Kjeasen Mountain Farm

Kjeasen sits on a shelf of ground 530 metres above the Simadalsfjord with cliffs above and below it, and until a road was blasted through in 1974 the only way in or out was a footpath climbing the rock face, up which everything the farm needed, including a piano and eventually a cow, was carried. It was farmed continuously into the twenty-first century, latterly by Bjorg Wiik, who lived there alone for many years and became well known in Norway. The buildings and the small fields remain. The access road is single-lane through tunnels with timed one-way traffic to avoid meeting vehicles, and it climbs steeply from the valley floor with severe drops.

What you actually see

• The cliff-shelf farm - buildings and fields on a ledge above the fjord.
• The old footpath - the climbing route that was the only access until 1974.
• The tunnel road - a single-lane timed route blasted through the rock.
• The fjord below - the Simadalsfjord 530 metres down.

When to go

June to September, when the road is reliably open and the walk up is feasible; the road closes in winter. Traffic times on the one-way road are posted and must be followed.

Honest expectations

The road is genuinely intimidating: single lane, unlit tunnels, steep gradients and strict timed direction, unsuitable for large vehicles or nervous drivers. The footpath is very steep and takes about an hour and a half. The farm is a site rather than a museum, with limited facilities.

Nearby

Eidfjord and Voringsfossen lie west; the Hardangervidda plateau rises above.