Overview: the Pilgrim Road to Nidaros

643 km medieval pilgrim road (Pilegrimsleden - “pilgrim path”) from Oslo to Nidaros (Trondheim) cathedral, where Saint Olav (king of Norway and responsible for much of the conversion of the country to Christianity) was buried.  Part of a network of former pilgrim routes, "rediscovered" after centuries of abandon and waymarked in 1997 to coincide with the millenium of Nidaros cathedral. The Pilgrim Road to Nidaros, like the Camino francés in Spain and the Via Francigena (Canterbury to Rome) before it, became a European Cultural Itinerary in 2010.

The Route. Starts in medieval Oslo and takes, on average, a month to walk from there to Nidaros.  There are two routes that separate shortly after leaving Oslo: the eastern Romeriksleden passing to the RH side of Lake Mjøsa, via Eidsvoll and Hamar, and the western Gudbrandsdalsleden to its left, via Gjøvik, both options joining up shortly after Lillehammer.  After that the Pilegrimsleden continues up the Gudbrandsdal (valley), gently uphill all the time, crosses the Dovrefjell and leads from there via Oppdal to Trondheim. The route (east-west) from Stiklestad to Trondheim is also waymarked, as is the other (south-north) pilgrim path from Tønsberg to Oslo.

Waymarking. Waymarked throughout, with a logo that is a mixture of the Olav cross and the sign used to indicate the existence of historic monuments.

Terrain. Undulating in parts, sometimes flat but often very strenous, with constant ups and downs.  Woods, agricultural land and open moorland.  Some walking on very quiet minor roads, but much of it on old tracks and paths.

Weather/When to go.  Mid-June to early September (before and after that there is will be too much snow to be able to continue).

What to see. Several historic churches and interesting vernacular buildings, places connected with the pilgrimage in the past.  Open-air museums in different places along the way give an idea life of in Norway in the past while the route itself provides an insight into life in this country away from the tourist resorts.

Accommodation.  No shortage of places to stay for most of the route, but much of it is expensive and there is hardly any little pilgrim-type accommodation as yet.  A few youth hostels, several campsites; pilgrims on a budget would be well advised to take a tent as camping is also possible anywhere outside a town and more than 150m from a house.

Pilgrim centres.  Five of these were set up along the route in 2010, in Oslo, Granavollen, Hamar, Hunsdorp and Dovrefjell, in addition to the existing Pilegrimsenter in Trondheim.  These are a state-run initiative designed to promote the pilgrimage to Nidaros and provide information about it.

Distinctive features of the route/General.  Solitary route where you are unlikely to meet many other pilgrims even though it is becoming better known (by people who live along the way too) and better used each year.

Guide book (to the entire route, containing detailed maps).
 
*        Pilgrim Road to Nidaros, by Alison Raju, Cicerone Press 2002, 217pp.  ISBN: 1-85284314-2.  Covers the entire route with both historical and practical information as well as detailed maps.  This is now out of print but the author is currently preparing a new, second edition, to be published – in English – by Tapir Akademisk Forlag in Trondheim in the spring of 2013. 
*        Guides to the Oslo-Trondheim route via Hamar and to the Tønsberg-Oslo route are both available from the Norwegian pilgrim office (see below).  Both contain general route-finding information, accommodation and historical background material and general maps.
There are also several guides to sections of the route published by local historical societies, tourist offices, etc., obtainable from bookshops and information centres on the way.

Norwegian Pilgrim Office.  Pilegrimskontoret, Kirkegaten 34A, 0190 Oslo. Tel:22.33.03.11.
Very helpful and they speak good English.  Website (which includes information on accommodation (in Norwegian): www.pilegrim.no

Website. For comprehensive information on St Olav and the St Olav Ways, go to ‘Pilgrim Ways to Nidaros’ http://www.pilgrim.info/en/ . There are both English and Norwegian versions of this site, which contains accommodation information (click on “Overnattinsguider”) and detailed, downloadable Ordnance Survey type maps, each covering daily stages of 12 to 15 miles (click on “Rutener” on the Norwegian version of the site and then click on each map in turn).

Cyclists. Most of the route is completely unsuitable for cyclists, even on mountain bikes

Thanks to Alison RAJU, January 2005 and June 2011.

Return to Routes page.