Reflections on Scratching the itch - Nordkapp 2013

June 17th - The best road?

I really have been lucky with the weather. Blue skies again this morning:



and that is how it stayed all day. This really is a beautiful part of the world. Every turn in the road produces another picture postcard.



I was soon back up on the fjells



This is supposed to be prime reindeer country but I didn't spot any



Then down again



and up into a very different high landscape. This is at around 3,000 feet and is a stark granite plateau




The road is a narrow single carriage way and winds its way between the rocks.





It was a great ride and was just a part of massive range of granite hills and mountains



Eventually the road dropped down towards the reason I changed my route and came back west. I discovered in my nightly map poring that their was a small ferry which ran the 26 mile length of lysefjord for considerably less money than I paid for the tourist boat at Geraingerfjord. Lysefjord is a narrow steep sided fjord and only has a small settlement at either end hence the ferry. It's name means light fjord because of the light coloured granite walls. The road down was still single track and very steep.There were, I think, 26 hairpins including one in a tunnel.



This photo isn't mine and is linked to a google image but it shows what a great road it is. It puts the Trollstigen to shame!



Lysebotn at the head of the fjord



is really only a couple of campsites and a quayside. I was at the front of the queue and had a 2.5 hour wait so I did what any Englishman would do and made tea.



much to the amusement of some German bikers.

Then I photographed the little lambs



Just as boredom set in this turned up. It was was with a film crew working, I think, for the tourist board. They were filming the tour boat coming in anyway. It was a fantastic gadget and the pilot was really skillful. It went up well over 150ft and hovered really steadily.







Then the boat arrived and we were off. It was small and very fast. My gps recorded us as travelling at 25mph.

Here I am courtesy of a young Polish biker. (That's my camera under my jumper, not my belly!)



He was like a little puppy bouncing around all over the boat taking photographs, mostly of his little girlfriend who just smiled patiently. There were a couple of young Russian lads too who had ridden from Moscow. The scenery was stupendous







This is one of two hydroelectric stations in the fjord. They are actually built back into the rock face.



The small sharp-edged ledge in the centre of the top of this picture



is famous preikestolen, or pulpit rock. It is the major tourist attraction in the region. It drops sheer for 640 metres.



You can see the crowds in this close up.



As you can see in this shot, nicked from google, there is no fence or barrier. You can also see that there is a crack running across which geologists have pronounced safe.



Then we passed under the bridge at the narrow mouth of the fjord and we were done.



It was a good boat trip and good value. Then it was a quick 25 mile blast up the dual carriageway in all that traffic and into Stavanger. I am now in the most expensive hotel room per sq ft I have ever paid for. It's very clean and comfortable though and has very fast broadband. I got some shopping in from the supermarket and bought a beer (500ml can - £3.00!)

None of the photos in your last posting are visible here. Might be a prob at my end, but I see all your other photos

paul08 said:

None of the photos in your last posting are visible here. Might be a prob at my end, but I see all your other photos

Click to expand...

Paul, I might have still been editing them. They are done now so can you see them?

Anybody else having a problem?

John

walrus said:

Paul, I might have still been editing them. They are done now so can you see them?

Anybody else having a problem?

John

Click to expand...

They're there now for me.

Thank you Getalife.

Yes, been out for a drink in the local beer garden, but yes they are visible to me now.

You really have given me a hankering to go for an extended trip to Norway. The 'itch' could prove expensive!!

paul08 said:

Yes, been out for a drink in the local beer garden, but yes they are visible to me now.

You really have given me a hankering to go for an extended trip to Norway. The 'itch' could prove expensive!!

Click to expand...

Thanks Paul. Beer garden is good. I think I was very lucky with the weather too. I don't think it is usually quite that dry and clear day after day. It is expensive. there's no point denying it.

Nearly there. Just a few more days to write up.

19th June (I think, I have got confused about the days) - Sleepy old town

I quite liked Stavanger it is a calm, peaceful place. This notice, which is part of Stavanger museum's history of Stavanger exhibition, rather sums it up



I'm not sure it's quite woken up yet.

Out of the hotel, turn left and there's this looking in to the shrubbery



I wasn't expecting that. It's part of 2003 Antony Gormley work comissioned by the city. It's called broken column. There are 23 altogether spread randomly through the town but each on it's own 1.95 metre contour so in theory they add up to a continous column. They all face the same way. I am a big fan of his work. I find the simple figures look really eloquent and it's good to come on them unexpectedly. I walked down to the harbour where one of the big boats which brings the wandering about people was in



It is huge against the old town



She carries 2,055 passengers. That's a lot of wandering about. Here's another one



I found my first objective



It was closed for refurbishment. The harbour was full of jellyfish, about the size of a dinner plate, they were quite graceful as they moved



The old town is now a conservation area. It's not very big but it is quite quaint





I thought this was a good name for a hairdresser's



This is the head of a drilling bit outside the petroleum museum.



I gave that a miss as I did the canning museum. For nearly a hundred years the town's money was made canning and exporting smoked sprats, brisling. There were a number of what I assume were nursery set ups out with the kids. They don't start school until they are six. Some of ours go before they are five and now we want to give them a test as soon they arrive. Utter madness. I'd much rather see them out and about and having fun. Each group seems to have a different Hi Vis colour.



And another one



It's hard to look impressive with a seagull, or fiskesmake as we say here, on your head



The cathedral was good in an understated, homely way





I liked the strong squat columns



The town museum was rubbish. Apart from the notice above the only good bit was a collection of skulls and skeletons in the basement including this demonstration of the size of a fin hval's skull.



There was another one just outside the musem



and that's all i found. There are 23 altogether. See here if you are interested: http://gardkarlsen.com/broken_column.htm. I did see a lot of these



which are hooded crows. They are much more handsome than our carrion variety. And this is what £27 worth of burger chips and beer looks like



It was ok but not exciting. I walked back through the streets to the hotel. They are very wide and elegant. The houses are quite big. I don't think this is a particularly prosperous part of town judging by the cars in the street. Although the tax on new cars does mean that there are more older cars on the road than in other parts of Europe.



Good street name for the Shakespearian scholars amongst you



And I got back to my room in time for the end of the cricket and watched England beat South Africa to get to Sunday's final.

And that's Norway almost done . I've booked a ferry out of Kritiansand at 15.00 tomorrow to Hirtshals. I want to go to Silkeborg on the way back through Denmark then I will push on. I will probably be back a couple of days early.

20th June - And some have fame...

I left Stavanger in traffic, which was a shock, but it was good to be back on the move.



However, the sky had cleared again and it has been another beautiful day. I keep looking at the UK weather forecast and wondering why I am coming home! The countryside outside Stavanger was very gentle and pastoral, almost like Dorset.



The road ran right by the sea. Note the round barrow in the corner of the field, very Dorset.



I only had 160 miles to do to get to the ferry but I had chosen, as always, the scenic route and I knew it might be slow. Before long I was back in fjord country





Then the road got really twisty and I couldn't take any photos on the move. I didn't want to stop because I was worried about time and I was having fun. When the road settled down and I was sure about the arrival time, I stopped for coffee and petrol. That's when the paparazzi found me. Just as I got back on the bike a very nice young man asked me if I had time to do a quick interview for the local paper on my travels. I could hardly refuse so I told him my story and he took a few pictures. So in some small part of southern Norway I will be tomorrow's fish and chip wrappings.

The last 25 or so miles were on the main road and for absolutely no discernible reason, it was a very good road, the speed limit was 40mph. It was dull so I was glad to make the ferry. There were a lot of bikes and the usual banter and chatter. I got talking to a nice Norwegian couple who are just setting off for Italy. They are on the left and right in this picture. The chap in the middle is another Belgian.



They have given me their email address and insist I stay with them when I come back to Norway.

The ferry was a fast catamaran powered by water jets. Very impressive. After the Queen Mary 2 in Gerainger, here's the Queen Elizabeth in Kristiansand.



So the coast of Norway receded.



This was the last bit we passed. I would say that is an isolated place to live. It's a good mile or two off shore.



Once we were clear out to sea the engines opened up. They were very impressive and pushed us along at a fair old speed





If you fell off the stern it would be a fun few seconds!

http://stouravon.smugmug.com/Motorcycles/Norway/Norway-Edit/i-XTTJ8GR/0/M/IMG_0906-M.jpg

I settled into my seat with the Norwegian equivalent of an almond magnum and read my book. In no time we were there. I might have snoozed a bit. The coast was very different as I drove off



as was the surrounding countryside



Now I am in a very little hut in Hjorring. I've eaten my last sachet of tomato soup for tea. Tomorrow I have to do 150 ish miles, visit a dead man and some stones and make it to the ferry in Hritshals by 5 o'clock. The end seems to be coming in a rush. In fact I'm really right on time by the original draft planning it's just that I am taking a different ferry. I have an open booking to go back via Hoek van Holland but I have bottled out of flogging 500miles down the motorway system and booked an overnight from Hirtshals instead. I will get my money back on the other booking if I cancel in time. I don't expect I will get wi fi tomorrow so the last post may have to wait until I get home. Here's my little Wendy house

Enjoyed that a lot. many thanks for making the effort to write, edit and post it

Thanks Paul, there's one last twist to the story when I get the chance - probably tomorrow.

Hjorring Camping, I had hut 5 July 4th ! Great write up

Thanks for taking the time to post that report. A really great read.

walrus said:

Thanks Paul, there's one last twist to the story when I get the chance - probably tomorrow.

Click to expand...

So what was the "one last twist"? Don't keep us hanging!

Sorry! I'll get it done. It will be an anticlimax now!

OK, sorry for the delay. I did the rest while I was watching the cricket and I've not sat down for that long since!

21st June Two stones and a dead man

Out here in Jutland
In the old man-killing parishes
I will feel lost,
Unhappy and at home.

(Seamus Heaney)

Denmark is the cleanest, neatest and most boring country of the trip. It is so flat and manicured it was hard to stay awake riding through it. I had to do 200 or so miles and visit Silkeborg museum to see the Tollund Man exhibit and Jelling to see the two rune stones. The journey to Silkeborg was a rattle down the motorway in the rain. Silkeborg was good. I think the man on the desk was a bit miffed that I wasn't interested in the ceramic collection. I thought the presentation of the Tollund man exhibit was excellent and the body itself was quite moving. The face is so well preserved and expressive that one feels a real connection and sympathy. (Pic nicked from google)



It did make me think about the ethics of displaying dead bodies in a museum exhibit. How old does it have to be to make it ok? I didn't hang about and pushed on to Jelling to see the rune stones. These are key artefacts in Danish history. They too were very sympathetically and simply displayed. I was glad I made the effort.





There is a third stone outside the tourist office. Not so much a replica but a modern interpretation of how the bigger stone might originally have looked. I understand there is enough evidence of the paint remaining to justify it.



There is apparently a replica of the larger stone in the original colours in the grounds of the Danish church in London so I will have to seek that out. I will let this photograph of the cemetery in Jelling stand for my impression of Denmark. It is ludicrously neat and ordered.



Then it was a push for the ferry through increasingly heavy rain. I ended up getting there with 1.5 hrs to wait before check in, there was no shelter and it was raining hard. An Englishman in the queue insisted I sit in his car out of the rain even though I was dripping. He was a bomb disposal expert in his way back from training the Danes on dealing with IED's. A good Samaritan. I had a nice cabin and treated myself to a steak in the restaurant, finally warm and dry. It was a good steak.

22nd June - A sting in the tale

After a good night's sleep, an excellent breakfast and a peaceful morning's reading I was unstrapping my bike expecting to be on the road in the next ten minutes when the ferry juddered and there was a loud bang. I didn't think much if it but there were suddenly crew members rushing around carrying mattresses and blocks of wood. I now know these were to patch the hole. When I got up on deck the problem was easy to see. The ferry was impaled on the corner of the dock next to the one the captain had been aiming for



We were soon surrounded by the ambulances, police cars, the RNLI and an air sea recue helicopter.





The ship was listing noticeably, around 8 deg. I think the rising tide was pushing it over because of the bit of dock stuck in the hull. The captain hadn't messed around; he had really clouted the dock



It looked like this when I left Harwich



and like this after the ship hit it



It took nearly two hours to make the decision to use the tugs to refloat the ship and a further half hour of tugging (ho ho) to pull the boat off the dock and manouevre her into the berth so we could unload. By this time we had all been gathered in the restaurant, fed coffee and cake, and instructed to sit down so the rest of the photos are blurry from being taken through a window. I have to say DFDS were very efficient and helpful and quick to provide refreshments and information.

Here is the Svitzer Sky pulling us off



and here the wreckage left behind once we were freed



Once we finally disembarked it was a very windy and uncomfortable 200 mile ride home, I felt very sorry for the loaded bikes and cars I passed which were obviously on the way to the ferry and a big disappointment.

And that's that. 5,337 miles and six countries later.

We shall not cease from exploration,
and the end of all our exploring
will be to arrive where we started
and know the place for the first time.

T. S. Eliot

Postscript

The ferry was sent to Bremerhaven for repair and was out of commission for a couple of weeks. This press photo shows the damaged bow. I think there was more below the waterline.



What I now know

Norway is a great place to ride a motorcycle but its reputation for being expensive is justified. I think my trip cost me a bit over £2.5k and I didn't push the boat out. Buying a statoil mug which gives you free coffee was worth it for me but you'd need to be there for a few weeks or drink a lot of coffee to get your money back. I travelled alone, which I enjoyed, but two people would have halved the accommodation costs.

There is no doubt that a big chunk of the best riding and scenery is in the south. However, I got a lot out of the ride up to the North Cape and I am glad I did it. I enjoyed the desolation of the north and got a buzz from being so far inside the arctic circle.

I had very unusual weather, little rain and a lot of blue sky. There are other ride reports on here that tell a very different story.

This forum is a fabulous resource for pre-trip planning and I mined it extensively. In particular, Liv's posts were invaluable.

Useful links:

I used several of these:

http://www.nasjonaleturistveger.no/en

This is a really useful online map for detailed planning

http://www.visitnorway.com/uk/VN/Map/?poi=86391&source=prod

This shows Norwegian Hostels. If you join the YHA you get 10% off.

http://www.hihostels.com/dba/cmap-NO.en.htm

Here are the Norwegian BMW dealers

http://www.bmw-motorrad.no/no/no/in...ual/dealer_locator/dealer_main.html&notrack=1

And this is a useful alternative to google translate

http://enno.dict.cc/

If there is any interest I can post my route.

Thanks for reading and for the supportive comments.

Bloody fantastic Walrus ... just read through from the beginning

Sooo many places there that Sue (Gracie) and myself visited in June in our two and a half week, 4,000 mile trip to Norway. Thanks for taking the time and trouble to post ...

Your ferry cost Sue and myself a slight problem ... our DFDS ferry was cancelled and so we ended up riding from the camp site in Denmark to Rotterdam for the overnight boat from there

Really enjoyed your writing and photographs ... thanks again