Thanks to frequent flier miles, incredible planning once again by Geir, and no thanks to Newark International airport and Continental, three Yanks traveled to Norway for nine days of fantastic riding.
Getting there
Two of us flew from the SF Bay Area, while Kevin flew in from Colorado. On three different airlines. The end result:
Continental airlines lost Paul’s bike and all of his luggage somewhere in Newark. Yes, another reason to hate New Jersey!
We all met in Amsterdam since we were all on the same KLM flight to Trondheim. I got to know that airport VERY well(like 7+hours well)since I was the first to arrive and since our flight was delayed.
Those wacky Dutch sure have a knack for well-placed bathrooms.
We arrived later than planned in Trondheim (28 hours door-to-door baby!) so our short intro ride was canceled as the local beer flowed and as the phone lines were burned up trying to rescue Paul’s bike and luggage from the Joisey thugsters.
Day one
Still no sign of Paul’s bike so Kevin, Geir, and I hooked up with Jorgen and Jorn for some local Trondheim riding around Goat Hill. Blueberry trail, Raspberry trail, et al were in great shape due to an unusual lack of rain. The locals have some amazing riding just a short spin away. I left the still camera at home and shot some video. Jorgen’s pictures are linked below.
That night we had a tasty BBQ on Geir’s deck while rainbows danced around us.
Paul’s bike and luggage finally made it to the Trondheim airport sometime after 12am and Paul and Geir drove down to rescue it.
Day two and three
We loaded the bikes and drove a few hours East to get to Are Bike Park in Are, Sweden. Big rock above the tree line, swoopy singletrack down in the trees. A herd of reindeer (see Kevin’s picture in the link below), Paul chasing reindeer (see Geir’s pictures belowr) and many runs up to the top in the tram over two days. No stills but I did get some worthy video.
You can see some fantastic pictures from this trip by following links below. Thanks to Geir, Kevin and Jorgen for taking the time to carry their cameras and for taking some great pictures.
geir’s pictures Are
geir’s pictures Blåhø
geir’s pictures Sunndal
kevin’s pictures
jorgen’s pictures
While I took a picture of a strange DH totem hanging from an adjacent window, Paul scoured a map for backcountry routes.
Totem
Studying
Interior
We had a slight detour on our way back to Trondheim. It seems that the highway that we came in on had been completely washed away while we had been enjoying the mountains. We eventually made it back to civilization (Norway), had some surprisingly good pizza in downtown Trondheim and got ready to depart for the Oppdal area.
Day four
We drove South for a few hours to Oppdal which is a ski area in the Winter. We provisioned at a gas station (bacon-wrapped hot dogs!) and at a nearby market
Then it was on to Krisoffer’s cabin to set up our base camp before heading back to Blåhø for a ride. The Blåhø ride was the most scenic ride on our last trip. And every ride was scenic so that’s saying a great deal about Blåhø’s beauty. This year there was less snow but we explored a bit farther. No stills from me(check Geir’s and Kevin’s) but I did shoot some video during the ride.
Kristoffer’s cabin was incredible as well as being in an idyllic setting.
The cabin
deck view
debriefing
Day five
It was time to head an hour West to the fjords. The views during the drive were amazing so we knew that the ride would be over the top.
The ride started in a valley right next to a marshmallow farm. Few people know that the Norwegians were the first people to commercially grow and harvest marshmallows. Here’s Paul trying to move a full-grown adult marshmallow.
He didn’t succeed.
To show how domesticated and docile they are (as compared to their wild brethren), Geir rode across a few of them. Don’t try this at home!
Once these guys are harvested and butchered, you’ll see them in your local grocery store. So now you know where these delectable treats come from. Thank Norway the next time you’re enjoying smores around the campfire!
The trail meandered through some woods and across a glacier-fed creek before getting serious and pointing straight up. Norwegian hike-a-bike style.
We kept going up, and up, and up. Geir decided to take a break and frolic in some just melted glacier water. Reports are that it was cold.
Some wondered whether he had grabbed a handful of the local fungus which affected his judgment enough to get into the water.
We kept climbing through vast fields of wild blueberries until we reached the first lookout and stopped for a bit to eat.
We kept climbing and climbing, broke through the tree line and reached the high point of the ride which was just below a glacier.
Lunch was had by all and then we started back down. As I said during the descent, the ride was like Goat Camp (in AZ) on steroids and crystal meth. Uber technical and relentless.
Above the tree line it was less challenging, but the vistas made up for the lack of tech.
Into the tree line and things began to get really interesting.
Near the end we did some local real estate speculation and then rolled back to the car.
The plan was to head to the fjord for a swim and BBQ. Jorn and Kristoffer offered to shuttle us up to a local peak for a quick descent to sea level. How could we refuse such a generous offer?
Up top, Kevin was trying to figure out how he could get his phone to plug into the local equipment for a quick charge.
How many times am I allowed to use the phrase “amazing views’?
Those were some serious power lines suspended across the fjord.
I strapped on the helmetcam and proceeded to get my ass royally kicked by the overgrown fall line trail. Yowsa, that thing was tough.
Once we were rescued at the end of the ride, we headed to the BBQ beach.
Amazing views? (glacier at the top of the earlier climb is in the top left)
Bacon-wrapped hotdogs over an open fire. Mmmmmmmmm
Day six
We left Oppdal and headed South to the Rondane area. Geir scouted this ride last year and linked up a gravel road climb, some tough tech pedaling and some hike-a-bike (ok, a little bit more than some) to reach a prominent peak. From there it was down, down, down through barren rocky fields to the tree line where we picked up an old farming trail for a ripping descent back to the valley floor.
View looking back down the last hike-a-bike 
heading down (kevin is the orange speck, middle left) 
View from an overlook before the last big descent
After the ride we drove South for four hours to reach Oslo and our next wonderful host, Are Sorensen and family.
Day seven
Today was an alleged rest day with a “recovery” ride happening in the afternoon.
We started with a traditional Norwegian breakfast on Are’s deck.
While on a mission to get a new headset for Paul’s Intense 6.6 (thanks Trond!) we stopped by a famous park in Oslo. Lots of sculptures done in stone and copper and not a stitch of clothing on any of them.
We hooked up with a bevy of Oslo locals and rode some really fun trails that had a mixture of slickrock and rooty goodness during our four (?) hour ride. Then we rode into downtown Oslo and cruised around the packed waterfront area, and through a bunch of different neighborhoods in search of a restaurant that wasn’t packed. It was a great way to see this beautiful city. Even the Norwegians were grinning at the freedom and mobility offered by being on a bike in an urban landscape.
Day eight
A big ride in the hills/mountains North of Drammen, led by Øystein (who Paul and I met at Are last year). Big climbs, big views, great company, grin-worthy descents, and one toasted Americun. That would be me. Put a fork in me, I was done. Legs shot, upper back and neck spasming, I bailed before the last micro climb that led to the last descent.
Pizza and beer with the locals topped off the day and then we were headed North to stay in Lillehammer that night.
Day nine
The original plan was to ride the lifts in Lillehammer but we decided to head back to Trondheim for some tourist exploration and riding on Goat Hill. Geir and Paul did a shorty on Goat while Kevin and I rode around downtown Trondheim and saw some of the sites. The handheld urban riding video was interesting.. We met at the local microbrewery where pint prices for an Amber type brew had jumped from $8 two years ago to $9 in 2006. Viva the almighty US dollar!
Day ten
Out of Geir’s house at 4:30 am to begin the 28 hour trip home!
Thanks to Geir (and family) as well as all of the locals who welcomed us onto their trails and into their homes during our stay. Norwegian hospitality simply cannot be exaggerated. It’s beyond belief!