Thousands of people probably hike up to the Preikestolen (Pulpit Rock) every day in the summer. In the daytime, we were told there was a queue up at the top to get a photo on the rock. We decided to do something a little different and try and capture a magical moment; to reach the summit for sunrise.
We went in a little blind and slightly unprepared, so here is some information to not make the same mistakes we did and information on the hike.
Getting to Preikestolen
First of all, we were travelling by campervan from Stavanger. We took the main road, the E13, out of the town and the only toll was one short ferry crossing, costing us 116 NOK in a small VW camper.
There were a few free places to camp on the main road up to the turning for Preikestolen but with limited spaces. We had seen a large carpark on Google Earth below the main paid one for the walk and foolishly, we decided to chance a night there, on the hope that it was free.
When we got there, we found out that it definitely wasn’t and it cost the same as the main car park: 200NOK. Plus there was a no motorhome camping sign at the entrance. There were a lot of motorhomes in the day here, but they all said that they definitely were not going to stay the night, so we decided not to either.
The campsite at the bottom of the road up was 280NOK a night, in a small van, so we chose to stay there instead, along with another couple from the UK that we had met on the ferry. There were a LOT of other campers here when we went (July) and there was just room in the bottom corner for us to set up. We had to be out of the campsite by 11 AM the next day, so this was the last piece of motivation we needed to actually decide to be up and down the mountain before then. We had a deadline.
The Way to the Carpark
So. We had to be back by 11 AM. We heard you needed to give about 4 hours for the walk, and we wanted to be there for the sunrise (4:41 AM). In the end, we set our alarm for 2 AM to give us time to reach the main carpark (4km away) and start the walk from there.
At 2 AM, after a few minutes of mentally preparing to get up, we grabbed our bikes at about half 2 and set off up the road to the carpark. The ride up was pretty hellish, to be honest, with our limited gears. For the majority of the way, it was uphill. It definitely woke us up but we were half dead by the time we actually reached ‘the start’.
For reference, if you walk/bike up to the carparks, stop at the first one you come to and start the walk from there. You avoid a massive hill on the way back. We got to the main carpark at about half past 3 (it took us a while).
The Way Up
From the carpark, the trail to follow is really clear. They’ve done a really good job of maintaining the track (using the money from the carpark) and for a lot of the steep sections, the path is constructed out of boulder steps that are easy to climb. The immediate start is very steep, then it levels off for a while, before a few more steep sections. We brought the flashlight from our bikes with us but we didn’t need it at all and the skies were already quite light before 4 AM.
We didn’t meet a single person on the way up. As we got to the final third of the walk, we started to see tents popping up just off the track. There were about six or seven altogether. Two of them were set by two small lakes on a plateau near the top, where you could swim.
Near the top of the path, we heard voices behind us and sped up, daring to hope that somehow we might be the first to reach the summit. We sped up our pace and soon found the narrow track that led on to the rock itself.
Sunrise on the Rock
As we turned the corner, we saw a small guided group of walkers sat talking and having breakfast. Further up, on the actual rock itself, two other people were hastily packing down their tent after clearly having slept on the rock itself. Two more guys had also just sat up out of sleeping bags that they 100% had spent the night in here. Above the rock, there were also people set up with cameras at the ready. All in all, I think there were about 20 to 30 people there before us.
We reached Preikestolen at 4:40 AM. About 5 to 10 minutes later the first rays of sunlight lit up the cliff behind the rock. Everybody had been quite sleepy up until this point. Suddenly people started to react, getting cameras or into a good position to watch the sunrise. We had timed it pretty perfectly and picked a spot on the rock to join everybody else.
As the sun got higher, there was an actually slightly magical atmosphere. This was the feeling that made the walk the most worth it, in my mind. It’s not that often that you get to share a unique experience with only a few other people and it’s something we don’t think we’re going to ever forget.
As we were talking a few photos of our own, a guy sidled over to me and handed me his camera, saying, “Can you take a picture of me and my girlfriend?” I took the camera and he added quietly, “I’m going to propose to her,” with a look that clearly said, “So make sure you get a good picture.”
Suddenly forgetting how to even hold a camera, I took quite a lot of photos as he got down on one knee at the front of the rock. She said yes, obviously. She was on a literal cliff edge and had nowhere else to go (joking!). Five minutes later, we saw a second proposal happened! I wonder how many the rock has seen in total.
We sat and listened to the guide talk about kayaking in the Lysefijord below for a bit. After a lot more photos, we decided it was probably time we left. The shower at the campsite was sounding sweet and we wanted to definitely get back in time to have one.
The Journey Down
The path back down was lit in actual sunlight. It was nice to get the chance to see everything in daylight that we had missed on the way up. It was now about 5:30 and the track had already started to become a little busy with people walking up. By the time we reached the car park again, it was about 7 AM. We walked the bikes up the long hill out of the carpark, before zooming back down the road to the campsite.
We got back in plenty of time! Our UK friends didn’t believe us at first when we said we’d been up already, and we kind of didn’t believe it either. But we definitely had enough pictures to prove it.
Hiking in the Day
The couple we met hiked up later on that day. They had a great time doing the walk as well and good weather for it. Their hike was more eventful than ours and unfortunately also involved the arrival of a mountain rescue helicopter, which kicked up a massive dust storm, to reach someone in what sounded like pretty serious trouble on the mountain. Apparently, quite a few people get into trouble on the walk and rescuers get called out often, which I guess is something to bear in mind if you’re considering the walk.
Where to Stay
Along with the campsite, there was a multitude of other places to stay. When we were researching we found a guided sunrise hike that picked people up from as far away as Stavanger to do the hike, with a few points on the road to the rock as well.
At the main carpark, there is a hotel and a youth hostel. Both looked pretty amazing to stay in and there is also a restaurant beside them.
Was it Worth it?
100%. Yes. Definitely.
Busking the World 