Birkebeinervegen

The town of Lillehammer, with a population of 29,000, is located at the northern end of Lake Mjøsa in the province (Norwegian = Fylke) of Inlandet. Lillehammer first became famous when it hosted the Winter Olympics in 1994. The town gained fame for a second time thanks to the Norwegian crime series ‘Lilyhammer’, in which an ex-mafioso from New York seeks refuge in Norway.

For us off-roaders, the Olympic town is significant because an interesting gravel track begins around 18 kilometres northeast of it, near the village of Sjusjøen. It is interesting because, although this route has a decent gravel surface, its narrow width requires careful attention. The route starts at an altitude of around 900 metres, descends slightly at the beginning and then climbs to just under 1,100 metres in the last third. There, in the treeless zone, there are beautiful views of the bare, windswept fells. In good weather, the route is quite decent, but in bad weather, the road can quickly become slippery. The track ends at the junction with Reichsstraße 3.