Jimmy Doug
If you know what's good for you ...
Hi everyone,
Just reporting back after completing my 3000 km tour of Norway/Sweden. It was a truly fantastic experience and one that I'll never forget. The weather was mostly OK-ish - but I did get washed out a couple of days during the tour. At one point it got so bad that I had to rent a hut and just sit it out for a couple of days. But I was lucky - I got to see all the things I wanted: the day I went to Bergen was sunny, an unusual occurence! And the weather when I cycled up to the Troll Wall was ideal. I met some wonderful people, and stayed with our very own Dayvo who was a true gent and a scholar! I stayed at Dayvo's flat for two nights and had a great time (by the way, I confirm that he DOES have a Cannondale, for those who don't believe it!).
I had a lot of advice from this forum while I was planning - I thank you all. There were indeed many tunnels (I went through 72 of them with a total distance of over 40kms!) and, yes, cost was an issue. Whilst it's true you can "get by" for a while, the prices become more of an issue the longer I stayed, particulalry with food. There were some nice surprises, though: the campsites were generally quite cheap (I didn't do much wild-camping because of the climatic conditions) and the ferry crossings weren't expensive at all.
Of course I'm now thinking of going back. I'd like to complete the journey to Nordkapp, seeing as I made it so far north, and there remains many other places I'd like to explore.
Thanks to everyone who shared their nordic experiences with me. And a special big thanks to Dayvo for his hospitality and good company!
If anyone is interested, I kept a (maybe too chatty!) blog with photos and a couple of not too bad videos (linky in my signature).
Just reporting back after completing my 3000 km tour of Norway/Sweden. It was a truly fantastic experience and one that I'll never forget. The weather was mostly OK-ish - but I did get washed out a couple of days during the tour. At one point it got so bad that I had to rent a hut and just sit it out for a couple of days. But I was lucky - I got to see all the things I wanted: the day I went to Bergen was sunny, an unusual occurence! And the weather when I cycled up to the Troll Wall was ideal. I met some wonderful people, and stayed with our very own Dayvo who was a true gent and a scholar! I stayed at Dayvo's flat for two nights and had a great time (by the way, I confirm that he DOES have a Cannondale, for those who don't believe it!).
I had a lot of advice from this forum while I was planning - I thank you all. There were indeed many tunnels (I went through 72 of them with a total distance of over 40kms!) and, yes, cost was an issue. Whilst it's true you can "get by" for a while, the prices become more of an issue the longer I stayed, particulalry with food. There were some nice surprises, though: the campsites were generally quite cheap (I didn't do much wild-camping because of the climatic conditions) and the ferry crossings weren't expensive at all.
Of course I'm now thinking of going back. I'd like to complete the journey to Nordkapp, seeing as I made it so far north, and there remains many other places I'd like to explore.
Thanks to everyone who shared their nordic experiences with me. And a special big thanks to Dayvo for his hospitality and good company!
If anyone is interested, I kept a (maybe too chatty!) blog with photos and a couple of not too bad videos (linky in my signature).