Day 17

Sitting here in the rooftop tent listening to the rain I'm going through the pictures we took today at Arctic Trucks in Drammen, Norway. Got a tour of their facilities and had many of my questions answered with their vehicles. But the biggest treat of the day was when Alex handed over the keys to the very vehicle that the former Top Gear hosts used 1) to drive to the north pole, 2) to drive up an active volcano in Iceland. Yes the two men's I'm referring to are Jeremy Clarkson and James May. Then James May took the same Hilux to Iceland to drive up the active volcano called Eyjahfjallajökull. Really was a treat to drive that Hilux, it is an impressive vehicle. Still has the mounting brackets for the video cameras inside and the famous trailer hitch toilet seat.

We left Drammen late so to get to the next campsite we decided to push as fast as the old landy would allow us till we gotten ULLARED Camping. I've done my best for 18 years of avoiding this shopping centre. Camping is tight and not even here 5 minutes we had a drunk over with us talking up a storm. After tomorrow it'll be another 18 years before I come anywhere close to this place.

 

Day 16

Can you believe it, 16 days on the road and counting.

Today the drive from Frøde to Drammen was altered from the original plan to make sure that we were in Drammen in good time for my appointment tomorrow. Lots of local rain but nothing that dampened the trip today. Even when we got to the campsite tonight the weather app showed  18 degrees and sunny but looking out of the windscreen it was another story as the wiper blade moved back and forth.

Tomorrow before we set off I have to check and top up the rear diff, it's been leaking since driving the roads in Finland and around Nordkapp. I have to say though, the leak is through the actions of those who mislead with what they selling. I specifically asked for RTV silicone but was given normal silicone which is not suitable for transmission oils. Oh well, I'll keep an eye on the rear diff and fix it properly when back in Nybro.

Day 15

Today we headed into Geiranger centre and did a bit of site seeing and checked the shops out. It wasn't till afternoon when we left and began the long drive closer to the coastline again. But before doing so we did one of the remaining sections of the old highway to Geiranger which was an excellent drive. We spent most of the afternoon stopping and taking pictures then when we realised the time we headed for the nearest asphalt.

The route that I planned took many secondary roads which of course took time. On one particular road there was a road stop, a heard of cows. Was funny as the cows had no intention of moving off any time soon.

The weather for the day was basically driving between rain clouds but as we got nearer to the coast it became simply full on rain. We are now at a campsite in Førde and as I lay in the rooftop tent it is raining cats and dogs.

Because of an appointment that we have for Finday we are going to take a straight b-line to Drammen, even though it will be over 8 be hours driving tomorrow.

Day 14

I was looking forward to today, a trail that there was no risk of a road barrier. We drove a toll road called Aursjøvegen which did not disappoint. The climb was so steep in sections where I was in 2nd gear. At the top we were at 950 moh but at that height and with today's weather we didn't get to see much. The fog rolled in quickly and stayed.
Some of the switch back turns were too much for my wife, she had her hand firmly gripping the door handle thinking that a quick exist was possible if something went wrong. 😯
A road that is on the to-do again list, but with clearer weather.

From there we took to the coastline again taking many smaller roads, the trip is so much more relaxing not having to deal with traffic all the time. On a smaller road leading eventually to Geiranger we meet a police car, said to Ulla there must have been an accident?? A few minutes later we came across a new Range Rover sitting on it's side down a deep ditch. The torn up grass on the side of the road and into the ditch told the whole story, excessive speed for road conditions. On the same road I pulled over for a motorcycle to let pass and I got a thumbs up. 😊

Now we are in Geiranger at the same camp that we have used previously.

Day 13

This morning it was a mad dash with the traffic into Trondheim which went rather well for us till Mr. Garmin sent us up a road that your not suppose to use for vehicle traffic. Parking is an other issue all on its own in a historical city centre where every second vehicle was electrical or had stop/go technology. Then you have me with an oil burner trying to find a place to park.

After touring the famous church in Trondheim we headed west towards the Atlantic Highway. As much as I would have liked to see the waves breaching the water breaks, the calm sunny weather was excellent, which offered us a few picture opportunities.

While along the Atlantic coast we read in our phones the weather forecast and it wasn't what were expecting, 30-50 mm rain over night.  Therefore we decided to go for broke and get as far inland as possible.

By 9:30 pm we found a small camp site off the beaten path which has only 2 guests for the night. While here I wasn't really looking forward to having to deal with a wet tent so I took a cabin instead.

Tomorrow should be a wet one, let's see how far we travel after the mountain pass that I have planned for the morning.

Day 12

This morning with the sound of rain on the tent, looking out wasn't any better with the Atlantic fog covering the Norwegian coastline. We had to move on if we were to get into Trondheim on Monday when the forecast showed sunny day. We took highway 17 along the coastline which is known as the tourist route, I can confirm from what we could see that it was worth the trip.

After the first ferry this morning I was middle in the queue and felt that the speed on the narrow coastal roads were to quick for the landy so we stopped into a museum in Grønsvik. It was basically a gunner battery that saw its fair share of action.  What was funny for us was that we stopped for an hour and when we eventually arrived at the next ferry terminal all the cars in the long queue were sitting there. Also while on the second ferry of the day we crossed over the artic circle again. We spent 9 days over the artic circle and plan to return.

Taking the advice of the girl at museum we diverted from the coastline and headed over to the main highway to proceed to Trondheim. Had the weather been better had we stayed at the coastline, we were disappointed with our luck with the weather and said that we must return.

Tonight are we south of Medjå, approximately 160 km north of Trondheim. Tomorrow some sightseeing in Norway's third largest city then onwards to the Atlantic Highway.

Day 11

This morning we woke early to the alarm, yes I know that alarm clock and vacations don't blend but we wanted to make some early progress so that we can stop at a beach for a few hours in the afternoon.

We did our best to divert from the E6 as to see more of the country side and the fishing communities. The coastline in Norway is breathtaking with something new after each bend. I did find on the computer an old disused road after it was replaced by a tunnel. So we took it down to the main highway, which my passenger wasn't pleased about for one second! 😆 Fallen rocks on the asphalt, parts of the road washed away and no rails along the sides of the road were not popular but did make for an exciting 1100 metres decent.

We are now on the tourist route following the coastline till we reach Trondheim. Without risking driving late again we have stopped into a rest stop in Glomfjord. We are over 900 moh and in the forest behind us you can hear the free ranging goats with their bells.