Lake Mjosa

Mjosa stretches about a hundred kilometres north from Eidsvoll to Lillehammer, covering some 360 square kilometres, and its shores hold the best farmland in Norway, rolling grain and dairy country very unlike the coastal west. The lake is deep, reaching over four hundred metres, and it has its own large brown trout, the mjosaure, which grows to remarkable size. The paddle steamer Skibladner, launched in 1856 and still in service, runs a summer schedule between the lake towns and is the oldest working paddle steamer in the world. Around the shores are Hamar's cathedral ruins under a glass cover, the Norwegian Railway Museum, Eidsvoll's constitution house and Lillehammer's open-air museum at Maihaugen.

What you actually see

• The Skibladner - an 1856 paddle steamer still running summer sailings.
• The farmland shores - grain and dairy country around the water.
• Hamar cathedral ruins - medieval walls enclosed in a glass structure.
• The lake towns - Hamar, Gjovik and Lillehammer around the shoreline.

When to go

June to August, when the Skibladner sails and the lake is warm enough for swimming; the steamer season is short and specific. Winter sometimes freezes the lake enough for skating, though this is less reliable than it was.

Honest expectations

The Skibladner runs a limited schedule on fixed days and books up. The lake is large but the scenery is gentle farmland rather than dramatic, which disappoints visitors expecting fjord landscapes. Public swimming spots are scattered and vary in quality.

Nearby

Lillehammer and Maihaugen are at the northern end; Eidsvoll and Oslo lie south.