Hello everybody, Katelyn right here. For the final 5 years I’ve been shifting round Europe for my Dutch husband’s profession. Whereas I’m no Bicycle Touring Professional, mine and Darren’s friendship has grown due to our comparable, nomadic life. We communicate pretty commonly, evaluating journey tales, adjustments in views, and exchanging concepts (aka, Darren helps me with all issues know-how).
A couple of months in the past, I knew that I might be in one more transition interval this summer time and Darren instructed me about his plans to bike throughout Norway on the Fjord Biking Route Bike Tour with an organization known as Berg Fritid. I marked the tour dates on my calendar as I’ve finished within the case of lots of his bicycle touring journeys, in case of the off probability that I may associate with him. Once I stopped to contemplate what was actually necessary to me for the summer time, journey was on the high of the record. So I bit the monetary bullet and booked aircraft tickets out of my residence in Greece to Holland, to Los Angeles, to Colorado, again to Los Angeles, again to Holland, lastly to Norway, again to Holland, Los Angeles, Oregon, Holland after which Croatia. You’re nonetheless following, proper? Nice. Now let’s discuss Norway!
There are some individuals who go on journeys to overseas nations solely after researching up and down all the main points of their time there – from lodging and transportation to language, meals, tradition, and so forth. I’m not that sort of individual. I’m extra of a get-there-and-figure-it-out form of lady. That being stated, I initially thought I had signed up for a biking tour in and across the metropolis of Bergen, Norway – the town I flew into the night earlier than the beginning of our tour. Nevertheless, our tour was truly a big loop that began within the small city of Matre, Norway – a ninety minute bus trip north of Bergen. I hadn’t thought of a lot of the logistics for the time earlier than and after the tour. Fortunately for me, Darren is logical, well-traveled, and map savvy.
Day 1: Matre – Stordalen, Norway
We began our first day of the Fjord Biking Route Bike Tour early sufficient to select up some provisions on the grocery store and withdraw some money at an ATM earlier than discovering our 12:30 bus (Bus #430) out of Bergen’s bus station and into Matre.
We arrived in Matre simply after 2:00pm the place we had been greeted by Arne, the person who runs the corporate Berg Fritid and our tour, the Fjord Biking Route Bike Tour. We walked with Arne the few hundred meters from the bus cease to Matre’s native museum, known as the Bjorn West Museum. The bikes we had rented had been ready there for us together with all the required instruments, security vests, head lamps, and panniers we would wish for our six day biking journey. After packing up our bikes, we headed into the small museum with Arne the place we realized some attention-grabbing info in regards to the space and its historical past.
Nature has at all times been on the heart of the evolution of the small metropolis of Matre (inhabitants 100). It was as soon as a farming space dotted with small cabins that housed farmers and their households. Later, when Norway was occupied by Germany within the Second World Warfare, the world was used to coach Norwegian younger males to combat in opposition to Russia. This group of troopers was known as Bjorn West, which is after all the place the museum will get its identify. Through the warfare, the identical pure surrounding that supplied supreme farming turned the best place to seclude and prepare troopers who had been capable of survive throughout the shelter of the farmers’ cabins. Years after the warfare, Matre developed a hydroelectric energy plant that’s now one of many world’s largest crops of its type and is visited by researchers the world over. Nature has performed a central position all through the historical past and improvement of Matre and it’s nature as we speak that gives the attractive surroundings that makes it a such fantastic place for biking.
After packing up our bicycles and receiving our directions for your entire self-guided bike tour from Arne, Darren and I set out on our bikes for our first leg of the journey. We stopped for a picnic lunch subsequent to the river and it’s a very good factor we did as a result of I wanted the gas for the three.2 kilometer, 11 p.c incline forward of us. The incline was robust for me. I’m an avid health club go-er and former Division 1 athlete; however my biking expertise is restricted to maintaining with my older brothers as a toddler, metropolis biking throughout annual visits to Holland with my Dutch husband, and spin class. A whole lot of spin class.
Apart from the burn in my legs and getting used to the gears on my new rental bike, the climb up was fulfilling and made simple by the improbable surroundings, quite a few waterfalls, and the occasional cease to select wild strawberries. It was nice to get the massive hill out of the best way at the beginning of the day as a result of we solely had fourteen kilometers remaining after our climb. These fourteen kilometers had been on a clean, paved street. We stopped for water alongside the river and took loads of photos. Earlier than we knew it, we discovered the signal to STORDALEN FJELLSTOVE, our resort for the night, located on a small lake we’d been biking round.
On the Stordalen Fjellstove, the reception space was additionally the kitchen counter. It was there that we discovered our key accompanied by a selfmade wooden key chain adorned with our room quantity – 5. I used to be completely delighted by the bunk beds supplied in room quantity 5 and equally charmed by the room’s wooden partitions, flannel curtains, lake views and hilly backdrop.
After showers, we went again downstairs for dinner. We’d unknowingly supplied them with a little bit of a problem since Darren is vegetarian (virtually vegan) and I’m vegetarian apart from a small quantity of fish. All through our journey, we realized that meat and fish are a big a part of the Norwegian food plan. In a later dialog, we had been instructed that the Norwegian authorities suggests a plate of 1 third meat, one third potatoes and one third greens. As vegetarians, we frequently heart our meals on greens and fill within the gaps with dairy, entire grains, nuts, seeds and legumes. They actually rose to the problem and we despatched our enhances to the chef as we tackled essentially the most lovely, huge platter of each vegetable within the nation, flavorful rice and two fillets of essentially the most wonderful salmon I’ve ever eaten.
I slept soundly that night time on the underside bunk.
Day 2: Stordalen, Norway
As we speak was an non-compulsory addition to our tour. We determined to remain an additional night time on the Stordalen Fjellstove in order that we may get pleasure from some mountain biking within the space. Arne, the coordinator of our tour, was obsessed with mountain biking and introduced us two particular bikes to make use of for the day. Though he gave us many choices of routes with various levels of issue, and although we woke as much as a wet day, we selected essentially the most troublesome course of journey.
Probably the most labor intensive a part of the day was truly getting as much as the mountain biking space – a muddy off-trail climb that we took on foot whereas pushing our bikes. My ft bought caught in puddles, I knocked my shins in opposition to my bike peddles, and I wore each layer of clothes I packed. I climbed over giant clumps of filth, stored my stability whereas strolling on moist rocks and made my means by way of a big patch of snow. I additionally fell down a number of occasions, however I don’t remorse a single second.
As we climbed greater, trying to find our mountain biking terrain, we continued to get colder and wetter and the views stored getting extra spectacular. I bought my first sense of the Norwegian surroundings with pink cottages, lakes, waterfalls and the snow-spotted mountains.
As soon as on the high, we got here to a mutual conclusion that the climate wouldn’t allow the mountain biking tour we had deliberate. Darren, the Bicycle Touring Professional, hopped on his bike a number of occasions anyway to get a really feel for the form of mountain biking that this space may present, climate allowing. I do know he beloved it. I didn’t get on the bike a lot that day, however that chilly climb will likely be one thing I’ll at all times look again on as one of the troublesome, most attention-grabbing issues I’ve ever finished.
I beloved returning to our lakefront resort and having a day left for decent showers, lunch (one other vegetarian feast), cups of tea, writing and listening to music; the proper form of wet day afternoon.
Even after our giant lunch, I used to be excited to see what they ready us for dinner. They had been artistic once more, this time including a scrumptious pasta that I can’t wait to recreate at residence and an array of contemporary fruit and berries for dessert.
I snuggled again down in my backside bunk for our second and final night time on the lake-front resort.
Day 3: Stordalen – Haugland, Norway
Our morning was fairly leisurely contemplating as we speak was our longest day of the bike throughout Norway tour with 66 kilometers forward of us. After an ideal breakfast (I observed considerate additions to the meals on provide, like Nutella and peanut butter) and packing up all of our issues, we bought again onto our bikes and set out. We stopped quickly after for a pannier adjustment, simply one of many many bike changes we made on the journey. It was a very good lesson for rookies like me to at all times permit for unplanned breaks; whether or not for readjusting, repairing, consuming, hydrating, or simply taking within the surroundings.
We certain did quite a lot of taking in surroundings as we speak because it was our most scenic day of the tour and Darren’s most scenic day of his three weeks in Norway. We didn’t have a day that wasn’t fantastically scenic, however as we speak was excellent because it supplied the quintessential Norwegian views that made us “ohh” and “ahh” by way of each flip.
We began the day with one other one other climb that I don’t keep in mind for its issue, however I do keep in mind the very crisp air that we made our means by way of whereas taking a look at hills on both facet noticed with snow. The very best my coronary heart price jumped on the day was getting by way of a gaggle of cows that blocked the street. They only stared at me whereas making an attempt to sense what the heck I used to be. All of the whereas I stared again with equal amazement, making an attempt to maneuver ahead with out making them really feel threatened. It was principally hilarious and by the point we bought to our second cow crossing of the day, I peddled by way of with ease.
For some time we had been fairly excessive up within the mountains, surrounded by calm lakes and the occasional pink or golden yellow cabin under. Our gradual descent off the mountain finally led to a less-than-gradual downhill trip. As I discussed earlier than, I’m not an avid bicycle owner so this was my first style of the adrenaline rush of a downhill on a motorcycle. I used to be cautious at the potential for vehicles and particularly conscious of the few switchbacks; nonetheless, “warning” doesn’t describe my method to downhill rides. I used to be snug on the paved roads and it seems I’m hooked on that little adrenaline rush.
Towards the tip of our first lengthy downhill, we had been confronted with our first of three tunnels for the day. I suited up in my security vest and and switched on my headlamp. We had been properly geared up however I nonetheless discovered the tunnels to be fairly scary.
By the point we bought to the underside of the hill and cycled previous an iconic Norwegan fjord city, I used to be ravenous for lunch, however we had been just a few kilometers away from one of many beneficial stops: a supposed Wildlife Museum. By this time, we had been biking proper alongside the Sognefjord, so mountains stretched all alongside our left and water alongside the appropriate. We stopped earlier than the museum to sit down and eat our packed lunch on the facet of the freeway (that we’d been biking on) overlooking the water. We contemplated how deep it was and appeared up the precise definition of a fjord.
Wikipedia says a fjord is, “an extended, slim inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by glacial erosion.” We realized later that the Sognefjord that we had been biking on is Norway’s longest and deepest fjord, greater than 4,200 ft deep.
A brief trip after lunch, an indication for the Massnes Wildlife Museum offered itself on our proper and we turned in. We had been greeted by a person – passionate for nature, and artwork – proficient in taxidermy, sketching, wooden carving and velocity skating. This museum, generalized beneath the identify “Wildlife,” was truly a private assortment of the above listed passions and abilities.
I digress. One of many many elements in my determination to be vegetarian was being uncomfortable with lifeless animals; specifically an emotional breakdown I had as an eight-year-old whereas being stared down by elk heads mounted on the wall of a looking lodge turned restaurant. My selection to stay vegetarian has since advanced and been affect by many different elements. It has been a very long time since I felt like that uncomfortable eight-year-old…till I walked into that museum.
The lengthy rectangular room of the museum that we entered was fairly crowded with a formidable assortment of wildlife within the type of taxidermy. I ignored my anxiousness and did my greatest to understand the large array of animals on show, asking the person about particular ones. We realized that all the animals on show had been present in Norway. He had ready all of them and this show was his private assortment. His ardour for nature was apparent.
He stopped at one explicit chicken and defined that he had an entire farm of them to assist deliver them out of the hazard of extinction. He additionally instructed us that whereas the massive recreation had been hunted, quite a lot of the animals he had mounted within the museum had been discovered lifeless, whether or not hit by a automotive, caught on an influence line, and so forth., and the local people has realized to deliver the lifeless animals to him to be stuffed and preserved. I felt like I had realized fairly a bit and I actually noticed many extra animals there than I in any other case would have.
By the point I believed we had been prepared to depart, the person opened a door to a different lengthy rectangular room. This one although, was a form of restaurant with a row of household fashion tables and a big hearth. On this restaurant we discovered extra of his private collections – household photos, woodwork and velocity skating trophies. We sat down for a espresso with a Dutch couple that had are available in earlier and all of us chatted about our journey and life experiences.
We had been able to get many extra kilometers out of the best way on the bike now. We had a pleasing trip forward of us because the Sognefjord supplied extra mountain and placid water views. We made our means by way of one other tunnel. I’d gained far more confidence by now and the street opened as much as a number of lanes on the opposite facet.
Our residence stretch was one final tunnel, this one with overhead lights. We had been happy to discover a grocery store not lengthy after the tunnel. I used to be hooked on some oatmeal chocolate cookies I discovered in Bergen and this was the proper time to refill my stash. We opted for 2 chocolate ice cream bars as properly – a model that Darren had found a number of weeks earlier. We took benefit of the picnic desk simply outdoors the grocery store and took in additional water views.
Our resort, the Brekkestranda, was simple to acknowledge as a result of the tour paperwork talked about that it was well-known for its distinctive architectural design of no proper angles and a grass roof.
A ravishing, blond, Lithuanian lady gave us our key at reception as a person seated off to the facet launched himself because the resort supervisor. For a person that works in hospitality, we realized that his actual specialty is hyperbole as we listened to him clarify the main points of the resort and all that the world has to supply.
He instructed us that the resort was initially the thought of a retired lady who employed an eccentric architect giving him particular orders that there wouldn’t be a single proper angle within the resort. Apparently even the home windows, doorways, and corners that appeared to have proper angles are tilted by no less than one diploma.
The grass roof was cool and the wooden partitions had been fairly however the variety of widows is what actually impressed me. The entire home windows had been completely different shapes and there have been so lots of them that pure mild refreshingly took over every area. The resort supervisor continued on, now explaining all the character the world has to supply: the nest of a pair of mating eagles out entrance, deer that graze like nature’s lawnmowers, and whales that journey on the waters of the Sognefjord (that our home windows ignored) feeding on the tens of millions of mackerel. He inquired about our vegetarianism, ensuring to say that their salmon is one of the best within the nation earlier than exhibiting us an area for our bikes and welcoming us as if it had been our residence.
After a bathe, I did benefit from the salmon they served me dinner; although the rosemary roasted child potatoes had been the true star of the present. We bought excited in regards to the intensive dessert menu and stayed for a very long time within the eating room. The eating room had an actual attraction that I can’t fairly put my finger on. It may have been the wooden partitions, the rod iron accents, the contrasting vivid inexperienced and orange napkins, or the light melted candle flickering on every desk.
I stayed up properly previous my bedtime that night time trying to find whales on the waters outdoors of our resort room window, however alas, they by no means appeared.
Day 4: Haugland – Eivindvik, Norway
Our fourth day of the Fjord Biking Route Bike Tour began with an unbelievable collection of meals on the Brekkestranda’s breakfast buffet. This was our first breakfast with contemporary pastries. I dove headfirst right into a donut holes earlier than Darren even entered the room.
Towards the tip of breakfast, the resort supervisor got here into the room and stood framed by one of many many home windows. We sat and appeared towards him like keen pupils. He bought began speaking about among the causes that he – born and raised in South Africa – determined to calm down in Norway. We talked in regards to the security supplied by this nation and its low crime charges. We talked about Norway’s free well being care, work days that finish at 3:30 pm and free entry to college training. He instructed us that the nation has one of many highest productiveness charges. In simply my few days as a vacationer, I had already observed type individuals, keen English audio system, immediate scheduling and a secure surroundings. All of these issues inspired this man to return elevate his kids in Norway, however these are the identical issues that made my expertise as a bicycle vacationer right here so fulfilling.
Our dialog progressed to the route we had forward of us. He instructed us how the roads within the space are pretty new and that the unique type of transportation for many elements of the nation was by ferry. That meant that some elements of the nation was once fairly remoted, ensuing within the many various Norwegian dialects that may nonetheless be heard as we speak.
As we speak felt like our shortest day on the bike – a 46 km trip alongside the Sognefjord that finally turned south into the small city of Eivindvik. Not lengthy after getting on the bike, we handed a Swiss couple who had rented some bikes and had been tenting alongside the best way of their very own tour. I used to be overjoyed that the bikes we had been given for our bike tour had been far superior to those this younger may was using. Plus, I felt so luxurious realizing a scorching bathe was forward of me in a resort room and that I wouldn’t must sleep in my tent in a campground or the forest.
About half means by way of the day we noticed a downhill forward of us with teams of sheep and farming areas on both facet. To my delight, the downhill was lengthy – virtually by no means ending. I snugged down on the bike, hugged every flip, stayed vigilant for vehicles, absorbed the encompassing surroundings and drunk up the adrenaline rush. The tip of the downhill blasted me with contemporary, saltwater air. The street flattened out and continued straight alongside the fjord – the closest we had cycled by water to date. We stopped for an image. I puzzled why I felt on the verge of tears and I spotted that truly, that was one of many coolest, most wonderful issues I’ve skilled in my life.
As for the remainder of the trip, I spent most of today training cadence. Cadence, Darren taught me, is the variety of peddle revolutions per minute and since we had been carrying weight, my aim needs to be no less than 90 rpms. For the primary time in a couple of week, Rachel Platten’s Struggle Tune stopped repeating in my head and I centered as an alternative on peddle stroke. I’m certain Michael Buble crept into my head sooner or later later, however I put him on a again burner to absorb the stunning small city of Eivindvik and discover our resort there.
On the Eivindvik Fjord Lodge, we met Laila who was working because the receptionist, chef, and waitress because the different employees had been on trip this week. Darren went as much as the room whereas I drank up a number of cups of Laila’s contemporary brewed espresso.
As we speak was the warmest day of the tour so I used to be capable of put on the costume I had packed right down to dinner. Laila introduced us two similar rectangular plates, organized with salad, rice and sautéed greens. All of this was accompanied by a ceramic dish of au gratin potatoes to share with some crusty bread. Laila was nervous about catering to 2 vegetarians, so she was pleasantly stunned to search out that we’d all however licked our plates clear on the finish of the meal.
There was loads of daylight left after dinner to go discover the city of Eivindvik, inhabitants 500. Laila eagerly briefed us on the town-the most historic in Norway. We walked right down to the church, inbuilt 1854 by a priest closely concerned in all issues of the city and Darren skipped up a small hill past the churchyard to discover a 1,000 12 months outdated stone cross.
Day 5: Eivindvik, Norway – Froyseth, Norway
This was our earliest morning of the tour as we would have liked to take a ferry to the subsequent leg of the journey. At Laila’s suggestion, we took the longer ferry (simply greater than an hour) to see extra of the small islands that make up this a part of Norway. On our ferry trip, we noticed essentially the most western level of the nation and we contemplated the route the Vikings would have taken from this a part of Norway into the UK.
The ferry dropped us off in Mjømna from the place we’d cycle by way of a number of small islands, linked by bridges, earlier than heading southeast again to the mainland of Norway.
Like the opposite days of the tour, we had been nonetheless biking on clean, paved roads. The surroundings modified as we speak, although, to a rockier panorama blanketed with darkish purple and the occasional yellow wildflowers. We crossed a few bridges that linked the islands and cycled by the world’s second largest oil refinery.
Our shortest trip of the tour (32 km) delivered us to the selfmade indicators indicating the best way to our farmhouse resort, the Frøyset Gardsmat, the place we stayed for our remaining night time of the tour.
We discovered an outdated lady sitting outdoors and she or he confirmed us our means in. Moments later her son, the proprietor, discovered us to indicate us round. He pointed to a hill behind the home and beneficial we climbed it. Darren can not say no to those issues, so an hour later we had been on high of stated hill, taking within the views of the world.
After our hike, we nonetheless had a beneficial bike trip into the close by Meisdalen Valley. We regrouped as soon as once more and set out. I pretended like I used to be a Bicycle Touring Professional and bared down on my sore backside with a form of grit and dedication that I haven’t utilized in a very long time. Darren, the true professional, fortunately and effortlessly bounced alongside the gravel street like a contented little boy. He was completely in his aspect.
The promise of a scorching bathe and vegetarian lasagna is the one factor that bought me by way of the quick trip again to the farmhouse resort.
The proprietor’s mom often does the cooking, however his spouse, Tone, needed to tackle our vegetarian problem that night. She made an ideal vegetarian lasagna and added considerate touches to the meal, like beans in our salad.
Tone joined us as we had been ending up our dinner and instructed us extra in regards to the farmhouse and her household. She is a full time nurse, mom of 5 and runs this resort whereas additionally fostering a sixth little one. I used to be fascinated by her and will have listened to her for for much longer, however she excused herself and we dove into the dessert she left us – vanilla ice cream and an array of untamed berries freshly picked from the world. Ice cream, by the best way, is Darren’s favourite meals.
After dinner we managed to search out sufficient vitality for a brief stroll to really feel like we’d gotten the total expertise of our time there. If I may change one factor about this tour, it will be so as to add no less than one other night time onto our keep on the Frøyset Gardsmat. I used to be so enamored with this place; I already need to return.
Day 6: Froyseth, Norway – Matre, Norway
We left the Frøyset Gardsmat reluctantly between rain showers and bought on our means for the final day of our tour. Simply 42 kilometers made up the final a part of our loop again to Matre.
My mindset shifted as we speak and I may really feel myself focusing solely on the vacation spot. Contemplating my fatigued legs from our jam-packed day earlier than, I wasn’t fairly mentally or bodily prepared. It appeared like one false flat after the opposite and I’m unsure I bought greater than second gear. Darren is aware of all too properly that some days of motorcycle touring are tougher than others, however this was my first actual style of the battle.
We made our trip longer than crucial as a result of our instructions had been unclear and we practically ended up on a street that prohibited cyclists. Fortunately, after we circled to backtrack, we had been on a gradual downhill for fairly a while; which managed to resume my vitality and mindset. A seven kilometer climb greeted us after that little bit of downhill. Realizing that it was our final day and never eager to miss our bus again to Bergen, I pushed by way of it. After the seven kilometers, we discovered a bumpy downhill finale that delivered us again to the Bjorn West Museum the place it began six days earlier than.
I’ve nothing however good issues to say about my time in Norway. I knew I might benefit from the journey, however I didn’t know that World Warfare II historical past can be proper at my fingertips; that I’d sail on the identical waters as Vikings. I didn’t know that the nation can be so welcoming, pleasant and accommodating. I knew it will be lovely; however I didn’t know that I might be utterly surrounded and immersed in breathtaking nature and surroundings. As a bicycle vacationer, I didn’t simply see nature, I felt it too – crisp air, heat sunshine, cooling breezes and the occasional rain. I additionally beloved arriving on the finish of every day feeling achieved and being greeted by heat hospitality, nice meals and wonderful resort rooms. Within the days after leaving Norway, I’ve completely loved reliving the journey by way of writing, visiting with household and pals and taking a look at Darren’s lovely images. I’ll at all times look again on this journey with an enormous smile – six days summed up as one of the fantastic experiences of my life to date.
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