through. Daniel told us that we can stay for an hour at this place — which was enough time for us to catch our breath, drink some water, eat snacks, and picture the surrounding area.
AND, also frightening while I saw the number of people walk up to the tip of the tongue one by one. Confession time: I was planning on standing at a safe distance from the tip at first, but after I witnessed how it has an upward slant, I felt braver. That’s why I decided to also sit on the tip and dangle my feet like the others!
I cannot stress this enough but PLEASE exercise caution once you’re at the tip of Trolltunga. Even if the inclined view helps make you feel safer, it’s important to be careful at all times. Some people actually had the balls to do some stunts and jumps — but only do those if you’re some sort of professional performer, mountaineer, etc.
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Overall: know your limits, okay? Don’t push it.
Well, of course, the fact that it’s a jutted rock over a vast expanse of ‘nothingness’ still sent shivers down my spine, but compared to the view that I saw from the resting area, the view that I saw from the line showed me that the tongue was slightly pointing upwards so it essentially blocks anyone’s view of the drop below!