Category Archives: Scandinavia 2011

Day 8 waren, northern Germany, originally uploaded by Big Al!.

The previous night’s rain lets up just in time for breakfast, and I leave in sunshine. It’s windy though, and this part of northern Germany is wide open, rural, and quite dull. It’s an event free day, and I find a camp site by a lake, which turns out to be the size of a small town. After cruising round for a while, I select a spot that is relatively free of sprawling German motorhomes complete with fences, washing lines, satellite dishes and garden gnomes, and set up camp. The second I finish erecting the tent and unloading all my gear, 3 bus loads of school kids arrive and it seems my spot was quiet for a reason – all the locals know this is picadilly circus. Good job I’ve got ear plugs and am half deaf from wind roar on the bike. The kids are almost as annoying as the gazillions of flying insects. No, actually the German tourists who all insist on doing the really naff socks and sandals thing is worse.

Day 7 Herz mountains, Germany, originally uploaded by Big Al!.

Stopped quite early today when map and gps suggested camp now or in about 3 hours. Next time I do a trip like this I need much better information about camp site locations. On the first trip, I’d spent months planning the route, researching possible over night stops and finding places with potential, mainly working on the theory that lakes and rivers and national parks are a good bet. It didn’t always work out, but having spent nowhere near as much effort planning the route for this trip, I’m glad I did so first time round. How come some camp sites are superb, and others are rubbish? Trouble is, if you find a rubbish one it’s always a gamble to move on and look for another. On the first trip we called it "stick or twist?". Sometimes you win, sometimes you end up sleeping at the side of the road, like that night in Turkey, and a few times in Russia. At least here its just a little lacking in facilities. The wilds of Mongolia had little in the way of facilities, but at least there you weren’t surrounded by fat old German camper van tourists…

Day 6 Marburg, Germany, originally uploaded by Big Al!.

I start the first proper day of travel in relaxed style, making the most of kid hotel buffet breakfast. The relaxation does when I put my back out while loading the bike. Great. A few painkillers and I set course for the Mosel valley and some surprisingly scenic roads. I pass loads of nice looking camp sites, guest houses, and picnic spots, and know all too well that when I need one later, there won’t be any. And late,, when I want to stop, there aren’t any, so I keep riding. By chance I spot a camp site and pull in, feeling quite lucky, until I notice it’s like a scene from deliverance. When the "receptionist" starts talking about death and making throat cutting gestures, I decide to try my luck elsewhere. I think he was saying that the owner had died and if was filling in, but still. Some time later, I find another, and this one is great. The receptionist is lovely, helpful and speaks English, and the place is clean and tidy, although it’s yet everywhere from the rain. I select a pitch and park the bike, only for it to immediately fall on top of me when the side stand sinks into the wet ground, proving that the extended stand foot I fitted wasn’t worth the effort. Levergmg the bike up by the bars as I often practiced on the first trip, I rescue the situation with a handy flat rock under the stand, set us the tent, put the stove on for some military rations, and discover that the bottle of locally produced wine I bought earlier, is in fact Spanish. Never mind, after a long first day in the saddle, it’s great to be in camp, and the wine is bound to better than that horrific sweet stuff in Kyrgyzstan. All day while riding I have flashbacks to the first few days of the last trip, with fond memories of how amazing it was. So I fish out my chicken and dumplings and offer a toast to Dave with memories of our first camping in France, back in May 2009. Cheers!