Norway, finally!

A good night's sleep followed by a bright clear dawn saw me riding the short hop to the ferry port at Hirtshals. Stopped to fill the tank and have some breakfast at a filling station/cafe on the edge of town. It was apparently run by a couple of Vietnamese. The choice of food was the usual in this part of the world, namely everything comes with chips (think of the Monty Python "Spam" sketch, but with chips instead of spam). For something different, I opted for the "Vietnamese sandwich" which was astonishingly good! I guess it was authentic as the woman who made it was from there.

Refreshed, I headed for the ferry. I joined the queue of vehicles and asked the guy in front if this was the right place for the ferry to Kristiansand. Yes. I also asked the guy behind me just to be sure. Yes. All good until I got to the check-in window; it was "A" ferry to Kristiansand, but not "MY" ferry! Who knew two companies plied this route?!? They had to unlock a special gate for me to go back and make a mad dash around the docks to the ferry I was supposed to be on.
Made it in time and met some Fench bikers en route to Nordkapp, one of them was on an XT660Z too.
The crossing was OK, the sea a little "rolling" but OK. Disembarked and headed north under somewhat "Scottish" weather: some sun, some rain, but not too much of either. Only went about 50 miles on nice sinuous valley roads and decided to call it a day, in the hope the sun will win out more tomorrow. Got a hotel (much cheaper than I expected) overlooking a lake. The scenery is also very "Scottish" so far.

The wrong queue!

 All secure on the right boat.

Norway, or is it Scotland?

Peaceful and quiet.

Happy bunny!

Soundtrack: "Bless the Weather ", John Martyn

Denmark? It must be Wednesday!

I checked 3 separate weather forecasts; they all disagreed with each other. As the sun was shining, I decided to believe the most optimistic one. I still had a lot of ground to cover today to get to the northern tip of Denmark to catch the boat to Norway. So I started off for a while on the autobahn before the smaller roads started.
Crossing into Denmark, the roads became quieter and more fun to ride, although the countryside is still pretty flat with a lot of wind turbines scattered across the horizon. Not much to distract from chewing up the miles; but Norway is the prize for these long flat, straight roads. Not bad, but I can't wait for some mountains!
As I got to about 30 miles short of the ferry port, it looked like the weather might finally be turning after a generally fine day. The mist descended and, as if it was pre ordained, I passed a "Bikers Rest". Quick u turn and I pulled in to find a mixture of simple rooms, bunks and camping aimed at us in the 2 wheeled community. I took a room (only £23, dirt cheap for Denmark). As soon as I'd settled in, the sun came out again. It was late enough to stop anyway and I was obviously destined to stay here.
Turns out its election day here in Denmark. The whole route up was covered in campaign posters; no idea who won.....I'm guessing the politicians!

Long straight Danish road.

Highest point for miles around.

Bikers Rest

Local brew.

The mist descends......

Soundtrack: "Stick in a Five and Go", Sleaford Mods

Holland and Germany.

Well, that was a loooong day! Rolled off the ferry a little after 8 am, with a great sense of anticipation and a huge grin on my face! Sun was shining and I had the open road ahead of me; what could be better?
My GPS died a couple of times in the first 20 minutes, sending me on a bit of a detour; but after it decided to behave I headed north. Nowhere in particular to be and all day to get there.
After filling the bikes tank and my stomach, I alternated between motorways and smaller roads throughout the day (always heading north and east); trying to find the balance between making ground and enjoying the ride (not a fan of riding on motorways).
Holland is flat, verrrry flat with a lot of long straight roads (I'm sure it sees The Argentine pampas as its (much) bigger brother! Lots of cyclists on the road; but not the smug, lycra clad fanatics you see in London, but normal people in everyday clothes just going from A to B on antiquated looking bikes. Nice.
As the hours rolled by, I found myself in Germany. As the weather was so good, I decided to push on, crossing the River Elbe on another ferry (only 5.5 Euros!). After a bit of trouble finding somewhere to stay, I ended up in the town of Elmshorn almost 12 hours after rolling off the ferry from the UK. It didn't seem that long, I was just happy to be back on my bike and riding. Had a schnitzel and beer for my tea. How German is that?!

First glimpse of Holland.

Waiting to disembark. 

Afsluitdijk.

1 mile to a milestone. 

Elbe ferry.

Soundtrack: "Lowlands of Holland", Levellers

So it begins......

An uneventful evening ride to Harwich to catch the overnight ferry to the Hook of Holland. Finally back on the road doing a "proper" bike trip. The bikes idle revs are a bit low, but not enough to stall it at lights, may have to adjust it; see how it goes.
First time I've been on an overnight ferry (as far as I remember). Quite plush: private en-suite cabin, that even has a shower! There is an on board cinema showing Avengers Endgame. Also a couple of bars, but in a remarkable act of discipline and self control, I'll skip all that for an early night, so I am ready for a long ride up through that there Europe tomorrow.

Queuing for the ferry to Holland.

Surprisingly comfortable!

Soundtrack: "Come on Eileen", Dexys Midnight Runners (being played over the ships PA).

1 week to go...

Trip planning is going well.....

Soundtrack: "No one's bothered", Sleaford Mods

Better late than never......

It's been 4 years since my last "proper" bike trip. 4 years since South America. 4 years since I've done anything except day trips. 4 years!!!
After much pre-varicating and inertia; I'm finally heading up through Europe to Norway in early June. The plan is the boat fron Harwich to the Hook of Holland; winding up through Holland, Germany and Denmark to Hirtshals where I'll get another boat to Kristiansand in Norway. Then meander up through the fjords for a few days before retracing my steps .
The mighty XT is my steed of choice for this trip. I also acquired a Honda CRF250 Rally last year; but I've not done anything to prep it for longer trips yet. So the trusty Yamaha will continue its world tour.

The mighty XT: conqueror of continents!

The Honda CRF250 Rally. The new kid on the block; but LOADS of potential. 

Soundtrack: "That leaving feeling", Stuart A Staples