The Rallarvegen — the "navvies' road" built for workers who constructed the Bergen Railway — is arguably the greatest cycling day out in northern Europe. From Haugastøl at 988 metres, it drops nearly 900 metres to the Flåm valley, winding through a landscape so dramatic it feels computer-generated. Snowfields in June. Waterfalls thundering off cliffs in ribbons of white. Reindeer watching you from fifty metres as if mildly puzzled by your fluorescent jersey.
The Midnight Sun Phenomenon
We were riding in late June, which means the sun does not set. Full stop. At 11pm, I found myself on a ridge above the Aurlandsfjord, light as golden and horizontal as a late English afternoon, casting shadows a hundred metres long behind my wheels. The tiredness you expect never quite comes — the light tricks your body into thinking it is perpetually early evening.
"There is a particular kind of peace that comes from cycling in the midnight sun. The world has quieted but not darkened, and you feel like the only person left on earth in the best possible way."
The roads themselves are exceptional. Norway takes infrastructure seriously, and even remote mountain passes have smooth, well-maintained surfaces. Traffic is minimal once you leave the main arteries — on the Rallarvegen, which is closed to motorised vehicles for much of its length, you share the road with nobody except the occasional other cyclist and the aforementioned reindeer.
Harder Than It Looks
Do not mistake the predominantly downhill profile of the Rallarvegen for an easy day. The exposed plateau sections into a headwind — which was what I got — require real commitment. And the weather can change with Alpine speed. I started in brilliant sunshine, rode through a twenty-minute hailstorm at the top, and emerged into warm golden light at the fjord. Having the Purple Velo team van nearby with dry kit made all the difference.
Norway rewards the cyclist who pays attention. The fjords from the saddle of a bike feel intimate in a way that no cruise ship or tour bus can replicate. You smell the pine, feel the cold air coming off the glaciers, and earn every one of those views with your own legs.
I came for the roads. I left having fallen completely in love with a country I had severely underestimated. If Scandinavia is not on your cycling bucket list, I respectfully suggest it belongs at the top.