Bergen to Trondheim?

[londoncommuter0000]

Anyone ever done Bergen to Trondheim?

Everything you can tell us is very welcome. Best time to go? Accommodation (cyclist-friendly, natürlich!)? Transport of bikes to and from Oslo? Things to see? Terrain?

[Tigerbiten]

"Eurovelo 1" goes up the Norwegian coast from Bergen, google search it for more info.
"Crazy guy on a bike" will have travel logs on the route.
Those are the two best sites I know for long distance cycle route info.
After that try google search "cycle Norway" and that will probably pull up a lot of info.
But I've never cycled in Norway, so I cannot be more helpful.

Luck .............

[Vorpal]

I have not done this route, but I live in Norway.

The best way to take bikes from Oslo to Bergen is train. The Oslo - Bergen line has fantastic views. You do have to book bikes in advance, and well in advance from mid June through mid August, which is the school holiday period in Norway & Sweden.

If you have an extra day or two & the inclination, it is well worth getting off the train at Haugastøl or Finse and riding the Rallarvegen to Flåm, then taking a ferry to Bergen.

Rallarvegen is the old navvy road for the Oslo-Bergen line. There are some rough patches that are likely to mean walking if you are heavily loaded, or have tyres narrower then 32 mm (and maybe wider, if you are a cautious sort). You can also take Flåmsbana down the steepest bit. Rallarvegen doesn't usually open (due to snow) until early July, and sometimes later. Some years, there has been sections of snow year round, but they will open it, if & when it becomes safe to walk across any snowy sections. September starts to be autumn already on Rallarvegen, and the weather tends to be cold and rainy. Even loaded, it's reasonable for touring fit cyclists to do Haugastøl to Flåm in a day, but it's also possible to camp part way, or stay in a hotel or hytte in various places, if you prefer. I can make more specific recommendations if you are interested.

Going from Bergen to Trondheim, your route will be defined in some places by ferry routes and timetables. The ferries are good, and bikes are often free, or low fee. They can also be a nice break, and larger ones have cafeterias on board. The food isn't spectacular, but they generally do okay on baked goods and open faced sandwiches

This thread has some general information about Norway with links to others.

[londoncommuter0000]

I have not done this route, but I live in Norway.

The best way to take bikes from Oslo to Bergen is train. The Oslo - Bergen line has fantastic views. You do have to book bikes in advance, and well in advance from mid June through mid August, which is the school holiday period in Norway & Sweden.

If you have an extra day or two & the inclination, it is well worth getting off the train at Haugastøl or Finse and riding the Rallarvegen to Flåm, then taking a ferry to Bergen.

Rallarvegen is the old navvy road for the Oslo-Bergen line. There are some rough patches that are likely to mean walking if you are heavily loaded, or have tyres narrower then 32 mm (and maybe wider, if you are a cautious sort). You can also take Flåmsbana down the steepest bit. Rallarvegen doesn't usually open (due to snow) until early July, and sometimes later. Some years, there has been sections of snow year round, but they will open it, if & when it becomes safe to walk across any snowy sections. September starts to be autumn already on Rallarvegen, and the weather tends to be cold and rainy. Even loaded, it's reasonable for touring fit cyclists to do Haugastøl to Flåm in a day, but it's also possible to camp part way, or stay in a hotel or hytte in various places, if you prefer. I can make more specific recommendations if you are interested.

Going from Bergen to Trondheim, your route will be defined in some places by ferry routes and timetables. The ferries are good, and bikes are often free, or low fee. They can also be a nice break, and larger ones have cafeterias on board. The food isn't spectacular, but they generally do okay on baked goods and open faced sandwiches

This thread has some general information about Norway with links to others.

Thank you, Vorpal - this is brilliant stuff.

[MrsHJ]

+1 for the Oslo-Bergen train ride. It’s one of those ones to tick off on an amazing railway journeys list. Doing it on a sunny day in spring is the most incredible experience due to the snow cover but I assume you’re going to do it in summer! I’d love to cycle the train route actually-people tend to focus on cycling the Norwegian coast but there’s stunning country inland and the highland region is very beautiful.

[londoncommuter0000]

Hey Vorpal - just thought of something. The thread on Swedish cycle laws made me think to ask if there are any sources for these laws in Norway. I remember reading that a lot of tunnels are not open to cyclists. What's the penalty if you ride through anyway (not counting 'being squished by a motorised vehicle')? Is it actually possible to do Bergen to Trondheim without massive detours because of these motorised vehicle-only tunnels?

Thank you, Sir.

[pal]

I don't know about legal penalties, but the serious danger (even more serious than Squishing, imo) is carbon monoxide poisoning in longer tunnels which don't have ventilation -- that's one of the reasons (perhaps the main reason?) that a tunnel might be closed to cyclists.

As for detours: you might find you need to take a slightly circuitous route, but for mountain tunnels it's usually the case that the pre-tunnel road still exists (though usually that will mean a pretty hefty -- albeit scenic! -- climb...). Undersea tunnels can be a bit trickier: sometimes you can work out a way round by using a ferry, but sometimes the only way is to stick your bike on the bus to get through the tunnel (e.g. the tunnel just south of Kristiansund, which it's hard to avoid if you want to come north via the (recommended!) Atlanterhavsveien).

(You've probably already found the Norwegian Tunnel Map (https://www.cycletourer.co.uk/maps/tunnelmap.shtml) -- an excellent resource for all norwegian tunnel info, including suggestions on alternative methods for getting round the closed-to-cyclists tunnels).

[londoncommuter0000]

@Vorpal - what's the average temperature, precipitation etc in June or July?

In short - can one camp on the Bergen to Trondheim ride?

[Vorpal]

Regarding traffic rules, they used to have an English summary on the Staten Vegvesen website, but they updated the regulations last year and have not done a new translation.

Links to traffic laws (in Norwegian) https://www.vegvesen.no/trafikkinformas ... fikkregler
For cyclists (in Norwegian) https://www.vegvesen.no/trafikkinformas ... fikkregler
This blog has a simple summary for drivers https://www.lifeinnorway.net/rules-of-the-road/
So does https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Driving_ ... y#Q3954290

If cycling is not allowed, the sign will show a red circle and a line through it with the picture of a bicycle or sometimes and bicycle and a pedestrian.

Quite a few no entry or one-way signs will make exceptions for some vehicles, including pedal cycles. These will say 'gjelder ikke...' which means 'does not apply to...' or 'unntatt...' which means 'except' Taxis, buses, and pedal cycles (sykler) are the most common such exceptions.

Cycling on the pavement and footpaths is legal and common. Cyclists must give way to pedestrians and cycle at pedestrian speed or dismount if it is busy.

[Vorpal]

Regarding tunnels, main roads in Norway may have tunnels where cyclists are not allowed.

cycletourer has some information on his site as linked by pal, above.
In addition to the site linked above, Statens Vegvesen have a map http://www.vegdata.no/2014/06/17/cyclin ... n-tunnels/ This one is off the highways department database, so it doesn't depend on people updating it; information about new tunnels is always good here, but information about older ones is not always available, so check both sites.

[Vorpal]

Regarding weather, I use https://www.yr.no/sted/Norge/Trøndelag/ ... stikk.html

I can be quite cold at night, even in summer, and if you are up high, on or near a glacier, it can be near freezing, even if the temperature is theoretically higher. https://www.yr.no/sted/Norge/Hordaland/ ... stikk.html

Weatherspark is also sometimes useful https://weatherspark.com/y/68746/Averag ... Year-Round though I don't always agree with their interpretations

For camping, in Norway, there is something called 'allmannsrett'. It's basically everyone's right to use the land for responsible recreation, including camping, hiking, cycling, harvesting berries, etc. The basic rules are:
-no ground fires between April & September
-no camping within 150 metres of a dwelling
-no camping on cultivated ground, or disturbing growing crops
-leave the land as you found it

There are also little cabins in some places that you can rent for much less than a hotel room. They are called 'hytte' and may have little or no amenities, or may have full amenities and be quite comfortable.

Along many coastal areas, space is limited, and you may struggle in some places to find a place to pitch a tent. It will be easier if you are will to go inland a bit. Public beaches sometimes allow camping, but often not. In any case, you are generally better off a little ways from the beach, if you can. There are camping grounds in most tourist areas. In forested areas away from the coast, however, mosquitoes and / or midges can be a problem.

[londoncommuter0000]

For camping, in Norway, there is something called 'allmannsrett'. It's basically everyone's right to use the land for responsible recreation, including camping, hiking, cycling, harvesting berries, etc.

Which is the way it should be in a civilised country (cf the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003).

Thank you very, very much for your help in this.

[Vorpal]

For camping, in Norway, there is something called 'allmannsrett'. It's basically everyone's right to use the land for responsible recreation, including camping, hiking, cycling, harvesting berries, etc.

Which is the way it should be in a civilised country (cf the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003).

Thank you very, very much for your help in this.

Welcome

If you follow the thread previously linked, that has links to other threads with informaiton about food, cycling, and other things. If you do a search on Bergen &/or Trondheim, I think that you will find other threads, too. I think there may have been a previous thread a few years ago about Bergen to Trondheim. If you don't find it, I can have a look later. Need to run to work, now.

[Vorpal]

I think there may have been a previous thread a few years ago about Bergen to Trondheim. If you don't find it, I can have a look later. Need to run to work, now.

viewtopic.php?f=16&t=61625&p=524382&hilit=bergen+trondheim#p524382

[londoncommuter0000]

I think there may have been a previous thread a few years ago about Bergen to Trondheim. If you don't find it, I can have a look later. Need to run to work, now.

viewtopic.php?f=16&t=61625&p=524382&hilit=bergen+trondheim#p524382

Thank you again.

Let me dig this thread up to ask another question: I just put in 'Bergen' and 'Trondheim' to cycle.travel and I got the route suggested in the attached screenshot.

That's very much an inland route.

Is the inland way better? Is it because the coastal route is not suitable, or is it because the coastal route has ferry crossings?

In short - which is 'nicer'?