Norway · Hardangerfjord Fruit Roads
A 221 km loop from Norheimsund fjord
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Why this ride
Fjord water, orchards and tunnels used carefully. Out of Norheimsund and back again: 221 km, roughly 3 h 49 in the saddle. On the way it passes Steinsdalsfossen, Odda fjord edge and Utne ferry village. The highest point is about 1,200 m. It keeps to quiet secondary roads.
Roadbook
- Norheimsund fjord gate
photo
Norheimsund is where the Hardangerfjord stops being a line on the map and becomes something you stand beside. The village lies on the northern shore, in the municipality of Kvam, with the water spread wide in front and the ice-capped bulk of the Folgefonna peninsula on the far side. Fruit is the local trade. The slopes around here carry apple, plum, pear and cherry orchards, planted in small terraces wherever the soil holds, and in mid-May the whole shore turns white and pink. If you can time one ride in Norway for blossom, this is the one.
Just outside the village the Steinsdalsfossen waterfall drops over a lip of rock, and a path runs behind the curtain of water so you can stand in the spray and look out at the valley through it. It is one of those attractions that looks like a tourist trap and turns out to be properly good. A stone's throw away are the roads that matter to a rider, narrow ribbons that follow the fjord edge through villages of white wooden houses and fruit stalls with honesty boxes. The surface is generally fine, the bends are easy and the traffic usually light, though in blossom week and at harvest time the tour coaches arrive, and then the pace is theirs.
Weather runs on its own clock. Rain comes in off the North Sea and drapes itself over the mountains, then lifts to give one of those luminous, rinsed afternoons that Norwegians live for. Carry a waterproof even if the morning is clear. The fjord is deep and cold, but on still days it turns into a mirror, and the reflections of the orchards in the water are the reason the photo kind of stop is listed here.
Norheimsund is a proper village with a few thousand people and the usual Norwegian services, so you can expect a fuel pump, a supermarket and a bakery or two. Many Norwegian pumps take cards only, so keep a chip card handy. Øystese, three kilometres away, has more shops. If you are heading inland, remember that Voss, the nearest real town, is over thirty kilometres off, and the road between climbs through forest and past lakes with few stops.
Buy fruit when it is in season. Hardanger cider is made from the same orchards, and a bottle makes a decent souvenir, although you may prefer a fresh cherry from a roadside box and a seat on the harbour wall.
- Steinsdalsfossen
sight
Steinsdalsfossen comes up 55 km in.
- Odda fjord edge sleep
- Utne ferry village
food
Utne sits on the tongue of land where the Hardangerfjord splits into its two inner arms, the Sørfjord to the south and the Eidfjord to the east, and it has been a crossing point for centuries. The ferry quay is the centre of the village, and everything else seems to have gathered around it. White wooden houses climb the slope behind, orchards run down toward the water, and the boats come and go with the rhythm of a small town clock. Ferries link Utne with Kinsarvik across the water and with Kvanndal on the other side, and being the bridge on the old route between east and west gave the place importance out of proportion to its size.
The village carries its history lightly but visibly. An inn here has been taking guests since the early eighteenth century, which makes it one of the oldest in the country, and the open-air farm museum of Hardanger, with its collections of fiddles, boats and tools, tells the story of how people lived and farmed along the fjord. The Hardanger fiddle itself, a violin with sympathetic strings that ring under the melody, comes from this region, and in summer you may hear it played at a festival or in a café.
As a food stop it suits a rider well. You arrive, queue for the ferry, and usually have time to buy a waffle, a coffee or a bowl of fish soup while you wait. The local fruit juices and ciders are made from the orchards you ride through, and cheese and cured meats from the farms nearby turn up on plates. Prices are Norwegian, which means high, and portions are fair.
The ride to Utne follows the fjord edge on narrow, winding roads with tunnels cut through the headlands and views that change at every bend. The surface is mostly good, but the roads are single lane in places with passing bays, so watch for oncoming traffic and slow down at blind corners. Check the ferry timetable before you set out, because services run less often in the evening and in the shoulder seasons, and a missed boat can mean a long wait.
Fuel is not guaranteed in the village, and the nearest town of any size is Voss, about twenty-five kilometres away by road and a good way beyond the ferry, so fill up before you leave the main road. If rain sets in, the café on the quay is a warm place to wait it out.
- Back to Norheimsund
finish
Norheimsund is a quiet village on the north shore of the Hardangerfjord, the long, deep fjord that cuts into western Norway, and it is the capital of Norwegian fruit country. The climate here, tempered by the fjord, allows apples, plums, pears and cherries to ripen on terraces above the water, and in May the orchards bloom white and pink, with the Folgefonna glacier shining across the water. In autumn, farm stands sell apples, juice and cider, and the fjord road smells of ripe fruit.
The village itself is small, a cluster of white wooden houses, a harbor, a waterfront and a church, but it has a bustling air in summer, when cruise boats and cyclists arrive. Close by, the Steinsdalsfossen, a waterfall of about fifty meters, drops in a graceful veil, and a path leads behind it, so you can stand between rock and falling water. The Hardanger region is also known for its violin, the hardingfele, with sympathetic strings, and for a delicate form of embroidery.
The roads here are some of the loveliest in the country. Route 7 follows the fjord shore, with gentle bends, tunnels and views across water to the mountains, and a bit farther on, the Hardanger Bridge, a graceful suspension span opened in 2013, crosses the fjord in a single long arc. Ferries cross the fjord at several points, and side roads climb through orchards to high farms. The surface is excellent, but Norwegian speed limits are low and strictly enforced, with fixed and mobile cameras, so keep to them. Tunnels can be damp and long, and rain is frequent.
Norheimsund has fuel, a supermarket and cafes, and it is the main service point on this side of the fjord. Øystese, a few kilometers east, has a small museum and more shops. The best time is mid-May for blossom, or September for apples and clear light, though summer is also lovely, with long evenings. In winter, snow closes some mountain roads. The weather on the west coast is changeable, so pack waterproofs, and expect cloud over the peaks.