Polar Challenge Blog

Well bright and early on Day 20 we caught the 25 hour ferry from Bergen across to Newcastle.  Thankfully the North Sea was exceptionally calm and Geoff and I had a rather nice little cabin with onsuite shower and toilet.  It was tiny but compared with the tent we have been living in for the last thre weeks it was like a 5 star hotel.  

We arrived back in the UK on Day 21 at about 11am and then started the 180 mile trip back to Tamworth.   We thought we would hit traffic jams galore but all the roads including the M1 were pretty clear and after stopping for fuel and some food, we made it back to Tamworth for about 3pm.  Mission Accomplished.  :o)

 Over the last 3 weeks we have clocked up around 5,500 miles and the only “snag” New Blue had was when the breather hole in the petrol cap got blocked and so Geoff drilled a 1/16th hole in the filler neck to allow the tank to breath.   In my eyes, New Blue has well and truly earn’t her stripes - she is a great little car.  She was faced with some tough obstacles along the way and came through faultless every time - especially in remote locations when we were literally miles and miles from any sort of help.  :o)

We really enjoyed the challenge though it’s great to be back home.   :o)

Elvis 

I’ve decided, Norway is like Blackpool in that it always rains. On Day 17, the rain was pouring down and not just in a dainty way but a soak you through in five seconds way. I decided to sit in the tent and surf the Internet though during a dry spell Geoff decided to go and climb a mountain to look at some waterfalls. He came back about 5 hours later exhausted and dripping wet with stories of huge waterfalls galore. His adventure sounded grand, though looking at him, I was glad I stayed in the tent.

On Day 18 we were up bright and early and drove the last 100 miles to Bergen. We decided to see where the ferry went from and driving through Bergen was a nightmare with all the roadworks, one way systems and dead ends. Mind you, the sight of a 3-wheeler pootling through the streets brought mass amusement to those looking on with people waving and taking photos. Since we started this trek, there hasn’t been a single day that New Blue hasn’t been photographed.

Once we found the ferry location, we then looked for a camp site and found one about 6 miles away and so we camped there. It’s amazing now how many British folks we are meeting as they all congregate ready to get the same ferry as us. It’s funny but the sight of a Reliant Robin just draws them in. Today the rain, as usual, hammered down all day.

Day 19 arrived and we discovered a large puddle had formed in the cooking area of the tent. The rain was exceptionally heavy last night so it’s found a way in somewhere. We decided to go into Bergen and do some sight seeing. The rain was still there but on occassions it would take a break and we’d have a 10 minute pocket of sunshine before the next bout of rain.

Parking in Bergen cost a fortune and we stayed for about 4 hours. Geoff had a go on a land train that tours the area whilst I wandered around taking photographs.

They say it’s a small world as back at the camp site we met a chap called Alan from the UK who used to build B.R.A 3-wheelers. He still has a 3-wheeler though has just come back from Russia on his motorbike and is catching the same ferry as us tomorrow. When he saw New Blue he wasn’t surprised in the least that it had completed the journey, he thinks Reliants are superb workhorses that just seem to go on and on. Having said that, the electric windows surprised him.

Dinner consisted of more Reindeer stew mixed with a few other bits and bobs. It must have been exceptionally filling as even Geoff left a bit. My only concern is the condition of the tent tomorrow morning as it also contained a tin of baked beans.

We are now packing up ready to get to the ferry at 7:30am tomorrow. This then takes us from Norway to the UK (Newcastle) and once back in the UK, the final leg of thr journey from Newcastle to Tamworth. By then, New Blue will have clocked up around 5,500 miles.

Elvis.

Well a lot happened to day we errrrrr,
OK we did almost nothing but chill. The rain has been almost non stop so we just walked to Spar to get some food and do a little picture taking then headed back to camp. I gave New Blue a check over but all was fine (It’s great that we have covered 4600 miles and I have used no water and no oil). The site we are on is well laid out even if it is expensive and our tent is right out side the Laundromat as they say here as well as the toilets and the kitchens so all is good. We are hoping that the rain will stop tomorrow so we can do some site seeing.
So after eating a nice healthy pizza we are once again just chilling.
Geoff

When we broke camp this morning the last thing we expected to encounter was the Artic, we thought we had done that when we crossed the Arctic Circle. For the first few miles things were fine and then suddenly in our view looming mountains covered in snow loomed in our direction.

We thought we had done all the tough stuff and that this was the easy way home but infront of us was the mother of all mountains and the AI Robot inside our Sat Nav was insisting we cross it to get to Bergen. So onwards we went, New Blue has climbed 8% and 10% incline so this would be easy, then we saw the sign … 16% climb. New Blue almost fainted and as she went through the gears the climb to the top seemed endless, we climbed and climbed and climbed. As we did the snow around us was getting deeper and in some parts was 10 feet thick. We couldn’t believe it and so had to stand next to it for a photo. Later on we saw snow about 15 feet thick and in some places the snow had been carved through to clear the road. When we reached the top of the mountain we thought all our woes were over.

The rain was now teaming down the wind howling and the roads no longer had barriers and driving around them with a sheer drop into a frozen lake was rather alarming, especially with the way large camper vans would hurtle towards you taking up all the road.

As we descended we saw another sign stating a 16% decline, and just to add spice, there were sharp hairpins galore as the road weaved its way down the mountain. The little brakes on New Blue struggled to stop the car and despite the conditions it wasn’t long before they started to smoke - quite literally. We pulled over to let the brakes cool down and with Ole Blue bursting into flames recently, the site of smoke from a Reliant alarmed me greatly though Geoff seemed quite cool about it. Once the car had cooled we continued our descent and due to the sharp hairpin bends had to keep applying the brakes and it wasn’t long before we could smell them cooking again. By the last hair pin the brake fluid must have been boiling as I put my foot on the brake peddle and it went straight to the floor. Luckily the descent levelled out and keeping the car in second - third gear saw it safely down.

The next few miles were rather pleasant straight roads with two ferry crossings. By the second the rain was absolutely torrential and all the spray had got into New Blue and it was starting to cough and splutter. Luckily Geoff had a can of damp start and whilst on the ferry crossing sprayed the engine and it had a complete new lease of life. The road then took us back on top of another mountain where the snow was just as deep though thankfully the declines were long gradual ones.

The scenery has been absolutely stunning, from lush forest with the most amazing water falls crashing down the rocks to frozen lakes. When we crossed the Artic circle it was nothing like this, today really did feel like the artic and we have decided that if you want a white knuckle ride, cross the mountains in Norway with smoking brakes.

We are now in a rather wet but pleasant camp site 30 miles from Bergen. Geoff is in the kitchen cooking diinner and I’m sitting her doing the update … :o)

We will stay here for a couple of days now and explore then for the last night camp in Bergen to get the ferry back to the UK.

Elvis.

Last night’s camp site at Skelleftea (Sweden) was one of the quietest and indeed nicest camp sites we have been to so far though whilst eating breakfast I clonked my head on the corner of the open tail gate. It isn’t the first time though this time whilst leaning forward to eat my boiled egg, blood starting to drip on the plate. I then discovered my head was leaking. Geoff rushed out with a first aid kit though all that was needed was lots of tissue paper to soak it up. I don’t think any brains oozed out.

Refueling at the garage next to the camp site we hit the road again and started knocking back the miles. Now we are solo, our cruising speed has jumped from 45 – 50mph to 60 – 65mph (70mph on the motorway) so we are flying along now.

As we headed through Sweden towards Norway the roads started to get worse again with huge pot holes and strange dips that would throw the Reliant in all directions, then came the torrential rain as well and at one point we managed to take a corner aqua planing sideways as there was so much water on the roads.

I think from bashing my head this morning and having to concentrate on driving so much with such appauling conditions led to one King sized headache and Geoff is also a wounded soldier after a flying beastie attacked him last night so he now has a lump on his head and hand.

At about 7:30am we were back in Norway having driven 520 miles today so we decided to call it a day and get to a camp site. Things were helped by entering a different time zone so we gained an hour extra. Geoff looked on the laptop to find the nearest camp site and we headed towards that though got slightly lost. Asking a local, he said it was to awkward to explain how to get there so he said, “Follow me” and jumped into his Volvo and led us there. It was about another mile further down the road.

Compared with last night’s camp site this one is a bit different as it looks like an old field converted, still has nice hot water though so no complaints. As they had no shop, Geoff went off to the shop whilst I put up the tent. He then came back with a large tin of something that looked suspiciously like Irish Stew though seemed to contain bits of Reindeer.

The Reliant (New Blue) is still creating great interest where ever we go and people are just literally stopping and stairing at it. We clocked up our 4,000th mile today since starting this journey and New Blue is still going strong. We wondered if the brake shoes were wearing a little thin today as at one point we braked and there was a strange griding sound. Upon inspection everything seems OK and the sound has now gone so we wondered if somehow a stone got in there.

Elvis

As we were going to a diffrent home point to the rest of the team we were parting company. So Elvis and I were up at 8 and showered then packed all our things up ready to leave for 9. We waited untill folks were up to say our goodbyes then a Sleeply Richard poped his head out of his tent and then Jeff did the same so we went over to say good buy and then Ivan got up so we said good buy to him as well. Rory was not up yet so we asked the others to say good buy for us.
We planed our route to go to Bergen and as it took us though Rovaniemi which is where Santa spends his summer we stopped by to say hello to the old boy.
We got there for 13:30 so went around his magic kindom (No pictures allowed poo) and there was a massive que to see him so we jumped ship and headed back out. Pete and Dee (Our stuff pigs) had there pictures taken and then we got back on the road again. Stopping only for fuel and a wee we were making real good progress as the sat nav was saying we had to cover 1700 kilometers.
This seemed a bit much in one day so after doing 450 miles we found Mossgatan Campsite which has wi-fi and headed there to set up camp. We got here for 19:00 so were real please with our progress for the day.
We are camped at Valkommen and the site is one of the best we have seen and the prices arn’t to bad, though you need the camping card which we tried to get before coming here but it never came. Still we have one now so it can be used to save some money from here to Bergen.
The high light of the day was we actuly seen some Moose OK it was only two and we could not stop to get a picture as we were on the motorway but seen them we did. That means on this trip we have seen Foxes, Sheep, Cats, Raindeers and Moose all in the wild the best way to see them.
The Sun is still shinning here even though we are now below the Artic Circle but it should soon start getting darker at night the further we drive we are now back in Sweden.

Geoff

Our last night at the North Cape was a rather wet and windy affair with rain all through the night. We awoke bright and early to the sound of a Bond Bug being started up as Richard left camp early to go into the town to have his radius arm welded as it had broken away from the chassis. Geoff and I left before everyone else to go into a local gift shop that was packed with a couch load of tourist all buying stuff that they really didn’t want or need buy just did so as it had a picture of the North Cape on it.

Our plan today was to take the “easy” route home by driving through Finland and down. As we arrived in Finland, Geoff and I were pulled over by Customs, they asked if we had anything to declair but I had a feeling that they just wanted to look at the car as they all came out to look. What they didn’t bank on was four Bond Bugs then stopping behind me as well. That really shocked them and the conversation then turned to one about the cars and asking wehere we had driven from. I say it every day but in Europe, the car, really is the star.
Being close to the Russian border we took a slight detour to see if they would let us in so that we could say they we had driven through Russia as well. As we pulled up to the border, we went inside and asked if we could go in, turn the car around and come back out again. “No” was the answer. We had all the necessary paper work but did not have a Russian visa and withoiut that they would not let us in. having said that, they were very friendly and all came out to look at the cars, including a chap with a labrador who no doubt was sniffing each car just incase we had anything dodgy on board. They let us take photos though that surprised me and as I turned New Blue around, I managed to get her nose under the barrier … so the front end was in Russia and the back end in Finland.

Passing into Finland also meant going into a new time zone so we are now two hours ahead rather than one.

The camp site today is set in the middle of the woods near a lake and is like a postcard, though there are lots lof little monsters flying about and trying to eat Geoff. I’m guessing they only like stale meat as I haven’t been bitten yet …

Elvis.

10 days of riding like demons throughout Europe were finalised today when we reached our goal – the North Cape. After a good nights sleep and even a bit of a sleep in we left camp at 11:30am and travelled the remaining 12 miles to the North Cape – the furthest point in Europe, or as they seem to say around here, the land of the midnight sun.

I was expecting the North Cape to just be a monument stuck on the edge of the world but it was quite touristy with a little museum, restaurant, video show and shop etc. Mind you the equivalent of £3.50 for a small bottle of water made me glad I wasn’t thirsty.

Reaching the monument, Geoff, Jeff, Rory, Ivan, Richard and I all cracked open a bottle of champagne that Ivan had smuggled in and had a celebratory drink for the camera. 2,800 miles is no mean feat, especially for the Bond Bugs as they are 35 – 38 years old.

We took a wander around and watched a superb video show that comprised of five large screens to give one large panaramic view of flying over the North Cape as well as under water. It only lasted about 5 minutes but it was superb.

As scenic as the place was, the wind was biting hard and so we jumped into New Blue and heading back to the local village taking a few snap shots of the reindeer and scenery as we did. Thankfully on the way back Geoff’s speed was curbed by a sheer drop at the side of the road by anything up to a thousand feet. Going over the edge of that I’m sure we would not have felt too healthy at the end.

Much to our surprise of the way back from the North Cape, we stopped at a layby to take some photos and when i looked up, suddenly there was a Mk 1 Reliant Robin parked next to us. I couldn’t believe it, after getting out of the car and saying hello it turned out to be vanfan from the r3w forum who had travelled from Holland. Whilst chatting coaches were pulling up so that the folks on board could take photos of our cars and one chap even came rushing across giving us all beer as he said the he also owned a Reliant back at home. Such friendly people Reliant folks.

The local village was like most other places, all closed with just a few shops open, even so we managed to find a local shop that quenched our rather unsavory appetite for junk food. It was then a photo tour around the island before coming back to camp and then all going out for a celebratory meal.

After I then phoned Caroline and proclaimed, “I miss you too much .. I’m coming home now!”

Elvis.

Today started bright and early as we had around 400 miles to do as today we were adamant that we would reach the North Cape. Starting off we visited the first garage to refuel (yet again) and carried on driving North. The further we get the greater the distance in between petrol stations.

We had to catch another ferry but unlike the day before we missed it by literally a minute or so and as a result had to wait and hour and a half for the next one, this took us across to the small islands at the top of Norway.

Having climbed a mountain with a 9% incline we then coasted for what seemed like miles and miles across the top with nothing as far as the eye could see except for barron land and snow. Everynow and then it was broken up with the odd shack her and there. The temperture wasn’t so bad but the wind chill went straight through you and took your breath away. Whilst driving through the bare wilderness we saw a lady pushing a pram, we slowed down thinking she might have broken down though she hadn’t. There was nothing behind her for miles and only a shack in front of her a few miles away. The people who live her are hardy folks.

As we drove at one point the road just vanished, quite literally. It seemed the road had ended and in place was a track made from boulders, stones and pot holes. The track went on for a few miles and as Jeff was towing a trailer all the pot holes eventually caused the main support bar on his towing bracket to snap. Luckily this was temporarily fixed with an old bit of tube that was found and two jubilee clips.

Stopping for a break it was then time to press on again and drive through more vast expanses of barron land and through a tunnel that went under the sea. Luckily in Norway we are getting away with paying motorcycle charges for our cars when ever there is a toll road charge.

The last stretch of the journey was onto the North Cape and heading towards the camp site that is just 12 miles away from the North Cape monument. The roads were long twisty roads with the odd house and reindeer with everywhere. As we travelled on the fuel gauage needle was getting lower and lower and I was starting to wonder if we would ever see a petrol station again, luckily, once we got to the camp site, there was a Shell garage, much to our relief.

We are now just 12 miles away from our goal. Tomorrow we shall complete the journey.

Elvis.

Day 9 and still no Internet access, but I’ve decided to carry on writing this blogs locally on my laptop. We had a lot of mileage to make up today so by 9am we were all ready and leaving the camp following the E6 through Norway. Over the past few days we have been climbing mountains but today we climbed the mother of all mountains. We have been cruising along at about 55mph until we hit a few mountains with gradients of up to 9%. The road meandered around the mountain and so there was no chance of picking up speed to help attack the climb. As we climbed the hill “New Blue” powered up as best she could and then it was into third gear and the speed slowed down to about 35 – 40 mph. Still the road continued to climb and there was nothing for it but to change into second gear. The revs hit 4,000 as the engine continued to pull us up the mountain and then we noticed that the temperature gauge had moved from just under half way to just over and then it started to climb higher. We decided to keep climbing but if the needle hit the white section above the “H” then we’d have to pull over and let the engine cool down. We didn’t want to risk overheating and blowing the head gasket at this point. The needle for a while stuck on ¾ and then finally we reached the top of the mountain and then had to face a 7% gradient going down. The car was now able to do 60 mph without any power from the engine at all and the temperature gauge soon dropped to just under where it should be.

Driving through a local village we pulled up for a rest and immediately the cars were surrounded by people, we soon discovered that if you live in Norway you can’t own a 3-wheeler so perhaps this is why they draw so much attention.

Back of the road again and we passed over the Artic Circle and so had to stop at the landmark they have there. Trampling through the snow we found lots of piles of rocks and stones which were soon discovered were “stone men”. People who visit, instead of making a snow man they build up a pile of stones, so we got a boulder, and made a stone Bond Bug … a boulder resting on three stones with a slab for the canopy. I also wrote www.3-wheelers.com on a stone and left it amongst others that had been signed.

Now we are in the Artic you would expect things to be colder and they were though the sun was still shining brightly and the roads were still as twisty as ever. As we followed the road we crossed over bridges galore and then had to catch a ferry. Our timing for that was superb. As we pulled up to the ferry it was boarding so we got straight on and off it went.

On the other side we stopped for lunch and whilst we all had things like burger and chips and pizza, Richard tried Reindeer steak. Apparently it taste like beef and looks like beef so I’m not sure how you can tell what it is.

As the night wore on we pulled into a camp site half way up a mountain. We are about 450 miles away from the North Cape now so we are wondering whether we can make it there tomorrow.

Elvis