Polar Challenge Blog

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.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 24th, 2008 at 07:08 pm and is filed under The Journey. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.