Touring Denmark / Norway / Sweden summer 2012, hints and tips appreciated!

Funkster · 05-19-2012, 09:14 AM

Hallo all,

Hope this is the right place for this. Some friends and I are going on a whistle-stop tour of Denmark, Norway and Sweden this summer (you'll have to excuse my paranoia, don't like posting dates on a public forum - PM me if you'd like to know exactly when we'll be where). Two of us on bikes, three in a... er... you know, one of those things with four wheels.

I'll post up the background to the trip when I do a ride report (assuming we don't get eaten by a bear), but for now I'm looking for some hints and tips from ADVriders local to the areas we'll be passing! First though, a picture. Everyone likes a picture. Here's my trusty steed, a 1994 Honda Dominator in particularly stylish colours:

And here's a rough overview of the route we're planning to take (the loop runs clockwise):

In all it's about 3300km (not counting riding to the ferry in the UK), and we're planning on doing this spread over 13 days' riding with a couple of rest days.

We're hoping to do quite a bit of camping in Norway to keep costs down, mainly in campsites (any recommendations gratefully received) but does Norway have the same rules on wild camping as Sweden?

Will no doubt post more questions later but wanted to get this up and see if anyone chimes in with questions about our sanity first...

Cheers!
--
Olly

Gravel Seeker · 05-20-2012, 02:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Funkster

Hallo all,

Hope this is the right place for this. Some friends and I are going on a whistle-stop tour of Denmark, Norway and Sweden this summer (you'll have to excuse my paranoia, don't like posting dates on a public forum - PM me if you'd like to know exactly when we'll be where). Two of us on bikes, three in a... er... you know, one of those things with four wheels.

I'll post up the background to the trip when I do a ride report (assuming we don't get eaten by a bear), but for now I'm looking for some hints and tips from ADVriders local to the areas we'll be passing! First though, a picture. Everyone likes a picture. Here's my trusty steed, a 1994 Honda Dominator in particularly stylish colours:

And here's a rough overview of the route we're planning to take (the loop runs clockwise):

In all it's about 3300km (not counting riding to the ferry in the UK), and we're planning on doing this spread over 13 days' riding with a couple of rest days.

We're hoping to do quite a bit of camping in Norway to keep costs down, mainly in campsites (any recommendations gratefully received) but does Norway have the same rules on wild camping as Sweden?

Will no doubt post more questions later but wanted to get this up and see if anyone chimes in with questions about our sanity first...

Cheers!
--
Olly

Since you're self proclaimed paranoid and won't post the time frame it's hard to suggest events and I can only speak for Norway, but you pretty much can't go wrong with the west coast. It's scenic views from dusk til dawn sprinkled with some euphoric moments inbetween.

On the way there you are passing by where the Norwegian motorcyckle club OTC (Offroad Touring Club) has its annual rally at Alvdal (at Grimsbu tourist center) Aug 9th-12th (2012 Buckride rally). 100-130 large dualsports (600-1200cc) gather to ride. BBQ in the eves and a few drinks, but focus on riding all day every day so it's mostly quiet in camp by 1am. Great event with informal atmosphere. Stay in tents, cabins or 2 bed rooms. They also offer a large basement room where people just spread out with their sleeping bags on the floor.

Further west you'll get to the spectacular Trollstigen road and the Geiranger Fjord and Urnes Stave church

Pictures: http://www.visitnorway.com/uk/

You'll find alot of info on the visitnorway site. My RR below in my signature starts nearby Oslo and goes down south to the southernmost point and continue up the west coast all the way to the northern tip. You may find some useful info there too. Day 1-5 covers the south and west coast.

Camping rules in Norway are very liberal.

Stay off cultivated land and pastures
Keep a sensible distance to houses or cabins
Not allowed to leave tent in one place for more than 2 days
Driving off road is illegal

Gotta run now, but just shoot me questions and I'll try to answer

Dazed Productions · 05-20-2012, 03:02 PM

I did a not dissimilar trip last year but in Sweden I stuck to gravel roads (I was on a 525 EXC with SM tires) and I stuck closer to the west coast in Sweden until after gotteburg and then crossed over to the east above the big lake. I did some wild camping but in Sweden I found that they tended to fence off a lot and it was difficult to find pitches. It was easier in Norway but in Norway there are a lot more bikers and it is worth staying in a campsite to get recommendations from other bikers! Norway is a lot more expesive than Sweden! Sweden has few hilly bits and is mainly flat but if you want to ride gravel its great. Norway is much more tarmac but the roads are awesome. A supermoto was a great bike to take although I had to do a lot of oil changes etc.
I did the ferry to denmark on the way out but on the way back I found the Norway-denmark and Denmark-UK ferry to be out of sync so I did Norway-Denmark and then rode to Hook of Holland.

Funkster · 05-21-2012, 01:40 AM

Excellent, thanks both for your input. I'm definitely going to seek out some gravel roads, even if it means leaving the rest of the pack for a few miles (the other biker is on an FZ6, and the car is just a car). Hopefully I can find some gravel along the way that's a shortcut!

The west coast of Norway looks like it'll be spectacular whatever we do, so it's probably the ride from Kristiansund to Stockholm that I could do with some pointers on. Are we likely to find some Hytte (I have no idea how that's supposed to be pronounced) along the way? Given the altitude there we'll probably not want to camp. Current plan has 3 days to do that particular stretch, so I guess we're looking for somewhere to stay just before the Norway / Sweden border on the first leg. Perhaps close to Femunden?

Any pointers on a good / scenic route from (Femunden or wherever we stop) to Stockholm would be appreciated - the route in the map above is just what google suggested so I'm guessing it's fairly main roads / motorways.

Tak / takk / tack!
--
Olly

andershz · 05-21-2012, 05:39 AM

It looks like Google has chosen the E4 from Stockholm to Helsingborg, (makes sense since it's the fastest route).
It is also incredibly boring, so unless you're in an extreme hurry I'd advise to stay away from it.
Depending on how long time you have I can suggest much nicer routes, at least down to Jönköping.

pip_muenster · 05-21-2012, 09:34 AM

This might be on your route, if you want to party with 100,000+ others ... (July 5-8)
http://roskilde-festival.dk/uk/music/bands/

Gravel Seeker · 05-21-2012, 10:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Funkster

Excellent, thanks both for your input. I'm definitely going to seek out some gravel roads, even if it means leaving the rest of the pack for a few miles (the other biker is on an FZ6, and the car is just a car). Hopefully I can find some gravel along the way that's a shortcut!

Sorry, I misunderstood the direction you were going, so just flip what I said above

Quote:

Originally Posted by Funkster

The west coast of Norway looks like it'll be spectacular whatever we do, so it's probably the ride from Kristiansund to Stockholm that I could do with some pointers on. Are we likely to find some Hytte (I have no idea how that's supposed to be pronounced) along the way?

Given the altitude there we'll probably not want to camp. Current plan has 3 days to do that particular stretch, so I guess we're looking for somewhere to stay just before the Norway / Sweden border on the first leg. Perhaps close to Femunden?

Hytte is pronounced the way it's spelled

Most caravan parks/ camping sites have small cabins (hytte, plural hytter) for rent. They usually sleep 2 or 4 and sometimes 6 or 8 (bunk beds). They most often have a simple kitchen with running water and a small stove as well as basic utensils. Typically a cabin will run you about NOK350-600 per night + 50 or so if you don't want to wash the floor before you move on. A simple two bed hotel room is usually NOK600-1000 per night. Pitching a tent is around NOK50-60 per night, but deals can be had for a group.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Funkster

Any pointers on a good / scenic route from (Femunden or wherever we stop) to Stockholm would be appreciated - the route in the map above is just what google suggested so I'm guessing it's fairly main roads / motorways.

Tak / takk / tack!
--
Olly

Even the large roads in Norway and Sweden are usually 2 lane (1 in each direction). It's a bit better in Sweden. Sweden is pretty much flat compared to Norway. There's alot of woods to drive/ ride through and the landscape is dotted with farms and small lakes. I can't suggest any specific routes, but there are few straight roads anywhere in southern Scandinavia.

pip_muenster · 05-21-2012, 01:58 PM

One more: The island Rømø some 20mi south of Esbjerg is famous as you can legally drive/ride on the beach. There's also a camp ground nearby. Maybe a nice idea if you've got some time to spare before catching the ferry back ...

Funkster · 05-22-2012, 01:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by andershz

Depending on how long time you have I can suggest much nicer routes, at least down to Jönköping.

That would be excellent, thank you. We have pencilled in 3 days' riding to get from Stockholm to Copenhagen. I saw a recommendation for Vildmarks Camping ( http://www.vildmarkscamping.se/ ) on the sticky here, thought we might give that a go if the route makes sense. It's a bit of a detour from the route shown above though.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gravel Seeker

there are few straight roads anywhere in southern Scandinavia.

Music to my ears!

Quote:

Originally Posted by pip_muenster

One more: The island Rømø some 20mi south of Esbjerg is famous as you can legally drive/ride on the beach.

Cool! I'll take extra chain oil :)

Thanks all for the help!
--
Olly

eejespersen · 05-27-2012, 01:06 PM

I did South Sweden - Oslo - Nordkap - Helsinki - Åland Islands - Stockholm last year. I think it was 3 weeks +/- a few days.
Norway has great roads, great scenery, great road taxes and not so great ferrys. Be prepared that some, and very randomly some, shops and gas stations only accept creditcards issued in Norway.
Stock up on any alcohol you might want to consume from home.

You should seriously consider driving a bit further up north and drive the Atlantic Road.
Watch out for the wildlife. Last year was lemming year, so I had to scrape out some lemmings of the wheels and one made it to the oil cooler. No damage though.
Bring some fishing gear if you like to catch and kill what you eat.

Norwegians are the most law abiding people on the planet. Nobody is speeding and nobody wants to overtake if there is a full line on the road. I saw the police confiscate the bike of a Brit, because he'd been speeding and hadn't the cash to pay up.

PM me if you have any quarrels enroute in South Sweden, I live on your route.

Gravel Seeker · 05-27-2012, 11:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eejespersen

Norway has great roads, great scenery, great road taxes and not so great ferrys.

I've only paid road toll once on a bike, since motobikes normally pass for free, and that was a motorway toll just south of Trondheim city. You must have had some bad luck with the ferries you rode.

Quote:

Originally Posted by eejespersen

Be prepared that some, and very randomly some, shops and gas stations only accept creditcards issued in Norway. Stock up on any alcohol you might want to consume from home.

This is news to me and a bit surprising. As far as I know there aren't any Norwegian credit cards. We have combination debit/ credit cards that will debit if the store is connected and credit if say you use the card abroad or the stores connection is down. VISA is the most common card here.

Quote:

Originally Posted by eejespersen

Norwegians are the most law abiding people on the planet. Nobody is speeding and nobody wants to overtake if there is a full line on the road. I saw the police confiscate the bike of a Brit, because he'd been speeding and hadn't the cash to pay up.

Sorry, but that's bullshit. The cops may take your license, but they won't take your vehicle. Also, you never pay fines in cash as the ticket is issued on the spot and the money is paid to norwgian customs, not the police. Here is all you need to know on that subject

Funkster · 05-28-2012, 08:23 AM

I think even if they don't impound your vehicle, I'll be doing my best to keep within the speed limits - I don't fancy getting stung with a €480 fine! Are there any special rules/laws for overtaking? (in the UK there is said to be no speed limit while you are on the outside of a car that you are passing, although obviously you still have to be driving/riding safely).

Definitely going to include the atlantic road, that looks spectacular! Not sure what time of day we'll be getting to that area, but since the days are pretty long that far north I guess it doesn't matter too much :o)

Thanks again!
--
Olly

eejespersen · 05-28-2012, 08:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gravel Seeker

I've only paid road toll once on a bike, since motobikes normally pass for free, and that was a motorway toll just south of Trondheim city. You must have had some bad luck with the ferries you rode.

This is news to me and a bit surprising. As far as I know there aren't any Norwegian credit cards. We have combination debit/ credit cards that will debit if the store is connected and credit if say you use the card abroad or the stores connection is down. VISA is the most common card here.

Sorry, but that's bullshit. The cops may take your license, but they won't take your vehicle. Also, you never pay fines in cash as the ticket is issued on the spot and the money is paid to norwgian customs, not the police. Here is all you need to know on that subject

There is no such thing as "free" in Norway. I payed road tax upon entry to the country, multiple tunnel fees and once I got to pay for crossing a bridge I never crossed.

I'm sure there are Norwegian banks, and that they issue creditcards.

The same happened in Finland, most of the self serve gas pumps wouldn't accept any of my three different creditcards, VISA, Masters and Diners - but if I just waited for a friendly Fin, I payed him in cash - and he used his creditcard.

Wether or not it's bullshit that the police tok his bike, then this guy and the police must have bullshitted me all the way into Oslo - where he payed up and got his bike - and a friendly advice to leave the country. He'd managed to get nicked 4(!) times within a fortnight. I guess it's a side effect of riding a Suzuki B-King.

Funkster · 05-28-2012, 09:09 AM

While I'm here, can anyone tell me whether I'm allowed to bring (disposable) canisters of butane gas for the camping stove? I can't find any mention of it on VisitNorway's customs page, but it seems like the sort of thing border security would get twitchy about.

We were also thinking about bringing some of the more costly food items (meat mainly) to get us through the first few days' camping, but the customs page says it needs to have a health certificate! Not sure my butcher would be able to provide one of those :o/

Cheers,
--
Olly

eejespersen · 05-28-2012, 10:19 AM

Not that I'd recommend you to do anything illegal, but:
I don't know about customs at the ferry from Denmark, but I've never seen any customs passing the borders in Scandinavia inland - I did see booths saying customs, but nobody was there. I didn't had any GPS, there where times when I had serious doubts wether I was in Sweden or Norway. But you'll find that Norwegian road signs are white with red borders, and Swedish are high-vis yellow with (i think) red borders.

I'm not telling you what to do, but if you drove counterclockwise, you'd see straight dull roads from Denmark-Stockholm-borderlands Norway/Sweden - and then the fun starts with twisted roads and scenic drives - in Norway.
I might be a little biased, since I live in South Sweden, consider that as well.

05-19-2012, 09:14 AM	#1
Funkster ^OP Adventurer Joined: Feb 2008 Location: Midlands, UK Oddometer: 35	Touring Denmark / Norway / Sweden summer 2012, hints and tips appreciated! Hallo all, Hope this is the right place for this. Some friends and I are going on a whistle-stop tour of Denmark, Norway and Sweden this summer (you'll have to excuse my paranoia, don't like posting dates on a public forum - PM me if you'd like to know exactly when we'll be where). Two of us on bikes, three in a... er... you know, one of those things with four wheels. I'll post up the background to the trip when I do a ride report (assuming we don't get eaten by a bear), but for now I'm looking for some hints and tips from ADVriders local to the areas we'll be passing! First though, a picture. Everyone likes a picture. Here's my trusty steed, a 1994 Honda Dominator in particularly stylish colours: And here's a rough overview of the route we're planning to take (the loop runs clockwise): In all it's about 3300km (not counting riding to the ferry in the UK), and we're planning on doing this spread over 13 days' riding with a couple of rest days. We're hoping to do quite a bit of camping in Norway to keep costs down, mainly in campsites (any recommendations gratefully received) but does Norway have the same rules on wild camping as Sweden? Will no doubt post more questions later but wanted to get this up and see if anyone chimes in with questions about our sanity first... Cheers! -- Olly

05-20-2012, 03:02 PM	#3
Dazed Productions Gnarly Adventurer Joined: Nov 2010 Oddometer: 188	I did a not dissimilar trip last year but in Sweden I stuck to gravel roads (I was on a 525 EXC with SM tires) and I stuck closer to the west coast in Sweden until after gotteburg and then crossed over to the east above the big lake. I did some wild camping but in Sweden I found that they tended to fence off a lot and it was difficult to find pitches. It was easier in Norway but in Norway there are a lot more bikers and it is worth staying in a campsite to get recommendations from other bikers! Norway is a lot more expesive than Sweden! Sweden has few hilly bits and is mainly flat but if you want to ride gravel its great. Norway is much more tarmac but the roads are awesome. A supermoto was a great bike to take although I had to do a lot of oil changes etc. I did the ferry to denmark on the way out but on the way back I found the Norway-denmark and Denmark-UK ferry to be out of sync so I did Norway-Denmark and then rode to Hook of Holland. __________________ www.dazedproductions.co.uk

05-21-2012, 09:34 AM	#6
pip_muenster curious Joined: Jan 2010 Location: Germany Oddometer: 301	This might be on your route, if you want to party with 100,000+ others ... (July 5-8) http://roskilde-festival.dk/uk/music/bands/ __________________ Reports: Nordkapp - Mt. St. Helen - Black Sea - Iceland - Morocco (new!)

05-21-2012, 01:58 PM	#8
pip_muenster curious Joined: Jan 2010 Location: Germany Oddometer: 301	One more: The island Rømø some 20mi south of Esbjerg is famous as you can legally drive/ride on the beach. There's also a camp ground nearby. Maybe a nice idea if you've got some time to spare before catching the ferry back ... __________________ Reports: Nordkapp - Mt. St. Helen - Black Sea - Iceland - Morocco (new!)

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05-21-2012, 01:40 AM	#4
Funkster ^OP Adventurer Joined: Feb 2008 Location: Midlands, UK Oddometer: 35	Excellent, thanks both for your input. I'm definitely going to seek out some gravel roads, even if it means leaving the rest of the pack for a few miles (the other biker is on an FZ6, and the car is just a car). Hopefully I can find some gravel along the way that's a shortcut! The west coast of Norway looks like it'll be spectacular whatever we do, so it's probably the ride from Kristiansund to Stockholm that I could do with some pointers on. Are we likely to find some Hytte (I have no idea how that's supposed to be pronounced) along the way? Given the altitude there we'll probably not want to camp. Current plan has 3 days to do that particular stretch, so I guess we're looking for somewhere to stay just before the Norway / Sweden border on the first leg. Perhaps close to Femunden? Any pointers on a good / scenic route from (Femunden or wherever we stop) to Stockholm would be appreciated - the route in the map above is just what google suggested so I'm guessing it's fairly main roads / motorways. Tak / takk / tack! -- Olly

05-21-2012, 05:39 AM	#5
andershz Custom User Title Joined: Aug 2009 Location: Sweden Oddometer: 34	It looks like Google has chosen the E4 from Stockholm to Helsingborg, (makes sense since it's the fastest route). It is also incredibly boring, so unless you're in an extreme hurry I'd advise to stay away from it. Depending on how long time you have I can suggest much nicer routes, at least down to Jönköping.

05-27-2012, 01:06 PM	#10
eejespersen n00b Joined: May 2012 Location: Scania, Sweden Oddometer: 7	I did South Sweden - Oslo - Nordkap - Helsinki - Åland Islands - Stockholm last year. I think it was 3 weeks +/- a few days. Norway has great roads, great scenery, great road taxes and not so great ferrys. Be prepared that some, and very randomly some, shops and gas stations only accept creditcards issued in Norway. Stock up on any alcohol you might want to consume from home. You should seriously consider driving a bit further up north and drive the Atlantic Road. Watch out for the wildlife. Last year was lemming year, so I had to scrape out some lemmings of the wheels and one made it to the oil cooler. No damage though. Bring some fishing gear if you like to catch and kill what you eat. Norwegians are the most law abiding people on the planet. Nobody is speeding and nobody wants to overtake if there is a full line on the road. I saw the police confiscate the bike of a Brit, because he'd been speeding and hadn't the cash to pay up. PM me if you have any quarrels enroute in South Sweden, I live on your route.

05-28-2012, 08:23 AM	#12
Funkster ^OP Adventurer Joined: Feb 2008 Location: Midlands, UK Oddometer: 35	I think even if they don't impound your vehicle, I'll be doing my best to keep within the speed limits - I don't fancy getting stung with a €480 fine! Are there any special rules/laws for overtaking? (in the UK there is said to be no speed limit while you are on the outside of a car that you are passing, although obviously you still have to be driving/riding safely). Definitely going to include the atlantic road, that looks spectacular! Not sure what time of day we'll be getting to that area, but since the days are pretty long that far north I guess it doesn't matter too much :o) Thanks again! -- Olly

05-28-2012, 09:09 AM	#14
Funkster ^OP Adventurer Joined: Feb 2008 Location: Midlands, UK Oddometer: 35	While I'm here, can anyone tell me whether I'm allowed to bring (disposable) canisters of butane gas for the camping stove? I can't find any mention of it on VisitNorway's customs page, but it seems like the sort of thing border security would get twitchy about. We were also thinking about bringing some of the more costly food items (meat mainly) to get us through the first few days' camping, but the customs page says it needs to have a health certificate! Not sure my butcher would be able to provide one of those :o/ Cheers, -- Olly

05-28-2012, 10:19 AM	#15
eejespersen n00b Joined: May 2012 Location: Scania, Sweden Oddometer: 7	Not that I'd recommend you to do anything illegal, but: I don't know about customs at the ferry from Denmark, but I've never seen any customs passing the borders in Scandinavia inland - I did see booths saying customs, but nobody was there. I didn't had any GPS, there where times when I had serious doubts wether I was in Sweden or Norway. But you'll find that Norwegian road signs are white with red borders, and Swedish are high-vis yellow with (i think) red borders. I'm not telling you what to do, but if you drove counterclockwise, you'd see straight dull roads from Denmark-Stockholm-borderlands Norway/Sweden - and then the fun starts with twisted roads and scenic drives - in Norway. I might be a little biased, since I live in South Sweden, consider that as well.