Touring - Going to Norway: tips, anyone?

Hello everyone,

I'm flying to Norway on June 1st, in order to do a 2 week touring ride. My general plan (not that there is a detailed one...) is:

a. Take a train from Oslo northwards, maybe to Roros, and start riding from there.

b. Not to go further to the north, in order to save time and expensive flights.

c. Not to go too close to the west, where it's more rainy than inland Norway.

d. The trip doeasn't have to be circular - I can take a train back to Oslo from any point on the train lines.

e. Obviously, I look for secondary paved roads, but good quality gravel roads are also acceptable.

f. I've decided NOT to take camping gear - just eating stuff (stove, plate, etc) in order to shave weight.

Any suggestions? Things to avoid? Must-see's?

Oren, ISRAEL

I was there last year.

The most spectacular scenery is the fjords -and the Arctic coast -Trondheim to Bodo. Also the Lofoten islands. Inland from Roros to Trondheim is pretty, quiet, nice roads, but not spectacular scenery like the fjords.

The smaller roads are good, narrow but usually paved and not much traffic. Be careful around cities as quite often you will end up on a road where cycling is prohibited and it can be tough to work out a reasonable route.

Be prepared for rain. It is Norway, after all!

Hostels are good, but can be few and far between in some places. Hotels are ridiculously expensive. Many campgrounds have little cabins, but they aren't cheap either.

If I was recommending a bike trip in Norway, I would say the Western fjords, say from Bergen to Alesund
or the arctic coast from Trondheim to Bodo and the Lofoten islands. You can always take the Hurtigruten coastal steamer along the coast either north or south. Beware it is expensive. Everything in Norway is expensive.

Oh yeah, be aware of tunnels. Many are closed to bicycles and the ones that are open can be quite frightening. You can get a tunnel guide from http://www.bike-norway.com/engelsk.asp Bike Norway.

I have my pictures online at http://homepage.mac.com/skookumchuck/PhotoAlbum15.html there are number of pages, not just Norway (in case you're confused)

PM me if you want more info.

Have a great trip!

Yeah, honestly, I've heard if you don't pick your route just right, it can suck.
I love norway though.

some of my decisions, but hey - that's what I'm here for :)

I HATE riding in the rain. This is why I thought staying inland would keep me somewhat drier.

I couldn't find the 'tunnel guide' in the site you mentioned - can I buy those in bicycle stores?

Oren

Bring front and rear lights ,awesome daylight 24 hours but tunnels especially on secondary roads are dark or even unlit and at anywhere from 500meter to 24 kilometer tunnels you will want to be seen by cars ,some tunnels are wet and blacker than black,-----raingear raingear raingear -----Norway is one of the most beautiful Arctic countries and would return again ---The sense of freedom from 24 hours of daylight is the best thing ,we got into the habit of cycling until midnight , setting up camp and watching the sun not go down ,so peaceful -------you will have fun no matter what the weather .

I live in Oslo, what are you looking for specifically ? The innermost part of the Sognefjord is very far from the coast and has fantastic scenery. How many kilometers a day are you planning on going ? It is not an easy thing to bring a bike on a Norwegian long distance train, so my suggestion would be to plan a roundtrip from Gardemoen where you'll probably land (Oslo Lufthavn). Tell me a bit more and I can make some suggestions. Welcome to Norway !

Oren

I just checked my e-mail from last year, I did get the tunnel guide from Bike Norway-
It was free! Just send them an e-mail.Or I might be able to find my copy and mail it to you if they don't have it any more.

The tip about lights for the tunnels is good.

It definitely does rain more around Bergen and the fjords than further inland, however when I was there last June it rained everywhere! Don't miss the fjords they are spectacular.

plodderslusk

I didn't have any trouble getting my bike on the Bodo to Trondheim train, I just bought the ticket for me and the bike in advance. Space for bikes is limited.

Its no trouble to get onto the Hurtigruten to go up and down the coast, it is just expensive.

My recommendation would be Oslo- Bergen (train or bike) cycle Bergen to Alesund, continue to Trondheim and Kystriksveien to Bodo then the Lofoten Islands. Return by Hurtigruten to Trondheim and ride or train to Oslo.

Two weeks is a rather short time. I would try and plan something that takes in the fjords and then train back. Or vice versa.

I met a very helpful guy in the Nomaden bookstore in Oslo who mapped out a route for me, unfortunately I wasn't able to go that way.

Good cycling in Norway, you just have to take the weather as it comes.

Note that some of the tunnels are so long taht you might have trouble with having too little oxygen.
Also, I've had more fun in Trondhiem per day than any other city I've ever visited or lived in. Awesome place.
Helped that my birthday was May 16 (Norway's offical party day)

I live in Oslo, what are you looking for specifically ? The innermost part of the Sognefjord is very far from the coast and has fantastic scenery. How many kilometers a day are you planning on going ? It is not an easy thing to bring a bike on a Norwegian long distance train, so my suggestion would be to plan a roundtrip from Gardemoen where you'll probably land (Oslo Lufthavn). Tell me a bit more and I can make some suggestions. Welcome to Norway !

What do I look for and how long I can go:

I look for knowing the country. This means I not interested solely in the landscape, but also in people and other cultural aspects.

I'm capable of covering 60-70km per day, considering the fact I won't carry camping gear.

I couldn't find accurate weather data. How cold is it during the nights?

Another importent issue: it will save me some time, if I knew I can store the cardbord box that contained the bike somewhere, even folded. This way I won't have to look for another one at the end of my trip. Can I store such a thing for a reasonable price at the airport, or in train stations?

Oren

Pity not to do any camping. Wild camping is free and legal in Norway, and it's a beautiful place to do it too.

Pity not to do any camping. Wild camping is free and legal in Norway, and it's a beautiful place to do it too.

It is a short trip - even if I will take camping gear, I'll probably use it 3-4 times. The additional weight will decrease my ability to cover distances - I'll get tired quicker...

But you did make me reconsider this desicion :rolleyes:

Thanks! Oren

If you want to tour on the cheap in Norway, camping gear is a must. You're free to camp pretty much anywhere on public land as long as it's a certain distance (150 meters) from houses and cabins.

If you don't want to carry camping gear, many camp grounds have tiny cabins you can stay in, but be aware that they do not contain any beddings (no pillows, blankets etc), so you still need a sleeping bag, and you're expected to clean it (wash floors etc) before you leave.

One of the most popular routes you can ride is Rallarvegen (http://www.bike-norway.com/Rute.asp?ID=3&KID=38&lang=ENG). It's a train ride about 4 hours or so from Oslo, halfway to Bergen. You can then ride as far as you like on the route, then take the train the rest of the way to Bergen. Since you want experience the culture and people Bergen is one of the nicest places you can go (http://www.bergen-guide.com/).

(disclaimer; I'm from Bergen)

There are huge parking houses at Oslo Lufthavn. Ask some of the workers there if you can store it inside one of the covered parking houses.. Any big Norwegian sports store will give you a new cardboard box from their lot of newly discarded ones if you ask. Temperatures at night in the beginning of june cannot be accurately foretold. Anything from below zero (celsius)in the mountains (above 8-900 meters) to 15-20 centigrade minimum during a hot spell in the lowlands. Røros is a very nice small town well worth a visit. If you are not going for the north of Norway go see some fjords, you could go from Røros to Trondheim and then down to Lærdal in the Sognefjord and go from there to Fagernes and then back to Oslo Lufthavn over Dokka. Get good maps !

There are huge parking houses at Oslo Lufthavn. Ask some of the workers there if you can store it inside one of the covered parking houses.. Any big Norwegian sports store will give you a new cardboard box from their lot of newly discarded ones if you ask. Temperatures at night in the beginning of june cannot be accurately foretold. Anything from below zero (celsius)in the mountains (above 8-900 meters) to 15-20 centigrade minimum during a hot spell in the lowlands. Røros is a very nice small town well worth a visit. If you are not going for the north of Norway go see some fjords, you could go from Røros to Trondheim and then down to Lærdal in the Sognefjord and go from there to Fagernes and then back to Oslo Lufthavn over Dokka. Get good maps !

Thanks for the good advises! Can I fing good cycling maps in most bicycle stores?

A cycling map for the whole of Norway can be had in most big bookstores in Norway. It is called Sykkelruter i Norge and is at a scale of 1 to 1000 000. It has 75 planned tours marked and has some tunnelinformation as well. A useful website is http://www.slf.no, the norwegian cyclist organization, they sell this map in their online shop. Maps are more often found in bookstores than in cycling stores here.

Yes I recommend the map that plodderslusk mentioned, it is good for planning but not detailed enough for actual day to day use. I saw it at the slf store in Oslo and at Nomaden, also some tourist info places had it. The maps available at bike Norway are good but expensive especially if you don't know exactly which ones you need.

Samundsen, I agree Bergen is a very nice place. But rainy.

Last year in June the rallarvegen wasn't open yet. Maybe it will be better this year.