Vacation through (parts of) Norway (2) – Bjørgavegen

Last Updated on: June 5, 2023

A vacation of 6 days can get your far. It depends on roads chosen, and road taken. I made, or tried to make, the most of it.

If you’ve not read/seen it, here’s part 1.

Arriving in Lærdalsøyri I met up with a friend. Our plan was to ride Bjørgavegen, also known as Fv5627, across Aurlandsfjellet and over to Aurlandsvangen. Then spend a couple of days in the region to go exploring.

To find the road you need to ride past Lærdalsøyri. Take Fv243 out along the fjord. Past some Moria like tunnels, after ca 4 kilometers, you’ll see a (small) sign on the right in an intersection, pointing up towards Aurlandsfjellet.

Vacation to the west country: along Fv243 in Kvignadal

A few kilometers up along Fv243. In Kvignadal, mountains in sight!

Vacation highlight: Bjørgavegen

The road begins as Fv243. A few kilometers up changes name to Bjørgavegen or Fv5627. Around 43 kilometers of pure riding joy, especially if the weather is good. We came up first days in June. There was plenty of snow around but the road was dry.

Bjjørgavegen, above 1000 meter

Bjørgavegen, above 1000 meter, we met snow.

if you ride or intend to ride in Norway early June, bring some warm clothes. Because you never know what you will get. The temperature above 1000 meters can be way below 10C.  With wind it will feel like closer to 0C or below. As a result, it can be a bone chilling experience! Snow may in some areas stay till mid June, further north even later.

As we got higher up, latter became more and more true. Plenty of snow around, but the road and pavement was dry.

Bjørgavegen June 2nd

Some places on the way up, lots of snow still!

We rode across the mountain and made plenty of stops for pictures. We were pretty alone up there to be honest. Only a few cars passed us over the mountains.

Vacation in June: Aurlandsfjellet the 2nd of June 2021

Over Aurlandsfjellet, did I say plenty of snow? 🙂

The descent towards Aurlandsvangen is a nice part of the ride.  Ahead and below you’ll see the landscape open up.

Further down you’ll arrive at Stegastein viewpoint. On the best of days is a powerful experience. The vantage point and bridge out sits around 650 meters above sea level. The end of the pier or bridge has plexiglass, while the rails vanish down on either side.

I’m not a video guy. Hopefully this 1+ minutes long recording will at least offer a little glimpse of what you will experience.

Aurlandsfjorden June 8th 2021

Aurlandsfjorden, as seen from Stegastein, June 2021

A little later we arrived at our landing spot. The first day of the vacation was over. Back soon with more. Oh yeah, almost forgot. Here’s the route.

See also: Part one

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