Gausdal is considered to be the most fertile farming area in Gudbrandsdalen. Gausdal takes its name from the river Gausa, which means a powerful flow or cascade of water.
Gausdal has a population of around 6000 people, and about half of them live in the three main centres - Sagalstad Bru, Follebu and Forset.
On a trip to Gausdal, Dikterportalen is a good place to start, a tourist information centre open during the summer months. It is at the end of the driveway leading up to Aulestad, once the home of the Nobel Leureate Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson. Aulestad is one of Norway's best preserved artist homes.