Monday 12 July 2010

Day 8 - to Voss

Last night was bliss. Freshly ironed sheets and a bed in a real building. The tent and sleeping bag are fine when you want a quick kip. For the deep and meaningful kind, only a proper bed with clean sheets will do.

I said goodbye to Rudolf & Rainer this morning and headed north with the idea to go as far as possible but not be too silly about it. In the end I only managed 300 miles in 11 hours with only short breaks and these were usually on ferries. Lots of tunnels & a few ferries make for slow going but the scenery makes it all worthwhile.

When they build a tunnel, the old road is usually left to rot and fenced off. Occasionally, it has a secondary purpose and this one led up to a small ski resort. You can see the main road popping out of the mountain and disappearing into the next tunnel in the picture. The old road is a lot more fun but I guess it must be hairy in winter. Given, that the top was just over 1000m, and there was still some snow as low as 600m in July, Norway has got to be worth a look when every else has a slushy season.

Just down the road, I came across this double waterfall at Latefosse. The falls drop 165m and make quite a bit of spray.

I feel like a bit of a Troll tonight. I estimate I have driven 30 miles underground today. The mountains here are honeycombed with tunnels as it is nigh on impossible to build a road along the edges of the fjords. If you are cycle touring around Norway, then you are not always allowed to go through the tunnels....if there is an alternative route, you have to take it. That can mean a bloody long climb.

Tonight as I write this, the rain is pelting down onto the tent making a bit of a racket. Oh for a nice warm bed....with sheets!

Route 246 miles/ 9:31hrs


View BT Day 8 in a larger map

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