I'm Freddy. I love road cycling and decided to go on a special trip.
I have to honestly admit that I didn't prepare for my trip down to the last detail. I believe that so much can go wrong - it is often better not to have a plan (or even a rough one).
I invested most of my preparation in choosing the right products. The rain jacket had to be waterproof, the tent light and the cycling shorts comfortable. I minimized my equipment so that I could have as much fun as possible on long and fast rides. In addition, it made me happy during this time that I needed very little.
The wilderness and diversity in Norway appealed to me the most and I had wanted to visit the Lofoten for a long time. The islands that combine white sandy beaches, turquoise water and rocky mountains.
So I set my hometown as the starting point in Komoot and the destination as Lofoten. The idea of then driving to the North Cape came almost out of nowhere. If so, then so.
I also set my daily limit based on my gut feeling. I set a number of kilometers per day including a buffer and booked the return flight. The rest will work itself out along the way and somehow I'll get there. I'm not the first person to do that.
I challenged myself to push myself to my limits. Away from comfort, just grit my teeth and get through it. The mental component is the most important and therefore challenged me the most. Seeing how much more you can do when you have to is crazy.
Enjoy my story. I would really recommend a bike trip to everyone.
The first two weeks:
My feelings during the first few kilometers were a lot of euphoria for the coming weeks and relief at finally being able to set off, something I had talked about many weeks in advance. I wasn't worried about forgetting something; if something was missing, I could still buy it.
The first few days were very hard. I had never cycled such distances alone before. The first night on the outskirts of a town I slept very little and badly for fear of being woken up by strangers. It was very hot and I slept several times in the middle of the day for a few minutes in shady places. The first few days in Germany were good for starting everyday life on the bike. At first I ran chaotically through the supermarkets and, overtired and exhausted, looked for my things. I spent a lot of time every day planning the route past supermarkets, cemeteries and the right place to sleep. It was important to me to have running water at my sleeping places so that I had enough for cooking, drinking, washing up and washing. After a few days I knew roughly how much I needed to eat and when I had to buy what. Shortly before I arrive at my sleeping place, I look for a supermarket, buy pasta and pesto for dinner and oatmeal, fruit and water for breakfast. For cycling tours through Germany, I can recommend looking for free places to sleep at football pitches with a clubhouse. Two out of two attempts to sleep there and use the bathroom were successful. Tell them briefly about your tour and ask politely if you can put up your tent for one night.
The most beautiful region on my tour in Germany was the Sauerland. Lots of forest and beautiful gravel are fun. It was mountainous, but with so little luggage and the initial motivation, it was no problem at all.
In the first week, every day became more strenuous and my legs longed for a day's rest. I was proud of having cycled 706 kilometers and was able to start the second week well rested and with even more energy. After just 7 days, my body had gotten used to the strain and the long daily stages didn't knock me out as much as they did in the first week.
The second week started with really bad weather. But I was lucky enough to bump into two Belgian women in the morning, who I rode with for the rest of the day. They invited me for a coffee and in return I shared my pack of gummy bears with them. Cycling brings people together and sharing food with each other is a great gesture. When I reached my destination in the evening, cold and wet, I had no idea where to sleep for the first time. I couldn't find a suitable place for my tent on Google Maps, no OneNightTent ad and, to be honest, I didn't feel like sleeping in a tent in this weather. A hotel was too expensive for me. I wanted to ring strangers' doorbells and hope for a place to sleep in a shed. If it didn't work after ten attempts, I could always look for a hotel. Fortunately, the first house was a hit. A woman opened the door and I told her where I came from, where I wanted to go and whether it was possible to sleep in the garden or in a shed and dry my wet shoes in the house. If I remember correctly, the woman has five children, four of whom no longer live at home. There were enough empty rooms for me to sleep in. Luckily there was still some leftover from dinner and I sat in the kitchen with the parents and one of the daughters and we talked for a long time. I was given such a warm welcome that it didn't feel like such a brief encounter. The next morning I got fresh rolls from the bakery, a packed lunch and was bid farewell with the word "foundling". They say "after rain comes sunshine". In my case, the encounter with the family was sunshine, because the rain continued for the next few days.
I like having to grit my teeth even more when the weather is bad. It demands even more from me mentally and I have to control my thoughts so that I can endure it or even enjoy it. But to be honest, that only lasts for a very, very short time.
I reached the first milestone on the ninth day. After 880 km I left Germany and reached Denmark, which I crossed in just three and a half days. I met Jolio and Alex, with whom I spent two days. We laughed a lot and helped each other. The days passed quickly and as I waited for the ferry to Norway I felt alone for the first time. I left the mainland and the journey was only just beginning in my head. The distance to home and between the supermarkets are getting longer. But even on the first day the landscape around me balances out these feelings and I enjoy the wild nature. I immediately feel at home between the red huts and the many rocks that I have been looking forward to for so long.
In the third week of my trip I reached Oslo. One of the most beautiful cities I have ever visited. I took half a day and rode my bike through the streets under a bright blue sky. I remember the city as being very green and very clean. I cycled past a few parks and a small wild river. In the afternoon I met the parents of a distant acquaintance, with whom I slept for one night. The two of them walked me through every street I had planned to take on my journey to get to the North Cape, to make sure I didn't ride on the E6. The E6 is the longest European road in Scandinavia and runs through the whole of Norway. However, it is very dangerous for cyclists because of its narrow width and the many bends when there is a lot of traffic. I was able to avoid it as much as possible. That evening I had the best dinner of my entire trip and we talked late into the night about Norway, God and the world. I felt so good that saying goodbye was all the more difficult. The next afternoon I left Oslo, rested and strengthened, and rode at my highest average speed of the day.
The next few nights I continued to have good weather and slept by Norway's largest lake and a river, until it rained and we headed up to a plateau. That was the day I was most surprised by the landscape. It was probably because I had to fight against 2000 meters of altitude beforehand. But I definitely want to visit the Rondane National Park in the highlands again with more time. I spent the night in a rest house that was, luckily for me, open, as the temperature outside was around 5 degrees. The next morning I woke up with a listlessness that I had never experienced before. This stayed with me for the next few days of the third week. I knew how exhausting the time had been so far and could hardly imagine doing the same amount again. I lacked the energy. But there was nothing I could do. I set my alarm for six o'clock so that I could leave my sleeping place at around 8:30 a.m. and just drive. Just drive and get through the days. One evening I decided to knock on a small house and asked if I could charge my batteries inside and camp next to the cabin. I was offered a bed in the attic and spent the evening with the Norwegian family who were spending their holidays in the cabin. I was able to shower, wash my clothes in the sink and when the woman saw that I was cooking vegetarian food, she gave me "Kjøttkaker i brun saus", a Norwegian dish (meatballs in brown sauce). When I slept in a sauna in Trondheim, the third week became the part of my trip with the most unusual sleeping places.
In the fourth week I met two cyclists. We all wanted to go to Lofoten, so we rode together for a day. We got on well right away and laughed a lot together. We camped by the same lake, but had to say goodbye the next day because I took two days off and the other two moved on at different speeds. One is from Belgium and the other from Germany. The Belgian was amused by the German word "Stammkneipe" and a WhatsApp group called "Stammkneipe" was formed in which we kept sending each other pictures of places to sleep or other information. I enjoyed my sunny days without cycling on a farm, filling up my glycogen stores, and the landlady's son took me on a short hike to a waterfall. We were able to swim there and I saw a bit more than the streets of Norway. Over the next few days I covered a good distance and met some German cyclists, with whom I rode together for a short time. The weather was fantastic, blue skies and pleasant temperatures. The landscape became rockier and the road ran along fjords most of the time. My mood lifted - thanks to the encounters and the great cycling conditions. I racked up the miles every day so that I could catch up with my "local pub" friend at the ferry to Lofoten. We spent time together again and surprised the Belgian in Lofoten at his sleeping place. The "local pub" grew a little more and was now complete.
The time on the Lofoten started with bad weather. When it rained, the mood dropped and perseverance became more important than before. But I had my routines when it came to looking for a place to sleep or buying groceries. Despite the rain, I made faster progress and had very good legs. I met Germans twice in a row, who welcomed me hospitably. Once I was invited to dinner in a camper van and the next morning, after just a few kilometers, I was approached on a ferry, completely soaked. We chatted and I was invited for coffee and cake on the other side of the fjord. It was super nice and the two parents whose children were in the accommodation offered me a warm and, above all, dry place to sleep. Since I was well on time, I gratefully accepted the offer. When I arrived at the house, I should and could feel at home. Luckily, I decided to take this unplanned day of rest. In the evening, when the weather improved, the older son and I took kayaks out of the basement and paddled a bit along the coast. It was one of those travel experiences that I always enjoy talking about.
The next day I had to face the bad weather. It didn't rain heavily, but it did for over ten hours. It was windy and the temperature wasn't much above five degrees. Within the first few hours of the day I got cold and just didn't get any warmer. I was dressed warmly, but I shivered for several hours. In the evening I came to a very small place and couldn't find a place to sleep. I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep in a tent that day. A man standing in front of his house didn't want to fill up my water bottles. It was already getting dark, so I made one last attempt. One last house where I would ring the bell to ask if I could put up my tent in the front garden under the balcony so that I wouldn't get so much rain. The man initially answered rudely that it wasn't possible. I can't sleep out there. So he invited me into the house. I was so happy about this invitation, which I hadn't expected. I settled into a small, dark room and every few minutes the man came and brought me something else I might need. First a towel for the shower, then he told me that I could cook upstairs and asked me when I wanted to have breakfast. The next morning we had breakfast together, I made myself some food, left the nice old man and rode another day in the cold. The next day I started my last long stages. 584 kilometers in 4 days, to finish it quickly. I left the Lofoten in bad weather and rode to Tromsø. Now I had sunshine and around eleven degrees. That made the last days of my trip easier and I could just put in the miles. Every day I sat in the saddle for up to eight hours and was on the road for over ten hours. I actually can't remember much. The landscape just passed me by.
The last three days are running. I met a funny guy who accompanied me for a large part of my day's journey and listened to his sometimes strange stories. The reindeer on those days will also remain in my memory.
Then the last day: I woke up in my tent at five in the morning because the temperatures drop noticeably at night. My bike was packed and I was ready to roll. My thoughts were wild and everything was great. I hardly met anyone in the morning. I gave my last strength to the climbs that day and overtook e-bike riders for my ego in the last few kilometers. When I read the North Cape sign and completed the last mountain, a weight fell from me that I hadn't noticed. I held back a tear or two and needed a moment to realize what I had achieved. What I had achieved (more or less) alone.
I was very lucky that everything worked out the way I had hoped. The fear that the chain would break, a spoke would break, or even the frame would break remained until the last hour of this adventure. So much could have gone wrong. But somehow it worked out. Thanks to the people who took me in, who admired my plan, my friends who spoke to me on the phone for hours during my trip. I am very grateful for every experience and every encounter during this time. I hope that with the video series and these words I can inspire and motivate other people to experience adventures like this. I can really recommend it to everyone. Be brave, you only regret what you didn't do.
Your Freddy
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My equipment:
Clothing
- 2x Aerlig Jersey
- Aero Bib Shorts
- Cargo Bib Shorts
- 2x base layer
- 2x socks
- windbreaker
- vest
- arm warmers
- leg warmers
- Salomon Essential Lightwarm midlayer hooded jacket
- Jeep hooded quilted jacket
- Odlo Natural Merino 200 base layer set
- Quechua rain pants waterproof NH500
- cotton T-shirt
- Short light sports pants
- Long, lightweight sports pants
- merino socks
- 2x underpants
- scarf
- headband
- Giro Rincon Gravel Shoe
- Adidas Adiletten
- Van Rysel helmet ROADR 500
- Oakley Radar EV Path glasses
Sleep
- Forclaz trekking tent Trekking - MT900 1 person
- Vaude Hochgrat 300 - down sleeping bag
- Forclaz air mattress Trekking - MT500
bicycle bags
- Ortlieb Seat Pack 16.5L
- Agu frame bag Venture Extreme Waterproof
- Agu Top-Tube Venture Extreme Waterproof
- Agu Snack-Pack Venture
- Vaude Trailfront II handlebar bag 13L
- 2x Ultralight Dry Sack 6L
- 2x Blackburn Fork Cage
Cook
- Primus Express Stove gas cooker
- Primus Summer Gas
- Tatonka Kettle camping pot 1.6L
- cup
- Opinel pocket knife 9cm blade
- plastic fork
- plastic spoon
- sponge
- dishwashing detergent
bathroom
- toothbrush
- toothpaste
- moisturizer
- Soap for body (biodegradable)
- Soap for clothes (biodegradable)
- hand cream
- Labello
- sunscreen
- Small microfiber towel
- wet wipes
electronics
- DJI Action 2
- DJI Mini 3 Pro
- iPhone 13
- Garmin Edge 130 Plus bike computer
- headphones
- 2x Anker Power Bank 525 (PowerCore 20K)
- respective charging cables
- Decathlon headlamp
- taillights
tools/spare parts
- duct tape
- air pump
- multi-tool
- chain oil
- repair kit
- tire lever
- carabiner
- 2x spare spokes
- 2x hose
Miscellaneous
- Decathlon Foldable Backpack 10L
- HipLok cable tie lock Z
- first aid kit
