Lofoten Advice

Biking in Lofoten at this time of year certainly takes a bit of determination. There is still snow on the ground and although well kept the roads are narrow and winding, the road to Uttakleiv being no exception. Stamsund to Uttakleiv is about 25 km (17 mi) so normally it would only take an hour or so but you're pretty exposed to the weather and although it might look good when you set out, it shifts fast. I was there a couple of weeks ago and we had sunshine-hail storm-sunshine in approx 15 minutes.

As for biking in the dark, it's certainly doable but do wear a hi-vis vest or similar in addition to your lamps. There is a lot of heavy traffic on that road and not all drivers show the consideration you might wish for. The sun will set on the west-north-western horizon so you'll have a bit of a ride to get back to Stamsund no matter where you go to catch it.

Also, I wouldn't expect to be able to climb Reinebringen or any other mountain without skis or snowshoes. These pictures were taken earlier this week, they'll give you an idea about what it's like right now.

I agree about the problems hiking at this time of year. When I was there last year in march locals strongly recomended against hikes due to the very unpredictable weather. So unless you are an experienced hiker and know the region well they said it was a bad idea... That being said, the view from the "ground" is also incredibly stunning. So I think if you plan to bike around you will greatly enjoy your trip. I biked with a mountain bike and its not so bad. Of course I did not do very lengthy trips. You can bring bikes on buses. Sometimes they charged me more, sometimes not. Sometimes I got student discounts, sometimes not. Never really understood. But either way, the public buses are quite reasonably priced.

There are no car rental places in A/Moskenes. Therefore you will definately be charged an arm and a leg if you do that. If its even possible...

I would rent a car from Leknes, go around, and bring it back to Leknes. The bus down to A is then only about 1h and its so scenic that I never got tired of doing that stretch. Having done it previously by car and thus being able to stop regularily is definately recomended. Plus, given the changeable weather, things always look different :)
A truley magical place

Thanks everyone for the replies. I really appreciate the on ground reports of what it's been like there recently.

It's looking like maybe I won't bike as much or hike as much as I had hoped. With that said, maybe I will look into renting a car for a day or two.

I do have a question....do you think Nubben hill near Ramberg would be climbable even with snow? Or is that one steep too?

Finally, renting a car....do you have to purchase extra insurance, or is that already covered in the price. I found a good car rental place in Stamsund, but not sure if their prices include insurance or not.

Thanks again for the tips and everything. I've been watching the weather forecast closely and have come to learn, it will constantly be changing while I'm there. Super excited to take some pictures as every photo I've seen from lofoten (cloudy or not) is amazing!

Never mind the forecasts, the days before I went there the forecasts looked like they were going from bad to worse during the week. The first day we had sunshine, scattered clouds, fog, hail, storm gusts and everything in between. Things improved over the week and by the last day, the sky was clear with the occasional cotton cloud and no wind. Unfortunately we never had a clear night so we never got to see the aurora. :(

Be sure to bring rain gear as well as a warm sweater, you'll appreciate it!