Left Bremen June 2nd and it was already pretty late in the morning. I carry lot of stuff on my bicycle. Not to mention tons of food (mostly sweets). I caught the ferry over the Elbe river in the late afternoon. Weather was fantastic. Cars had a waiting time of about 90 minutes. Not for bicycles and motorcycles. The campground was very nice and nice people. From people staying at the campground I heard about Shelter DK. Free places where you can pitch up your tent. Most places with water and toilet. I camped 4 times in Denmark and have only once on a commercial campground. As I remember there are over 1000 Shelter DK in the country. Simply amazing. You can save a lot of money. I was unfortunately a little bit in a hurry because I booked the ferry from Hirtshals to Kristiansand in Norway for June, 7 at noon and parts of Denmark are really hilly. Two days before the departure of the ferry I rode over 158 KM and lots of climbs. About 90% of the distance was just up and down. I was almost dead when I arrived at the (commercial) campground. The price (100 Kron) was OK. Before the departure to Norway I got some groceries in Hirtshals at a German supermarket beginning with the letter A. Definitely lower prices than in Norway. On the ferry I could charge some of my electronic gadgets. I just stayed one time on a campground. The Shelter DK don’t have electricity.
It was sunny when we arrived in Kristiansand. About 10 KM after Kristiansand I met a young Austrian lady on a bicycle. Her final destination was North Cape. At the evening I met her again on the campground. Campground in Norway are really expansive. I payed with shower 280 Kronen. About 26-27 Euro. The mosquitos on the campground where horrible. I had to eat my dinner in the tent. Breakfast was not much different. Just eat fast and leave the campground. Fortunately I had right now never such an experience again.
The landscape in Norway is really gorgeous. Lots of waterfalls and still snow capped mountains.
I took a road where there was a tunnel over 5 KM long. Forbidden for cyclists (fortunately). Because of the high altitude I was really concerned about the detour over the pass. Definitely there will be still lots of snow there. When I arrived at the tunnel I couldn’t believe myself. The road bypassing the tunnel was brand new and only allowed for hikers and cyclist. The scenery on this road kept me speechless. The next few days I mostly camped off the road on higher altitudes You have fresh water from the steams.
Because of the relative short distance of 250 KM to the Geiranger Fjord I decided to go there, despite the over tourism. But about 20 KM of the recommended route is horrible gravel and up to 40% steep. The app didn’t mention the gravel and recommended the tour for all skill levels. No app is perfect. It took me about 20 minutes to push my bicycle for about 300 meters. Never seen something like that before. So I decided to return (45 KM for an “unforgettable” experience) and to cycle along the Atlantic coast. But before I got closer to the Atlantic I took a small road along a beautiful Fjord. The top of the road was about 700 meters above see level. Spectacular views and almost no tourists. OK, some (actually one) huge cruise ships were in the fjord. After 4 days camping off the road I needed a shower and had to shave. After about 57 KM I arrived in Aheim. They have a campground. Checking my navigation app there are no campgrounds the next 50 KM. So stay in Aheim and get a shower, I told myself. The campground was heaven. I think it is run by the town. They rent rooms an there are two communal kitchens with coffee maker, electric stove, oven, 2 fridges pans etc. A complete kitchen. And very important a washing machine and dryer. I couldn’t resist and decided to stay there one more night. Tomorrow I leave this beautiful spot and head north.
