Norway (all)

Herausforderungen liegen manchmal vor der Haustür. Obwohl das nicht so ganz stimmt, denn wir leben ja nicht gleich hinter dem Deich. Aber nur gut zwei Bahnstunden davon entfernt. Es handelt sich um die bislang längste ausgeschilderte Radroute der Welt, insgesamt 6000 km lang: die Umrundung der Nordsee. Das ist die erste ``von 12 geplanten transeuropäischen Radfernwegen'' (EuroVelo) (aus bikeline). Die Route ist erst vor gut einem Jahr eröffnet worden, da gehört man ja glatt noch zu den ersten, wenn man diese Herausforderung annimmt. Bevor die Leute dort Schlange stehen. Wenn es denn dazu kommt...

Als es los gehen soll, steht keiner Schlange, denn wir haben einen Dauerregen. Wie nachher zu lesen ist, die größte Regenmenge in unserer Gegend seit 1881. Zum Glück verzichte ich auf einen Blick in den Keller, morgens um vier Uhr. Nur mit dem Rad zum Bahnhof zu fahren, das geht nicht, da wäre man ja gleich durch bis auf die Haut? Man kann improvisieren, alles rein ins Auto und dann bin ich weg, mit ein paar geschmierten Broten und einigen Tafeln Schokolade. Der Parkplatz hinter dem Bahnhof ist wegen Überflutung gesperrt. Man kann trotzdem um die Absperrung herum fahren und irgendwo eine Insel suchen, die Packtaschen aufladen und Wasser Marsch zum Bahnhof. Das Auto wird Annika dann später abholen, wenn der Seegang auf dem Parkplatz des Braunschweiger Hauptbahnhofs sich beruhigt hat.

[Titus is the bike] - 12195 km in 8 months through France, Spain, Portugal, Morocco, England, Wales, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, Scotland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Austria, Italy and Greece - includes travelogue and many fine pictures

I've travelled quite a bit through the years, hiking on foot, by car, bus, plane... But cycling is just the right speed. Fast enough to actually get someplace, yet slow enough to smell the flowers as you go... Plus, it's the only mode of transportation where the engine actually improves with usage... Anyways, a friend lent me this book about a couple who spent a couple of years cycling around the world and I thought to myself that I wanted to do that ! So, off I went ! Well, I didn't quite make it... After 8 months on the road, I came back... Mostly due to homesickness, but I should have expected that, particularly on a solo trip...

Mid-morning after leaving Santillana [in Northern Spain], I take a break after a long cycle uphill and watch the progress of this little fellow... That's exactly how I felt... slow... but steady!

A recumbent trip from the southern border of Denmark to Lofoten.

The trip was an attemp to beat Fritz Hansens record from 1999. He did the trip in 20 dayes and nights, 3 hours and 12 minutes. I also went for his average of 289 km a day.

Why alone? It gives you some satisfaction, to know you did the trip alone, and without any help. If you bike in a group, you have to adapt yourself to the groups choice of route and daily distance. When you are alone you are completely free to follow your own rhythm.

A five-week tour of Scandinavia, starting in Oslo and ending in Stockholm. Excellent practical information (the summary data table, which includes graphical weather information, is just great). Gorgeous photos (including the canonical midnight sun, but plenty of other spectacular views), and a very good story make this report an instant classic.

I had been impressed by the magnificent scenery of northern Norway when, during an inter-railing trip 3 years ago, we had taken the train to Narvik, far beyond the Arctic circle, and then the bus on a long and winding journey down the coast to Bod?. I think it was at that time that I first became aware of the Lofoten Islands - as I researched the places we were to visit in Norway, I could not help but notice references to these magnificent islands, which we were not to visit!

They stayed in the back of my mind for some time, but after my successful Hebridean cycling tour last summer the idea of doing a similar thing in the Lofoten islands slowly grew. Having always been a firm believer in the ancient Chinese proverb about it being better to travel hopefully than to arrive, and hence never go somewhere quickly if I can spend a few days doing it instead, it seemed an ideal opportunity to wend my leisurely way up the Norwegian coast on the Hurtigrute coastal steamer. So come early July, I packed my panniers once more and caught a flight to Oslo, from where I travelled on by train overnight to Trondheim on the coast...

Middle of June 1998, we [...] started the trip we had dreamed of for a long time: by bicycle from top to bottom through Europe. A view on the map shows that this journey covers 36 degrees of latitude and in total has a length of 7200 km. The trip started in Norway and from there led us through Denmark, Germany, France, Spain, Portugal and finally to Gibraltar. Not the shortest route, but also an exploration of the better parts of Europe. This on-line trip-report was built up while cycling.

From Minko Oh's cycling site.

A short bicycle trip from one world to another (plus train travel 36 hours from Nikel to St. Petersburg, and a bike trip in the streets of St. Petersburg).

Also see Igor Romanenko's Comments.

In the fall of 1998 I set off on a long journey by bike. It covered more than 15000 kilometers and 14 countries. During this trip I was hit by rocks and cars, I was baked, soaked, and deep frozen by the weather gods. Mostly, however, I had a superb opportunity to see some of the most beautiful scenery in the world, meet wonderful people and enjoy the culture of widely differing lands. This site is about my bike trip from Sweden to South-East Asia via Eastern Europe, The Middle East, Pakistan, China, and Tibet. It also contains general information and links on bicycle touring and travelling in general.

A five-week tour of Scandinavia, starting in Oslo and ending in Stockholm. Excellent practical information (the summary data table, which includes graphical weather information, is just great). Gorgeous photos (including the canonical midnight sun, but plenty of other spectacular views), and a very good story make this report an instant classic.

Mit dem Fahrrad von Bern ans Nordkap und über Finnland bis in die Baltischen Staaten. Mit vollbepacktem Drahtesel vier Monate unterwegs. Dabei ergeben sich interessante Begegnungen und eindrückliche Naturerlebnisse. Regentage, Fahrradpannen und andere Tiefpunkte sind schnell wieder vergessen. Einige Eindrücke (nicht nur) aus dem hohen Norden.

After seeing photos of Norway's famous fjørds, I decided it would be a great place for bike touring. As it turns out, I was hardly the first one to think of the idea as the area was teaming with cycle tourists from Germany. If you decide to visit, you will see why it has become so popular.

Ein Blick auf die Uhr verriet uns, daß wir bereits im Oslofjord sein könnten. Als wir das Deck erreichten, zogen bereits die ersten Berge an den Seiten des Schiffes vorbei. Das war also das Land, das uns für die nächsten Wochen beherbergen sollte! Berge, Berge, Berge. Und Inseln. Ich war begeistert - aber auch ein wenig besorgt, wie in dieser Topographie die Straßen aussehen mögen.

A 1203 km tour in Norway, Sweden and Denmark in May 1996.

David does it again. His now complete report of his 1996 Nordic bicycle trip consists of five chapters:

• Swinging through Telemark, Norway
• Denmark
• Shivering in Sweden
• Tripping in Troll-land, Norway
• Rallarvegen and More, Norway.

Four weeks, 2500km, 30000m gain... a great ride in a great bicycle touring country.

The ``tradition'' of going to Copenhagen in May started in 1992 when we took the ferry from Oslo to Frederikshavn and cycled via the Danish mainland Jutland. However, with only 350 km this tour became too little of a challenge after 2 times. Therefore, in 1994, we did our first trip to Copenhagen via the Swedish West Coast.

I cycled around the Baltic Sea from mid-June to mid-July 1996, starting in Stockholm and going clockwise, finishing in Stockholm a month later. It was a great trip!

The report of a 37 days (from July 21, 1994 to August 26, 1994), 4240km tour of the Baltic See along the route: Hamburg - Schleswig/Holstein - Denmark (Border-Frederikshavn) - Norway (Moss-Ostby) - Sweden (Sorsjoern-Grisslehamn) - Aland-Island (Eckeroe-Mariehamn) - Finland (Naantali-Helsinki) - Estonia (Tallinn-Valga) - Latvia (Valka-Bauska) - Lithuania (Salociai-Lazdijai) - Poland (Sejny-Kostrzyn) - Brandenburg - Berlin - Magdeburg - Hannover - Paderborn

Karl and Karin travel with two children (age 3 and 1) in trailers. Now who was talking about ``anchors''...

The report of a 37 days (from July 21, 1994 to August 26, 1994), 4240km tour of the Baltic See along the route: Hamburg - Schleswig/Holstein - Denmark (Border-Frederikshavn) - Norway (Moss-Ostby) - Sweden (Sorsjoern-Grisslehamn) - Aland-Island (Eckeroe-Mariehamn) - Finland (Naantali-Helsinki) - Estonia (Tallinn-Valga) - Latvia (Valka-Bauska) - Lithuania (Salociai-Lazdijai) - Poland (Sejny-Kostrzyn) - Brandenburg - Berlin - Magdeburg - Hannover - Paderborn.

The report of a 25 day bicycle tour of Sweden and Norway near midsummer 1994, by Dave Dermott. Includes the Vättern Rundan 1994.

A 25 day bicycle tour of Sweden and Norway near midsummer 1994. So why am I on a bike tour of Scandinavia? ( Norden) A long time ago, I was on a trip there with my parents. If I ever went on a bike tour of some foreign land I thought it should be to Norway and Sweden. Some features of the Nordic lifestyle appeal to me- the love of outdoor sports for example. After bicycle touring my big passion is nordic ski touring. I was curious to see that if those old Participaction Canada ads about the 60 year old Swedes were true . THEY ARE TRUE!

Also the climate, vegetation etc of Sweden and Norway are much that of parts of Canada ( Sweden like Nova Scotia, Norway like British Columbia). It would be interesting to see a how another society has developed in the same environmental conditions as Canada. It would be both exotic and familiar.

A recumbent ride from Bergen (Norway) to Motala (Sweden) with Richard Freytag, Charles Clinton and Ian Feldman.

After weighing the pros and cons the far north was attracting me, and the choice fell on Sweden and especially Norway. The timing and the route were perfect - we would return just before the start of the mountain stages of the Tour de France; in June relatively few mosquitoes are around, and, especially in Sweden, there was a fair chance of good weather. The flat part of Sweden gives you a good opportunity to do a bit of cycling before attacking the steep Norwegian mountains.

Mir scheint, es wird jede Nacht ein paar Grad kälter! Wir sind beim Erwachen fast am Boden festgefroren. Das liegt sicher auch daran, daß wir uns schon nahe 1000 m Höhe befinden. Ich stehe auf und mache den obligatorischen Fotogang des Morgens. Ich sehe in der Ferne schon die Bäuerin wirken. Ich beschließe wegen der Milch zu ihr zu gehen. Sie sitzt vor dem Kuhstall und trinkt in der Sonne sitzend einen Kaffee. Ich geselle mich dazu und sie lässt mich einen Becher ``füll mil'', noch euterwarm, testen. Wir reden über Land und Leut.

Wer es nicht erlebt hat, der kann es kaum beschreiben: Ein Ziel so vage, so unkalkulierber, so weit. Und dann befindet man sich auf den letzten Metern.Wer jemals im Norden Europas Urlaub gemacht hat, der weiß, dass im Sommer die Sonne endlos zu scheinen scheint. Aber das täuscht. In der Höhe der Lofoten muss man schon sehr nahe am längsten Tag eintreffen, um von den Berggipfeln die Mitternachtssonne zu sehen. Im August ist es zwar immer noch legendär hell, aber die Sonne taucht bereits für einige Zeit unter den Horizont. Ich bezeichne dieses Schauspiel auch gerne als den Untergang der Mitternachtssonne.

Nordkapp - 4.8.84 - ich bin am Ziel. Das Nordkapp ist zwar schon recht rummelig, weil natürlich Bus um Bus hier hin gekarrt wird, aber es ist nicht wirklich überlaufen. Und Wegezoll gibt es auch noch nicht. Es ist doch eine ganze Reihe von Personen, die auf die sportliche Art und Weise diesen Weg meistern - und da gibt es natürlich viel zu erzählen, auch wenn in dieser Nacht der Untergang der Mitternachtssonne hinter den Wolken stattfindet. Ich schwinge das nun leicht beladene Rad auf den Steinsockel, der die Weltkugel trägt, und mache mit Stativ ein Bild.

One year after intermediate examinations I manage to take two months off my studies to have a dream come true, cycling to the North Cape (norwegian: Nordkapp). Sure, travelling more than 3600 miles to the north of Norway is not everybodies delight. Temparatures are expected to be low and the weather to be unsteady. However, at the end of this journey I may declare the Scandinavian weather beeing not as bad as its reputation.

On the 4th of july I am ready for take off. That time my bike is one of the oldest, heaviest and less reliable bikes that have ever been seen on their way north. 20 kg of additional weight has to be carried: A tent, sleeping bag, camera, 11 color films (300 slides) and other equipement. On this trip, that does not cost more than DM 1800.- in the end, I ruin a shirt, a jeans, a cycle chain, a tyre cover and not less than 9 spokes. Though the bike never has a puncture.

Cycle touring is an excellent way to see the world. It's fast enough to cover great distances, yet slow enough to take everything in. This years ride aims to raise money for UK registered charity Motivation.

Wenn Ihnen in Norwegen jemand auf Ihre Frage nach Steigungen mit ``mostly flat'' antwortet, seien Sie gewarnt: flach hat in Norwegen eine andere Bedeutung als in den Elbmarschen. ``Meistens flach'' bedeutet in Norwegen: Steigungen unter Hundert Meter. Chris Heymans, einer der Organisatoren und Planer der North Sea Cycle Route, fuhr übrigens einige norwegische Strecken, auch solche mit ``stiff Uphills'', mit seinem Brompton-Faltrad (natürlich mit Gepäck). Es ist eben alles relativ. Relativ ist, europaweit gesehen, auch die Qualität der Radwanderwege. Eine in Deutschland unglaublich miese Qualität bedeutet im restlichen Europa das Gegenteil.

Sie sollten also, wenn Sie eine längere Strecke auf der North Sea Cycle Route fahren wollen, Ihre Vorstellungen von ``gut'' und ``schlecht'' in ``anders'' wechseln. Erfreuen Sie sich an dem ständigen Wechsel der Landschaften. Lernen Sie immer wieder interessante Menschen kennen und genießen Sie das Flair der Dörfer und Städte rund um die Nordsee. ``Jeder Tag ist wie Weihnachten, jeden Tag eine Überraschung''. Dieser Slogan passt am besten zur Northern Opening Tour durch Schleswig-Holstein, Dänemark, Schweden, Norwegen und Schottland.

Tabular data and altitude profiles of mountain passes all over Europe.

Reports and pictures from various mountains of Europe, America, and Australia. Partly in Dutch.

After two successive summers spent cycling around the Alps and then the Pyrénées. I wanted to try somewhere different. I'd wanted to visit Norway for some time [...] As usual maps were studied, this process was more in-depth than normal since I had never been to Norway and didn't know where were the best places to visit. After much research and assessing the feasibility of several options, I decided to concentrate on the southern half of the country. This provided the opportunity to cycle over the high mountain plateau of the Hardangervidda, Norway's highest peaks in the Jotunheim and to navigate my way around Norway's most famous features - its coastal fjords.

A large list of cycle tours, 30 at the last count. Most are in Germany, but others go all over central and northern Europe. See the overview page. English translations are available for all pages.

[The author travels around the world and reviews hostels, and has built up a large hostel directory.]

What are hostels?

The quickest answer I can give to you is that hostels are budget accommodations where you share a room with other travelers. To be more specific though and to give you a better idea of what to expect I will say that a hostel room is like a hotel room but instead of being just one bed there are a couple (or a few) bunk beds. There are also (gasp!) other people. People you do not know! These other people are travelers who are most likely very much like you in the sense that they are exploring and traveling and doing it as absolutely cheaply as possible. Hostels have been around a long long time. There are over 20,000 of them around the world. Hostels are very much a part of the culture of Europe, and are starting to be known in the USA as well. Hostels are a cheaper way of staying in a city where you do not live.

The World's most beautiful cycling tour. July 23rd - 28th 2006. Geiranger, Trollstigen, Sognefjord, Jotunheimen, Nærøyfjord...

The Viking Tour takes you everywhere! Six days, eight fjords and nine mountain passes shared with 230 cyclo-tourists and former Tour de France competitors. Great international atmosphere and informal Fjordland hospitality dearly welcome all cyclists whatever goal they have for the tour. Competition classes are only timed for parts of each stage, giving everyone a much appreciated chance to ride with people normally at the other end of the ``peloton.'' No time limits. Our welcoming you at the stage finish only gets warmer the later you arrive. You can choose to stay in the Valhall Camps which include simple breakfasts, showers and some places pools & sauna. Or you can rent your own room, share a cabin with friends, bring a camper-van or...

The organizer Re Cyling Club provides luggage transport, feeding stations, bicyle repair service, first aid and everything needed for you to focus enjoy the experience. The cycling- and social thrills are unlimited. Available starting places are not...