(08-04-2021, 01:32 AM)j3gq_imp Wrote: Could you be a little more specific about the areas of Norway best for nice rides ? I assume many factors play a role, and every rider has his own preferences, but if you had to sum it up ... where would you send a fellow rider ?
I have thought about this since I saw it yesterday, and without trying to sound over confident, you're asking the right guy. But you're asking me to pick which of my children to keep. Before I can even begin to answer that, I would have to know how you are getting here, how long you are planning to stay, what kind of budget you have, and what you are after.
For a lot of foreigners, the most exotic thing about Norway (in summer) is the midnight sun. I live in Trondheim, which is a few hours ride from the Arctic Circle, the cutoff for that phenomenon. But keep in mind: the definition of midnight sun is the entire sun stays above the horizon for at least one 24h period, and the farther north you get, the more daylight. We have just started noticing that it's getting darker at night now, but in late June the sun sets for less than one hour even here, and that means it never gets dark. You can watch the sunset and the sunrise while sipping the same glass of wine.
I'm not going to try to underestimate midnight sun, it's mind blowing and everybody should experience it. However, you have to get way, WAY up there to do so, and that means that many tourists end up taking the main roads to save a day or two, and that's a mistake. There are ALWAYS better roads. If you want to go north (Midnight sun, reindeer, Laplanders, spectacular nature), plan enough time to get there on better roads.
Which leads me to the first thing I need to know: how do you define a "better road"? Over the last decades we have upgraded our roads quite a bit, and almost all of that has made it safer and faster for commuters and trailers, but they don't spark joy for me. If there's a new road somewhere, very often there's an old road, too, and all the things that the locals and/or truck drivers hated about those are what I love. My favorite example is between Lærdal and Aurland, out west towards the fjords, where they built a tunnel that's 26km long and straight as an arrow. The old road has switchbacks, stunning views, a mountain pass that's so arid that it feels like a different planet, and it is my number one recommendation for a motorcycle ride. I have taken that pass many times, and it gives me goose bumps to write about it.
Here's a pic from 2013, when I rode 17,000km on this Ducati that I bought in June, at least two months into the short season, all of it in Norway.
![[Image: 9c1cb8e14c5898dd5abaf1d400df8aa4.jpg]](https://cb1100forum.net/forum/uploads/imp/202108/9c1cb8e14c5898dd5abaf1d400df8aa4.jpg)
If you picture (or hey, look at) a map, think of it like this: I live where the skinny part begins, and I would have to ride about three hours on the main roads to get to where everybody agrees it's called Nordnorge, or Northern Norway. I'm in the middle part, with Trondheim as its major city, and the stuff south of here can be divided into Western, Eastern, and Southern Norway, and mountains and fjords and endless forests that attempt to connect these bits. The central part is dominated by several mountain ranges, and the main roads mostly follow river beds in a couple of valleys running N-S, although there's no way to avoid some form of spectacle.
Eastern Norway is by far most populous, and also not that exciting, from a purely motorcycle perspective. Urban sprawl, farmland, forests. But if you start in Oslo, and turn your back towards Sweden, you're probably less than ninety minutes from awesomeness in any direction.
West is clearly a good choice, and you can go across the massive mountain ranges (Hardangervidda, for instance) to get out there, or you can go along the coast. All of it is excellent, as long as you keep in mind that you want to look for the main roads (the 'E' ones in particular, E18 and E6 are for transportation, and you're looking for happiness, right?) and avoid those. There are many possible choices, and once you've picked a route, even these have ways to make the ride more baroque.
Getting from east to west, however, always involves getting across (or through) one or more mountain ranges, and here's where your question becomes difficult, because unless you have MONTHS, you have to pick. If your road preferences are like mine, you cannot use your normal assumptions about how much distance you can cover in a day. I still often hugely overestimate my abilities, everything takes longer. Many fjords have ferries or tunnels that take you to the other side, but is that really why you're here? Maybe take the old road that takes you all the way to the innermost corner of the fjord? Some times getting to a place *you can see with your eyes* takes half a day.
Fjords and mountains and hey, last chance to see glaciers, something to tell the grand kids ("All this water used to be locked in ice in the mountains, imagine that!").
You can aim for Bergen or Stavanger or Ålesund, if you'd like to see how some of our major cities seem to grow from this jagged, hostile natural environment, and your choice determines what I'd recommend.
I'd go so far as to say that you can not go wrong out west. Even without a plan, you will probably find awesome spots. But hit me up again once you've thought some more about it.
The southern part of the country has people settled all along the coastline, often in very quaint and charming little towns with very coastal culture, but again, you don't have to go far inland before you're navigating gorges and switchbacks and natural spectacles, so even an all southern visit would lead to great riding. Not so much fjords and jagged mountains, but still top quality. I have only been on one proper dedicated ride down there, but I'll return any time, hit me up. This is somewhere between Egersund and Jæren, probably less than 30 minutes from the ocean.
![[Image: 541c96f02f63281c998c11f25c6b155b.jpg]](https://cb1100forum.net/forum/uploads/imp/202108/541c96f02f63281c998c11f25c6b155b.jpg)
Short answer, my friend: Get a boat from Germany, for this trip you want to avoid Denmark and Sweden. Take as much time in Oslo you think you need, then head west. Pick a destination, or don't. If you have things in mind you really want to see, then that decides a few things for you, otherwise just go.
To anyone reading this, if you're planning to visit Norway, let me know and I'll help set up a route. I can pretty much guarantee that you'll approve.
Two caveats:
1. Everything's expensive here, and tourism, which is a major source of income for most places I'm likely to point you towards, has taken a huge Covid hit, so even more expensive now. Look into prices and budget accordingly.
2. You are going north. The Gulf Stream magically brings a thaw our way, but follow any latitude around the planet from any spot in Norway and you'll notice that for pretty much the rest of the world, living this far north is not really a thing. You *will* get cold and wet. Pack accordingly, and prepare yourself for the possibility that some days your view is nothing but clouds.
Here's one of my favourite pictures. My CB1100 in fortunate lighting, waiting for a ferry that takes me to a gorgeous little village where my cousin lives, and it explains the fjord landscapes better than I can with words. Crazy mountains that just come straight up out of the ocean (yup, that's the Atlantic, although it's several hours "inland"), and the constant threat of torrential rain. This was late September of last year, there had already been closed roads between here and there, last chance for a ride like this. Mmm.
![[Image: ac5d8f9fe93fa081448ed25b6968991d.jpg]](https://cb1100forum.net/forum/uploads/imp/202108/ac5d8f9fe93fa081448ed25b6968991d.jpg)
Gotta go. Cheers!
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