Lysebotn lies at the inner end of the Lysefjord, a long, narrow fjord in Rogaland, and it is at the bottom of one of the most famous hairpin roads in Europe. The fjord is about forty kilometres long, with cliffs rising nearly a thousand metres on each side, and the village is tiny, with a few houses, a harbour and a hotel. Jørpeland, thirty-five kilometres away by water, is the nearest sizeable settlement, and there are no pumps in Lysebotn, so arrive with a full tank. Ferries from Stavanger call here in summer.
The Lysevegen climbs out of the village in twenty-seven hairpin bends, carved into the mountainside in the 1970s after years of work, and it is among the steepest and most dramatic roads in Norway. The road ascends about 900 metres in a few kilometres, and an old tunnel section, spiralling inside the mountain, adds to the experience. The bends are tight and the gradient is steep, with sheer drops and little room for error, and in wet weather the surface is slippery. Tour buses and campervans also use the road, so keep to your side and go slowly.
The view from the top, looking back down on the hairpins and the fjord, is superb. The Lysefjord is also famous for Preikestolen, the Pulpit Rock, a flat cliff platform around 600 metres above the water, and Kjerag, a boulder wedged in a crevasse, where BASE jumpers leap from the edge. Neither is reachable by bike, but both are within a few hours of the road. The fjord is quiet and clean, and in summer there are waterfalls pouring down the cliffs.
The road is closed in winter, usually from late autumn to spring, because of snow and ice, and the opening date varies from year to year. Check conditions before travelling, and expect cold weather at the top, even in summer. Fog can come down fast on the plateau, hiding the next bend. The village has a small cafe, but facilities are limited, so a packed lunch is wise. For many riders, the hairpins are the whole point, and the climb is over in minutes but remembered for years.