- Area Kristiansand
- Distance 257.4 km
- Difficulty Multi-day
- Terrain Rolling
This is a national cycle route that we have not yet mapped and certified. We lack sufficient information about safety, signage, tunnels and other infrastructure to be able to recommend this route as optimal. However, in order to give you easy access to the GPS track on the route, we have chosen to publish the GPX file on SykkelNorge.no. It can be used as a good starting point for planning your cycling trip in the area.
We recommend loading the GPX file into a digital mapping platform to plan your trip in detail. Ride With GPS is a platform used by the Cyclists’ Association. If you’re going on a long bike ride, it’s well worth spending some time learning how to use this service to easily plan your trip in detail. It will probably provide an even better travelling experience.
The Norwegian Public Roads Administration (Statens Veivesen) is responsible for the National Cycle Routes with regard to routing and signposting.
This is what the Norwegian Public Roads Administration writes about the route:
«Cycling through Setesdal, you’ll experience the unique culture, music, dance and not least the bunad of this traditional area. Between Kristiansand and Bjåen you cycle along the river Otra. The route follows a disused railway and low-traffic roads that run parallel to national road 9. It also runs on a section of the national road where there is mostly little traffic. However, at weekends there may be some traffic between the coast and the cabin areas at the top of Setesdal.
The route is signposted between Kristiansand and Haukeli.
At Haukeli, you can cycle eastwards via Arabygdi to inner Telemark and Rjukan, or you can follow the E134 over Haukelifjell in a high mountain landscape and cycle around the tunnels to Røldal. This is a great trip, but you mainly cycle on the national road where there is some traffic. You can also take a bus between Haukeli and Røldal and continue on the route from Røldal.
Much of the cycle route follows the disused Setesdal railway line between Røykenes and Byglandsfjord. This is car-free and has a good gravel surface. Between Byglandsfjord and Rysstad you follow roads with little traffic that run parallel to the national road through authentic Setesdal. From Rysstad to Haukeli, you mostly follow the main road, but there is little car traffic and the road is clear. Between Hovden and Haukeli you cycle in open mountain terrain.
Del