NEED TO KNOW
LOCATION Trondheim is situated just 300 miles (480 km) south of the Arctic Circle
WEATHER The Gulf Stream spares Trondheim from the worst Arctic weather. April and May are the driest months, and summer daytime temperatures range from 50 to 64°F (10 to 18°C)
DISTANCE Trondheim is a 400-mile (645-km) walk from Oslo
In the 11th century, Trondheim was known as “the Jerusalem of the North,” completing the pilgrimage compass points of Santiago in the west, Rome to the south and Jerusalem in the east. The great Cathedral of Nidaros, the finest in all Scandinavia, was built over the tomb of Saint Olav, the Norwegian king who evangelized the lands of the Vikings in 1024.
Pilgrims came in their thousands to be blessed at his tomb. The route disappeared after the 16th-century Reformation but, in the 1970s, Saint Olav’s Way, from Oslo to Trondheim, was rediscovered. Ancient chapels and burial mounds that dotted the landscape were renovated, and great granite stones hauled into place to guide pilgrims northward.
Practical Information
Getting There and Around Both Trondheim and Oslo have international airports. There are excellent rail and air links between them, and with other Scandinavian cities such as Copenhagen and Stockholm.
When to Go In May, the flowers en route are particularly lovely. Summer temperatures are perfect for walking, and the sun hardly sets at all.