The Lysefjord, from Preikestolen to Kjerag

The roads of the Lysefjord

The Lysefjord cuts 42 kilometres into the mountains east of Stavanger, between walls of pale granite. Most people see it from above. From Stavanger, you reach its north shore by going under the sea: the Ryfylke Tunnel, on the Ryfast link, is 14.4 kilometres long and goes down to 292 metres below sea level. It is the longest undersea road tunnel in the world.

To the south, the Frafjord valley leads to Månafossen, a waterfall 92 metres high. Further east, the road crosses the Sirdal plateau: bare granite, reservoirs, and snow until early summer. It ends with the Lysebotn road: 27 hairpin bends that drop more than 900 metres to the head of the fjord, one of them inside a tunnel cut into the mountain.

Lysebotn had no road before 1984. You can also arrive by boat, with your car, passing below Preikestolen and in front of Flørli and its staircase of 4,444 steps. On the way back, the landscape changes: on the flat coast of Jæren, the road runs past beaches and dunes, facing the North Sea.

The rest of the story is on the harbour, at the Norwegian Petroleum Museum: after the discovery of Ekofisk in 1969, Stavanger became Norway’s oil capital. The cathedral, founded around 1125 according to tradition, is said to be the oldest in the country. Restored, it reopened in 2024, just before the city’s 900th anniversary.

Preikestolen and Kjerag, the cliffs of the fjord

Preikestolen, the “Preacher’s Pulpit”, is a plateau of about 25 metres by 25, 604 metres above the fjord. It formed about 10,000 years ago: water freezing in the cracks of the granite broke off blocks, which the glacier carried away. A crack runs across the plateau; according to geologists, no collapse is expected. The path is 3.8 kilometres each way, and around 300,000 people came in 2024: it is best to set off early.

At the head of the fjord, Kjeragbolten is a boulder of about 5 cubic metres wedged in a crack in the rock face, above a drop of 984 metres. No climbing gear is needed to step onto the boulder, and the photo standing on it has become a ritual. Allow two and a half to three hours’ walking each way. The cliffs of Kjerag also draw BASE jumpers: more than 48,000 jumps were recorded from 1994 to 2016.

What not to miss

1. 1The Lysebotn roadIts 27 hairpin bends and its spiral tunnel, down to the head of the fjord.
2. 2KjeragboltenA demanding hike, over granite slabs fitted with chains.
3. 3MånafossenA waterfall at the end of the Frafjord valley, after half an hour’s steep climb.
4. 4The Lysefjord ferrySailing up the fjord with your car, below the cliffs.
5. 5Sverd i fjellThree 10-metre swords in memory of the battle of 872 that, according to tradition, united Norway.
6. 6The beaches of JærenSand and dunes facing the North Sea, at Bore and Sola.

The Lysefjord in pictures

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A hiker standing on Kjeragbolten, above the drop.

The table of Stavanger and Jæren

Stavanger made its fortune from tinned fish, above all brisling, a small fish that is smoked, then canned and sold as sardines. In late June, the Gladmat festival sets up stalls for the region’s producers on the harbour.

To the south, Jæren is a plain of farms: milk, meat, vegetables. In the mountains, you stop for a coffee and waffles, a Norwegian habit. In Stavanger, try the beers from the Lervig brewery.