Harald Sohlberg painted his famous winter landscape of a snow-covered peak under a vivid night sky in the Rondane mountains, and the viewing point called Sohlbergplassen is named after him. It sits beside the road at the edge of the national park, and from it you look across to Rondeslottet, the highest peak of the range at about 2,178 metres, and the long line of rounded summits that make up this part of the Norwegian interior. The painter's view is familiar to many Norwegians, who know the picture from school, and the viewpoint has a sculptural platform that frames the mountains without spoiling them.
Rondane was Norway's first national park, set up in 1962, and it is a high, open, bare place. Ten peaks rise above two thousand metres, with a landscape of reindeer moss, dwarf birch, boulders and small lakes. Wild reindeer live here, in one of the last herds of their kind in Europe, and you may see them in the distance in late summer. Weather can change in minutes, and a bright morning can become a wet afternoon with low cloud on the tops.
For a rider, this is easy, uncomplicated mountain riding. The road, a scenic route across the high country, runs in long, graceful bends over open ground, with enough climb to give you a sense of altitude and little in the way of traffic. The surface is good, the speed limit is moderate, and the views extend a long way. The main hazards are wind and rain, the occasional sheep and the low sun in autumn, which can dazzle. Summers are short, and the road is open all year, though winter driving here is a serious business.
Fuel is not available at the viewpoint. Folldal and Otta, the closest places, are the nearest options, and both are small, so do not expect a big choice. Fill up before you set out, and take food with you. A flask of coffee on the platform, with the mountains laid out in front of you and the wind rustling the grass, is the right way to spend a half hour.