Flåm Line

A 20 km branch that drops 866 m from Myrdal on the Bergen Line to Flåm on the Aurlandsfjord, past waterfalls and through twenty tunnels, seen from the driver's seat.

The route

The Flåm Line leaves the Bergen Line at Myrdal, high in the mountains, and descends 20.2 km to the village of Flåm at sea level on the Aurlandsfjord, an arm of the Sognefjord. It was built to give the Sogn district a rail connection to Bergen and Oslo via the main line. The line opened in 1940, regular passenger trains followed in February 1941, and electric traction arrived in 1944.

The engineering problem was the height. Myrdal stands at about 867 m and Flåm at 2 m, and the line covers that difference on gradients of up to 5.5 per cent, among the steepest for an ordinary adhesion railway on standard gauge. To manage it the route curls through the valley walls and uses twenty tunnels, the longest being the Nåli Tunnel at 1,341 m. There is only one passing loop, at Berekvam, halfway down.

Freight and local traffic have long since faded, and today the line carries almost only visitors. Bane NOR owns it, and Vy operates the trains on behalf of Flåm Utvikling, the local company that markets the railway as one of Norway's most visited attractions.

What you will see

The video starts at Myrdal station, where the Flåm train waits beside the Bergen Line platforms. Within minutes the train is on the steepest part of the line, passing Vatnahalsen on the rim of the valley, and then working down a series of curves and short tunnels into the head of the Flåm valley. Notice how slowly the train moves here; on a 5.5 per cent grade the driver is braking almost all the time.

Kjosfossen is a stop with no village, built only so passengers can step out and look at the waterfall that pours down beside the platform. Below it the line enters the Nåli Tunnel and other tunnels that wind back and forth through the valley wall, emerging high above the valley floor with views down to the river. Further down, look out for Rjoandefossen, a waterfall with a 140 m drop and one of the line's best-known sights.

At Berekvam the train passes its only loop, where up and down trains meet. From here the gradient eases, farms and birch woods appear on the valley floor, and the river runs closer to the track through small halts such as Dalsbotn and Lunden. The last stretch comes out into open fields and ends at Flåm station, a short walk from the cruise and ferry quay on the Aurlandsfjord.

Riding it for real

Trains run between Myrdal and Flåm throughout the year, with more departures in summer than in winter. The usual approach is to take a Bergen Line train to Myrdal and change there, or to combine the railway with a fjord boat from Flåm as part of a round trip. Rail pass holders should check whether a discount applies, as the line is run as a tourist service, and summer trains are often full of tour groups, so it is worth booking ahead.

The ride is short enough to do in both directions, and going up gives a second look at waterfalls you may have missed on the way down. Check Flåm Utvikling or Vy for current timetables and fares before you go.

The video is embedded from YouTube and remains on its owner’s channel. Views count toward the original video.