{"id":23478,"date":"2024-06-09T11:16:00","date_gmt":"2024-06-09T10:16:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cyclenorway.com\/?p=23478"},"modified":"2024-06-09T11:16:00","modified_gmt":"2024-06-09T10:16:00","slug":"built-in-1849-reopening-for-cyclists-in-june-2024","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cyclenorway.com\/fr\/built-in-1849-reopening-for-cyclists-in-june-2024\/","title":{"rendered":"Built in 1849 – Reopening for Cyclists in June 2024"},"content":{"rendered":"

Looking for a climb tougher than this? Good luck with that. This beast of a road twists and turns through 14 hairpin bends that sharply zigzag up the mountainside, with some stretches hitting a jaw-dropping 30 percent incline. Stalheimskleiva is Norway’s toughest climb and one every Norwegian cyclist fears to ride. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n

But that fear has subsided since September 2020 when the road abruptly closed. The rugged charm turned perilous when a section collapsed during rehab work causing a workman on an excavator to fall 15 meters off the edge. Luckily he survived but soon after that the Norwegian Public Roads Administration somberly announced, “traffic will never be driven here again,” and the road has remained closed ever since…until…<\/p>\n\n

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But first, let’s take a step back<\/strong> \u2013 Stalheimskleiva: Norway’s Iconic Mountain Road<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Stalheimskleiva in N\u00e6r\u00f8ydalen is a gem you need to know about. This 1.5km stretch was once a crucial part of the E16 road between Voss and Sogn before being sidelined by tunnels in the 1980s but its legacy remains.<\/p>\n\n

Built on towering dry stone walls with 14 sharp bends, this road climbs a 270-meter height difference along Stalheimsberget, nestled between Stalheim and N\u00e6r\u00f8ydalen. It offers stunning views of Sivlefossen and Stalheimsfossen waterfalls, each cascading on opposite sides of the mountain. Not just a road, it’s a protected cultural monument, showcasing engineering marvels from the 1840s when it was constructed.<\/p>\n\n

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A Journey Through Time<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Stalheimskleiva is a very special piece of Norwegian history and has been part of the main route between Christiania (Oslo) and Bergen since 1647, it saw its fair share of travellers and postal services until the Bergen Railway took over in 1909. Regular car traffic began in 1936, but even before that, tourists enjoyed rides to the base of the climb.<\/p>\n\n

The road is renowned as a “masterpiece in the art of road construction,” designed by GDB Johnson with the post-French principle. It took about a thousand men from 1842 to 1849 to carve it out of the mountain, blasting rock and crafting dry stone walls. Despite some modern reinforcements, much of it remains as it was.<\/p>\n\n

This famous photo below is from the Norwegian Public Road Administration museum (Norsk Vegmuseum) and shows four ‘Bikepackers’ from 1898 at the top of the road looking very calm and relaxed in their traditional cycling clothing of the day!<\/p>\n\n

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Modern Changes and Challenges<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

By 1937, Stalheimskleiva had been expanded to a motorway and later paved. However, with the opening of new tunnels in 1980, its role diminished. It was still used in winter until the tunnels came, and it\u2019s known as Norway\u2019s steepest national road, with a maximum gradient of 1:5.<\/p>\n\n

Every year, the steep stretch hosts the downhill race “Stalheimskleiva Up.” In 2009, it earned a spot on the National Conservation Plan for roads, bridges, and road-related cultural monuments and became part of the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2005.<\/p>\n\n

In 2020, a landslide in Minesvingen revealed even more about this historic road. The collapse, caused by an excavator mishap, uncovered high walls and unique wrought iron railings from the 1930s. It turns out Minesvingen was likely named after WWII German blast chambers, not just the blasting work during its construction.<\/p>\n\n

Restoration efforts aim to bring the road back to its 1848 glory, though it means narrowing it somewhat. No Traffic will be allowed up or down the road but this hands the keys to the road to no motorised means of transport and Cycle Norway is delighted!<\/p>\n\n

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Road condition in early June 2024<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n
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The old dry stone walls still standing strong<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n

Reopening for foot and bicycle traffic only<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

On Saturday the 22nd of June 2024 this historic road will open to the public again for the first time in 4 years. Cycle Norway has inspected the road and currently, it’s in poor condition in places. Whether the road will be resurfaced is unknown to me – due to its no-traffic policy, it might not be considered necessary. However, either way cycling up it is a real suffer-fest and some people may prefer to push their bike up or ride down it instead (expect brakes to get cooked). What is certain is this epic old road with stunning views of N\u00e6r\u00f8ydalen is available to ride and hike come June 22nd!<\/p>\n\n

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At the top<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n
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The view half way up<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n

How do I get there? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n

Unfortunately, the beautiful N\u00e6r\u00f8ydalen valley only has one main road running through it called the E16. During the day it can be busy with supply trucks and tourist traffic travelling at speed. I advise you to plan your ride carefully and ride early morning (06-10) or in the evening (19- 23) to prevent an uncomfortable experience.<\/p>\n\n

Fl\u00e5m:<\/strong> If you cycle Rallarvegen to Fl\u00e5m you can either jump on a tour boat or bus that will take you to Gudvangen where a short 10km ride up the main E16 will lead you to the climb. The bus can take you further up the road if you prefer not to cycle the E16. Note, that you can not cycle from Fl\u00e5m due to two long impassible road tunnels.<\/p>\n\n

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Voss:<\/strong> You can ride parts of the E16 to Stalheim where you take a side road up to the famous Stalheim Hotel. The descent of Stalheimskleiva begins here but before you head down take in the incredible views from the hotel garden.<\/p>\n\n

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\"\"<\/div><\/figure>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Looking for a climb tougher than this? Good luck with that. This beast of a road twists and turns through 14 hairpin bends that sharply zigzag up the mountainside, with some stretches hitting a jaw-dropping 30 percent incline. Stalheimskleiva is Norway’s toughest climb and one every Norwegian cyclist fears to ride. But that fear has […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":23479,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[19,34],"class_list":["post-23478","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-featured","tag-road-openings"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cyclenorway.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23478","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cyclenorway.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cyclenorway.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cyclenorway.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cyclenorway.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23478"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cyclenorway.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23478\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cyclenorway.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/23479"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cyclenorway.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23478"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cyclenorway.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23478"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cyclenorway.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23478"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}