Pre NPL Update 🥳
(Places we visited and buses we took, as well as links to the AirBnBs can be found at the very bottom of this post!)
The journey started on the evening of Saturday 10 June 2023. Stig and Lotta drove us to the train station in Gävle and just before midnight the train rolled in at platform 3, and we stepped on. The start of our biggest journey so far!
We found our coach and our berths, and got introduced to our travel company up to Boden - two Italian guys that were going to hike Abisko-Nikkaluokta and an Asian couple going to Narvik like us.
We dumped our bags in the luggage area and climbed into the top bunks and after fighting for a while with the bed linen, we could fall asleep.
None of us slept great that night. In the morning, Sunday 11 June, Lukas woke up early and went to grab a coffee before Kim woke up.
After changing train in Boden we got to sit in the restaurant coach. Here we had the spots beside two nice people going to Kiruna. We talked to them a lot, before they stepped off.
After that we soon came to the best part of the journey - going through the mountains! So much snow left. We had to stop to wait for the ore train all the time though, so it was reeeaaaally slow.
When we finally arrived in Narvik it was time for some pizza! Then we stretched our legs the entire evening - geocaching in the town in the midnight sun (it was so strange, like it was afternoon and not late in the evening).
Almost at midnight we took the last bus of the day, to Bjerkvik. We also got told off by the bus driver because apparently we had the wrong ticket (we had a Travel Pass for Nordlands fylkeskommune and the bus was driven by Troms fylkestrafikk).
But we managed to reach Bjerkvik, where we found a tent spot sandwiched by the ocean, some farmland and a hill. A small strip with some trees and fairly flat ground.
The next morning, Monday 12 June, we went back to the bus stop. There we took a bus from Bjerkvik aaaall the way out to Sørvågen, almost the westernmost point of Lofoten. It took us more than 9 hours cramped in a bus. Poor Lukas is too tall to fit in a bus and was in pain for most of the ride.
In Sørvågen we met the Asian couple again! They were out exploring Lofoten with a rental car. So funny to get to see them again. In Sørvågen we bought some food and headed out on a walk, took a few geocaches and tried to find somewhere to camp for the night. It proved difficult, as Lofoten has been heavily affected by tourism the past years and you're now not allowed to camp in certain parts of the area. We found a map where it said where you couldn't camp, and then there were signs too. Unfortunately (in our case) this part of Lofoten is made up of steep mountains that drop straight down in the ocean. The few areas that are somewhat flat are either built upon, is farmland or bogs. Makes it difficult for camping...
In the end we found a spot on the side of a mountain, where it was somewhat dry. The night was windy with gusts that made it a bit uncomfortable to sleep. But possible with our buffs over our eyes and earplugs in our ears.
The morning after, Tuesday 13 June, we had a slow morning, and sat down and discussed our options. We realised that Lofoten with heavy backpacks, nowhere to sleep, being dependent on the few buses that runs and with a long trip to look forward to is not the best idea to be here. We want to come back and visit the area more properly, with plenty of time, a place to stay and with our van. Lukas had said that from the beginning but now Kim realised it too. So then it was time to start changing the plan...
We walked back to Sørvågen, took a short bus to Reine, geocached a little more, bought a new beanie for Lukas (who lost his along the way somehow/somewhere), took another bus to Leknes where we found an AirBnB for the night. There we came to the nicest family ever, and after dinner in town we spent the evening talking to them about our journey.
The day after, Wednesday 14 June (Kim's birthday!) it was time to go north. It was a loooong day from Leknes via Bjerkvik to Tromsø. More than 9 hours on a bus! When we finally arrived it was time to stretch our legs. We slept in a nice AirBnB again, went to the supermarket and bought food, went back home and had tacos 🌮
Thursday 15 June we had a nice long and late breakfast with strawberries and ice cream 🥰
Then we geocached for a few hours, had a coffee and fika and then it was time to get on a bus again. Amazing views but by now we were quite tired of buses.
We arrived before midnight in Alta where we just put the tent up in the first best spot available, so a small forest beside a pedestrian and bike path.
Then up again, Friday 16 June to step on our last bus in a long time! The bus that would be taking us to the North Cape.
Up to Honningsvåg we were only 3 people at the bus (then it became completely crowded) so we talked to the third person - Peter from Germany. He is going to bike from the North Cape to Oslo in one month. Really nice guy to talk to, and we hung out with him all the way up until he biked off in the distance, leaving us "alone" (or rather not so alone, the North Cape is crowded with tourists) at "the end of the world".
Now we're here at the North Cape. The plan is to find all the geocaches in the area, go through our packing, catch up on some things we need to do before we start and then wait. Tomorrow at 01:30-02:00 in the night we will be attending a geocaching event here at the North Cape, and after that, we will set off! So tomorrow, Saturday 17 June 2023, will be the start date of our Norge på langs hike.
Next update will come in 10 days! The blog will be delayed 10 days, but update every day. If you want to see where we are right now it is possible on the link down below.
https://share.garmin.com/lukasandkim
Info:
Gävle C - Boden C
10 June 23:52 - 11 June 10:03 (Train 92, Vy)
Boden C - Narvik stn
11 June 10:31 - 11 June 17:43 (Train 96, Vy)
Narvik (Bromsgård) - Bjerkvik
11 June 23:31 - 11 June 23:45 (Bus 100 towards Tromsø, Troms fylkestrafikk)
Bjerkvik - Svolvær sentrum
12 June 10:15 - 12 June 13:40 (Bus 300 towards Å i Lofoten, Nordland fylkestrafikk)
Svolvær sentrum - Leknes sentrum
12 June 14:00 - 12 June 15:25 (Bus 300 towards Å i Lofoten, Nordland fylkestrafikk)
Leknes sentrum - Sørvågen
12 June 15:45 - 12 June 17:19 (Bus 300 towards Å i Lofoten, Nordland fylkestrafikk)
Sørvågen - Reine
13 June 14:21 - 13 June 14:35 (Bus 774 towards Hamnøy, Nordland fylkestrafikk)
Reine - Leknes sentrum
13 June 16:20 - 13 June 17:30 (Bus 742 towards Leknes, Nordland fylkestrafikk)
AirBnB Leknes:
Leknes sentrum - Bjerkvik
14 June 08:10 - 14 June 13:17 (Bus 300 towards Narvik, Nordland fylkestrafikk)
Bjerkvik - Tromsø Prostneset
14 June 13:40 - 14 June 17:25 (Bus 100 towards Tromsø, Troms fylkestrafikk)
AirBnB Tromsø:
Tromsø Prostneset - Alta sentrum
15 June 16:00 - 15 June 22:20 (Bus 150 towards Alta, Troms fylkestrafikk)
Alta sentrum - Nordkapp
16 June 06:40 - 16 June 11:20 (Bus 62 towards Honningsvåg, Snelandia)