tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7221014222885445512011-10-12T23:48:39.773+01:00A Three Month Solo Cycle TourJerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.comBlogger711100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-26671354438435965552008-08-18T15:13:00.004+01:002008-08-18T15:38:42.340+01:00

I'd also like to say a big thank-you to Margaretha Danbolt Simons and John Hart for an unforgettable stay.Of course, I wouldn't have been here if two years ago John hadn't asked Janet if we were English cyclists when we met on the ferry to Leka in Norway.At the time, John asked if I was learning Norwegian - and then introduced his travelling companion Margaretha as the author of the Teach

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-62813558252258886522008-08-18T14:46:00.004+01:002008-08-18T15:01:35.478+01:00

Just time to write a quick note to say I'm on a big container ship in Brevik waiting for it to slip its lines and sail to Immingham in the UK, which it should reach on 20 August at 0200 - then I join the family in Cornwall for the last part of the summer holiday by the beach.Thanks for all your emails and comments, it's been great to be in touch with you. Ubiquitous internet connectivity and

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-69910518309830631392008-08-13T07:22:00.003+01:002008-08-13T07:56:27.132+01:00

I've been in Strömstad in Sweden for several days. This pleasant seaside spa town is famous for enjoying more sunshine than anywhere else in Sweden. It's some 135 km from Oslo, and makes a popular day trip destination for the Weegies. They can catch the Color Line ferry from Sandefjord which docks here to buy all of the expensive things at home much more cheaply abroad.It reminds me a little of

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-31369483466476458972008-08-08T13:23:00.005+01:002008-08-08T13:43:11.347+01:00

Another unexpected and rewarding discovery this week has been the Klarälvsbana, a fifty-five mile asphalt-surfaced cycle route from Hagfors to Karlstad that follows the line of an old railway track. It's flat, and very pleasant to cycle along.No expense spared - they have even put white stripes down the side for the visually impaired, and they mark the edges of the track with reflective posts

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-22410973336997600742008-08-08T13:18:00.002+01:002008-08-08T13:22:58.296+01:00

Once I've got the tent up, I can relax...Saw this big brother version of our tentipi at Räda Camping near Hagfors. I'm not sure how portable it is, but it would be great for a large group of you on tour...

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-68529291920712791172008-08-05T18:30:00.007+01:002008-08-05T19:47:11.876+01:00

This is a rare event, considering the number of miles clocked up here in Sweden. After days and days of riding in isolation from Stockholm along the Sverigeleden I meet another cyclist, heading in the opposite direction! The scenery behind our bikes is fairly typical of this part of Varmland between Fredrikstad and Hagfors - the road just keeps climbing and falling, and it is rainy and cool. The

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-70980533756360744022008-08-03T08:27:00.002+01:002008-08-03T08:59:07.997+01:00

After two weeks of browning my knees in the scorching Swedish sunshine, I'm now back in my rain gear again. I'm trying to ride towards Arvika to find out about opportunities for a canoe holiday there next year, but the rain is falling in sheets today, so I am going to make a short 40km dash from Borlänge, where I have stayed overnight in the luxurious but very reasonably priced First Hotel, to

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-12273365362010279812008-08-01T14:46:00.008+01:002008-08-02T06:37:08.436+01:00

Neil Armstrong famously landed Apollo 11 on the moon with less than 60 seconds of fuel left. I seem to be in the same place with credit remaining on my phone every time I finally get to the top of the queue to talk to a callcenter person in the UK... I've just burnt through another 200kr top-up card provided by my Swedish mobile operator Telenor SE while on hold for Vodafone UK callcenter

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-54452468507494623852008-07-30T19:04:00.007+01:002008-07-30T19:24:30.887+01:00

I am delighted to discover that Jo and her faithful bicycle Beamer made it to the North Cape, completing 10,000 kms or more on the road since leaving Munich at the start of the year. The weather seems to have been pretty much the same for her as it was for me! She writes in an email today that she is now in Finland, and is setting out soon to cross the borders of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-9367055398799024032008-07-30T18:21:00.005+01:002008-08-03T08:27:27.702+01:00

You may have been wondering why the photo trail on flickr went cold just after I arrived at the North Cape. Well, the good news is that none of the pics taken on the trip were lost in the Great iPod Disaster, it has just taken me longer than usual to find a good solid Internet connection with enough bandwidth to upload them.So today, I have uploaded and captioned the pictures taken with the Canon

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-58911126760108811372008-07-28T11:25:00.005+01:002008-07-30T19:04:20.046+01:00

Despite a lot of rumbling thunder yesterday afternoon, I am now edging into the second week of lovely cycling here with blue skies, melting tarmac on the road, and gentle breezes - no rain yet.Yes, I should splurge on a T-shirt or two... rather than wearing the Icebreaker wool top, although this is surprisingly comfortable to ride in in the 30° heat. In fact I've settled on a routine of rising at

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-21506460140258757432008-07-25T22:34:00.007+01:002008-07-25T23:19:24.994+01:00

This is the summerhouse of Carl Linnaeus,the man who invented the taxonomy system we use for the plant and animal kingdoms. I discovered today that he was also something of an ecologist, perhaps the earliest one in print. The serendipity of finding the house at Hammarby is due to the winding path taken by cycle route Sverigeleden 15, which has taken me on a winding ride from the corner of

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-91531670506076402512008-07-23T21:34:00.006+01:002008-07-25T23:27:47.108+01:00

... I was taking photos in the deserted old town district at 07:30 after waking up very early this morning. Worked out very well, because I was at the door for the extraordinary Vasa Museum an hour later, just as it opened, to beat the crowds. As it was I had it pretty much to myself for the first hour, and it is an unmissable experience - it is quite breathtaking to find a whole ship from 1628,

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-26638438984388380072008-07-22T20:16:00.005+01:002008-07-25T23:23:50.806+01:00

Few words from an airline stewardess are as worrying as these:"Don't worry, just run when you get into the arrival hall and make sure you get your connection - we'll send your luggage on to your hotel! Just file a missing baggage complaint when you get into Stockholm...".I only have a laptop and a camera with me. I don´t have a room booked. I don't have any maps or guides to the city, I was going

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-23590752354315878902008-07-21T12:41:00.003+01:002008-07-21T13:05:39.915+01:00

Now I am beginning to remember why I said I would never do this flying business with SAS again. The check-in at Bodø went fairly smoothly despite them detecting 55 kilos of baggage when the limit is 20 and 8 in the hand, but unfortunately the 12:40 flight has been rescheduled for 14:30 because the original 'plane has a technical problem and a new one has to be flown up to Bodø to replace it.

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-68884826428686865452008-07-20T14:42:00.003+01:002008-07-25T23:20:35.868+01:00

It's a gorgeous 22° C here this afternoon, the sunshine is twinkling on the waves in the harbour, and a whale was spotted in the bay this morning. I must be nuts to leave, but I feel a strong pull towards roaming around Sweden and finding out how it is for cycling there rather than going over old routes again up here in the Lofoten Islands. I have reached the tipping point a bit more easily

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-92016441298470543592008-07-19T14:20:00.005+01:002008-07-19T17:48:59.200+01:00

I'm still at Stamsund because it is such a lovely place to stay - I plan to move on tomorrow or on Monday. Yesterday the southerly wind fell and the colder northerly breeze took its place, but it has a fantastic effect on the scenery ... the mountains fifty miles away are perfectly clear, and the very long evening sunshine (there's no sunset) made it look extraordinarily beautiful, with long

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-2382455028017311682008-07-18T14:48:00.003+01:002008-07-18T15:13:09.136+01:00

Thanks to prompt action on Janet's part, the bootable USB stick was in the post box when Roar and I went up to the post office this afternoon. Ten minutes later, I am relieved to find everything looking much the same as it did before the file system got corrupted.I'm hiding in the outbuilding that Roar calls "The Library" at the moment. Now I should probably put the laptop away. If he finds

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-67807631322609948332008-07-16T09:54:00.004+01:002008-07-19T17:54:29.474+01:00

Apologies for the scarcity of news in July, I've found it a challenge to get to Blogger now that the school holidays have started and public libraries have closed until the next school term starts.Briefly, I've had a succession of good days on the E6/E10 from Hammerfest down to Setermoen in the Bardu region - despite being the backbone of the Arctic Highway, the road usually has a good rideable

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-68535131075754175172008-07-09T13:07:00.002+01:002008-07-09T13:14:49.075+01:00

Last night I connected both iPods to the laptop at the same time in order to back one up to the other. There seems to be a bug in the kernel for mounting two identical 80Gb iPods because the file system table got corrupted, wiping both iPods and the on-board memory of the laptop - so until I can somehow restore the system image from a memory stick after downloading it from the EEE forums, I am

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-48360093360229107242008-07-08T16:06:00.003+01:002008-07-08T16:11:41.437+01:00

... the rather solemn expression on my face was wiped out a moment later when the Danish family who'd offered to take my photograph whipped out a bottle of champagne to share with me, since they'd also achieved their ambition by driving to the North Cape.Still, I could have done with a really strong ray of sunshine over my shoulder to light up the scene.As it was most of the visitors spent a few

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-1553339290203428622008-07-08T15:48:00.004+01:002008-07-08T16:01:41.740+01:00

Without wishing to spoil the anticipation of the view from the cliff from the furthest Northerly point on the continent, here's the view of the toll station where people fork out 200kr (£20) per person to get inside the perimeter fence.Happily for me, the fee was waived because I'd cycled there!But as you can see, the weather wasn't great - about 4°C with a sea fog and a breeze - I could hardly

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-48514515910151548192008-07-08T15:35:00.003+01:002008-07-08T15:43:05.050+01:00

Monday 07 July, and I'm on the M/S Richard With heading for Honingsvåg so that I can see the North Cape in good weather. I was out on the deck as the M/S Finnmarken crossed our path so that I could catch the tooth-rattling fanfare of mighty horn blasts from both ships on Janet's tinny Dictafone.I've had two wonderful days exploring Tromsø and I'm hoping the present good weather will last until

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-42725156251421016322008-07-08T15:26:00.003+01:002008-07-08T15:29:54.213+01:00

...I spy with my little eye, something beginning with T.Did you guess it?Yes, it's a traffic light. I can honestly say, hand on heart, that this is the first traffic light I've seen since leaving Trondheim, which was weeks ago.Now I'm off to get my "I rode the escalator at Bryggen Shopping Center" badge! Whoopee!

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-49613884129660704852008-07-08T15:13:00.003+01:002008-07-08T15:15:59.099+01:00

On a lighter note, here's the front entrance to the famous Mack brewery in Tromsø, the world's most northerly brewery. Is it just a coincidence that the British Consulate has its offices in the same building?

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-1003141658000100082008-07-08T14:39:00.005+01:002008-07-08T15:05:34.804+01:00

The University Museum was open on Sunday and I found it very thought provoking and engaging - particularly the exhibition "Sapmi - Becoming a Nation" which you can explore a little, too, by following the link. The three rooms manage to tell a story very familiar to me from my time living in North Wales about cultural assimilation, the resurgence of national identity in the 1960's and '70's, and

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-35846076352694553322008-07-08T13:16:00.004+01:002008-07-08T14:39:22.543+01:00

I certainly want to come back to Tromsø again.I called ahead to book a room at the Fjellheim Sommerhotel because I didn't know what kind of city I was coming into. The city is mostly on an island sandwiched in the middle of the strait between the mountains on the larger islands on either side, and I was somewhat hampered by not having any kind of map or guide with me. It was also late when I got

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-80542415311140736952008-07-08T13:01:00.004+01:002008-07-08T13:11:53.772+01:00

This is the 144 km route along the E6 from Hammerfest to Alta, with 5120hm of climbing. Hammerfest is a couple of stops southbound on the Hurtigrute from Honningsvåg but the southbound prices are cheaper and to be honest Finnmark is a bit too bleak for me to gush about it, even in July.If you mouse over the route profile you should see the pointer on the map move to follow the point you've

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-12165341178481025582008-07-06T09:49:00.003+01:002008-07-06T10:00:30.119+01:00

Friday night, 9pm, riding into a strong headwind but the road is about to run down off the plateau beside Kattfjordvatnet on the island of Kvaløya and down to sea level at Kvaløy - so Tromsø is in that sunlit gap with sea in it, in the middle of the frame, about 25 km away. Phew!I hardly ever use the iPod, but it is proving invaluable when the headwind gets this strong, especially when the road

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-18946277375881833312008-07-06T09:39:00.003+01:002008-07-06T10:03:13.809+01:00

The hills on Senja made big demands on the brakes from time to time...The previous fix with a nut and bolt on the yoke wire finally started to pull out under the strain.This is plan B, which involves tying a length of elastic shock cord to the arm with the weaker spring so that it is balanced better against its stronger counterpart on the other side - anything to stop the pad rubbing on the rim.

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-37591782221764191442008-07-06T09:22:00.002+01:002008-07-06T09:39:14.435+01:00

Now that the sun has come out, the island of Senja is transformed into one of my top five places to cycle on in Norway. There are some long climbs, because the road around the west side of the island follows the waterline as far as it can, but has to climb over the saddles between each peninsular from time to time, but the cycling is mostly easy and the scenery is outstanding. Saw my first

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-30431085696411106882008-07-06T01:06:00.005+01:002008-07-06T09:22:07.533+01:00

In the end I found a headland all to myself near the end of the road to Skaland quite late in the evening (about 10:40-ish), and pitched the tent a little way back from the beach on a thick and very comfortable patch of dry moss. Nobody around for miles, and just the song of a cuckoo nearby for company. There was a spring nearby too, so I felt I could have stayed there for days. This photo was

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-69408081236008723652008-07-06T00:52:00.002+01:002008-07-06T01:06:12.458+01:00

"Crikey!" as the late and sadly missed Steve Irwin would have said.This troll is too big to wrestle with, that's a rowing boat under his arm!He apparently weighs 125,000 kg and is 17.96 m high (while sitting down) - and he is in the Guinness Book of Records as the world's largest troll. Happily the family who look after him have a lovely little grotto where visitors can relax with a slice of

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-48772545621331666332008-07-06T00:32:00.002+01:002008-07-06T00:52:51.132+01:00

... cloud cover, that is.I took this picture as the little ferry from Andenes was in the last few minutes of its journey to Gryllefjord.It is pretty spooky, riding in total silence (bar the sound of the tires on the perfectly smooth tarmac). The first leg runs around the bay from the tiny settlement and up into the thick clouds at 170 meters. Very grey for an hour in thick fog as the road winds

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-75803497951707253242008-07-05T23:57:00.004+01:002008-07-06T01:24:52.062+01:00

Can you spot the differences between the two bikes?This was taken on Andøya when I stopped to chat with Reidar, the Norwegian end-to-ender I mentioned. He's riding a Thorn Raven Tour bike (the new edition of my bike), and his is propped up on a stand just like the one I had before I threw it away ... my frame was buckling at the mounting point for the stand, it couldn't take the weight when the

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-78908152806878776492008-07-05T23:13:00.002+01:002008-07-05T23:54:03.328+01:00

Just a quick update on where I am with plans for July.I'm going to take a gamble on the weather staying fairly settled for the next fortnight or so with perhaps three or four days that are not much good for cycling. Certainly the last week has been excellent, a little cold still but much more sunshine and the wind has been the main factor in slowing me down - it is blowing at times at 10 m/sec

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-5700946719555641752008-07-01T15:51:00.003+01:002008-07-01T16:48:52.740+01:00

I'm posting from the room behind the second window from the left on the first floor of the green painted building on the left of Andenes tourist information center.Things can change rapidly with the weather here.I woke up at 4 AM on Andenes campsite to the sound of rain lashing the flapping tent, so groped around for shoes and the peg bag before crawling out into the squall to rig the extra guy

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-70927974232291030932008-06-30T22:53:00.003+01:002008-07-01T16:50:47.944+01:00

Everything seemed to go really well today. I left Nigel and Ingvild Turrell's cabins at 9 o'clock, my earliest start of the month, with the weather overcast but www.yr.no promising improvement during the day - which indeed I soon felt because by 10.00 I was changing out of my woolen Icebreaker top for the first time in four or five days, and into a short sleeved shirt. I was curious - as were all

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-53084715747270302662008-06-29T12:01:00.003+01:002008-06-29T12:31:19.265+01:00

It's not a large room, in fact it is nearly the smallest of the trip, but it is nice and warm and comes well equipped for cooking, and with duvets and pillows. The view from the windows is of waving cotton-tufts on the bog on three sides, and of the mountains and wide fjord two hundred meters away and below on the other. The holiday season seems to be picking up, nearly all the huts are

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-71342757697789819842008-06-29T11:35:00.002+01:002008-06-29T11:59:37.941+01:00

Saturday 28 June, midday: This is a hasty photograph of the main shopping street in Sortland, taken as my bike was starting to topple over, and a little bit too dark perhaps. The crowds were out, and I was racing to buy food for the exposed two or three day ride up to Andenes before the shops started to shut.There really doesn't seem to much to the largest town in the islands besides this

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-68417667389550526392008-06-27T08:08:00.004+01:002008-06-27T08:27:05.410+01:00

Photo taken at 01:30 this morning of fish racks on the beach outside - the schoolhouse I'm staying in is the orange yellow building just behind the left-hand-most rack.Oh dear, I think I'm going to have to lie down for a bit longer. I made the mistake of absentmindedly cooking up porridge with bananas and sultanas for a family of three this morning, and since there's no bin here I felt obliged

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-38604780986973639732008-06-26T19:36:00.002+01:002008-06-26T20:07:32.747+01:00

Hovden is a tiny settlement at the end of a long and winding single-track lane from the crossroads at the center of the Bø commune at Rise. I arrived in a rain squall two hours ago, and it looked for a time as though I'd be camping tonight on a patch of ground next to the village hall, which is situated on some flat land between Hovden's two outstanding white sandy beaches. Which would be ok if

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-81752042338044975642008-06-26T12:28:00.002+01:002008-06-26T12:30:35.962+01:00

I've had to be selective with my bandwidth because mobile reception is very poor here, and is about to get worse again as I head out towards Hovsund and Nykvag - pictures from the last week are now at http://www.flickr.com/photos/webbje though.

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-81473773193912681842008-06-26T12:13:00.002+01:002008-06-26T12:26:28.139+01:00

This bridge over Långøysundet separates the Stokmarknes district from the island of Långøya, and the famous Eidsfjorden, which a hundred years ago was crammed with fishing boats pulling up vast numbers of sild for sale in Europe. The fish stock has collapsed now, so the communities are much smaller. I cycled along the east side of the fjord to Stranda two days ago, and then turned down the 820

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-86628416591242678762008-06-26T12:00:00.002+01:002008-06-26T12:13:17.129+01:00

Sunday 22 June, 06:00 - I had my Sankthans bonfire on the beach last night (a small one, for cooking over, rather than for celebrating midsummer and driving off the witches) because I appreciated that the weather was taking a turn for the worse. This photo was taken as I sat shivering in the tent the next morning, warming it up with the tent heater, which consists of Thermos #2, cotton wool, and

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-48358202269837512672008-06-26T11:48:00.002+01:002008-06-26T11:59:18.078+01:00

Saturday 21/06: The colours were just amazing this afternoon - I don't think this hasty thumbnail shows them off very well. The ride from Svolvær to Laukvik started uniformly grey, but by lunchtime the sun had burnt off all of the cloud, and the shallow water of this fjord was turquoise. No-one else around. I took about a dozen photos on the causeway but I've had to be selective in what I have

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-40792627934431499182008-06-26T11:43:00.003+01:002008-06-26T11:48:16.311+01:00

I didn't spot this last time I came this way. The weather improved dramatically after I left Svolvær and it became very hot and sunny. I stopped for an ice cream at Sandsletta Camping on the very enjoyable road to Laukvik, and got into a deep conversation with Marius, who comes from Sweden but managed to get a holiday job at the campsite for the summer because he loves to be as far North as

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-14764153668484260442008-06-19T23:25:00.005+01:002008-06-25T19:51:08.594+01:00

Diary notes from Tuesday 17th June:Funny day today, this was the last place I was expecting to stay at. Earlier I was exploring the dead-end side roads down to Ure and Mortsund, but not much going in the way of cheap accommodation at either of those. Mortsund struck me as being a particularly geared to up-market motorists - and the woman who runs rorbu rental there was very disdainful, so I

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-88922666314809332362008-06-19T22:51:00.002+01:002008-06-19T23:12:20.382+01:00

This front door at 13 Hans Egedes Gate in Kabelvåg sums up the little community here for me; the buildings are rather personal statements and very lovely too.I'm writing this at the desk in a pleasant sjøhus beside the marina here in Svolvær after a great cycle ride from Stranden Camp near Borg today - great because the weather has steadily improved all day (no sunset because it is daylight all

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-90431502479757879702008-06-19T19:33:00.003+01:002008-06-19T19:49:47.534+01:00

I managed to press a large (pillow case sized!) bag of unwanted things into Roar's hands on departure, with a vague promise to pick them up on my way back down. Am feeling much trimmer now - the bag held mostly maps, guidebooks, camera lenses, trousers and shirts, all of which I can do without.Here's a list of little helpful things I carry in my left front pannier pocket:-fryposer - freezer

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-44731925720278281722008-06-16T17:34:00.004+01:002008-06-16T20:06:01.731+01:00

A comment from one of the log books in the kitchen:-"We can't believe it! The sun hasn't set yet, but this funny Norwegian man keeps coming around collecting 30 kr. Three times he's come. Everyone here is so mixed up about the time. When all of us were sitting drinking tea before bed, a guy got up with his towel and toothbrush and asked us what time it was - when we told him it was 3:30 he asked

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-90144644361993340132008-06-15T12:42:00.006+01:002008-06-16T20:20:58.610+01:00

This unusual sight off the starboard bow was a fully fitted-out house being towed into it's new location by a large tug near Bronnoysund.Actually I slept fine on a circular couch in the Panoramic lounge on deck 8 - the only drawback being that I can't straighten up today and resemble Quasimodo as I lurch down the gangplank , flapping my hands and crying "the bølls, the bølls!"The weather is

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-9761125975225837942008-06-14T09:28:00.002+01:002008-06-14T09:33:21.129+01:00

Forgot to mention that before I arrived in Kristiansund, I cycled the 80 km from Bud over the causeway between the islands. The weather was perfect for this yesterday - sunshine, no breeze, perfect black tarmac in immaculate condition, hardly any traffic, and stupendous views over the sparkling blue waves.My decision to wait out the rain in the camspsite at Bud was right for once.The road is

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-8624013580462530462008-06-14T09:09:00.002+01:002008-06-14T09:22:45.754+01:00

I made it onto the M/S Trollfjord at 01:45 this morning after hanging around in a seafront bar in Kristiansund until closing time to take advantage of the patio heaters (quite cold outside otherwise).Not sure this is the best ship for slumming it on, it is the pride of the fleet and ALL the cabins are taken. I'm booked for TWO DAYS to Stamsund in the Lofoten Islands. Since it is the best the

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-59766695184607958012008-06-12T20:56:00.003+01:002008-06-12T21:01:40.557+01:00

I've managed to upload thumbnails from the camera to http://www.flickr.com/webbje, after a voyage of discovery with the linux tools at my disposal this afternoon in the cabin. Marianne, who owns the site, explained breezily that people just expected wireless internet access in their cabins these days while my jaw dropped...The photos are only the raw .CR2 files, converted to JPG format and scaled

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-19467836709171740742008-06-12T18:51:00.005+01:002008-06-12T19:11:10.305+01:00

I was on the phone to Janet just now when the Hurtigrute hove into view, steaming rapidly past the campsite here at Bud. I need that boat to take me north tomorrow, hopefully out of this wet weather and into a sunnier climate up at Stamsund or Svolvær in the Lofoten Islands.Today I've been mostly holed up in a nice warm comfortable cabin at the rather excellent Bud Camping, experimenting with

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-78332647422635938702008-06-12T13:17:00.002+01:002008-06-12T13:31:23.582+01:00

This assumes that you have no shower polet, and that no-one is going to turn up today to sell you one for 10 Kr (6 minutes) of hot shower.You will need:-A raincoat (it is raining)Hytte keyGilet/fleecy top - gilet preferredRonhill TrackstersBar of soapSmall towel (hand-towel size or smaller)Cycling shoesNothing else. Remove all other clothing before leaving hytte.MethodEnter washblockTest hot

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-77993989121999669952008-06-12T13:01:00.007+01:002008-06-12T20:54:29.785+01:00

Your basic hut costs kr. 350 to kr. 400 per night. You will be renting a solidly built wooden hytte assembled about 10-15 years ago, with a small porch, lockable door, clothesline, and double glazed windows (2). Inside you will find two bunk beds, a table, four chairs, and a cupboard with a two-plate electric cooker on it. There's also a small electric heater under the larger window.Take off your

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-70661392446260484042008-06-11T08:54:00.005+01:002008-06-12T18:55:17.021+01:00

It's turning into an exciting tour - I feel like I'm a long long way from home, riding between very small coastal hamlets on a road just wide enough for one car, with steady rain (and gales at times) in scenery that reminds me of the West Coast of Ireland in the 1970's. The people are friendly and welcoming, no-one locks their doors, but the number of people living here has obviously dropped a

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-51091215159286740782008-06-05T10:01:00.004+01:002008-06-29T09:06:32.715+01:00

I'm in the cafe at the Bergen library, free internet access! It's the big building close to the train station and shopping center, and the staff smile briefly at you and log you in, allowing you an hour at one of the eight PC's as long as you turn your mobile phone off.Do you remember the emotional high you felt when you last got to to somewhere you'd been looking forward to after months of

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-6811979164608134332008-06-02T22:52:00.003+01:002008-06-12T20:50:13.621+01:00

(This image above from the second week of the tour added 12/06/2008)I'm writing this at the Seascape Hotel in Whitley Bay near Newcastle, on my last night in the UK.I waved goodbye to family and friends yesterday at two in the afternoon. Everything fits on the bike, but the weight is currently higher than it was planned to be at about 38 kilos - and that's without the precious tripod for the

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-56591201281091206502008-05-28T13:02:00.007+01:002008-05-28T14:12:29.918+01:00

Top story on the UK BBC website today concerns the closure by DFDS of my route back to the UK, just a week or so after I was planning to use it to get home. This is going to be a disaster for people wanting to make a similar trip in the future, particularly since the Shetland-Faroe-Bergen route closed last autumn, and the UK-Gothenburg route closed in the spring of 2007. This basically seems to

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-70902186466868969162008-05-25T09:33:00.003+01:002008-05-25T10:14:10.614+01:00

This entry is dedicated to my best cycling buddy ever, who has pedalled our bike-trailerbike combination up many a hill in Norway, and who has never complained about a thing, even when we've been wet, cold, and a bit hungry together in freezing conditions at the top of mountain passes. He can't come on this journey because he's got a summer term to finish at school, but he'll be in my thoughts

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-14005269251661382008-05-24T23:37:00.002+01:002008-05-25T00:04:47.172+01:00

I owe a big thank-you to Dale Lane tonight, since his blog entry on "Using a 3 mobile broadband dongle with the EEE PC" proved to be all I need to write my first entry on Blogspot using the Huawei E220 USB modem. The dongle arrived in the post yesterday, sent recorded delivery and perfectly packaged from eBay seller 3g-fever, and despite my doubts (it's branded as a Three USB modem, but sold

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-79102097583466377412008-05-23T10:14:00.002+01:002008-05-23T10:24:00.968+01:00

I've been sleeping fine. Janet woke up from a dream this morning where she was desperately stuffing clothes into bags because she'd overslept and the tour bus she should have been on was sitting with its engine running, getting ready to pull out of the yard. This time she seems to be carrying the burden of anxiety about missed connections for me. Basically I haven't planned the journey to

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-88786269770451500512008-05-21T21:22:00.011+01:002008-05-21T23:34:11.643+01:00

Being a somewhat reserved Brit, I personally would not want to make eye contact with people by peering at them around a helmet-mounted head-up display, but Steve Roberts captured my imagination twenty years ago when I came across a magazine article on his futuristic trip around the USA on a recumbent bike with 105 gears, pneumatic retractable prop-stand, and a wireless Internet connection.All

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-1892017041581559152008-05-19T11:33:00.006+01:002008-05-19T12:33:36.614+01:00

I finally finished the time-consuming task of building a hat for the tentipi that can be adjusted from inside the tent - from my sleeping bag, in fact. This involved a week of late nights on the sewing machine and a greater appreciation for why these tents are so expensive: there's a lot of work in running one up. The original hat for this basic tentipi model is a simple wrap-around cone with a

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-81143700738176687892008-05-16T15:24:00.003+01:002008-05-16T15:43:07.552+01:00

Hmmm, now that I've seen a virtual tour of the M/S Vesterålen I'm glad I booked a cabin; unlike the panoramic lounges of her bigger sister ships, this one doesn't seem to offer long bench seats in dark corners that one can sleep on. There's no sheltered observation deck at the back to roll out a Thermarest mattress on either.Have you been on this ship? I think the earlier and smaller ships are

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-89287341586542591052008-05-15T23:37:00.003+01:002008-05-15T23:50:17.478+01:00

Took the plunge just now with my credit card and committed to a cabin for the Hurtigruten journey from Bergen to Molde, thus ending a four-week debate on whether I should book to avoid disappointment (no cabins left) or wait until arriving in Bergen to assess the snow situation on the Rallarvegen and the possibility of cycling from Haugastol and Geilo towards Trondheim.This'll be the first time

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-49620902014673546572008-05-14T22:19:00.001+01:002008-05-15T00:56:54.886+01:00

The trip starts in Bergen, which I reach by ferry from Newcastle in the UK (a day and a night on the ship).The itinerary is flexible, I aim to cycle 40 to 50 miles per day, but I feel I need to get North as fast as possible to make the most of the incredible light in June above the Arctic Circle (where there is 24-hour daylight). The ultimate destination is Finnmark and the North Cape - when I've

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-722101422288544551.post-43593370964707039052008-05-14T15:12:00.001+01:002008-05-15T00:56:12.423+01:00

This is a blog about a three-month cycling tour in Norway that begins in a couple of weeks' time and should end with me reaching a ferry back to the UK in late August 2008 (not booked yet, anything could happen).Why the blog then?If you've come here from www.blissonwheels.com, you'll be aware that apart from rising tax bills, house price stagnation, and the threat of the worst recession since the

Jerryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09365305012618730148noreply@blogger.com0