De-"tours": August 11th - August 19th, 2023
From Sandnessjøen we started with mostly flat and good weather biking. We stopped at a really old church (Alstahaug church, built in 1150) and looked inside at the deep walls designed to keep out the cold and tried to remember Christian symbolism as we stared at the art behind the altar. From the church, I sped down the road fleeing allergies as Norwegians cleaned out their barns. I felt mighty proud of myself for catching up and passing the e-bike tour group. I got to the next ferry in Tjøtta and it looked about ready to leave but the worker told me they were waiting 10 minutes. Ben just made it, literally biking onto the ferry right before they closed the ramp. So satisfying! We rode on, past a sculpture landscape art installation that was a little underwhelming, but also impressive for the work that must have gone into it once you thought about it.
The next morning we biked into Brønnoysund. We arrived too early for any cafes or bike shops to be open. So from 8:30-10:00 we played in the park! They had a zipline and slacklines and a rock wall. (Have we mentioned yet how Nebraskans don't stand a chance against Norwegians? Their parks have climbing walls with no ropes, no crashpads and routes that go high enough that I, as a grown adult, do not want to take a fall from the top of. We have also biked by several schools with mountain bike pump tracks, gymnastic rings, and ski jumps. I know we tell kids they can be anything they want to be when they grow up...but I don't think Nebraskans have a chance against a Norwegian skier, climber, or trail runner.)
When things finally opened we got some coffee, keeping the caffeine withdrawal at bay for one more day. Ben then tried to get his bike fixed but the mechanic misunderstood and messed with his brakes instead. When Ben asked about the shifter again the mechanic tried a few other things before telling him to try a shop in Steinkjer (only a few hundred more km away). Sigh.
We filled up with 3 days of groceries dodging the rainbow collection of politicians handing out pamphlets and asking for votes. Then with fully loaded bikes we continued on to Torghatten. It was supposed to be mostly flat but a tall bridge, all the heavy food, and road construction made it feel pretty tough. The rain came back so we checked out the paid-for camping... and were disappointed to find it was kind of not worth paying for. I was feeling rather defeated, but Ben rallied and we squeezed our tent into an improbable space in the forest to wild camp.
The next day we finally got some climbing in. Torghatten is a mountain known for a hole that goes right through the middle of it. There are also a few climbing crags on its flanks. It is NOT known for this climbing. It took us a while to find the crags due to construction blocking off the climbing access path. But once we found it it was nice easy routes, which is what we needed as it was a rough start to remember how to climb (I got scared leading a Norwegian 3+). Eventually I started feeling more confident. We moved to another spot that was toprope only and got to struggle on some 6's without Ben having to lead them!
We ended the day with the hike to the hole in the mountain. Thankfully the trail was great, with stone steps - must have been built by Sherpas and not Norwegains! The tunnel-cave at the top was HUGE, hundreds of feet tall and wide, and well worth the stop. We met a lovely Norwegian lady at the top who was wincing from knee pain. She explained that she had two new knees one of which was only 3 months old and this was the second Sherpa stairs hike she had done that day. Again, I hope when I am that age my knees can handle hikes like this. All in all a much better detour than the one to Blåfjell!
The next day we were determined to have a true zero day and also dry out a little. Thankfully a phone call managed to book us indoor housing at the unmanned hotel near our wild camp site which we promptly covered with all our wet clothes and tent. We also managed to buy some homemade loks from a farmhouse. Best loks I have ever tasted in my life. I can maybe be convinced to work again in order to acquire more of that. As it was, we paid for it with a 10 Euro bill I have had since the last time I was in Europe... when I borrowed a bunch of money from Beth. So thanks for the salmon Beth!
Fully rested it was time to continue biking south. Our next destination was Flatanger, a world renowned climbing destination for strong climbers. We are not strong climbers, but the guide book said there were easier climbs to be found and we thought it would be cool to gawk at the strong climbers on the harder routes so we set our komoot (navigation app) to Flatanger.
From Torghatten we had to retrace our pedals to Brønnoysund. Going North felt very much like we were going the wrong way. We finally turned south and 40 kilometers into the day we looked across the water at Torghatten where we had started the day. Oh Norwegian coastline. At a grocery store we were surprised to find Norwegian Pichanga! So we had to get it. We continued to Andalsvågen and the next ferry. This one had some good looking waffles so we had to get it.
From the ferry we watched with dread as rain moved in. No matter we can make dinner in the waiting room on the other side. We get off only to find that the waiting room on this side was under construction. So we biked frantically searching for shelter to magically appear and wonderfully a bus stop did appear! We stopped and cooked dinner in the small, dry, spider-filled space. When the rain stopped we biked on to a beautiful pull out that made a great campsite for the night. We were treated to a great sunset. (I need to find my headlamp).
The next day was rainy riding and we got into a good rhythm and just enjoyed the ride. Beautiful scenery which ended in one of the best wild campsites of our time in Norway. We rolled down an unmarked road that ended in a lily pond and a shelter. There was enough of a break in the rain that we hung up some of our stuff to dry out, but the rain kept coming and going so we were very grateful to have the roof over our heads to relax in. Ben attempted to make a fire. It took him a few tries and he may have cheated by using the stove fuel, but despite the rain he did manage to get a good fire going.
We started the next morning in good spirits and we were looking at a good downhill to start the day. Two minutes into the ride *clank clank clank clank clank* "Huh that's not a good sound". I pull over, luckily it occurred at a wide spot in the road. The bottom screw of my front rack had sheared off, leaving the body of the screw stuck in the fork of the bike with no way to get it out. I let Ben know on the radio and he (not wanting to go back up the hill he had just enjoyed going down) lets me know there is a very wide spot where he is, so I throw my bag over my shoulder and roll down to him. On the side of the road I use electrical tape and our clothesline to make a bandage for my wounded bike. Other cyclists ride by with the clear expression of "thank god that isn't me". While I make the necessary fixes to my bike, Ben fusses with his and discovers a nest of spiders. When did we pick that up? I get the rack attached mostly ok, place the bag on it and it seems to hold and it was keeping the bag out of my spokes so we roll on along and quickly made it to Kolvereid. I asked at a bike shop if they could do anything about my front fork and the mechanic undid all of my work and put two loose zipties in...Thanks...so while Ben got groceries I cut off the zip ties and redid the tape and rope.
Not a great way to start the day, but I was feeling proud of myself for making the repair and was biking strong through beautiful landscape. Then the end of the day came. Ben had a kilometer goal he wanted to get to...I hit a wall...and then I hit another hill and another hill and I just started getting further and further behind Ben and I could NOT get into a rhythm. Every pedal push was a struggle even when my bike was pointed down hill. We got to a bridge and I struggled over it to where Ben was waiting for me all happy and ready to tackle the next hill. Then he saw my face and agreed we could set up camp at the lovely giant pull out immediately after the bridge. Didn't make his goal but I needed to STOP.
The next day we tackled the hill and had beautiful riding through an area that would be amazing to sea kayak. We rolled through Namsos, where we got a really good sandwich from a cafe. We also stopped at a bike shop and this mechanic tried to see if he could replace my entire wounded front fork, but he didn't have anything that would fit my bike. Thank you for trying sir, much better experience than ziptie man!
We left Namsos and continued down the road. We stopped at a nice roadside rest stop with picnic tables and bathrooms. We could have continued on, but it was a really nice camping spot and we did not feel confident that another one would appear soon. We stopped just short of a grocery store so Ben gallantly rode the extra kilometer to the store to pick up dinner and ride back. What a good husband!
Komoot said the next day - a 50 km detour off the EV 1 cycle route - was going to have a LOT of uphill riding. It was supposed to be the hardest day with a total elevation gain of 950 meters. So we mentally prepared for a hard day of riding with a lot of bike pushing. Of course we started with coffee and pastries at the grocery store in Sjøasen. We had a lovely chat with the cashier who told us about her time as an au pair in Virginia and let us use the dungeon bathroom in the store's basement. We rolled across the bridge and lo and behold there was a beautiful campsite there too! Noted for when we return this way after climbing. The ride went very smoothly. I kept expecting to hit a hill that I had to push...but I just kept pedaling and not getting wrecked so I just kept going. Ben was behind and a little upset that I didn't stick to the plan of a rest before the big hill. But I was going with the attitude of keep going until you get wrecked then take a rest. It was a hot day but when we made it to the lakes the temperature was much cooler. Finally, we got back to the ocean and Lauvsnes which meant more groceries and snacks. Only 6 kilometers left to the campground and we weren't wrecked! We checked the watch and discovered that we had actually only climbed 450 meters of elevation. That explains why we weren't wrecked, our navigation app was very very wrong.
We biked the last 6 kilometers to the campground. I rode the section of gravel road with my front bag on my shoulders as I didn't want the jostling of the gravel to make my damaged front fork any worse. We rolled in and couldn't find anyone to pay so we set up the tent and were told "Olaf" would be by to collect our money at some point. In the meantime we got some laundry going, took some showers and got settled in! Thanks to a rainy forecast we had some rest days in our future which we very much needed.
... are those bikes gonna last two years ....
ReplyDeleteLololol wait until you see the post with what we've been doing to them in Scotland. I hope they last to the end of the month!
DeleteAlso someone forward that church pic to a Catholic school! I gotta know the symbolism!!!
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