Norway’s Triple Crown of Hiking Guide- Many of you may have heard about Triple Crowns. There is a triple crown for horses, through hikes in the United States, and Norway even has their own Triple Crown. Norway’s Triple Crown is for the hiker. The Triple Crown of Norway consists of three hikes, Kjeragbolten, Pulpit Rock and Trolltunga. Each one of these hikes, which are located in Western Norway, leads you to some of the most unique rock formations in Norway. In this article you will find all you need to know for the Triple Crown of Norway’s Hikes, where they are, what to bring, the best time to go, and how to beat the crowds.

Be sure to check out my post on Two Weeks in Norway Itinerary.

Overview

When To Go

How To Beat The Crowds

When To Go

Hiking in Norway is easiest during the summer months, July-September. This will give you the best window for good weather conditions and to avoid snow on the highest points of the trails. My husband and I went with a friend to complete these hikes during the first part of July and there was still snow on some of the trails!

This time frame also gives you the most daylight hours to complete the hikes in one day. This part of Norway experiences 22 hours of daylight during the summer months. Long daylight hours in the summer means short days in the winter months, in which a longer hike like Trolltunga requires you to camp on the trail since it is impossible to hike it on one day safely.

How to Beat the Crowds

Even though the summer months are usually the most crowded there are ways to insure you can beat the crowds.

Getting up early is my first tip. And not just 8:00am early, I am talking about that we got up at 4:00am to get ready for our hike to Trolltunga. Not only will this help you beat the crowds it will also help you get a chance to hike before it gets really hot.
For short hikes such as Pulpit Rock you can also plan to get there in the evening. We went around 5:00pm and the crowds were starting to thin out. And since they have long daylight hours you can even plan getting there around 7-8:00pm if you are a quicker hiker. Check out the Time and Date Website to check official sunrise and sunset times to plan for the days you are going.

The Triple Crown Hikes

Kjeragbolten

Distance: 12 km (7.5 miles)

Elevation Gain: 570 meters

Time: It takes most people 6 to 8 hours to complete.

Kjeragbolten hike is considered the moderate hike of the three, it is also considered the scariest. At the end of this trail you have the option to perch yourself up on to a rock wedged above the Lysefjord fjord in Norway. Believe me I was nervous, but once I got to the rock I realized it was a lot easier to get onto it as it seems. You can read my post below on more on how to climb onto the rock.

Read this article for a Complete Guide to the Kjeragbolten Hike.

Pulpit Rock

Distance: 7.6 kilometers round trip ( 4.72 miles)

Elevation Gain: 350 meters (1148 feet)

Time: approximately 4 hours from hiking + 1 hour for wondering around Pulpit Rock

Pulpit Rock is one of the most crowded hikes of the Triple Crown of Norway. I believe this is because it is the shortest hike and the one closest to Stavanger and Oslo. This hike does change it elevation a lot so don’t let the short distance fool you. My favorite part of this hike was hiking above Pulpit Rock, I wrote more about that in my detailed post.

This post has a lot more information and pictures of the Pulpit Rock Hike.

Trolltunga

Distance: 22 km (13.6 miles) round trip

Elevation Gain: 900 meters (2,950 feet)

Time: 10 – 12 hours

Trolltunga is definitely the hardest of the three hikes in the Triple Crown. It is the longest hike and had a pretty tough ascent at the beginning. But I believe that this hike has the prettiest views along the route. There were so many times I wanted to stop on this hike just to take in the views.

For more pictures and information read my post on The Complete Guide to the Trolltunga Hike.

Where To Stay

These are are in pretty secluded areas, many people based themselves in a nearby town and drive early to get to the hikes. You can even camp on the trails or near the trail heads.

Stays Near Kjerabolten and Pulpit Rock

We based ourselves out of Stavanger to get to both the Pulpit Rock and Kjeragbolten hikes in Norway. Many people stay in this town as these hikes are both easily reachable from here. Just a couple hour drive to both, and it is difficult to find lodging else where. We rented this AirBnB which was conveniently located across from the grocery store to stock up on snacks and sandwiches for the hike. It was also just a few minute drive from Stavanger’s downtown bay area. Click here for $40 off your first AirBnB stay.

For Kjeragbolten you can tent camp on the trail, or stay just down the street at this campground right before the trail head.

Check here for affordable places on booking.com

Booking.com

Stays Near Trolltunga

Renting an Airbnb in the town of Odda was the best decision for us. Most people stay in Tyssedal as it puts you closer to the the Trolltunga trail. But staying in Odda was a cheaper option and only adds ten extra minutes onto your drive. Odda also has some more restaurants and grocery store options if staying the night before or after.

We rented this Airbnb to stay at, our host was wonderful. He actually runs transportation to the hike so he had lots of great information and tips. This place was also situated right outside the bus station if needing to use public transportation to the the base of the trail. If renting an AirBnb click here for $40 off your first stay.

It is really best to stay near the hike, it is a long and strenuous one. I wouldn’t recommend having a long drive immediately after this hike.

Booking.com

What To Bring

My biggest tips for packing for Norway is a get a good pair of hiking shoes, and break them in before you come on the trip. I hiked in my favorite Ahnu Hiking Shoes, but I have also been loving my new Vasque Low Hiking Shoes.

I would also suggest to bring plenty of layers. Norway’s weather is always changing, it is best to be prepared with a lot of thin layers and wind and rain protection. I used these long sleeve shirts for in the morning, and had a tank on under them to use once the sun got stronger. If going in the summer months you don’t need to bring thick layers but there will be some days you go from being cold to wearing shorts and a tank within the hour.

Of course don’t head out on these trail unless you are prepared with water. For short hikes we like collapsible travel water-bottles like this Hydrapak Stash Flexible Water Bottle and this Vapur Foldable Water Bottle. But for longer hikes like Trolltunga we use a Hydration Bladder.

Bring food on the hike as well. You will work up an appetite and you are on these trails for pretty long. I bought a sandwich, jerky sticks, fruit and other snacks on all of these trails.

You can read my What To Pack for Norway in the Summer post to read about everything I packed for this trip.