SummitClimbs Field Note: Inside Gaustatoppen (1,883 m) in Telemark lies one of Norway’s most remarkable Cold War installations: a tunnel railway and lift system bored through the mountain to a radio relay station on the summit. Gaustabanen was built in the 1950s to carry people and equipment to the top, largely funded by American military grants. Tourist plans were shelved because of the Cold War, and the site became a NATO facility, a hub in Norway’s military radio network, staffed around the clock. Today you can ride the same railway as a tourist.
Why a Mountain Became a Military Asset
Gaustatoppen stands isolated above Rjukan, and on a clear day the summit view covers about 60,000 km², roughly a sixth of mainland Norway. That height and isolation made it ideal for radio links. The tunnel railway was built to transport people and equipment to the summit to install radio relay links; construction cost about one million US dollars, mostly from American military grants, and the railway was completed in 1958, with work usually given as 1954–1959. The main Gausta radio and TV transmitter opened two years later.
The original idea was that the railway would also carry tourists, but those plans were dropped because of the Cold War, and the installation became a NATO facility. The railway was militarily important because it carried personnel and equipment for the round-the-clock staffing of the communications centre, a junction in the military radio network in Norway, where four or five people were always on duty.
How Gaustabanen Works
- The horizontal tunnel: at Langefonn, at the foot of the mountain (about 1,150 m), a battery-powered car runs about 850 m on rails into the mountain to a station.
- The inclined shaft: there you change to a rail-mounted funicular up a 1,040 m long shaft at 39 degrees, with two cars that meet halfway. The line rises about 650 m in total, and a staircase of about 3,500 steps runs beside the track. The temperature in the tunnel is always 5–8 °C.
- The top: the railway ends at Tuddalstippen, about 1,800 m, just below the Gaustatoppen tourist hut. Above it is a radio room (not open to the public) and the “King’s lift”, which barely fits four people, rises at 47 degrees and changes direction on the way. It was finished for King Olav’s visit in 1977.
- Behind closed doors: the lift ends in a complex with bedrooms, living rooms, kitchen and offices, not open to the public, and the Telenor part of the installation from the 1970s, with a 64 m tower for radio, TV and telephone equipment; its roof is used as a viewpoint and helicopter landing site.
From Secret Base to Tourist Ride
When the military need for the station ended, the railway was rebuilt. In 2006 it opened to tourists on selected days, and in 2010 it opened to the general public. It has since been upgraded with a new rescue winch so people can be evacuated from the top without using the stairs.
Visiting Gaustatoppen Today
You can ride Gaustabanen up through the mountain (check the seasonal opening times), or hike: the classic path from Stavsro is about 4.9 km and roughly three hours up, and a shorter route from Svineroi takes about two hours. The summit hut, Gaustatoppen turisthytte, serves simple food in summer. For the full hiking guide, see Gaustatoppen: hiking Telemark’s iconic peak.
The SummitClimbs Take
Gaustatoppen is a summit with a second life: a 1950s Cold War railway inside the mountain that now carries hikers and tourists to the top. Ride it up and walk down, or hike up and ride down, and look at the masts on the summit knowing what was once inside.
Facts from Norwegian Wikipedia (Gaustabanen), Wikipedia (Gaustatoppen) and Norwegian Wikipedia. Check Gaustabanen’s opening times before you go.