The Atlantic Road is only about eight kilometres long, and it is famous worldwide. It hops from island to island across a skerry landscape on the Romsdal coast, using eight bridges, the best known of which, Storseisundet, curves upward in a way that makes cars look as if they are driving off into the sky. From the right angle the bridge seems to end in empty air, and the photographs of it go round every list of great roads. It opened in 1989 after about six years of construction, during which engineers fought storms that regularly interrupted work, and it carried a toll until the cost was paid off.
The setting matters as much as the engineering. The road crosses a low, bare archipelago of rock, grass and seaweed, with the open Norwegian Sea on one side and sheltered water on the other. In a calm, bright spell the colours are almost Mediterranean, with pale rock and turquoise water, but when a gale comes in, spray hits the bridges and waves break across the road. People sometimes come here deliberately in a storm to watch, which is a fair way to spend an afternoon but a poor one to ride in. Check the forecast, because wind and wet are the main hazards, and the surface can be slick with salt and spray.
Fishing is part of the picture. Anglers stand along the railings and rocks, and a few small platforms and rest areas let you stop without blocking the road. The Eldhusøya rest area is the main stop, with a walkway and a café, and it is the place to leave the bike and walk out to feel the wind. In summer light lasts almost all night, and a late evening here, with the sun low over the sea, is hard to beat.
Eide, Elnesvågen and Batnfjordsøra are smaller. Fill up before you go, because the coast between settlements is long, and many Norwegian pumps are unmanned.
Ride the bridges slowly. The crest of Storseisundet hides the road beyond, and the sight of the sea on both sides is better enjoyed at a gentle speed. Go early in the morning if you want the light and the place nearly to yourself.