There may not be any grey elephants in Denmark…

…but there’s a heck of a lot of hills in Norway. This probably isn’t a surprise for you as after all we grew up on stories of fjords and black water teeming with sardines, or goats crossing bridges to escape trolls. By the way, there are a mighty lot of bridges, too. And lakes and streams and rivers. But it’s the hills that capture the imagination and catch the breath of a bike rider. There’s necessary hills as well as those which are unnecessary such as those climbed due to silly routes or those climbed due to poor navigation. It’s certainly been a workout for legs and lungs.

Farmland 

Farm buildings and the house 

As soon as we crossed the Swedish border we noticed differences. Houses were no longer uniformly painted in of blood red. Farmland was similarly cultivated but for the first time we saw sheep, not exactly in mobs, but at least in flocks. 

On one of the three trains we took from Sweden to Norway

The very helpful train driver 

The big difference however was the vehicle drivers. No longer could they be relied upon to stop for bike riders which immediately made me very cautious!

Blonds, blondes and blue eyes everywhere. Tall, tall people. The most recreational bike riders so far. Many single women out on their own on road bikes in a nation that appears to practice gender equality as a way of life for all. Dads with children in tow with nary a mother in cooee. No evidence of poverty, although like most nations there is evident the ubiquitous effects of drug abuse.

Alcohol is a funny animal in Finland, Sweden and Norway (and Iceland) as it must be purchased from government controlled stores which close at 6.00pm. Beer and cider can however be purchased in supermarkets. In Finland wine was available in supermarkets too, but only 8% alcohol or less. Cigarettes sales are controlled by closed cupboards as they are in Australia, but a small shop owner in Finland told us that people take a quick ferry to Estonia and return with enough cigarettes for the entire village. 

Munich’s The Morning After 

Des and John continuing their tour of Scandinavian galleries 

Peter on a tractor simulator 

Nelson on the treadmill 

Yet another ferry crossing 

Dark skies at Tagaroa 

Waiting to board a tiny ferry 

Home perched on an island accessible only by boat 

Goat’s Pass - our ferry squeezed through 

Electric filling station on a wet day 

Lakes abound 

Flagging a train down!

Velvet couches, soft lights, a bookcase and spotless toilets in a railway station. Sam in the background.

Our final rest day was spent in Kristiansand overlooking a large body of water. A day of rest, reading and laundry. Very welcome after our riding those pesky hills.  We were very fortunate to be plunged into a landscape unlike others. Bring on all those Nordic Noir shows on our return so we can say, ‘Been there!’

Sweet Sweden

We arrived in Stockholm after a ferry ride that rivalled a cruise ship. There was entertainment restaurants, bars, a beauty salon, lounge chairs and all sorts going on.

Margit and I at Kristinehamn 

Another massive equestrian farm

In

Morning tea at the workers Cafe

Our table set for dinner at the most gorgeous place

A cold God beer on arrival

A short coffee break at Gnesta

Bruce and Pauline at the workers Cafe

Al Bill and Maureen

Paul on the Train where we caused much consternation at Stockholm

Our new Swedish friend who was very apologetic about the  Police who stopped us from all getting on the same train

Bikes on the train in the approved fashion. Only six bucks per train.

At the national Museum in Stockholm

An absolutely delicious salad

Des pretending to be a Concrete statue

An 18th century drawing in the Stockholm museum

Opulence at the museum

More opulence at the museum

A rather weird water feature at Kristinehamn 

Rolling hills, beautiful farmlands, stately and stylish farm houses with their huge barns in some instances. We have seen a few cows in a couple of balls and some sheep but not very many. I also saw a large fox and a red deer jumped out in front of me and cross the road one morning as we were riding along. We have sought coffee wherever we have gone at about 20 to 30 kilometres into the ride. Our most interesting coffee was had in an industrial estate in a workers canteen. The woman who ran it had made the carrot cake that we devoured with gusto that morning. We have dubbed my riding team The Secret Seven as we are seven in number surprisinly: Margit, Sam, Pauline, Bruce, Karen, Des and myself. after Oslo, however there will only be six of us as Pauline flies home. Navigation has sometimes been a bit tricky, and one day we found ourselves in the middle of an expressway. As it was a Sunday, we weren't expecting it to be busy. It was terrifying. Fortunately, we were able to find a variety of goat tracks and side roads and avoided going anywhere near a major road. This meant we travelled 87 km that day as opposed to a short distance but it certainly was worth it. Spirits are high although we have found getting from this town into Oslo quite problematic. Swedish trains cannot take passengers with bikes over the border and into Norway. This has necessitated much kerfuffling and the splitting of our 18 riders into two groups of nine. None were able to make Oslo and we will see if we can do the same tomorrow.

A change in the weather

 

Waiting for the ferry

Preparing to leave Kustavi 

The weather has changed and we’ve ridden in rain, strong winds and quite cold temperatures for the last couple of days. However, when I say we have ridden, we haven’t really as we’ve been almost on holiday. Our distance has diminished to under 40 km a day.

The Aland islands are spectacular in their geography which ranges from lichen-covered bedrock and forests, with water water everywhere populated by white swans, a couple of different species of seagulls and terns, to rich and rolling farmland the closer we get to Sweden.

Bruce doing the Highland Fling on bedrock

Lichen covered rocks

A derelict farm shed

Our first stop was in Brando, one of the rocky islands that we reached by two ferries and bike. That morning we experienced our first solid rain which began before we left Kustavi and continued until we reached our hotel. We had two nights there. On the morning of our second, more rain threatening, we held our concert and were delighted by eight performances, all very high-quality and affording much amusement.

The concert program

A long ferry ride preceded by a short ride and followed by a slightly longer ride saw us arrive in Kastelholm the next day. We visited the castle and sat down by the marina to enjoy the afternoon sunshine.

Remains of a Russian fort, circa The Crimean war

A solstice Maypole 

The castle at Kastelholm 

The marina

Only a few more kilometres, mainly on bike paths, and we were in Mariehamn, the principal town of the 6000 plus islands that comprise this autonomous region of Finland where Swedish is the predominant language. The city is quaint and full of places to eat. 

If you can see us in this sign, you’re doing well

Taking a selfie in the town

Hay stacks

We have not seen any moose or bears, although I don’t think there are bears on these islands, but we have spotted a fox. 

Our next stop is Sweden. According to a Finn, Swedish drivers are not as polite. Let’s see.

Statistics for those who are interested

So far we have ridden a bit more than 600 km. There’s been quite a few hills but riding an e-bike has made them more pleasurable than they have been in the past. Hills that is. We all carry two panniers which contain our worldly goods for the six weeks we’re on the road.