laying plans for a long tour next year. plan is the fly to Oslo, and then take a internal flight to as near as Nordkapp as possible.
then head south until my time runs out.
just wondering when is best time of year to go. best route or route possibilities.
there is a very good hostel system so places to stay are not a worry.
anyone been?
Nope but I've been touring round Sweden.
It was beautiful and sunny for my week, It had been chucking it down the week before.
Top tips- bug repellent the mozzies gave me some nasty bites.
I left my bike outside over night in Lincoping and came back to find the front end had been nicked. Had to buy and fit new forks bars shifters and so on. So if in a town make sure your bike stays outside. Hindsight is wonderful 🙁
All in all including the theft it was brilliant. I would think Norway would be similarly wonderful.
Good luck!
Yes. Flew into Honningsvag then on to the Nordkaap, turned south then stopped south of Crete...
There's great camping in Moki's (posh sheds) on campsites. They come with bunks, cooking rings and sometimes, a fridge. Add your own sleeping bag and pots n pans and you're away. Our trip started June time; almost 24 hrs daylight.
Nordkaap itself is forgettable. Think JoG without the charm.....
Beer is very expensive in Norway.. Have you considered Belgium?
Ton, do a search on Crazyguyonabike journals for Norway, there are some great rides among them.
I've been tempted to tour there tour too, my cousin runs a music festival up on the Lofoten Islands, he's loves the place.
If this guy's photos don't inspire you nothing will.
https://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/?o=tS&doc_id=6502&v=1Ro
Yes! I went to the Lofoten Islands in June this year, starting at Bodø and finishing at Tromsø (both have airports) which was teriffic. Nordkapp is about another 200-300 miles from Tromsø I think.
May-July are good times to go as it's 24 hour daylight that far North. Roads weren't too busy (they get busier from July) and camping is a great idea as it's all open access. So you can just cycle until you can't go any further then set up camp, which takes a lot of the effort out of planning.
There were mosquitoes and midges around near water, which were a bit of a pain in the arse.
As for security I got the impression it was all super safe. I didn't see any locked bikes anywhere except in Tromsø at the very end of my trip.
[url= https://www.flickr.com/photos/allyharp/albums/72157654512258543 ]Photos here[/url]
allyharp, that looks bloody fantastic.
I will have a good look on the crazy guy website.
I toured Norway on a motorbike a few years back - It's exponentially more scenic that Sweden. At least the bits we travelled through were.
The only thing that's cheap in Norway is the camping. Beer was £10 a pint (actually 500ml) back in 2008 so christ knows what it's like now!
Just ticking the box as Norway / Sweden are on our list to visit. Not camping though 😉
Why do folk keep mentioning the price of beer? Not sure at all why this will be of any interest to Ton....
Spent about 3 weeks on Vesteralen & Lofoten and loved it. We mostly camped by the side of the road, but there are loads of campsites with huts to stay in (which are great value). Most folk we met on bikes saud to avoid the mainland near the islands because there's only really one road and it's a bit of a highway.
Beer prices are high, but pretty reasonable from supermarkets.
Yes it's fantastic but don't tell anyone as it's nice and chilled as it is . Avoid July if you can as we all have holiday then so it's high season
Ton, this might not fit your itinerary but I had a lot of fun trying to plot a perfect north-South route taking in all the most scenic passes/biggest climbs and avoiding all tunnels, was pretty pleased with the result although have no idea when I'll get to do it myself...
[url= http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/542079204 ]Mapmyride link [/url]
just been putting a bit of a plan together for this.
flights to Bodo from Leeds, ferry to Reine the pootle up the Lofoten islands to Tromso, where you can fly back to Leeds.
camping looks the fave...... £60 per night in hostels.
Tony. I've been planning something similar so if you fancy some company let me know.
Flew into Honningsvag then on to the Nordkaap, turned south then stopped south of Crete...
Pretty much what we did - but on a Tandem!
Alta is a dumpy town but the ancient rock carvings are fantastic. We hacked south over the Finnmark plateau (there are non and offroad options) to Kautokeino. We enjoyed Kautokeino in a middle-of-nowhere kind of way.
We then headed into Finland/Sweden so can's say much more about the Norwegian side of things except that it was all amazing seen from the boat heading North!
You might like to read my book (ahem...)
[url= http://www.amazon.co.uk/K%C3%B6k-Tv%C3%A4tt-Through-Scandinavia-Tandem/dp/B0046H9ZA4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1294299673&sr=1-1 ]http://www.amazon.co.uk/K%C3%B6k-Tv%C3%A4tt-Through-Scandinavia-Tandem/dp/B0046H9ZA4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1294299673&sr=1-1[/url]
Ton, also consider the aaland archipelago. Mrs Stoner and I had an amazing time there. Camping in huts. The Sea of a million islands.
http://www.archipelagoroute.com/option,com_content/view,category/id,27/Itemid,65/area,1/
'You might like to read my book (ahem...)'
Thanks for the tip, ordered a copy, looks like a good yarn
I'd like to go but can't a-fjord it.
Have toured twice with the CTC. Superb!
Ferry to Bergen, north overnight on the coastal steamer, get off early-morning and cycle back over two weeks.
1) Tunnels. The long ones are banned to cyclists while others can be detoured. There's a list on the web.
2) Trains take bikes
3) Ferries open up all sorts of options
4) It can rain a lot
http://www.crispinbennett.freedomnames.co.uk/Norway.htm
The only thing that's cheap in Norway is the camping. Beer was £10 a pint (actually 500ml) back in 2008 so christ knows what it's like now!
£7 in February this year, was that £10 in a hotel? I'm sure Ton will be able to ferret out the cheaper stuff from supermarkets and government booze shops tho!
So long as you're not looking to go on the lash in every pub you find its not that bad really.
I did the coast route in '13...
wild camped the whole way, what an amazing country
[url= https://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/?o=tS&doc_id=12589&v=FR ]https://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/?o=tS&doc_id=12589&v=FR[/url]
With the current exchange rate (£1 = 13 kr) you're looking at about £5 a pint in the pub, £2 in the supermarket.
In 2008 £1 was more like 8 kr so that's probably why everyone reckons you need a second mortgage to have a drink.
Of course, the exchange rate makes everything else cheaper so now is a good time to come over.