The Great Motorcycle Road Trip of 2024

This is a record of a 5500km, 3.5 week long motorcycle journey I made in August in 2024 on my BMW F750 GS.

I hadn’t planned to write a travel journal. But as I was settling down to rest for the evenings it just came naturally. The first few days I just did short notes. I expanded a little bit to make them more coherent, but didn’t elaborate too much. They also weren’t the most exciting days. As I realised the travel notes would be useful for me to remember the details of what I did I started writing in more length. I still wrote them pretty fast without much filter or plan. Mostly it is close to what I wrote while on the road.

Luggage setup

The previous year when I was on a longer ride I had a tent and sleeping bag packed on top of the big bag. I found it tedious to strap and unstrap every day so this year I wanted to keep everything contained in the big bag and the side backpacks. This meant being more conservative with what I packed. But a large amount of space was saved by swapping out my sleeping back with one of down. I was even able to switch out my old two-man tent for a slightly larger three-man dome tent, wanting more space and comfort when I was going to be on the road for so long.

I’m still trying to figure out a better way to mount the big bag as I still find it too fiddly and time consuming to secure it with the straps. When it’s raining or swarming with bugs I want to minimise setup and teardown time.

31 July — Trondheim to Näsåker, 408.18 km

Driving from Trondheim to Näsåker. 400 km. Pure transportation. Nothing really existing in terms of roads.

1-3 August — Urkult

Attended the Urkult festival. I’d been to the festival maybe 15-ish years ago. Accidentally discovered that it was still going and started at the same time I had planned my road trip. Figured I’d use that as a starting point and direction. It was in the direction of Umeå from which I was considering taking the ferry to Finland. I hadn’t done too much research on the north of Finland or Sweden up front. I was thinking I’d let the weather decide which direction to take, north or south. At the end of the festival south in Norway was getting a lot of rain so north it was. But as I was looking at possible roads I realised that there wasn’t a whole lot to see beyond trees and fairly straight roads in both north Finland and Sweden. There is the TET, with gravel roads, but I was heavily loaded with luggage for four weeks on the road and I wasn’t too keen on doing the TET roads alone. I knew some of the roads can get pretty wet and muddy.

In the end I decided that the extra kilometres to get over to Finland and then going north towards Norway wasn’t worth it for this trip. Instead I choose Inlandsvägen, E45, in Sweden up to Kiruna before pivoting towards Norway.

4 August — Näsåker to Arvidsjaur, 339.41 km

400 km in the North of Sweden, up to Arvidsjaur. 80-100 km/h. Just woodlands and mostly straight roads. One reindeer.

Hotel Laponia

Ok hotel. It had a pool, but I was too tired to try it out. The lights in the bathroom was flickering for a long time after turning on. Pillows were pretty poor for a hotel. No air-conditioning, which was unfortunate since temperatures was up around 25-30 °C outside.

Restaurant — Laponiakåtan

It was apparently related to Hotel Laponia, but the building was separate on the other side of the road next to the lake. This was much more enjoyable than the hotel.

Wanting to try something new and something local I ordered the reindeer roast beef. It was very nice! After a day of riding boring roads it was nice with an extra treat.

5 August — Arvidsjaur to Narvik, 548.97 km

600 km. Again mostly 100 km/h. Covered so many kilometers I decided to go directly to Narvik. Kiruna didn’t look very appealing when I was there.

Another reindeer sighting was the “highlight” on the road.

Coming in towards the Norwegian border I started to see mountains and winding roads again. I actually giggled a bit to myself while I was riding as I was for deprived for stimuli the last two days.

Breidablikk Guesthouse

Fair place for a night. Located up some steep hills in Narvik. Glad I didn’t have to stop for any cars in the steep intersections. Not too much parking availability, but the guesthouse had three and fortunately there was one free.

Restaurant — Rallar’n Pub & Kro

Short distance from the guesthouse. Ordered their cod dish. Nice, but it was big enough for two!

6 August — Narvik to Tromsø, 294.46 km

Wonderful roads after leaving E6.

Section of tarmac road that is no longer maintained. Narrow and bumpy, but winding and fun.

Later a section of 70-80 km/h with no centreline. Nice mellow curves. Surface rather bumpy some places that pushed the suspension with the heavy pack.

Later 80 km/h with wider very smooth curves.

Hardly any traffic at all, mostly the occasional car going opposite. No bikes or people walking along the roads.

Next section was some roadworks. Had to follow a lead car. Gravel on top of tarmac. Very bumpy.

Once back on tarmac a long stretch of very bumpy and rough surface. Patchwork all over the place. Hard to tell if the darker spots on the road was a pothole, shadow or just a different shade tarmac.

Coming in towards Tromsø via Fv 858 I took a detour to sightsee at Håkøya.

At Tromsø I was staying at an AirBnb. Had a short walk around town while I was looking for a place to eat.

Restaurant — Biffhuset Skarven

Keeping up my streak of trying food that was iconic for the place I was visiting I tried the whale steak. It was lovely. Super tender and tasty.

7 August — Tromsø to Senja, 207.43 km

Getting out of Tromsø was confusing. One of the bridges to the island was closed. The GPS knew this, but the alternative road our was via a tunnel that started in the middle of a residential area in town. I though the GPS was confused because the entrance was under a normal building into what looked like a parking lot. After circling a couple of rounds I eventually realised the GPS was directing me in the correct direction. Inside the tunnel it wasn’t much use. There was an intersection and a roundabout in the tunnel which I wasn’t prepared for. GPS failed to guess where I was and didn’t help.

After finally finding my way out of Tromsø it opened up to a very scenic landscape. Mountains with jagged edges. Lots of charming old fishing huts. Unfortunately I didn’t have time to stop as I had to make it to the ferry from Brensholmen that didn’t have many departures that day. Was lucky to get a spot as the queue was long. Only got on by going to the front of the dock. It wouldn’t have been the end of the world if I hadn’t gotten a spot, I’d just have to take the longer route around.

I could probably have spent a day in Tromsø exploring more. And if I had time I’d definitely stopped a lot on the way to the ferry.

On the other side of the ferry at Bothnhamn on Senja I found my planned camp site, Fjordbotn Camping, and dropped of my luggage. Simple hut, just two beds. I was curious how the the night temperature would be like. Sun was cooking that day, 30 °C+.

Felt tired after dropping of my luggage. Quick stop at a café for some stale cinnamon bun didn’t help much. Recovered some after a nice lunch at Byens Bistro in Finnsnes.

There was more more traffic this day. A number of drivers that seemed a bit insecure and used the full width of the road, making it hard to overtake. They often went wide into the other side of the road before taking corners, making them something to keep in mind when riding narrower roads like these. Not much margin left when they don’t stick to the right side of the road. These drivers also didn’t pay attention to their rear mirrors, so extra care had to be taken when overtaking. Being prepared with brake and acceleration is advised, so is being prepared with the horn in case they start to drift into your lane when overtaking.

After having done a full round trip of Senja I was back at the camp site and got some rest. Fortunately the air cooled down enough when the sun went down that it was possible to fall sleep.

8 August — Senja to Sandtorgholmen, 250.14 km

OK roads via Finnsnes with some traffic. Stop at Sjøvegan to pick up a clean t-shirt, wool shirt and underwear.

Fv 141 Tennevoll to Gratangsbotn

Rough road. Originally paved but a lot of damage. Ongoing repair work with a few places where digger and truck was blocking the road. Lots of sections with partial or fully covered with gravel. But not a lot of traffic.

Kystkulturveien (Fv 825)

This was a nice stretch. A good part of this was 80 km/h roads with plenty of nice bends that keeps the bike dancing through the landscape. Some small sections with houses where the speed drops to 50/60 km/h. Very little traffic, but also easy to overtake when needed.

Sandtorgholmen Hotell

This has been my favourite lodging so far. An old dock building at an old farm converted into a hotel. I got the smallest room (king size bed), and the cheapest, but the it was very spacious with lots of storage, a desk and a roomy bathroom. Many fine details to marvel at, one can see the attention to detail the owners put into the place. A stunning view outside and very cosy interior sets it apart from most normal hotels. Staff was very friendly and jovial. Food was excellent as well as the dessert. I had bacalao and a chocolate cake. (Had a second serving of the jelly).

Outside the hotel room there was a tea serving station, with a hot water kettle and a good selection of tea. (Most hotels has worse selection and charge you for it.)

At the end of the hallways in the second and third floor a simple seating against the window with view to the fjord.

Weather is still warm even at 22 in the evening, perfect temperature to sit outside and write the travel journal.

You can walk along on the beach if you are willing to walk in sand. I took a walk along the road, after a few hundred meters there was a pedestrian path that allowed me to stroll with my audio book while I snapped a few photos.

9 August — Sandtorgholmen to Bodø via Moskenes, 332.92 km

E10, trafficked road. Most traffic going opposite. But lots of roadworks with stops and 50/30 km/h zones.

Road is being widened and straightened. Read: less fun to ride. Do the roads really need to be made faster? Is it not enough to make them wider? Fast = Quality?

Some nice bends going up along Blåheiveien.

After Sortland on Langøya the roads became nicer and less trafficked again. Took the smaller north side instead of the south site Google maps suggested. Picking anything that Google Maps doesn’t suggest often leads to more relaxed and joyful driving.

At the ferry at Melbu I realised that there wasn’t many departures from Moskenes to Bodø. And that it was advisable to book in advance. I also realised it was a four hour ferry ride. There was one at 20:30 and one at 23:30. The next day it was going to be heavy rain and all mid day trips was fully booked. (I later learned that they only booked up to 30% capacity.)

I would have liked to have had at least half an extra day in Lofoten, but the weather coming in was so wet that I didn’t think it would be very enjoyable. I was also concerned how rough the sea would be with the ferry the next day. Because of that I decided to book a stop on the 20:30 departure and a two-night stay at the Smarthotel in Bodø, it was right after the ferry dock and I’d be arriving 00:30.

After arriving at Fiskebøl I was on the E10, the road Google Maps kept suggesting and I had been concerned that it’d be very trafficked and not so enjoyable. But while there was some traffic, the view was amazing and the road nice and winding – would be a super ride when there’s less traffic.

At Vestvågøya I took the southern Fv815 instead of E10 which was again much more relaxed to drive.

The ferry ride was OK. Food was served. But it got really warm inside. After a small nap I ended walking around on deck for a bit with my audiobook. There was some noticeable waves early on, but it calmed down eventually. I easily get travel sick on anything, car, bus, trains, boats, but this went fine fortunately.

Found a parking lot at the train station as I arrived and unloaded my luggage. Took a shower and read a bit to wind down before going to sleep around two am.

10 August — Bodø, Resting day

Rest and restitution while the rain pours down.

Had breakfast at Baker Olsen which was a couple of minutes walk away. Nice fresh buns, croissants and cookies.

Visited some friends for lunch then headed back to the hotel where I ended up researching Kystriksveien since the rain was increasing and I didn’t have a normal rain coat and the hotel would not lend me an umbrella.

Eventually the rain was easing up a bit and I found a very nice restaurant Hundholmen Brygghus. A microbrewery with a pub section and a restaurant section. I can really recommend the restaurant! So far the most enjoyable meal.

The rest of the evening I spent at the hotel room reading and tinkering with a route planning tool I’ve been working on.

P.S. Not far from the restaurant I found a free MC parking space in Bodø.

11 August — Bodø to Kilboghamn, 208.06 km

Late start as I was having lunch with some friends at Craig Alibone Pâtisserie before departing. Also, it was nice to get a slow start. Very nice tea at the Pâtisserie. I didn’t try the pastries unfortunately as I prefer to avoid too many sweets when riding long days on my motorcycle.

Roads were fine, mostly Fv17, Kystriksveien. Bends, but nothing you really had to work to corner. I prefer them a little tighter where you have to angle the bike a bit more. Some traffic, but relatively easy to overtake.

A bit more deserted than Lofoten and what I saw from Tromsø. Especially the stretch leading up towards Jektvik was pretty empty. Few food places or anything along the road, especially on a Sunday.

Had a short downpour of rain before Jektvik but it cleared up relatively fast.

Stopped at Polarcamp right after Kilboghavn, off the main road after the ferry. Got there right before they closed, so that was lucky. Cabin had a sofa, bunk bed, sink, electric kettle, microwave, pretty much everything except a toilet, shower and stove (but cooking tops).

Had a short walk after unpacking, and on my way back I stumbled upon a Stoat (Eurasian ermine). First time I’ve seen one. And it was hopping around the same spot for at least three minutes. Too bad I didn’t have my photo camera, the mobile phone didn’t do it justice in the dim light.

12 August — Kilboghamn to Brønnøysund, 194.13 km

Most of the roads this day was mildly winding. Intermittent showers of rain. And a number of ferries.

Had a longer break rather early at Grønsvik Kystfort. A sizable fort from WWII built by the Germans. You can walk around freely and explore the number of bunkers and tunnels that are still in good shape. It was refreshing that it was available as “walk around on your own risk”. Little was secured other than a couple of hard to see holes. In one of the bunker entrances that was without light there was some barbed wire, so bring a flashlight.

Ended up just grabbing some food from petrol stations. There was a café at one of the ferry docks, but it was a 30-40min wait for food, and I only had 40mins until the ferry arrived.

The Tjøtta – Forvik ferry was a bit confusing. The Torghatten website I’d used with success further north displayed incorrect times. There was another time table that was accurate, but it wasn’t easy to read. It had some special routes where you had to call in to let them know you wanted to take it. But that wasn’t immediately obvious. Combine that with no staff at the ferry dock and we were a group of travellers a bit puzzled to when and if the ferry would go.

Eventually it did, and we were lucky with the next one. I think it waited 10-15 minutes to catch our group from the last ferry, saving us nearly an hour wait.

By then it was getting late and I managed to find a room close to Brønnøysund, calling them while I was on the ferry. I think I got the last room, as some other travellers I’d briefly talked on the ferry was also there when I arrived and they had to tent.

Mossheim Camping is a hidden gem! Cosy cabin while the camp site was filled with various statutes and figurines. There was also a building acting as a museum filled with antiques. Every room was filled, but not stuffed or cluttered. Care had been taken to group and categorise the various items. One could walk around for quite a while looking at all the things and details.

13 August — Brønnøysund to Namsos, 261.18 km

Started the day by doing a small detour from my main route to Torghatten. Took the short trail from the parking lot to the opening. Glad I had changed to sneakers because it was quite a number of steps forming long stairs, parts of it steep. But it was hot and I hadn’t bothered to unpack my normal trousers so I hiked up in my riding trousers. Lovely view. If one have more time it’d be a nice walk taking the whole trail around.

The rest of the route to Namsos was fine, mellow turns. I was however struggling with a brewing headache which put a damper to the experience. I stayed at Holmset Camping. Small and simple cabin with a bunk bed. The site was had a number of amusing signs to discover as you wandered around.

14 August — Namos to Trondheim via Fosen, 176.61 km

Lovely roads at Fosen after exiting Rv17 before Steinkjer. Early on there was a sign “Steinkjers verste vei” (Translation: “Steinkjers worst road”) which looked ominous, but that turned out to be a quite enjoyable route. At least since it wasn’t trafficked. The road was very narrow at times, so narrow that some places it would be hard to pass a car even on a bike.

A really nice gem of a road was 6922 from Verrabotn to Meltingen. 80 km/t with very twisty corners and terrain going up and down. Wide enough to feel comfortable if one should meet traffic.

The rest of the road towards Rørvik was also very enjoyable, especially when you had the view to the fjord. Arrived home at Trondheim around 14. Driven ~3200 km so far.

15 August — Trondheim, Resting day

Taking a resting day to recharge and replace dirty clothes (over due!).

16 August — Trondheim to Måndalen (Voll), 337.54 km

This ended up being more of a transportation day. Some nice roads and scenery, but that came towards the later part of the day and by then I was feeling rather tired. In fact, I wasn’t really feeling it that day.

There was a few tunnels where the GPS didn’t route me around on the old roads going around them. And I’m, pretty sure they were drivable. I also didn’t notice the exits in time and by then I had to take the tunnels. Also struggled to find places to eat that appealed to me when I stopped.

The cabin at the camp site was basic, which was fine. Clean bed and room. Though no utensils or anything, you had to bring your own stuff, all of it. I ran across the street to the petrol station and picked up a thermo-cup as I realised I’d forgotten to pack one.

17 August — Måndalen to Olden, 186.43 km

A much more spirited day! Made a warm breakfast from one of my just-add-water packs of pasta I brought with me. The roads along the fjords were nice, winding and scenic. Though not that many where you would angle the bike too much. The scenery made up for it.

Took a “shortcut” from Tresfjord to Vaksvika. At the start of the road there was a sign saying the road was closed at the county border. However, it was rotated 45 degrees, so I was wondering if that was something they used during the winter. Using Google Street View I looked ahead to see if I could see anything that looked like a permanent barrier, however I saw none. It was also just a few minutes up so I decided to have a look anyway. A nice narrow road crossing the mountain and it was not closed. Short part of it was gravel.

At Stordalstunnelen on Fv650 I finally noticed the exit to the old road going past the tunnel. Unfortunately it was blocked by a chain barrier half way along it. Road looked fine on the other side of it. I guess the barrier was there mainly to ward of people using it due to risks of landslides.

At Stordal I drove past an eye-catching old house. Lovely details, but left derelict for years and now looks like a ghost house.

Lunch — Storfjord Gastropub

After a short ferry ride I stopped at Stranda and had a nice burger at Storfjord Gastropub. It was very enjoyable burger at a quiet little place. Friendly staff.

I drove on for half an hour until I got to Hellesylt were I took another short break. Walked around a bit and looked and the waterfall and Tom Cruise’s motorcycle from when he recorded Mission Impossible Dead Reckoning Part One in this area. Had a nice tea and pastry at Hellesylt Boutique & Bar while I let the rain pass.

There was a lot of nice things to see this day. For instance the stone bridge across Horndøla on Fv60.

And 20 minutes later I saw another mossy grown stone bridge along Rv17 over Storelvbruna. The bridge is part of the old postal route between Trondheim and Bergen; “Den Trondhjemske postvei”.

Another 10 minutes down the road the GPS suggested a small side road, named Nord-Markana, going parallel-ish to Rv17. It was rather narrow but free from traffic. A nice little detour, more entertaining than Rv17.

Singerheimen

Eventually I started to look for potential places to stop. Searching for bed and breakfasts I came across Singerheimen on Google Maps, located in Olden, not far from Stryn. I hadn’t planned on stopping that early in the day, but the place looked like a gem and I was eager to try a nice lodging again. It was also next to Lodalen which was on my list of places to check out. However, Lodalen is a dead end route, so I figured I might as well stay at Singerheimen and unpack my luggage there and later ride light to Lodalen.

Singerheimen is a museum lodging. Old large building with very pretty rooms. The family that runs the place is very friendly. I was a bit bummed out to find that I was about a week too late for the After Noon Tea offering they have during the summer. That would have been perfection.

I ended up stopping quite a few times on my way to Singerheimen so time wise it turned out to be a reasonable place to stop.

Lodalen, 53.20 km

As with the rest of the day earlier, there was spells of rain, but the driving suit held up. Sun still poked through the sky and hot the green glacial water. Riding up Lodalen rivalled Lofoten. The view was stunning! The road is really narrow, and it’s hard to see what’s around the corner. Many places you cannot pass another car, even with a motorbike. So it’s not a road for speed, but you don’t want that for this road. This road is for the views – and they are many and grand! At the end of the fjord there’s a café, but I was too late in the day to check it out. After that there was a small stretch of gravel until you got to a parking lot below the glacier. Looked like a short hike to the glacier itself.

Riding back I managed to snap a couple of photos from places I missed on the way up because I didn’t find a good spot to park in time.

Dinner — Mølla

On my way to Singerheimen I spotted a dining place at Olden called Mølla which I took a mental note to check out. The people at Singerheimen also recommended it so I was happy to find it still open and serving when I was on my way back because I was hungry again.

The place was quiet just then which suited my tired head very well. My phone was also down to 5% battery from taking so many photos this day, but the friendly staff lent me a charger while I ate. (I wanted to check a couple of things while the food settled before I left.)

Evening

Back at Singerheimen I collected my laptop and kindle to sit down in the lounge with a nice cup of tea. I wanted to write up today’s impressions as well as catch up on having missed yesterday.

I had originally though to try to get the ferry to Lysebotn on Monday. But I realised that would mean possibly missing good stuff on the way down there. Finding Singerheimen and spending time in Lodalen was just right. Instead I figured I try to target Wednesday for Lysebotn, where I’d then have to make my way back home.

18 August — Olden to Balestrand, 189.55 km

Started the day with breakfast then a tour of Singerheimen. Curious history with the Singer family buying all that land and building all the buildings. They hired staff that provided work for so many in the local area. Later they also built a local hospital after a severe tsunami accident. Also funding roads to the valley. If you have a ridiculous amount of money, that’s not the worst way to spend it. You don’t hear about that sort of stuff often with the super rich any more.

The day was mostly filled with rain. That was something I expected. The day before I felt it was getting rather cold in my riding suit, so I used the inner jacket and trousers filled with down which helped keep me warm. I should also have added another layer of socks. I did put on a pair of thin gloves under my Gore-Tex gloves. Everything I ride with is water proof, but the coldness does creep in if you don’t have layers. Max temperature was maybe 15C. Minimum was 7C over the mountains.

Despite the soggy weather the route was enjoyable. The scenery did a lot of the work today. The roads were nice, but more traffic in some places. And while it was winding roads they were often narrow with poor forward visibility to I had to ride carefully. Not like the roads between Narvik and Tromsø that was wide enough to afford you to be assured you could pass vehicles coming in opposite direction.

Found a nice surprise along Fv5690, where I came across Astrup Tunet. Took my camera and walked around for a bit. But the rain made it difficult to take photos. They had a small café with tea/coffee and waffles which was a welcome break. When it’s wet and cold it’s even more important with frequent breaks and get some warmth and nutrition as you tire more quickly. I almost didn’t take that road because there was a sign about some closures. But stopping and looking at the traffic information in details via 175.no I found that it was only a bridge that was closed and there was a short detour for vehicles lighter than 6t.

I carved a path through Gaularfjellet which offered some nice twists and turns. At some of the tops there was a little café called Fjellstova på Rørvikfjellet. Very cosy and another opportunity to warm up. I also grabbed some lunch while I was there. The staff was very friendly and welcoming. Right after that café there was some nice twisties, but it was downhill, which is never the same as going up, especially when it wet. I marked the position for a road that would be nice to ride the other direction as well.

Even more so with the hairpin corners after Utsikten at the end of Gaularfjellet. I’d love to ride them going up and on a sunny day.

It ended up a rather short ride today, 180 km. Stopped at Balestrand, getting a room in the historical section of Kviknes Hotell. I wouldn’t have stopped here had it not been some a recommendation from the people who ran the café on the top of the mountain. It looked so charming that I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to spend some time here. Coming into Balestrand there was an extremely colourful rainbow.

After unpacking I ate dinner at Peters Plass, Pearl by Harbor. Run by Ukrainians that didn’t speak Norwegian or English, so we used Google Translate. :) I had some nice dumplings that was listed under the menu as Ukrainian cuisine, something I’ve never tried before.

I strolled around the outside and the inside of the hotel taking photos of many of the details.

Later after a warming shower I sat down and checked the weather reports again and it didn’t look promising for the next week. Most of southern Norway up to at least Trondheim is going to have quite a bit of rain. Lysebotn which has been my rough target to pivot upwards from was listing an expected 38mm rain Tuesday. The car-ferry runs Monday, Wednesday, Friday, so I was aiming to be there for Wednesday. That should make for relaxed Monday and Tuesday, which is nice given the expected downpour. And I found so much to look at so far in the fjords, it’s nice to have the time.

I have however looked at alternative routes east across the mountains earlier in case I should decide to bail. However, I’m at a point where it’s a bit limited options. If I keep to the coast it’ll be the E39 which is boring, I’d rather not do that. Even on the east of the mountain the options aren’t that many back up to Trondheim. I’ve taken quite a few of them already. I either have to go further east, or, my current plan, to wind myself up through the mountains. Though with the risk of cold and windy trip. A rough estimate should bring me back home with comfortable 4-5 hours driving per day with an extra day to spare. Which I might need to spend to get my rear wheel changed depending on how much it wears down. Current main route is about 1400 km, and I’ve driven 4000 km so far. The tyre might hold all the way home.

19 August — Balestrand to Sauda, 282.93 km

I thought this would be more of a transportation day, with rain. While there was some showers in the beginning of the day between the mountains it cleared up mid day. The roads were varied and enjoyful. From slow narrow twisties to more flowing bends.

Quick stop early on to take a look at Hopperstad Stave Church.

Quick Stop at Odda for a decent burger at Café Verket.

Rv13 between Odda and E134 had a nice scenic road following a river. However, I ran into some slow traffic, behind a large truck with trailer with few places to overtake.

Some pleasant surprises where an old road next to E134 past the Røldals-tunnel. Very narrow in most places, little space to pass even a car. And pretty steep in the twisties with only boulders as road guards. I felt my discomfort for heights when I stopped to take photos, looking down. Road was blocked by sheep a few places, so careful driving.

After the old road over Røldalsfjellet it was back onto E134 for a bit, straight into some 180° turns and one 540° turn. What I failed to noticed during these was that there was a small exit in one of them and I went past. Did a U-turn at the bottom of the hill and got some uphill twisties :)

Turning onto Fv520 it was rough and bumpy tarmac. The the point I almost felt it would be better to stand, like on gravel roads. This road is also very narrow and often very hard to see what’s coming ahead. And lots of sheep, and goats.

Towards the end of Fv520 into Sauda I noticed some holes in the side of the mountain that looked like mine entrances, and a narrow foot path leading up to it. I kept an eye on the path for as long as I could before the trees obscured the view. But I came down to a parking lot with WCs and a plaque explaining that there had been zinc mines around here. I didn’t have mobile network. I was tempted to go for an evening walk and see, but it was getting late and I was tired. Made a note of the location and will look it up later. I got startled at one point as around a bend as a semi-trailer appeared. I thought the roads was pretty tight for cars in some places, let alone a truck or a semi-trailer!

Odda was really the mid way point between where I started and to the ferry at Lysebotn. However, since the weather cleared up and the forecast predicted a very wet Tuesday I decided to push on for a couple of extra hours. I’m really glad I did, because the mountain roads after Odda was so much more enjoyable on dry roads. They required a lot of focus and I’m happy I didn’t have soaking rain and its cold to add to that. Planning on a shorter day tomorrow, enough to get close to the ferry to Lysebotn on Wednesday. Getting some rest while the worst of the rain, hopefully, passes and I start pivoting north and homewards.

Lodged at Sauda Fjordhotell. Charming hotel, a little worn, but surprisingly empty when I was there. Though that suited me fine.

20 August — Sauda to Årdal, 125.53 km

The day started out wet, soaking wet, as expected. I checked out at 12, waited as late as I could since I knew it would be a short riding day. The roads where nice, some narrow and some more spacious. Enjoyable ride despite the downpour. My riding suit is a Rukka Rapo-R. I has kept me dry despite heavy rain. The down jacket and trousers has been really good at keeping me warm. While the suit keeps me try it becomes cold eventually. So, layers!

My gloves are also Gore-Tex, and while they keep the water out, I have found that they can become damp eventually, next day even. And I’ve been careful not to use the heated handlebars when using them. Extra set of glove is a must. If the rain isn’t too heavy its fine to ride with the other non-water proof for a while. While in motion they don’t collect too much water. Just got to be careful not to wipe my visor.

I didn’t make many stops early because of the rain. But eventually it dried up and instantly the enjoyment level rose.

I arrived at Høiland Gard around four and was received by the care takers. It was a self service stay, but they came and showed me around. Very friendly staff.

Next to the hotel there was a sign saying “Eventyrskogen”, meaning Fairytale Forest. Since it was still dry I picked up my camera and changed to my hiking clothes, taking the opportunity to stretch my legs. In the nearby forest there was a section where it was covered in moss on the ground and the locals had arranged for a trail. The trail has wood carved figures; people, animals and folk lore creatures. Along the around was also signs with poems and information about the local region. The trail was designed for walking slowly and keeping your eyes out for what was found around you.

There wasn’t many places to eat nearby, I think I saw only a café that closed rather early. So I dropped by the local groceries and picked up and some food to prepare myself in the kitchen I had available. I was the only one here today so it was nice and quiet.

21 August — Årdal to Dalen via Lysebotn, 177.74 km

Late start again. I waited until latest checkout time since it was a short hour to Songesand where I’d catch the ferry that would depart 14:25. I arrived at one o’clock so I had plenty of time waiting. Spent it chatting a little with some other bikers and reading a few pages in the book I brought along.

The ferry was pretty full. Some, who hadn’t booked a ticket in advance, didn’t get space. I had booked my ticket two days ago. I was a little surprised how few departures there was, as well as not running every day. I thought Lysebotn was such a popular attraction, but I suppose that they drive down from the other side.

Because I hopped on the ferry mid-way I was at the back of the queue. So I stopped immediately after arrival and grabbed a hot dog to fuel myself for the rest of the track while the cars went up the hill. I didn’t want to drive the twisties in a queue.

The twisties was pretty tight. The type where you hope you won’t encounter anyone coming down cutting the corner, making you stop, which would definitely lead to dropping the bike.

Despite how exciting the twisties look from photos and the map, I enjoyed the road further up more as it opened up. I’d been driving for quite a while on roads that are so narrow and short visibility that it was rather refreshing to be able to open up a bit as the mountain view let you see more of what was coming ahead. Little traffic in my direction, mostly it was coming the opposite way. Though there was a lot of sheep. So much that you’d think you were playing a game of Settlers of Catan.

I had booked a room at Dalen Hotel because it looked interesting. That lead me to take a route I’d taken before. I had earlier thought of going up to Haukeli, but I’m glad I prioritised this hotel instead. I even contemplated taking a longer route around Hovden and Haukeli and then south to Dalen, but I found it would take too long. I also booked a 3 course meal when I booked the hotel and the time for that was set to 20:30.

Leading in to Dalen I saw my second moose on the trip. This one came out of the woods and crossed the road I was on. Fortunately at a good distance.

Arriving at the hotel I unpacked and got a much needed shower. This hotel doesn’t have bathrooms in each room. Instead there is a handful of shared ones. This is close to how it was originally. There’s probably a few more than it was originally. After the shower I sat down with my maps and started replotting possible routes and checking the weather reports, by usual evening routine. The hotel has a dress code for the restaurant, and I had not packed a shirt, nor appropriate trousers. Note to self; when going on a tour that will likely become a foodie tour, pack a shirt just in case. I even had some sweat pants that I’ve not worn yet. I could have packed one of my nicer and comfortable trousers that would make it easier to drop by the finer restaurants that do feature a dress code. It’s not often you run into dress code in Norway, but I think for this restaurant it was a hint at the original history of the building when the posher people in Europe stopped by here. A fact I learned in the evening when the hotel director told the story of the hotel. I was surprised to learn that it had been derelict after the war and was nearly burned down by the commune a couple of times.

As for dinner, since I didn’t have anything that remotely matched the dress code they served the food at my room. They did forget to serve at the agreed upon time, but they made up for it in everything else. And the food was delicious. Might be my favourite so far on this trip, and that was not a low bar. I also found that the room had complimentary port wine waiting for me, which was a nice treat.

22 August — Dalen to Geilo, 212.61 km

Today was wet again. As usual it is the gloves that gets cold and eventually provides the most discomfort. I’ve avoided using my heated handlebars because people have told me it’ll ruin the waterproof membrane. However, reading up on it people appear to disagree. Many reporting it works fine and it’s not the warm-inside-cold-outside effect that keeps them dry. Trying to find some more definitive info from Goretex, but haven’t found any.

Regardless, the roads were nice, but it’s notable that the cold and wet weather puts a damper on the riding experience. Additionally there where a few stretches over the mountains where the fog was quite dense. The grey fog blended with the grey tarmac and it was hard to tell where the road went. Combine that with the constant small drops collecting on the visor I had to go slower on roads that otherwise would have been nice to open up on.

Stopped at Vemork Museum at Rukjan to have a look around and regain some warmth.

I sought refuge from the heavy rain at Imingsfjell Turistheim. Getting some warmth back into my body.

It’s going to be wetter tomorrow. I feel that the journey is coming to and end and that it’s becoming more transportation than adventure going onwards. Wondering if I should try to take a faster route via E6 tomorrow to gain some extra kilometres and then be home on Saturday, leaving me with a day of rest before work and “normal” life resume.

Poor Wi-Fi in the room at the Highland Lodge hotel. But nice pastries in the café.

23 August — Geilo to Vinstra, 294.28 km

It started off well. No rain for the first two, two and a half hours. Roads were nice and winding. It was good to get a break where you felt the bike flow with the road and the twists and turns.

At around half an hour before Beitostdølen it started to rain. I stopped there to grab something to eat at Jotunstogo.

I found on the map that there was a nice looking gravel road over to Vinstra. It’s actually part of the Norwegian TET route. Jotunheimsvegen. But the rain was getting quite heavy and only increasing. I was already cold. So I decided to mark the road for another time.

And I’m glad I did because over Valdresflya it got really cold. More rain and down to 4 °C. My gloves weren’t up to those temperatures, even with the thin inner gloves I was wearing. I should have brought my fourth set of gloves that I use late fall, early winter. I also should have changed my woollen socks, as the ones I was wearing wasn’t very effective after too many days on the road. I didn’t stop to look around anywhere today. Just too cold and drab.

After I checked in at Vinstra at Sødorp Gjestegivergård I looked for places to eat. Nothing local really appealed to me. There was a couple of farmhouses offering dinners, but I was out of season for drop-ins. I found a nice looking place in Ringebu called Annis Spisested. It was 20km away, worth the extra distance in the rain. Chicken breast with risotto and a nice carrot cake and warm cup of tea for desserts.

On the way back the rain has doubled, at least! Water wasn’t clearing the roads so easily so extra care had to be taken. My driving suit was dripping wet, on the outside, when I arrived back at the motel. Hang it all up in the shower to dry. But the bathroom isn’t too warm, so I’m not sure it’ll dry up properly for tomorrow.

I did however notice that for the second day in a row the left elbow pit was damp/wet. Didn’t appear to be from any seams. Need to investigate when I get home if it’s defect of if I had done something to make the Gore-Tex membrane not be able to keep the water out.

If I were to plan my stay for today again I would have picked a spot close to Ringebu. More eating locations that looked interesting than Vinstra.

Planning on reaching home tomorrow. A slightly longer day riding, but not too bad. Should be decent weather.

24 August — Vinstra to Trondheim, 376.48 km

My driving suit was damp and moist in the sleeves and side pockets after the day before. I guess the warmth from inside allowed the water to soak to the inside over the night. But I had no other place to hang the suit than the bathroom as it was dripping wet last evening.

But it dried up quickly as I started driving. Roads were fine until Alvdal. After that they were a little boring, but putting on my audiobook aided in making the last bit of the ride less monotonous.

Arrived home around five pm.

Final stats were 5500 km.

Tyres had also held up, still some kilometres to ride before that needs changing.

It was a bag of mixed feelings getting home. While it was really fun to be on the road for that long, I did miss my friends and family. I didn’t make use of my tent, which I found a little unfortunate looking back. I’m a creature of comfort and after a long ride it was nice to just be able to settle in and relax. However, on the south part of my trip I would have stopped once or twice somewhere on the mountains had it not been raining. There was some places that had some really nice looking spots to set up tent with easy access to fresh water. Something for another adventure…