Trollstigen Cycling — Geiranger & Eagle Road Loop

The Trollstigen loop from Geiranger gives you two of Norway's 18 designated Norwegian Scenic Roads in one day — Ørnevegen and Trollstigen — in a 159 km loop with 3,230 m of climbing. What makes the ride distinct is that you cycle Trollstigen's eleven hairpins from both sides on the same day: first down, then up again, with the Valldøla valley and two ferry crossings in between.

The day starts with Ørnevegen out of Geiranger. 6.9 km at 8.2% average up Fv63 to the Ørnesvingen viewpoint — the final hairpin before the plateau. From there you see the Seven Sisters waterfall pouring down the opposite cliff face, the cruise ships reduced to dots in the fjord, and Dalsnibba rising above everything to the south. The road continues across the plateau and descends to the Eidsdal ferry at km 30. Grab a svele on the ferry — brunost or smørkrem, both are correct answers.

From Linge, Fv63 follows the fjord northeast through Valldal and into the Valldøla valley. The first 14 km are a long, gentle approach — good terrain to eat on, because the second big climb of the day begins quietly. The rise to Stigrøra (858 m) averages 3.4% over 14 km with a steeper final section at 6.8%, but this is not Trollstigen itself — it's the ridge it sits on. Trollstigen, as the road is actually named, is the hairpin section on the north side dropping into Isterdalen.

Once you cross the Stigrøra plateau, Trollstigen opens up beneath you — and the descent begins. The eleven hairpins each carry the name of the foreman who built them in 1936, and Stigfossen thunders 320 m down the cliff alongside the road — on several of the bends, spray reaches the tarmac. Bispesvingen is the last hairpin before Isterdalen opens up. The road is narrow and technical, with up to 2,500 vehicles a day in peak summer, so start early and brake before each hairpin, not in it.

After Isterdalen you turn. This is where the Trollstigen climb begins — 7.9 km at 8.2% average up to Stigrøra, the same hairpins you just descended. The climb is remarkably consistent for its length: roughly 90% of the gradient sits between 5% and 10%, with no long flat sections to rest the legs. The steepest hairpins in the upper part touch 10–12%. Stigfossen follows you all the way up the same way it did on the descent, only from a different angle: you watch the waterfall grow larger with every hairpin you clear. Watch for traffic in the upper bends — buses and motorhomes use the full width through the hairpins, and cyclists need to give them room. The Trollstigen café at the summit viewpoint is mandatory: coffee and waffles with a view straight down the bends you've now ridden in both directions.

The return follows the same route back: down Valldøla, ferry from Linge to Eidsdal, then the climb up the Eidsdal side toward Ørnesvingen — not Ørnevegen, but the road that ends at the same viewpoint from the back. From there you descend Ørnevegen, the same road you climbed in the morning.