W. Andrews and party in 1899. Store Skagastølstind and the mountaineering of the late 19th century in Norway is traditionally linked to the historical hotel Turtagrø. There are many fjords in Western Norway, Hardangerfjorden, Boknafjorden and Sognefjorden is the longest. The Sognefjord (Sognefjorden) is the largest fjord in Norway, and the second longest in the world, after Scoresby Sund on Greenland. Located in Sogn og Fjordane it stretches 205 km (127 mi) inland to the small village of Skjolden. Providing the most spectacular fjord and mountain scenery in Norway, the region has been a tourist mecca for centuries. Except for the Jæren plain located at the extreme southern end of the region, Vestlandet is mountainous, with the Jotunheim Mountains and the Hardanger Plateau being the highest areas. The Jostedals Glacier, the largest glacier in Europe, is located in the north-central part of the region, while Hardanger Icecap (Hardangerjøkulen) and the Folgefonna Glacier are smaller ice fields in the south. Norway's longest fjord, Sogn Fjord (205 km [127 mi]), located in the central part of the region, nearly divides Vestlandet in two; farther south Hardanger Fjord stretches inland for . Many waterfalls flow into the fjords, with the Syv Systre, Toka Gorge, and Vørings Falls (Vøringsfossen) among the best known. The rugged coastline is protected by thousands of offshore islands in a nearly continuous line. Occasionally, the northern parts of Møre og Romsdal are considered to be part of Trøndelag. Statistics Map references: Europe Area: total: 58,582 km2 Area – comparative: slightly larger than Croatia, but slightly smaller than West Virginia. Coastline: 26,592 km Maritime claims: contiguous zone: continental shelf: exclusive economic zone: territorial sea: Physical geography Rivers running westward acquired tremendous erosive power. Following fracture lines marking weaknesses in the Earth's crust, they dug out gorges and canyons that knifed deep into the jagged coast. To the east the land sloped more gently, and broader valleys were formed. During repeated periods of glaciation in the Great Ice Age of the Quaternary Period (i.e., about the last 2.6 million years), the scouring action of glaciers tonguing down the V-shaped valleys that were then part of the landscape created the magnificent U-shaped drowned fjords that now grace the western coast of Norway. Enormous masses of soil, gravel, and stone were also carried by glacial action as far south as present-day Denmark and northern Germany. The bedrock, exposed in about 40 percent of