On Some Valleys, Terraces and Moraines in the Bergen District, Norway

ON SOME VALLEYS, TERRACES AND MORAINES IN THE BERGEN DISTRICT, NORWAY.

By HORACE WOOLLASTON MONCKTON, TRRAS. L.S., F.G.S.

(Read Tanuary 3rd, 1913.)

I.-THE VALLEY OF THE FJlERLANDS FJORD 33 II.-SKJOLDEN AND THE LYSTER FJORD 37 1II.-VIK EIDFJORD 42 IV.-SIMODAL 44 V.-THE StiR FJORD AND THE SANDVEN LAKE 45 VI.-THE VALLEY OF THE GRANVIN LAKE 47 VII.-NoRHEIMSUND AND TOKAGJELET 49

I.-THE VALLEY OF THE FJLERLANDS FJORD.

N my Address to the Association in 1903 I explained that the I present surface of the Bergen District may be divided into-- I. An oldest land surface, now the high plateaux. 2. The Palseic Surface, an adaptation of Dr. Reusch's term palceiske ouerfiate. 3. The Fjord Valleys, this term to include both the part of the valley now below the sea and also the part of the same valley or system of valleys which is now above the sea-level. The valley in which the Fjserlands Fjord lies, together with valleys at its head, Boiumdal and Suphelledal, belong accord ingly to the class Fjord-valleys. During our Excursion of 191 I (see References, 19 I 2, pp. 47-51) we spent three nights at Mundal (see the Map, Fig. 3), and visited the Boium Valley with its glacier, and the Suphelle Valley, with the first of the two glaciers which flow into it (No.3 on the Map, Fig. 3). Some of our party also mounted to the top of the Frudalsbrre, a small snow-field on the mountains to the east of the fjord. The large dotted area in the upper part of Fig. 3 represents a part of the great snow-field Jostedalsbrse. There is a walking route across the snow from the Boiumdal to the arm of the Jolster Lake, shown in the left upper corner of the map-the path descending near the Lunde Glacier marked I. The foot of the Boium Glacier is 492 ft. above the sea, and is 4 Yz miles from the end of the fjord. The remanii part of the Suphelle Glacier is 171 ft. above the sea and 4 miles from the fjord. The rock on both sides of the fjord is in many places ice-marked, the lines running in the direction of the valley, FROe. GEOL. Assoc., VOl. XXIV, PART I, 1913.J 3 34 HORACE WOOLLASTON MONCKTON ON showing that they are the work of a glacier travelling down it, and there can be no doubt that in quite recent geological times the glaciers of Boiumdal and Suphelledal advanced, joined at the

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FIG. 3.-I\IAP 0[' THE COUNTRY AROUND THE HEAD 0[' THE FJtERLANDS FJORD, r. The Lunde Glacier. 4, The Little SupheUe Glacier. 2. The Boiurn Glacier, 5. The Bjaastad Glacier. 3. The Suphelle Glacier. The dolled areas are snow-fields. place where the valleys meet, and formed a great glacier which moved down the fjord. We consequently have here an area from which the ice has retreated in very recent times, SOME VALLEYS, ETC., IN THE BERGEN DISTRICT. 35

The Boium Valley may be divided into three sections: 1. The Alluvial Flats. 2. Terraces. 3. Valley with moraines. 1. The Alluvial Flat.-A view of the head of the Fjrerlands Fjord, by Mr. Tunbridge, will be found in the Report of our Excursion (References, 1912, Plate 9). The continuation of the valley in which the fjord lies is the Suphelledal, whilst the Boiurndal turns to the left between the houses and the high mountain shown in the view. Deep water extends almost to the head of the fjord, 43 fathoms being marked on the map less than a mile from the shore, which crosses the centre of the view. On the shore at low water we see a sandy flat, which ends under water with a steep slope. The sand is brought down by the river from the two valleys, and deposited when the deep water is reached, so that the land is constantly, if slowly, gaining on the water. The sand extends a little above high-tide level, and we then get a grass-covered flat with water-channels and with many blocks fallen from the side of the valley. We next come to hay fields, and farther on to cultivated land, with farms, houses, and trees, the ground, though flat, gradually rising from the fjord. As will be seen in Mr. Tunbridge's view, the Alluvial Flat crosses the whole width of the fjord-valley, and, consequently, extends across the mouths of both the Suphelle and the Boium valleys. The river from the latter valley crosses near the foot of the high mountain, is joined by the Suphelle river, and the united stream enters the fjord near the right side of the view (see the Map, Fig. 3). The material of this flat is, as I have said, brought down by the rivers, and may in part come direct from the foot of the glaciers, but is mainly derived from the sand and gravel terraces in the second section of the valley. 2. Terraces.-As soon as we pass the houses shown on the left of Mr. Tunbridge's view we enter the present section of the Boium Valley, and about a mile from the fjord we find a series of step-terraces which extend up the valley for about a mile and a-half. A view of one of these terraces will be found in our Report (op. cit., Plate 5). The mountain in the centre is the eastern'wall of the fjord-valley. On the left a small glacier is seen. It hangs on the side of the valley but does not descend farther than is shown in the view. The terrace of sand and gravel crosses the middle of the view, and on it we see a farm. If we mount up on to the terrace we find ourselves on a flat with fields and other farms, the flat having a slope towards the fjord Similar terraces at various levels will be seen from the farm, all having a slope towards the fjord. The elevation of the land in this area in late-glacial times has been already dealt with in our PROCEEDINGS (see References, 1912, pp. 36, 37), and I believe that these terraces were deposited in the fjord, their present elevated position being due to rise of the land and consequent retreat of the fjord down the valley. They are formed of moraine HORACE WOOLLASTON ~ONCKTON ON material from the foot of the ice, and are, in fact, terminal moraine spread out in the water in front of the ice. Sections in them consequently show sand and gravel with boulders, but, unlike a terminal moraine deposited on land, they are stratified. The terraces were formed much as the alluvial-flat is being formed now, but they were nearer to the ice and more closely connected with it than the alluvial-flat which is mainly com posed of debris washed by water from the older deposits. 3. Moraines.-The terraces end some two and a-half miles from the fjord. Probably the glacier filled the bottom of the valley down to this point until sufficient elevation had taken place to raise the locality above sea-level. The result is that from here onwards the retreating glacier has left more or less regular terminal moraines in the place of stratified terraces. About half a mile beyond the last terrace there is a large moraine of sand and gravel, with big blocks j I believe it to be some 300 ft. above the sea. Then we come to a desolate tract, swept, I believe, by snow avalanches during the spring. We pass other masses of moraine material, and, finally, at the head of the fjord-valley, we see the glacier. The view (Reference, 1912, Plate LA) was taken from a point about a mile from the foot of the ice, and shows the moraine mounds at the houses in the fore ground. Mr. Tunbridge's photograph (Plate I.B) shows other moraines nearer to the ice. Some remarks on the variation of length of this glacier in recent times have been given in our PROCEEDINGS (Vol. XXIII, p. 12). It has been advancing during the last few years, and in July, 1912, I noticed that in consequence of the advance its freshest moraine in one place rested on grass, and that Ranunculus and Lotus corniculatus were in flower only 30 ft. in front of the ice foot. The Suphelle Valley.--As I have said, the valley shown at the head of the fjord ill Mr. Tunbridge's photograph (References 1912, Plate 9) is the Suphelle. The foot of the Suphelle Glacier is the white patch at the bottom of the valley in the view. There are many conspicuous moraine mounds in front of it. A part of one is shown in another view (op. cit. Plate IO.B). The valley above the glacier is narrow, and there are piles of debris due to post-glacial falls all along it. The head of the valley is shown in Plate S.A of the same volume where the Little Suphelle Glacier (No.4 on the map, Fig. 3) is seen descending into the valley from the left (western) side. The bottom of the valley is covered with moraine material, the blocks in which are larger when one comes to walk amongst them than might be expected from the photograph. It will be noticed that they are not arranged in the form of moraine mounds, but spread out over the surface. The foot of the ice is 1371 ft. above the sea, and well above the highest marine level of the late-glacial period. SOME VALLEYS, ETC., IN THE BERGEN DISTRICT. 37

We do not here find the same development of terraces as in the Boium Valley; possibly it was filled longer with ice. There is an interesting feature at its mouth. A ridge of rock runs from the western side almost across the valley, and those who were present on our excursion may remember that the road from Mundal rises rather steeply just after the turn into the valley, and that there is again a steep descent on the valley side. The river down the valley flows through a gorge between this ridge and the eastern side of the valley. The rock running out into the valley is greatly ice-worn, the glacier having mounted over it probably at several distinct periods. Such rock ridges dividing a valley into basins are common. We saw a good example in 1911 at Fretheim (August r rth), There, a great ridge of rock runs out from the eastern side of the Flaamasdal, and the river flows round its western end. A vast mass of moraine material is piled against its eastern end, and there are two large giants' kettles close to the Fretheim Hotel.

II.-SKJOLDEN AND THE LYSTER FJORD. In this district we find a belt of Cambro-Silurian and associated rocks running in a north-eastern and south-western direction, dividing the mass of igneous rocks which forms such a prominent feature round the head valleys of the Sogne Fjord from a great Archsean area, which extends out to the western coast (see the Geological Map, by Mr. Bjorlykke, Norges Ceol. ~-ndersogelse, No. 39, 1905). The great snowfield, J ostedalsbrreen, lies upon a plateau parallel to this Cambro-Silurian belt, and a series of valleys run out from the south-eastern side of this plateau and cut the belt more or less at right angles. The valleys of the Sogndals River, of the Vejtestrands Lake, and Jostedal belong to this series. Other valleys run along the Cambro Silurian belt, and the most important of these is the upper part of the Lyster Fjord. The river-system at the head of that fjord is shown in the sketch map, Fig. 4. Skjolden, the little town at the end of the fjord, is some 130 miles from the open sea. The water of the fjord is brackish, hut, nevertheless, the seaweed Fucus vesiculosus abounds. At Skjolden, the valley of the fjord divides into two branches. On the north we have Morkrisdal, or Mor kereidsdal, on the east, Fortundal. The former lies north and south, and may, I think, be classed with the valleys running at right angles to the Cambro-Silurian belt, whilst the latter has, on the whole, a more easterly trend, and cuts more into the Cambro Silurian rocks, and it should, I think, be classed with the valleys running along the strike. At a late part of the Ice age, when the glaciers were retreat ing, it is evident that the foot of the ice paused for a long HORACE WOOLLASTON MONCKTON ON time at what is now the head of the Lyster Fjord, for there are great terminal moraines at the entrance to the two valleys. I will take Fortundal first. The moraine crosses the mouth of the valley in a north and south direction. On its outer or western face there is, on the north of the Fortundal River, a small alluvial flat, and a little above it a terrace on which the town of Skjolden stands. On the south the moraine approaches the deep part of the fjord so there is no alluvial flat, and the

M'LES o 2 3 4 5 I I , I I

FIG. 4.-MAP OF THE RIVER-SYSTEM AT THE HEAD OF THE LYSTER FJORD. steamboat pier is at the foot of the moraine. A steep path leads up the moraine from the pier, and we find ourselves on a wide but not very level area with wood and fields. Here Dr. Reusch found a deposit with marine shells at a level of about 43 ft. above the fjord (References 1900-1, page 545). Ascending to the south we come to Sulheims Hotel, and be hind it the ground rises steeply to a level of rather over 2<)0 ft., where there is a small flattish area with a hayfield. The sand and gravel are banked against the southern rock-side of the valley, but it is not a terrace such as we saw in Boiumdal, for SOME VALLEYS, ETC., IN THE BERGEN DISTRICT. 39 it slopes the wrong way, i.e., downwards up the valley. It was, however, probably deposited under water, and it should be noted that the whole way from the steamboat pier to this hayfield at a height of 2g0 ft. we have been on gravel and sand of the moraine, and now looking northwards we see its full extent. It crosses the valley below us, is about 3/4 mile in breadth, with a semicircular inner side on which there is a lake (marked " Lake" on the map, Fig. 4), the Eids Lake (" eid " means a neck of land, no doubt referring to the moraine). The surface of the lake is 10 ft. above the fjord, and it is III ft. deep, so that the bottom is 101 ft. below the surface of the fjord . I believe the lake to be a part of the fjord cut off by the moraine. Looking across the moraine to the north we see the valley Morkrisdal with its moraine, to which I shall return pr esently; now I only note that it also has a small flat of gravel at its eastern end against the rock wall opposite us which is, according to Dr. Reusch (References IgOO-I, page 544), 328 ft. above the fjord, that is, a little higher than the hayfield on which we are standing. He considers this to be the highest marine level of the late-glacial period. At that time consequently, apart from the ice, the fjord would have extended far up both the valleys before us, but the ice filled the valley down to its mouth and poured into the water before it the sand and gravel which form the great moraines. The site of the Eids Lake being filled by the ice was protected from deposition. The glacier th en retreated, and as the land rose, water from the lake would pour over the moraine and remove much sand and gravel to be deposited out in the dcep fjord. Thus the undulating area near Sulheims Hotel would be formed, and as the rise continued th e river established itself at a point about half-way across the valley, and cut the channel through the moraine which now forms the outlet of the lake . Leaving the hayfield, and returning to the Skjolden steamboat pier. we find a road along the foot of the moraine to the mouth of the river, where it turns eastwards up the channel which the river has cut in the moraine and keeps along the southern bank of the river. The channel, excavated in the moraine, is some 60 to 70 ft. in depth. On the south it is for the most part grassed over, but there is a large gravel pit close to the Skjolden Bridge. On the north there is a bare slope of sand and gravel, with a line of bushes along the side of the river. Big boulders occur in the moraine, and numbers derived from it lie in the river. The view, Plate 5.B, shows this northern side of the channel at the bridge that is near the fjord end of the channel. It will be observed that there is a step in the terrace near the bridge, and a little to the left there is another step down on to a small flat on which the town of Skjolden stands, If we now HORACE WOOLLASTON MONCKTON ON turn up the road along the southern bank of the river we reach the eastern end of the channel and come to the Eids Lake. The road runs along its southern shore. The photograph, Plate 5.A, was taken from this shore looking north. On the right we see the rock-side of the valley rising steeply from the water. It is much ice-worn. Then banked up against the rock we see the moraine with trees, a field and houses. The four trees on the left of the houses are close to the outlet of the lake. There is also a boat on the shore close to the left side of the river. In the foreground, the shore of the lake is formed of moraine material, and the moraine curves round behind us. The exten sive wood above the two houses is all on the moraine. The distant mountains are around Morkrisdal. The rock under the moraine is probably Archsean gneiss, but as we proceed lip Fortundal we find the rock-sides of the valley to be Cambro-Silurian. The cliffs are very fine with waterfalls pouring over from the Palreic Surface above. The Eids Lake is a mile long, and, a little beyond it, I noticed that the rock-side of the valley is waterworn to a considerable height above the level of the present lake and river. In many places the rock has been ice-marked and grooved, the lines running in the direction of the valley. At Fortun, three miles above Skjolden, flat-topped gravel terraces are developed on a con siderable scale. They must have been deposited in water, either of the lake or of the fjord, and at a time when the glacier had retreated at least be-yond Fortun. The valley contracts just below Fortun Hotel. On the N.W., rock extends down to the river, and, on the S.E., there is a high mound which, though partly rock, is largely moraine, for there is a small section in sand and gravel at its top, and another low down near the hotel. Above Fortun we find some small terraces in the valley, and, at one point, a low ridge of rock runs across it. The river has cut a gorge through the ridge and in it there is a fine" giant's kettle." I am inclined to think that this gorge is due to a river flowing under the ice of the glacier which once extended down the valley. Some further details as to Fortundal, and an account of the branch valley Turtegrodal, are given by Dr. Reusch (References, 1901, p. 153). I have already mentioned that Dr. Reusch found some marine shells in the great bank of sand and gravel at Skjolden. A list is given by Dr. Bragger (References, 19°o-I, p. 546). He classes the deposit with the Tapes-Banks of the Kristiania Fjord, which belong to the post-glacial deposits, when the temperature was a little higher than now. The bed in which the shells were found is 42t it. above the sea, and the surface of the ground about 50 ft. It is the flattish part of the moraine below Sulheims Hotel and above the channel through which the river flows. P ROC. GE

[PlIO!£> by H . W . lItonckfon. A .-THE Ems LAKE A ND T H E MORAINE, SKJO LDEN .

[P hoto by N. W. M onck/oTl. B.-THE RIVE RS A ND T H E M ORAINE, SKJOLDEN. SOME VALLEYS, ETC., IN THE BERGEN DISTRICT. 41

Clearly, from the point of view of temperature, the shell-deposit cannot belong to a time when the glacier was depositing the moraine. The deposit is on top of the part of the moraine, .and the sea-water which deposited it must consequently have flowed over into FortundaL There is other evidence that it did so, for in a pit on the inner slope of the moraine, by the side of the private road from Sulheims Hotel to the main road, the sand and gravel is well stratified, with a dip towards the lake, suggesting .a flow of water over the moraine from the fjord side. The sea water did not, however, wash the material of the moraine up the valley to any great amount, or it would have filled the Eids Lake. I now turn to the neighbouring valley Morkrisdal (see Fig. 4). The shore is much wider than in front of Fortundal, for the fjord is not so deep, and there is consequently a wide sandy flat at low tide. Then we have a series of flat terraces rising gradually to a height of some 75ft., and beyond them a great moraine once crossed the valley, through which there is now a deep channel, in which the Morkrisdal River flows. The course of the river is not straight as in Fortundal, but runs in a series of great curves. On the left, eastern end. of the moraine there is a small high.level village, and close to it is the highest part of the bank (328 ft.) resting against the rock-side of the valley. This great bank is a terminal moraine of the former Morkrisdal Glacier, and at its eastern end it joins the northern part of the terminal moraine at the mouth ot Fortundal, so that a high-level road runs from the top of the latter to the village just mentioned, the road resting on moraine all the way. The moraine in Morkrisdal has been greatly eroded by streams in recent times, and I noticed that considerable trouble has been taken to protect the high-level road. The material removed by the streams has been, and still is being, spread out in front of the moraine in the fjord. Plate 6.A is a view up Morkrisdal taken from the moraine, a part of which is seen in the foreground. The houses shown stand on the inner and lower part of the moraine, and beyond we see thelflat valley, with the river winding along it. It will be noticed that when the river passes the house on the left it begins to cut the moraine, and its course becomes more rapid. Dr. Reusch suggests (References, J900-J, p. 544) that there was at one time a lake at the back of the moraine here. I tbink it extended all the way up the valley as far as we see in the view and round the corner to the right, for there we find a village, Morkereid, standing on flat terraces of sand and gravel, which, like those at Fortun, must have been deposited in water. It will be noticed that close to the turn in the valley there is an imposing waterfall. It is the river which comes from the large lake high up in the mountains, shown in the Map, Fig. 4. As in Fortundal, we find signs of water-erosion high up on the rock-wall at the side of Morkrisdal. The erosion was 42 HORACE WOOLLASTON MONCKTON ON probably effected by a river flowing in a confined channel when the glacier extended down the valley. We may divide the valleys of Fortundal and Morkrisdal into sections as follows: 1. The shore and Alluvial Flat. Developed in M. but almost absent in F., the next section immediately adjoining the deep part of the fjord in F. 2. A terminal moraine with a deep channel through it forming the present course of the river. Step-terraces well shown in front of the moraine in M., but only on one side of the river in F" and then on a small scale. Sea-shells in bed on 'the moraine in F., not on highest part. 3. A portion of the fjord cut off by the moraine now forming a lake in F. Evidence of former extension of the lake, or, perhaps, of the fjord to Fortun. No lake now in M., but evidence that there has been a lake or that the fjord extended over the moraine to Morkereid village. 4. Terraces some distance up the valley above the moraines. at Fortun and Morkereid formed of material deposited in lake OF the fjord. 5. The upper part of the valleys not here dealt with. Some details will be found in a paper by Dr. Reusch (References, 1901, pp. 152-161).

III.-VIK EIDFJORD. In a paper published in the Geological Magazine for 1899 (References, 1899, p. 533), I gave an account of the valley at Vik Eidfjord in Hardanger, and it is interesting to compare it with the valleys in Sogn which we have been considering. The river system round the head of the fjord is shown in the Map, Fig. 5. 1. The valley runs up from Vik in a south-easterly direction. It begins where the fjord is both wide and deep, and there is in consequence a fan of sand and gravel thrown out at the mouth of the river, not a large alluvial-flat such as we have at Fjrerland, and in this particular there is a resemblance to Fortundal. 2. Terminal moraine and step terraces.-This section is a mile in length, and the valley is occupied by a vast mass of moraine material, a view of which from near the mouth of the river is given on Plate 7.A. The distant mountains seen in the view are at the upper end of the Eidfjords Lake. The rock sides of the valley are shown rising steeply on both sides. The flat top of the great moraine runs across the picture. The more extensive part is on the eastern side of the river. It rises about 350 ft. above the fjord, and there is a large, tolerably I'ROC. GEOT, Assoc., VOL XXI V. PLATE 6.

[Ph,t" by H. IV. llloll.:k(oll. A.-M1;RKRISDAL, AT THE HEAD OF THE LYSTER FJORD.

[Pit,to by H. W. MoncRton. B.-A MORAINE IN SIMODAL, HARDANGER.

T ~ [ace page 42. SOME VALLEYS, ETC. , IN THE BERGEN DI STRICT. 43 level area on its tops, with farm s, fields and woods. On the right of th e view above the bridge a lower terra ce will be noticed, and on th e left, across th e river, one at a still lower level, whilst in th e foreground we have th e flat area at th e present level of the river.

M,LES o / 2 3 4 ! ! • I I

FIG. 5.-MAP OF T HE RIVER-SYST EM AT T HE HE AD OF T HE H ARDANGER F l OR I!.

The road up th e valley follows the western bank of th e river through the deep channel or valley which th e river has cut in the great moraine. This valley is tolerably straight like that at the mouth of Fortundal, and the river does not curv e as in Morkrisdal, 3. The Lake.-On reaching th e inner face of the great moraine we find a lake, as at Skjolde n, due to the morain e ac ting as a dam across the valley. A view reprodu ced from my paper of 1899 is given P late 7B. The rock-wall of the 44 HORACE WOOLLASTON MONCKTON ON valley is seen on the right, then the moraine, a great flat-topped bank, rising some 300 ft. above the lake, runs across the picture, its end on the left being hidden by a projecting spur of rock. The outlet is cut in a diagonal direction a little to the right of this rock spur, but is not very apparent in the picture. The road in the foreground runs along the western shore of the lake and for much of the way it has been cut in rock. Until this road was made the passage up valley from Vik was by boat along the lake. The bottom of the lake is 189 ft. below sea-level, and I think that, as at Skjolden, the lake is probably the head of the fjord cut off by the moraine; but the moraine here has proved a much more effective dam than the one at Skjolden, for whilst the Eids Lake is only 10 ft. above the sea, the level of the lake before us is 56 ft. 4. Alluvial Flat and Terraces above the lake.-As in Fortundal and Morkrisdal, we find a further series of terraces some distance up the valley, and there is a considerable alluvial flat at the upper end of the lake, as I have described in my paper of 1899. The terraces were, I believe, deposited in the lake when the glacier had retired from the Lake section of the valley. 5. The upper part of the valley is described by Dr. Reusch (References, 1901, p. 199). He gives a plan and a view of the great fall Voringsfos.

IV.-SiMODAL.

In my paper in our PROCEEDINGS in 1903 (References, 1903, p. 53) I gave some account of this valley, but the paper is not illustrated, and so I now give a view of the moraine at the upper end of the alluvial-flat in that valley, Plate 6.B. The view is looking up the valley. In the foreground is a part of the alluvial-flat. Then the moraine is seen crossing the valley. On it is a cherry orchard. The river has cut through it on the right centre of the view. The section shows stratified sand and gravel, for the moraine was poured out into the fjord. It has not the flat top of the Vik moraine, and probably did not attain the surface of the water when deposited, for higher up the valley at Thveit we find flat-topped terraces very well developed, showing that the fjord overflowed the terminal moraine shown in Plate 6.B, and, as the ice retreated, extended a long way up the valley. There is a large cirque at the eastern end of the straight part of the river (see the Map, Fig. 5), and the tributary from the south-east falls over from the Palseic Surface into the fjord valley at this cirque. The main river comes down a narrow gorge from the north, Pnoc. GEOL. Assoc., VOL. XXIV.

[Plzoto by H. W. 1110lU.:!c'loll. A.-THE GREAT MORAINE AND TERi(ACES, VIK EIDFJORD, HARDANGER.

[Photo by H. W. Monetaon. B.-THE EIDFJORD LAKE AND THE MORAINE, VIK EIDFJORD. (Reproduced by permission oj the Editor of the" Geological Magazine.")

T o face page 44. SOME VALLEYS, ETC., IN THE BERGEN DISTRICT. 45 and if we make our way up it, over much debris fallen from the sides since the ice left this valley, we find ourselves in another but smaller cirque which ends the fjord-valley. The river descends into it from the Palreic Surface as the beautiful fall Rembesdalsfos. If we mount up to the top of the cliff we find that the river comes from a lake in a wide, shallow valley of the Palseic Surface, and on the opposite side of the lake we see a glacier from the snowfield Hardanger J okulen which advances into the lake, and, as a rule, there are small icebergs from the glacier floating in the water. Our members went to the top of this snowfield on our Excursion of 1911 (References, 1912, p. 45). The foot of the ice here is six miles from the fjord (see the Map, Fig. 5).

V.-THE SOR FJORD AND THE SANDVEN LAKE.

The Sor Fjord has a length of nearly 24 miles. The deep and narrow valley in which it lies has a southerly trend, and, after the end of the fjord at Odda, the valley runs on for 18 miles to the pass above Breifond, the valley in its southern part trending somewhat to the east. A sketch-map of the geology of the district, by Dr. Reusch, will be found in his paper on Hardangervidden (Norges Geol. Unders., No. 34, 1902), and a more detailed geological map of part of the district by Mr. Rekstad in his paper on the Peninsula of the Folgefonn (References, 1907). On the western side of this great valley there is the plateau on which lies the large snow-field Folgefonn, and on the eastern side we find another great desolate plateau, with snow patches and many lakes, named Hardangervidden. The southern end of the Sal' Fjord is shown on the Map, Fig. 6, and it will be noticed that about a mile to the north of the shore at Odda a small peninsula projects into the fjord. It is a low ridge of rock named Eitnzes, which has been much worn and grooved by ice, showing that a glacier has travelled northwards down the fjord-valley. I. There is not a wide alluvial-flat at Odda, or, perhaps, it would be most correct to say that the alluvial-flat has been slightly elevated. and forms a wide terrace at J. low level, and consequently belongs to the next section of the valley. 2. Moraine and Terraces.-This section of the valley extends for about a mile from near the shore of the fjord to the Sandven Lake (see the Map, Fig. 6). A section is given by Helland (References, 1877, p. 167), and it is evident that the glacier of which I have spoken halted for a long time at what is now the northern end of the lake, for this mile of the valley is occupied by a vast mass of moraine material. Thus at the end of the lake there is a terminal moraine forming a high mound (shown in the HORACE WOOLLASTON MONCKTON ON view, Plate 8), and between the mound and the fjord there are extensive terraces formed of moraine-material rising in steps from Odda to the mound. The highest of these terraces is about 316 ft. above the sea (Rekstad, References, 19°7, p. 42), which, as Mr. Rekstad remarks (oj. cit., p. 44), is lower than we should expect it to be. On the other hand, the top of the mound is 446 ft. above the sea, which is rather higher than the topmost

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FIG.6.-\fAP OF THE DISTRICT AROUND ODDA. marine level in the district in the latter part of the ice age. Possibly, as Helland suggests, the top of the mound projected above the sea when it was deposited, I have seen some good sections in the highest terrace showing sand and gravel with boulders, the stratification, when present, sloping, as usual, towards the fjord. 3. The Lake.-The Sandven Lake has a length of three miles, and is due to the terminal moraine, which, as I have said, SOME VALLEYS, ETC., IN THE BERGEN DISTRICT. 47 crosses the valley. The view, Plate 8.A, shows the northern or outlet-end of the lake. The mountains seen are on the western side of the fjord, and the patches of snow are outliers of the snow-field Folgefonn. The great mound on the shore of the lake is the terminal moraine. Some very large blocks will be noticed on it. It will be seen that it stands out in the valley, and on the west, that is the left side in the view, there is an interval of some 200 yards between the mound and the side of the valley, where the inhabitants have a landing-place. The outlet from the lake is on the right side of the view, and the river from the lake flows down a steep and tolerably direct course to the fjord. A little below a bridge near the outlet I noticed, in 1898, a well striated face of rock, and I suspect that there is a ridge of rock running out into the eastern side of the valley under the moraine and terraces, which probably accounts for the fact that we have not here a deep ravine, cut in the terminal moraine, as at Skjolden and at Vik, and that consequently the Sandven Lake is as much as 295 ft. above the fjord at Odda, whereas the Eide Lake is only 10 ft. above the fjord at Skjolden, and the Eidfjord Lake 56 ft. above the fjord at Vik. The bottom of the Sandven Lake is, however, 98 ft. below the surface of the fjord, so it is possible that it is really a part of the fjord cut off by moraine, as I believe is the case at the other two places. As will be seen from the Map, Fig. 6, the Buar Glacier flows from the snow-field into a tributary valley. The foot of the ice is nearly 1,400 ft. above the sea, and it is st miles from the fjord. An excellent and well-illustrated account of the glacier is given by Mr. Rekstad in his paper on the Folgefonn (References, 1905). He estimates the level of the snow-line here to be between 4,264 ft. and 4,600 ft. above the sea.

Vr.-THE VALLEY OF THE GRANVIN LAKE. The Granvin Fjord runs out from the northern side of the Hardanger Fjord in a N.N.E. direction. The name was at one time Graven, and it will be found so marked on many maps. A geological map of the district has been published by Mr. Rekstad (References, 1911), and some notes on the valley by myself will be found in my paper in the Geological Magazine for 1899. r. The Alluvial Flat.-At the end of the fjord we come to Eide (see Fig. 7), and we find there an alluvial.flat about half a mile in length, sloping down from Mrelands Hotel, and passing below the water of the fjord, where its end is evidently steep, for I have seen large boats very near the head of the fjord. 2. Terraces.-This section of the valley is a mile in length, and, at its upper end, the valley turns sharply to the north (see HORACE WOOLLASTON MONCKTON ON the Map, Fig. 7), differing in this respect from the long, compara tively straight valleys which we have been examining. The consequence is that though we find flat-topped terraces in steps they are not perhaps so well marked as in the other cases, and here we have great mounds of stratified sand and gravel piled up against the rock sides of the valley. This is especially noticeable in the corner opposite the end of the fjord where the valley turns, the sand and gravel being piled up to a height of about 300 ft. above the fjord. I have no doubt that the sand and gravel which occupies this section of the valley is material of a terminal

o 2 3 4 ! ! I I

FIG. 7.-:'IIAP OF THE DISTRICT AROUND GRANVIN, HARDANGER. moraine poured out into the fjord at the foot of the ice, and probably at the time of greatest submergence in the late-glacial period. There is a good section in one of the great mounds near the landing-stage at Eide. The view, Plate 8.B, is reproduced from my paper of 1899, and another view of the same pit by Mr. Rekstad is given in his Memoir (References, 191 I, Plate II, Fig. 2). The section shows sand and gravel well and evenly stratified. There is a little current-bedding, and the dip is, as usual, towards the fjord. Mr. Rekstad considers that the terrace, at 121-144 ft. above the sea, date from the time of the nlpes-Banks. Marine PROC. GEOL Assoc., VOL. XXIV. PU.TE 8.

[Plzoto by Ii. W. illoll,kloll. A.-THE SANDVEN LAKE AND THE MORAINE, ODDE, HARDAN'GER.

[Photo by H. W. Mo nctaon. B.-SECTION IN A TERRACE, EIDE, HARDANGER. (Reproduced by permission of the Editor of the" Geological Magazine.")

To jace page 48. SOME VALLEYS, ETC., IN THE BERGEN DISTRICT. 49 shells have been recorded from a terrace at a level of 77 ft. (References, 1900-1, pp. 452-455). 3. The Granoi» Lake.-This section of the valley is occupied by a lake three miles in length. Its depth is 282 ft. and the surface of the water is 95 ft. above the sea. The bottom is consequently 187 ft. below the sea-level. The church of Granvin stands on the eastern bank, and the road from Voss to Eide runs along the same side of the lake. Near its southern end the valley closes in to some extent, and the rock rises directly out of the water. I give on Plate 9 a view of this part of the lake with the Voss-Eide road in the middle, the lake on the left, and the steep rock side of the valley on the right. It will be noticed that the rock is waterworn to a considerable height, some 50 ft., indeed, above the lake. I do not think that any raising of the level of the lake would enable the water to thus erode the rock, for there is no sand or gravel in the surface water of a lake; but the erosion probably took place when the lake was filled by the glacier, which deposited the terminal moraine, the material of which we saw in Section 2 of this valley. The greater part of this moraine material must have been carried across the space now occupied by the lake by the ice, for it could not have floated or been brought down the valley across the lake by water alone. 4. Terraces in Valley above the Lake.-This section of the valley has a length of two miles. Great cliff." rise on both sides and unite to form a cirque at the upper end, over which a large river pours, the falls being known as Skjervefos. The road from Voss to Eide crosses the river at the foot of the upper fall, and when there is much water the road is often swept by spray. Terraces of sand and gravel extend nearly all the way from the fall to the lake. Mr. Rekstad (References, 191 I, p. 13) gives the level of the highest terrace as from 344 to 360 ft. above the sea, and remarks that both it and the terrace at 121 to 144 ft. are of considerable extent. He says that the terraces in this section, which he terms ovre Granvin, consist mainly of sand and river gravel, but clay oc-curs at some places (OJ. cit., pp. 12, I3).

VII. NORHEIMSUND AND TOKAGJELET.

I now pass down the Hardanger Fjord to Norheimsund, or Nordheimsund, in the Parish of Vikor, one of the places visited on our Excursion (References, 1912, pp. 16, 53). The geological formation is Cambro-Silurian (see Mr. Rekstad's map, References, 191 1). As in the Granvin case, this valley is not a straight one, but there are several turns, as is shown in the Map, Fig. 8. The superficial deposits are dealt with by Mr. Rekstad (References, 191 I, pp. 7, I 2). PROC. GEOL. Assoc., VOL. XXiV, PART I, 1913.J 4 5° HORACE WOOLLASTON MONCKTON ON

I. The Norheim SUfld.-As will be seen from the Map, Fig. 8, this is an inlet or bay on the north-western side of the Hardanger Fjord. There are some islands near the shore about here, and two lie at the mouth of the inlet; the place is marked on the map by one dot. On the islands are erratic blocks. The head of the sund inside these islands is rather less than a mile in length, and is apparently a deep basin, for the fjord steamboats come into it. I look upon it as the first section of the valley we are about to consider. 2. Tile Norheim Lake.-The next section of the valley is about a mile III length, and is, I believe, a rock-basin. A ridge of rock runs across the valley at the lower end of the section, i.e., at Norheimsund. Inside the ridge is the Norheim Lake, the outlet of which is apparently over the lowest point in the rock-ridge, as has already been described in our PROCEEDINGS, (References, 1912, p. 16, and Plate 6). There is' an alluvial-flat at the upper end of the lake. 3. The Steinsdal.- This section of the valley is about two miles in length. A ridge of rock projects from the southern side of the valley and nearly crosses it, only leaving a narrow gap at the northern side through which the river flows from the Steinsdal to the Norheim Lake. At this gap a tributary joins the main river from the north, falling from the Palteic Surface into the fjord-valley as a series of cascades, the lowest of which is the fine waterfall named Steinsdalsfos or Ofsthusfos, a view of which is given in the report of our Excursion (References, 1912, Plate 12). The Steinsdal above the rock-ridge is a wide and flat valley; the view (Plate 9.A) is from a point a little above the waterfall, and looking up the valley, i.e., in a westerly direction. Wide, flat-topped terraces extend in the foreground, and a high-level terrace will be seen, looking like a shelf on the side of the mountain, to the left of the white house in the middle of the picture. There is also a steep slope of sand and gravel, on the right of the same house, banked up against the large knob of rock which stands out from the right, or northern, side of the valley. Mr. Rekstad describes the terraces (References, 1911, p. 12) as a series marking the rising of the land. He records that at the farm Lower Birkeland, a long way up the valley, there were found in sandy clay, 19 metres (62 ft.) above the sea, impressions of the shells of Mya truncata associated with leaves of the alder, and a fruit, apparently wild apple. He gives the level of the highest terrace here as 275 ft., so that in post-glacial times the sea was quite deep in the part of the valley shown in Plate 9.A. I believe the sea extended up to the white cliff on the great rock knob. Beyond this knob the section of the valley will be seen to end in a vast cirque. PROC. GEOL. Assoc., VOL. XXIV. PLATE 9.

[PMto by fl. W. Moncklon. A.-THE STEINSDAL ABOVE NORDHEIMSUND, HARDANGER, SHOWING TERRACES.

[Plloto by H. W. Monetaon. B.-WATER-WQRN FACE OF ROCK BY THE GRANVIN LAKE, NEAR EIDE, HARDANGER.

To face page 5C. SOME VALLEYS, ETC., IN THE BERGEN DISTRICT. 51

4. Tohagie!et.-A deep ravine cut in the Cambro-Silurian schists branches from the northern side of the great cirque, that is behind the rock knob of Plate 9.A, and away to the right. The Trengereid road is cut in the side of this ravine, and a view, by Dr. Kolderup, of part of it has been given in our PROCEEDINGS (References, 1912, Plate 12). A considerable river flows down the ravine, and there are some kettle-holes in its bed. At the top we come to a waterfall, and above it we enter

1 2 (3 , I ,

FIG. 8.-MAP OF THE DISTRICT AROUND NORHEIMSUND. on a wide, open moor, the river flowing down the ravine coming from a lake on the moor. The presence of the lake is of interest, for, owing to it, little gravel or sand can be carried into the ravine now, and if any of the gravel and sand in Steinsdal has come down Tokagjelet, it must have been brought across the lake by ice, which I have little doubt was in fact the case, and indeed I think it probable that the excavation of the ravine itself was mainly effected by a river flowing under a glacier, and that the terraces in Steinsdal are to a large extent the moraine of that glacier spread out in the sea at its foot. 52 SOME VALLEYS, ETC., IN THE BERGEN DISTRICT.

Two of the localities dealt with in the present communication, Fjaerlands and Norheimsund, were visited by our party in 191 I, but it was not found possible to include the other places in our programme. I am, however, in hopes that many of our members will be able to visit them, and that the present paper, taken together with the report of our Excursion, will be found of use. I can assure our members that all the places will be found to repay investigation, for, in addition to the interesting rocks of the whole district, the marks of very recent ice-action and the clear evidence of recent alterations in the level of the land have great value in relation to facts which we observe in the British Isles. In the Bergen District we see not only the results of ice action, but we can to a great extent observe the operations in progress, for the glaciers, though they have retreated in the recent period, have not yet wholly abandoned the fjord-valleys, and the plateaux are in many cases still capped by perpetual snow, In Britain, on the other hand, a long time has elapsed since the glaciers melted and the snow-fields disappeared.

REFERENCES. 1877. HELLAND, A.-" On the Ice Fjords of North Greenland, and on the Formation of Fjords, Lakes and Cirques in Norway and Green land." Quart. YOU1·n. Geol, Soc., vol xxxiii, p. 142. 1899. MONCKTON, H. W.-" Notes on some Hardanger Lakes." Geoi. Mag" dec. iv, vol. vi, p. 533. 1900-1. BRaGGER, W. C.-" Om de senglaciale og postglaciale nivaforand ringer i Kristianiafeltet." NOI'ges Geoi. Unders., No. 31. 1901. REUSCH, HANS.-" Nogle bidrag til forstaaelsen af, hvorledes Norges dale og fjelde er blevne til." Norges Geol. Unders.. No. 32. 1903. MONCKTON, H. W.-" On the Recent Geological History of the Bergen District, Norway." Proc. Geol Assoc., vol. xviii, p. 53. 1905. REKSTAD, J.-" Iagttagelser fra Folgefonnens brseer." Norges Geoi. Unders., No. 43. 1907. --- .-" Folgefonnshalvoens geologi." Not'ges Ceo!. Unders., No. 45. 191 1. -----.-"Geologiske iagttagelser fra nordvestsiden av Har dangerfjord." Norges Ceol. Unders., No. 59. 1912. KOLDERUP, C. F., AND MONCKTON, H. W.-" The Geology of the Bergen District, Norway." (Reference to other and earlier Papers will be found in the Bibliography.) Proc. Geol.Assoc., vol. xxiii, p. 1.