london to nordkapp
 

i am planning to travel to nordkapp in june 2009 for two weeks and am looking for someone to travel with i was thinking the first two weeks of june would be a good time because in july i want to do the HUMM again.

i'm thinking about doing the same thing... hopefully keeping to forestry roads as much as possible... you thought of a route? also want to do the HUMM next year..

Just a note as the ferries Newcastle to Norway are now cancelled I take it your going Harwich to Esbjerg, I dont know if you have travelled up to North cape area before but two weeks taking in Denmark as well will be really pushing things a bit - it is do-able but you will miss a lot on the way. Dont whatever you do sit on the E6 and miss out the fjord area in southern Norway also try to fit in Lofotens as you will really miss some of the most wonderful motorcycle riding places that exist in the northern hemisphere. Good travels.

I would agree, it could be just too much to do in two weeks. I went to Nordkapp in early June this year from Stavanger. We did 3900 (just too much) miles in 9 days, heading to Kirkenes:funmeteryes::clap: after Nordkapp then down a bit of Finland, we then cut across Sweeden to Bodo. We then headed down the E6 and E39 back to Stavanger. Keep in mind it could be very cold in the north,0c at Nordkapp and snowing at midnight when we were there. we did as much wild campimg as possible 3c one night 350 miles south of Nordkapp. We used a Hytter Cabin at Nordkapp as it was too cold for camping. Enjoy Norway, I went back for my 2nd visit on my own in August this year, great country for biking. If you need any more information, just ask.

yeah i agree that 2 weeks is probably not enough. i was thinking about taking 3 weeks to do it. from what i understand a good quick way to do it is to shoot up to nordkapp through Sweden and the trickle back down through Norway?


didn't realise it stayed that cold in midsummer!

Well, Im'e not on 2 wheels, but 4.

I live in Oslo, so if your' passing I might just tag along.

From Oslo, you can say 2200km's each way.
Now that not European km's as they can be done in half the time.
These are Norwegian km's and they take twice as long. :lol:


'vette

KIWI CJ travelling up through sweden just to make the distance up is it seems what a lot of people do - believe me its a killer, the roads are really boring and there are no views just trees lots of trees hundreds of miles of trees and lakes and mosquitoes. Sweden is a very beautiful place in its own right and the people wonderful - there a lots of dirt roads and nice places to visit but if your just racing up through it - I would say not to bother you will feel they are wasted days. Northern Norway three weeks is fine, even travelling up through Norways Fjords, a bit of the coastal road, going to Lofotens even visiting Tromso as well as nordkapp if thats your thing - you can do all that and back in three weeks. But expect long days on the road, the most strange weather patterns including white out snow in mid july, below freezing conditions up north, a little rain !!! and lots of really hot sunshine - nearly forgot about the fog. Try to take a day out every week just for relaxing as the roads are long and very tiring - I spent a day Ice climbing on the glaciers, another day walking and swimming around the fjords it just helps make the journey more enjoyable. You may find yourself riding till the small hours and setting up camp at two in the morning as the constant day light plays havoc with you sleep regulator. Still my favourite country in the Northern Hemispher, great scenery, great people, strange weather and the bad bit its a bit pricey.

Hey guys, just caught up with this thread.

Following a great trip to go husky sled driving in 2006 in the far north of Norway I've always wanted to go back by bike. I was provisionally planning a trip in 2009.

I've given up on the idea that I could get up there on my present bike (fireblade) so I'm looking at a more trail/tourer type of bike for the trip.

Sounds like a real blast and I'd be keen to discuss joining up if you are still open to a few more coming along?

noordkapp
 

Thanks guys for all the advice and yes the more the merrier, as to two weeks that is not set in stone, if you say three weeks is a better choice then three weeks it is the last thing i want to do is rush the trip, oh yes i also want to go down to spain for the HUMM maybe we can combine the two together i dont know if you can take that much time off in one go not a problem for me that would be actually quite wicked.
the norway trip is the start of my attempt to ride around the world over 4 yrs 2010 i will be going down west coast africa and then 2011-2012 down canada, america and south america, so i do not want to rush want to take as many things in as i can.
Kiwi cj were abouts do you live maybe we can get together and plan a route pm me if you get a chance cheers.
Uk vette that would be great meeting up with you in oslo would be great to have someone with a bit of local knowledge and who can speak the dialect

apparently you have to have 8 posts before you can pm and i only have 7... oh no, wait a minute, i have 8, or will have after this one.... will try and do the whole pm thing.

adventure950, if i/we can do norway justice up and back in 3 weeks, staying on interesting roads, then that would be much better. the riding up through sweden idea was taken on advice from others.... so you think it's doable (bearing in mind also the lack of ferries now)?

Kiwi yes three weeks is do-able, I have done from Kristiansand in the very south of norway to Kirkness and back in 19 days with rest days and lots of time milling about. I did this travelling myself so was not held up waiting for other getting fuel, stopping for food etc etc but it was comfortable so if you add a few days to travel Denmark to Norway and return should not be a problem - Mind you I cut the top corner off on the way back through Finland see Sami capital, Northern Sweden and hopped back over the Border into Norway near Narvic this cut a few days off the trip back but was still interesting to travel in the Northern wilderness of Finland. You have to remember there are several ferries to get when travelling over fjords in Norway as well as road works ongoing through out the north these can add an hour or so in waiting time these add up on a days journey, also the ferry out to A at the bottom of Lofoten from Bodo is quite expensive and again takes time but worth doing. From Narvic to the turn off to Tromso the roads are not so exciting but still very pleasant ride so you can make up quite a lot of road time on that section. Beer is usually available to buy off the German tourist bus drivers who carry crates of the stuff for passengers, mind from you may not sell to large groups but worth a try its a lot cheaper than the local brew. The coast road running the coast north of Trondheim is nice for a break from the E6 but very very bendy and slow with a terrible road surface in places but again maybe worth a look for you. I would really try not to underestimate the time to travel distance in Norway, look at the map make a n estimate of what you think you can do then half it and you wont be far off the mark. The weather and roads can become very tiring after a several days riding non stop up there. Stuill absolutley Wonderful. May is the best Month for the scenery but would slow you down due to high passes and roads shut due to weather. July/early august is less busy than the midsummer rush to Nordkapp.

I'm also looking at heading up to Nordkapp next year on a solo jaunt [although you never know - we may bump into each other on the way] :)

As for the ferries ... it is still possible to get from the UK to Norway - just not via a regular passenger ferry.

I spoke with DFDS Torline the other week (that's the freight handler for DFDS ferries). They have a route from Immingham (near Hull) across to Kristiansand. Its only limited availability for passengers [they have around 12 cabins on board] but as long as you book up early [they suggested around a month in advance] then you should be able to get yourself and the bike on board.

The crossing takes around 36 hours and they quoted me £355 return for me and the bike including breakfast, lunch and dinner on board. [This is actually much cheaper than the old passenger ferry route - double bonus:clap:]



Hope this helps,
Stumpy

Personally i would much rather ride around and take in the sites than waste travelling across in the ferry

Pockey ride around where? if your talking of crossing the chunnel then its a long way up to Norway so you will have to add on quite a bit of time / food / fuel and no doubt other costs. In my opinion if you can get the ferry to nearer your destination it will save you a lot of tedious autobahns/motorways etc. By the way another route to consider from central europe is up to copenhagen via the 30 minute ferry from Northern germany to Denmarks Islands - then a ferry to Oslo from Copenhagen or over the bridge into Sweden and up the west coast into Norway by Oslo - but this means you will end up on the east side of Norway and may elect to go on the E6 to make up some miles - (Big mistake) make sure you cut over and up through the fjords otherwise your missing the very essence of Norway.

Keep in mind The Symril Line, I sailed with them from Bergen to Scrabster (top of Scotland) in August this year. Sharing a cabin with 3 others cost me £124. I paid £38 extra when I got on board for a lovely single cabin.:funmeteryes:
Tourman

Smyril Line
 

Sorry it should be Smyril Line.

Damn those are good prices.

I've just looked at the website though and they no longer list Scotland/Norway as a route - only Denmark/Norway. Although I could do Scotland/Iceland ... hmmmm... now there's a thought.


Shame though - their prices are bloody good.


... although I guess giving them a call wouldn't hurt all the same ...

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It would be great to have you.
I keep meaning to catch up with Iduhu, he is very active on the forum, and he only lives 20 miles to the south of me.

I could suggest you look at :

http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...ape-town-33834

Peter and his better half, in his Hilux, myself and the other half, in our Land Cruiser, and probably others are planning UK to cape Town September 2010.

Have a read,

graham

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Well said Jake,

The bridge / tunnel from Copenhagen to Malmo then scoot up the east side of Oslo fjord to Oslo.

It will really be a long haul to "channel tunnel" it, and then drive from Calais up to Copenhagen.
There again, depends on your time available.
Might be easier to ferry to Esjberg, then ride.

london cape town
 

Peter and his better half, in his Hilux, myself and the other half, in our Land Cruiser, and probably others are planning UK to cape Town September 2010.

Hi Graham

I was thinking of travelling with you guys but to do that trip in 5-6 weeks i think is way too fast i was thinking of taking 2-3 months if not longer no time scale at all as to how long i take i get there when i get there.

look forward to catching up with you anyway

cheers

Mike

Hi Mike,

I think 6 weeks is expecting a bit much, and when the road is hit, it might end up taking 8 weeks or so.

I don't know.
I don't want to go crazy horse, just blasting through.

It seems that 25% of the trip could be spent getting the paperwork, and getting out of one country into the next.

You can throw your tyre and some fuel on the Land Cruiser if you like.

Graham

nordkapp
 

I'm also going to Nordkapp in 2009, starting in Belgium half May and back 4 weeks later. I take the ferry in Kiel,Germany to Goteborg. From there i'll pass Oslo towards Geirangerfjord(and that 24'5km long tunnel) and then up north.
(where is the best place to take the ferry to the Lofoten? I saw a few places) after nordkapp take a bit of Finland then Back north trough Sweden and if I have some time left, a few days in Denmark.

tips are always welcome,

Hope to meet some of you out there

John

Just say the word and I too would be more than happy to meet up. Even have a place to stay if needed for a couple of days.

Thanks indu
you have some good advise and thanks for your offer and yes it will be great to meet up with you on our travels

cheers

mike

Just a short note. You do not have to take a Ferry to Lofoten (I did it this year) ride north of Narvik then head west on the E10, use the bridge.
The Lofoten Islands are very nice, great roads etc.:funmeteryes:

Indu i'd like to second pockey's comment - you sure do have a lot of good advice on your page. and if i make it up will definitely look you up.

if we were to aim for the HUMM after the trip to Nordkapp, does anyone know how long we should allow to get down to Spain?

Chris

Depending on your route. Assuming you're riding hard just to get down to Spain you should at least calculate 4 looong riding days just to get from Nordkapp to Oslo if riding in Norway. Sweden less because of (boring but) much faster highways - 3 days, maybe even less (I used to drive car Oslo - Lakselv (3 hrs from Nordkapp in some 24 hrs through Sweden. Hardly any sleep...).

I'd suggest Nordkapp down Sweden along E4 to Denmark then further down Europe. I haven't ridden to Spain but Oslo - Palermo is 4 days along the motorways.

Google Maps says it's 4.500 kms. I'd recon 7-8 days by bike.

EDIT: Oh, and thanks for your kind words :)

jcbmw just a bit of advice - if you are going to the Laerdal Tunnel ( the long one) there is a very nice route using the old road over the top of the mountain (also has the touristy but interesting bridge to nowhere off the side of the mountain) that is instead of going through the tunnel which is awful at best. Also Ferries to A in the south of Lofoten can be caught from Bodo or as was said earlier you can cross the bridge and backtrack on yourself (adding quite a few road miles) via the bridge north of Narvic.

Indu,

After all the posts here i got about as excited as a small child in a free candy store and bought the Michelin map of norway to have a look. Then after reading your website I also got the Cappellen map for central Norway. I noticed when comparing them that the unsurfaced roads noted on the Michelin map are called up as secondary roads on the Cappellen map. Does this mean that secondary roads on that map are generally unsurfaced???

Chris

Glad to hear that you're excited - maybe we'll see you on these shores soon then?

No, secondary roads are not unsurfaced in general. As the Cappelen map says the surface varies heavily. It's hard to say anything general except perhaps that the thinnest lines farthest away from other roads are mostly gravel. And that the thinnest lines are the funniest roads ;)

Let me know if there are any areas in particular you're interested in. Maybe I can help you out if gravel is what you are looking for.

Sorry guys have to count me out.

Opportunity has arisen to go to Germany in June 2009 with 20 members of the fireblade club, and do a tour plus few laps of the Nurburgring. I'm afraid that although the bones are getting older (much) the mind still thinks it belongs to a 20-something and I can't pass up the opportunity to add the 'Ring' to my tick-off list of things to do before I shake off this mortal existence!

Next time maybe? Have a great trip and I look forward to seeing the write up and pictures!

Hmmm. So some of the secondary roads may be unsurfaced?? Also, what's the quality of "local roads" and "cart tracks"?

Basically my idea is to cruise up the country on all the best gravel roads.

Secondary roads are usually paved. Local roads too. Cart tracks: Unpaved. But it's hard to be certain on basis of the map. If you go to my page you'll find link to a webpage where you can look for unpaved roads all over Norway in a digital base. It's in Norwegian but you get the recipe for how to use it on my webpage (scroll down the Travel on a budget page until you find the Gravel Travel section).

I can start looking at it as well to put together a gravel tour for you in Norway, from - say - Oslo to Nordkapp? It will be a lot of mountains but you could do the fjord thing on your way down?

If you want to go on gravel roads it’s easiest to go from Oslo to Røros, then into Sweden and head further north. A friend of mine used 4 days on this route, but it was hard driving and long days (somewhere around 3150km!) There are multiple ways to get to Røros so you can easily spend quite a few days on the first stage,

This route will not include the fjords but if you keep right on your way south you will see them all.

I think mountains/gravel up and fkiords down soound like a plan!

Indu, any help with planning a route would be more than welcome - I've tried that map form your website, previously the map wouldn't let me select road types, and now I can't get to the map at all.

Alibaba - do you have more info about the route your friend took?

Cheers

Chris

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Hi Hans,
Perhaps our intrepid traveller doen't quite know how far Nordkapp is away from Oslo !
To do that distance on gravel really would be for the brave

'vette

Ah, but I believe our friend has been studying the maps? If he's still up to Oslo-Nordkapp, then AliB's suggestion is a very good one. One could do the tour by gravel on - say 7 days one way. That should be plenty, I think.

If that's too much, there are plenty of other options for shorter, fun gravel tours.

well "studying" might be a bit of an exaggeration, more like briefly looking at....

and whilst i know how far it is, it's all a bit irrelevant until you know the surfaces and speeds on the way. while i'm keen to get off the tar, going miles out of my way just to stay on gravel seems a bit pointless. i was kind of thinking of getting onto as many fun gravel roads as possible with a bit of tarmac to link them.

hi all, new here, great place !!!
i'm going also to nordkapp beginning of june :thumbup1:
leaving from The Netherlands up to Sweden and back via Norway
Pls let us know more your plans :mchappy:

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As in Copenhagen to Malmo, the tunnel / bridge affair?


'vette