Ottadalen

River in Innlandet, Norway

61°47′40″N 9°17′53″E / 61.79435°N 9.29795°E / 61.79435; 9.29795

Ottadalen (English: Otta Valley^[1]^[2]^[3]) is a valley in the municipalities of Skjåk, Lom, Vågå, and Sel in Innlandet county, Norway.^[4]

The valley is one of the side valleys that branch off of the large Gudbrandsdalen valley. It lies on the northern edge of Jotunheimen National Park. Historically, the Ottadalen has been widely used as a transportation artery between western and eastern Norway through the Breidalen valley in Skjåk to Stryn, through the Breidalskrysset to Stranda, along the Jostedalsbreen glacier to the Jostedalen valley and Luster, and across the Sognefjellet to Sogn. There is also a road from Vågå, through Jotunheimen to Fagernes.

The Otta River flows through the valley. The Otta River begins in the municipality of Skjåk and flows into lake Vågåvatnet. Exiting Vågåvatnet at Vågåmo, it continues its journey through the valley, leaving the municipality of Vågå to meet the Gudbrandsdalslågen river at the town of Otta in the municipality of Sel.^[4]

Reinheimen National Park, which consists of much of the Tafjordfjella mountain range, includes the reindeer habitat in the northern part of the Ottadalen valley.^[5]

Ottadalen valley

References

^ Peppoloni, Silvia; Di Capua, G. (2015). Geoethics: the Role and Responsibility of Geoscientists. London: The Geological Society. p. 8.
^ Doré, A. (2002). Exhumation of the North Atlantic Margin: Timing, Mechanisms and Implications for Petroleum Exploration. London: The Geological Society. p. 105.
^ Lemmer, Gerhard; Frey, Elke; Rahe, Helga (2001). Norway. Basingstoke, UK: GeoCenter. p. 148.
^ ^a ^b Thorsnæs, Geir, ed. (14 January 2020). "Ottadalen". Store norske leksikon (in Norwegian). Kunnskapsforlaget. Retrieved 24 April 2022.
^ "Reinheimen Area Mountains Guide". NorWaves.com.