December 20, 2024 - (Givisiez, SUI) For the fifth episode of Trail e-Xplorer, Scotty Laughland teams up with Swedish slopestyle sensation Martin Söderström for an unforgettable road trip to Norway’s most thrilling mountain bike destinations. With long drives through Norway’s breathtaking landscapes, frequent bakery stops, Scotty’s camping cuisine, and incredible trail riding on their Voltage eRIDE bikes, this journey becomes a once-in-a-lifetime adventure.
The Norway Trail E-Xplorer
with Martin Söderström and Scotty Laughland
What makes a dream mountain bike trip? The place? The trails? The people? The culture? The landscapes? What if I told you, this one, had it all.
I started planning this out at the turn of the year, studying routes, trying to find local recommendations and watching videos to see if I could find the best trails in Norway’s southern circle. It turned out there wasn’t much on it and from mapping stuff, I quickly realised that to properly explore you’d need months if not years but we’d have just 7 days to take in and ride as much as we could and I’d say we did a pretty good job of it.
Joining me was none other than Martin Söderström – in my own words, he’s a renowned freeride athlete and a bit of a legend. I’d never met him before and I was unsure how much experience he had with this style of riding and travelling. Post trip and if I only had one sentence to describe him, I’d say; he’s a happy puppy who has the appetite of a labrador and is generally up for pretty much anything as long as he has had at least one ‘Skolebrod’ per day.
We met and started the trip at our most northern point of Oppdal. The drive up had been long but beautiful and for hours I’d gone without seeing any real infrastructure – the town itself was fairly modern and after a good night’s rest we found the best coffee shop and bakery before hitting the trails. I shared the news of what I’d planned and what our week would look like. It generally consisted of driving in the morning to our location followed by riding in the afternoon and into the evening with the hope of getting some sort of a sunset.
Our first trail of the trip would be Gullstein which translates to ‘the Golden Trail’ and it didn’t disappoint. A fairly easy to access but long climb led to some hike-a-biking similar to that of scrambling in search of the narrow overgrown marked path. Eventually, it took us up to a viewpoint that looked down on the valley of Oppdal – it was beautiful. Dropping into the trail, it was open for the majority, we’d ride on huge sections of rock slab and follow a narrow ribbon of single trail flowing over rocks, last minute braking for tight turns and trying hard not to ignore the impressive view. As we entered the woods, the dirt was loose, malchy and there were a few jumps. I followed Martin and watched him pop off of every opportunity and land into nothing. A quick refuel back in the village and we headed up to Rauhovdin for sunset but I’m going to let the photo do the talking – it was Norway on a postcard!
Day 2 would see us start with a 4 hour drive, our next location was Valldal and to get there we’d drive through the Troll Wall. Along it were some of the most inspiring views you’ve ever seen… it was jaw dropping and I think the drive ended up being more like 6 hours! Arriving in Valldal, it was just as incredible. Towering pillars of rocks from as high as you could see entered the Fjords – it was almost unfathomable that we’d ride our bikes here. Setting off, we started on a tarmac road which quickly became dirt and then narrowed into singletrail. Arriving at our high point, I felt like I’d stepped into a Lord of the Rings set – it was unbelievable, so raw, rugged and inhospitable. I led the way this time and dropped into a section of trail perched on the edge of a clifftop. Conditions were perfect and a mix of dirt and rock led us down the mountain side, it was technical and we had to work the bikes to find flow and maintain composure. I don’t think Martin had experienced many rides like this and I could tell he was loving it in his own way. The trail felt like it went on forever but eventually the open mountain top entered the trees and we were racing the sun set. There was still over 500m of elevation to go and we raced through the forest and arrived back into Valldal as it got dark just in time to discover some local craft ales and devour a tin of pringles for tea.
Next up, another 4 hour drive after 2 ferry crossings, 1 coffee stop and a Skolebrod each, we arrived in Sogndal. The plan of attack was to take on Molden. An open summit that led down to the Fjords below. It started off with a fairly manageable climb that was in places technical before a short hike-a-bike that took us to the top. Maybe we’d become all too blase with the views as we got straight into the riding but this was just as stunning as the days before. The trail looked endless as it undulated and made its way into the horizon. Martin dropped first and he read the trail completely differently to how I would have and his flow and stance on the bike made ease of the bigger impacts and he took every opportunity he could to pop off of everything or pull a manual.
We had a second day in Sogndal and after an easier morning of discovering its coffee scene we headed out to explore around Kaupanger. We rode in what Martin described as a very typical Scandinavian Wood and on our way up, the descent teased us as we kept passing it on every switchback. Looking down, it was again loamy with loose dirt amongst sections of rock and this trail might actually have been one of my favourites of the trip. We navigated through the trees, carved the turns and bounced through the rock gardens. I let Martin go first and he was ripping, loam was flying off of his back wheel. We were laughing, shouting and having the best time… it was the purest hero dirt mixed with trail perfection and we both felt like we were surfing!
Another ferry and Fjord crossing and we arrived at Hemsedal. Tonight, we’d be camping and I’d be cooking. There’s something incredible about sleeping and cooking as a crew in the wild – everyone has to do their own bit and there’s no distractions. The bikes were put on charge, Martin built out the camp area, I lit the BBQ and prepped a Salmon Fillet to be baked. Whilst it was cooking, we cracked open a couple of Beers and sat back and reflected on what had been an epic trip realising we’d only just passed the halfway point.
Hemsedal would be the first and only Ski town we’d visit. Our plan was to explore some of the trails outside of the bike park and we’d fittingly take on the ‘Forgotten Trail.’ Starting above the Hemsedal, the landscape had changed again, it was still highland terrain but the surrounding mountains were less jagged, more rounded and dare I say it – sections between were even flat. Autumn felt like it had set in early, the colours were changing and we navigated sections of rock before dropping into a Birch Forest laden with roots, thankfully there were catch berms in just the right places and it made it easy to flow back down to the valley floor. In the afternoon and in typical fashion we missed the last chairlift. At least we had the assistance of the Voltages and we had literally just enough battery power left to climb back up and drop into Sentrumstien, a red graded flow trail! I let Martin lead me again and he was clearly back in his forte. He playfully hit the jumps, scrubbed the rollers, aired off of the side hits and carved the berms from top to bottom. We laughed our heads off and finished up at Fyri resort. Checked in and enjoyed the incredible facilities on offer which included a pool bar, after 5 days of continuous movement a bit of R and R was needed.
Our penultimate stop was Nesbyn and it was somewhere we’d both heard a lot of. Here, we met with Will from Any Excuse to Ride to guide us so we could make best use of the little time we had available. First tho, to the Bear House bakery for a yup, you guessed it! Norway’s baked goods were in a class of their own and they were fuelling the entirety of the team. Eventually, we’d head up and climb up to ride Beater – this was the one with all the hype and it lived up to those expectations! I almost can’t describe how well it flowed, there was a mix of natural and man made sections combined with long straight aways that had been created by timber merchants dragging wood from the forest by horse decades ago. I think this actually might have been one of the best we rode on the trip but it’s almost too hard to call as each had their own uniqueness! Will then took us back up for one last lap on a secret trail he’d been working on with no time for photos or video just purely for enjoyment and I can tell you that it was sensational. My bars dragged through the low lying vegetation as I pushed the Voltage into the berms and flowed out. Maybe I recorded the GPS of it but maybe I didn’t.
Finally, we arrived in Oslo and explored the small but fun trail area of Ramsas. I think we were both surprised by how good the trails so close to the city were. Techy, rooty, malchy and loamy were all words I’d use to describe them and it was almost like a summary of the trip to this point. It wasn’t the biggest network of trails but was a lot of fun to ride. We found some drops to session and took advantage of the power of the Voltage and the smaller hill to lap the variety of trails.
Over 7 days we’d gone from the remote wilderness of the Fjords taking on back country rides to being above the country’s capital. We’d eaten dozens of Skolebrod, cinnamon buns and drunk gallons of coffee and beer and shared experiences I don’t think either of us will forget anytime soon. For me, it was about sharing the journey with Martin, both of us being outwith our comfort zones and coming away from it as friends. We’re from two very different disciplines of mountain biking and usually we don’t get the chance to meet or share the trails. In this instance, the power of the Voltage had brought us together. So Marty, thanks for going along with my crazy plans and here’s to the next one even if it means I get schooled at the skatepark by you!
