HARDANGER PLATEAU

also called Vidda plateau in Hordaland and Buskerud fylker (counties), southwestern Norway. The largest peneplain (an eroded, almost level plain) in Europe, it has an area of about 2,500 square miles (6,500 square km) and an average elevation of 3,500 feet (1,100 m). It has many lakes and rivers, which, draining westward, drop in huge waterfalls such as the Vrings Falls (476 feet). The OsloBergen Railroad and a main eastwest highway cross the plain. In 1979 the Hardanger Plateau was designated a national park, occupying about 1,300 square miles (3,400 square km).