19-7-16 Trip to the Nordkapp and back by Triumph Explorer, day 12

July 28, 2016 • Leave a Comment

Day 12

Molde to Trollstigen and Geiranger fjord.

263 miles  


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I woke up at 0645 to light drizzle, got some breakfast and then checked out of the hotel.  There was a really drunk guy singing and dancing, he looked quite young but he was too drunk to understand that I couldn't understand him.

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I headed out of Molde and instead of getting the ferry I rode around the fjord, it added 70 miles to the journey but was well worth it as the road was lovely and mostly empty.  

Then I headed over the Trollstigen, lots of hairpins and a very steep road meant that I gained height very quickly, there are few crash barriers and the bike would fit through the rocks placed at the edge of the road. Very scary!  
Lots of tour busses full of Japanese people too, at one point I'd stopped to take a picture and returned to the bike to find people taking pictures of it.

There is a cool visitors centre at the top with a walkway above the river.  Then the road meanders back down the other side,  it's pretty but quite gentle in comparison.   Once I got down the other side I headed for Geiranger fjord, but missed the turn for the ferry and went about 20 miles the wrong way. 

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I eventually worked out what  I'd done and got the ferry 1.5 miles a cross the fjord.  Geiranger was incredibly busy with tour busses and camper vans galore. 
The road and scenery are amazing though, and again it's really high.  The roads back down through the mountains were stunning. The landscape changed dramatically as the road climbed out of the fjord and cut through the high rocky plateau. There was still quite a bit of snow, it felt really barren compared to the lush forests of the lower areas.

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I eventually stopped in a small town for a pizza (as I rode past the smell hit me and I had to stop) at about 7pm before riding another 60 miles and getting a hut for the night on a small campsite.
I'm not entirely sure where the campsite was, it wasn't near any towns but there hadn't been any for about 40 miles previously so when I saw it from the road I turned off and asked about a hut.
The campsite was run by a couple living in a large caravan with an awning and a sign saying reception.
I didn't have any cash at all by this point but the guy was totally unphased and produced an Iphone with a card reader! The hut was £35 and comfortable enough.

I did consider using the tent but the sky was clouding over and it looked like rain was likely.