Getting Started

Riding the Bright Midnight race didn't exactly leave my body in a state suitable for more bikepacking so we stayed in Bodø for two nights, enjoying the marvelous weather. Hightlights include a floating sauna in the sea and the local cuisine that is heavy on torrefisk. Thoroughly rested we embarked on the three and a half hour ferry ride to Moskenes, start of our cycling trip.

Moskenes and Vestvågøya

The first destination was, naturally, the village of A located on the westernmost tip of Lofoten islands. The place is worth a visit not just because of the elegant brevity of nomenclature but for its seagulls which appear to be the true masters of the village: The birds occupy all the rooftops and window ledges of every building. Gull nests decorate the gables like they were part of the original construction. All the while their cries and constant chatter make the place resemble a busy seagull marketplace. The fish must be delicious and plenty in that corner of the earth.

The Nattestraumen undersea tunnel took us to Vestvågøya where the the main sightseeing stop of the day was at the Viking museum, an outdoor museum that boasts a historically accurate reconstruction of an 83 m viking longhouse. It is located near Leknes at the site of an actual longhouse dating from the 6th century whose remains were found and excavated by archeologists in the late 20th century. The reconstructed house is spectactular and contains some plausible furniture and interior decoration. However the larger museum area is a bit lacking with gimmicks like axe throwing games offered by people dressed in viking clothing which even those viking actors admit have no base in historical facts. Visitors can also take around a nearby lake on a faithfully reconstructed longboat but we skipped that part.

Amazingly the weather remained stable these two days as well: blue skies with few clouds and lots of sunshine all day round. Incredible compared to my cold and rainy Norway adventure of two years ago. Sadly we were about one week late to enjoy the circumpolar period of the sun but the near endless sunsets are a sight to behold nonetheless.

Austvågøya

After a night at the terrific Rystad campsite we continued our trip on the large island that forms the eastern part of Lofoten. A detour over a chain of smaller, rocky islets brought us to the scenic town Henningsvær, famous for its football stadium that has been carved into the rocks. Apart from ball sports, the town is popular with rock climbing enthusiasts who can be spotted on all the cliffs in the area. The small forest at the bottom of the mountains is littered with tents of climbers, there must have been more of them than the entire population of Henningsvær put together.

The only road in this part of Austvågøya is the relatively busy E10 but the traffic wasn't too annyoing when we continued on to Svolvær, port town and fishing capital of Lofoten. Just a resupply stock as we'd run out of dry rations to cook. We grabbed some dried carbonara and lapskaus and rolled on.

Shortly after Svolvær the road forks and we left the E10 for the quiet Mitnattsolveien, the road of the midnight sun. Around that time the weather gradually changed and it rained for the first time since we started out arctic adventure. Surprise, surprise, finally some typical Norway weather! And an excellent excuse to put on the rain gear we almost thought was useless. Perfect conditions for an overnight stop at the Grunnfør bike shelter, the famous construction of glass and timber that attracts cyclists from all over the world.

It took another hour of cycling in the rain to reach the shelter. We were lucky to find it empty – apart from a French lady with a large dog who was preparing a meal inside. Some campervans were parked outside but their inhabitants didn't enter the building.a For the night we had it all to ourselves and used it to spread out our wet clothing to dry. While it was quite chilly outside temperatures stayed pleasant in the shelter all night; it was almost too warm even in the morning with the rain gone. Around nine o'clock we woke up to the noise of a group of Russian tourists who stopped to admire the cabin and the view. Which was indeed stunning. Now that the clouds and the mist receded, we enjoyed the magnificent sight of the ocean and the nearby island of Hadseløya whilst eating a breakfast of caviar and Leverpostei.

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