Norway · Møre og Romsdal · Sunnmøre
Ørnevegen — the Eagle Road above Geirangerfjord
Profile of the Ørnevegen (Eagle Road) — 620m on Rv 63 above Geiranger, 11 hairpins and the classic viewpoint over one of Norway's most-photographed fjords.
- Elevation
- 624 m
- Length
- 8 km (Rv 63, Korsmyra–Geiranger)
- Max gradient
- 10%
- Season
- Open year-round (chains required in winter)
- Surface
- Paved
Ørnevegen, "the Eagle Road", drops in eleven hairpins from the Korsmyra ridge at 620 metres to the head of Geirangerfjord. The fourth curve from the top, Ørnesvingen (the Eagle Bend), is the most-photographed viewpoint in Norway: a straight sightline down the fjord with the Seven Sisters waterfall opposite and the village of Geiranger 600 metres below.
History
The road opened in 1955, replacing a steamer service that had been the village's only contact with the outside world in summer and snowshoe trails in winter. It forms the southern half of Rv 63, the same Norwegian National Tourist Route as Trollstigen 105 km to the north, with the Linge–Eidsdal car ferry linking the two halves across Storfjorden.
Riding it
From the south, the climb out of Geiranger starts at sea level and gains the full 620 metres in the eight kilometres to Korsmyra. Hairpins come in quick succession for the first four kilometres, then the gradient slackens on the open ridge. The Ørnesvingen viewing terrace sits on the fourth bend from the top and is the obvious stop.
From the north, the descent is the more dramatic direction. The fjord opens below you as you round the upper bends, and the Seven Sisters and Friaren waterfalls become visible on the far wall one curve at a time.
Unlike Trollstigen, Ørnevegen is winter-serviced and kept open year-round. It is the sole overland road access to Geiranger, so the plough fleet runs hard through the dark months.
Along the way
- Ørnesvingen viewpoint — the signed Eagle Bend platform on the fourth curve, looking straight down Geirangerfjord.
- Seven Sisters waterfall — seven parallel streams on the far wall of the fjord, most visible in early summer.
- Geiranger village — deep-water port with a ferry terminal, the classic base for a Rv 63 tour.
- Dalsnibba — a paid toll road leads from Geiranger up to a 1,500 m viewpoint on the ridge above, open roughly June to September.
- Trollstigen — the northern half of the Rv 63 Tourist Route.
- Trollstigen and Geiranger loop — the classic one-day pairing via the Linge–Eidsdal ferry.