Lysefjord

Lysefjorden
Lysefjord
View of the fjord
Lysefjorden Location in Rogaland county
Location	Rogaland county, Norway
Coordinates	58°56′26″N 6°07′13″E / 58.9405°N 6.1202°E / 58.9405; 6.1202Coordinates: 58°56′26″N 6°07′13″E / 58.9405°N 6.1202°E / 58.9405; 6.1202
Primary inflows	Lyseåna river
Primary outflows	Høgsfjorden
Basin countries	Norway
Max. length	42 kilometres (26 mi)
Max. width	1.75 kilometres (1.09 mi)
Max. depth	−422 metres (−1,385 ft)
Settlements	Lysebotn, Forsand, Oanes

Lysefjord or Lysefjorden is a fjord located in the Ryfylke area in southwestern Norway. The 42-kilometre (26 mi) long fjord lies in Forsand municipality in Rogaland county, about 25 kilometres (16 mi) east of the city of Stavanger. The name means light fjord, and is said to be derived from the lightly coloured granite rocks along its sides. It is particularly well-known by the huge Preikestolen cliff overlooking the fjord, which is a major tourist destination for the region. The fairly isolated village of Lysebotn lies at the eastern end of the fjord and the villages of Forsand and Oanes both lie at the western end of the fjord near the Lysefjord Bridge, the only crossing of the fjord.

The fjord was carved by the action of glaciers in the ice ages and was flooded by the sea when the later glaciers retreated. The geology of Lysefjorden was thoroughly investigated and described by Professor Bjørn G. Andersen in his Master's thesis (1954) "Om isens tilbaketrekking i området mellom Lysefjorden og Jøsenfjorden i Ryfylke" (On the glacial retreat in the area between the Lysefjorden and Jøsenfjorden in Ryfylke).

End to end, it measures 42 kilometres (26 mi) with rocky walls falling nearly vertically over 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) into the water. Not only is the fjord long and narrow, it is in places as deep as the mountains are high. Starting at a depth of only 13 metres (43 ft) deep where it meets the sea near Forsand village, the Lysefjord then heads inland and drops to a depth of over 400 metres (1,300 ft) below the Preikestolen.