Monthly Archives: June 2015

07 June 2015 – Hamburg and St Pauli, a day off

Well, almost a day off, I did a bit of cycling (28km), some to get to St. Pauli and the hostel where I was staying, and then a quick sightseeing tour of the city. Routes and stats below:

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/799081745

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/799081879

After a somewhat restless night I had a bit of a lie in, I didn’t have far to go after all, but was still up and ready to go by about 10.00. Yannick, who I’d met the day before, pedalled off on his way to Puttgarden, to get the ferry over to Denmark; one of the routes I’d considered, but from the other direction.

Yannick – off to Denmark and then Sweden to Norway

Good luck with your tour Yannick; hope the new saddle works and your leg improves. Nice to know I’m not the only one who encounters bike issues that can have knock on effects.

It was only a short ride into Hamburg centrum, and pretty straightforward in comparison to some cities (mostly British ones). After riding past an Ikea, who’d have thought it, I passed the Specialised bike shop Yannick had mentioned yesterday, where I’d hoped I might be able to get new inner tubes and fix my stand. Unfortunately like most shops in Hamburg/Germany it was closed on a Sunday; cool Fat Bike in the window though.

An Ikea in Hamburg, what a surprise…

It’s actually quite refreshing to see shops closed on a Sunday, and a city calm down a bit. I know for a lot of people it’s very convenient to be able to shop on a Sunday, especially if you work the rest of the week. Still think it would be nice if everyone could have Sunday off, and give everything a rest; restaurants, cafes and pubs aside, need them to stay open for calorie loading purposes!

Specialised bike shop, closed unfortunately, but cool fat bike

I made it down to the River Elbe, and realised I’d forgotten to take a photo of the online map showing the location of my hostel.

Made it into Hamburg unscathed

I didn’t want to use any more data roaming, after clocking up a rather large unintentional bill, so went to the tourist information office instead and got a free local map. Not sure if I’ve already mentioned the rather unexpected bill I got from Vodafone, however I thought I could use the free data test drive I’m on, which gives me unlimited data until later this month, in Europe with the £3 a day Eurotraveller deal. Unfortunately it turns out I can’t, and that the £3 a day deal only applies to the 3GB standard data I get each month; I really wish they’d told me this in the shop when I said I’d be going to Europe for 6 months. Needless to say the resulting bill is a lot more than my standard £19 a month, but I’ll just have to put it down to experience and move on. I did talk to a Vodafone rep about it online, and they gave me an extra 2GB of data for this month, but wouldn’t refund what I’d already been charged for because apparently it says the test drive isn’t included somewhere on their website.

Anyway, back to Hamburg; loads of bikes around again, including lots for hire like the ones below.

Lots of Boris Bike equivalents on offer, and red too, good choice

As is normal with all the European towns and cities I’ve been through so far on this tour, you can cycle on most pavements, with a lane allotted to you, and you have right of way most of the time. Really very impressed with cycling in towns in Scandinavia and Germany; good signs most of the time too.

Using the map from Tourist Info I located the street the Backpackers Hostel is on, in the St. Pauli area of Hamburg, and slowly made my way there after checking out a bit of the waterfront and Fish Market. I also rode down the Reeperbahn, Hamburg’s Sinful Mile, centre of a lot of the city’s nightlife and Red Light District; maybe Europe’s most famous Red Light District.

Reeperbahn means Rope Walk, as it’s where the cities ropes used to be made in the 17th and 18th centuries. Close to the river I expect all the sailors used to pile into the Reeperbahn to spend their money after being at sea for ages, and hence the entertainment area took shape. It’s really quite a bizarre place with theatres, restaurants, a big market and bars, intermingled with sex shops, strip joints, and McDonalds, as well as Currywurst stalls! I also noticed a lot of people living on the street, quite literally, a theme repeated throughout much of Hamburg, which is a big contrast to the obvious wealth of the city, with a lot of millionaires living here.

The Backpackers hostel is on the side streets of St Pauli, in a quiet area. Upon arrival I was greeted by Tanya, who manages the joint and is very friendly and helpful. I couldn’t check in until 15.00, so relaxed for couple of hours enjoying a local beer, Astra, in the sunshine. Beer in Germany is so much cheaper than Scandinavia, where I didn’t really drink, and Astra is excellent at €2 or less a bottle. I also got talking to Alex, who was staying at the hostel and offered to show me around later. He’s a veteran of Hamburg having lived here for several months a few years back, and is passionate about the city. He was just visiting for the weekend this time around, and recommended a local kebab shop, so after checking in I nipped out to get some food, being forever hungry as usual.

Mr Kebab – a most excellent Turkish purveyor of quality foodstuffs

The Kebab was excellent, probably the best Doner I’ve ever had; delicious lamb surrounded by crisp bread, with salad and a yoghurt based sauce, all for €4. Whilst enjoying it I had a walk around the back streets of St Pauli.

Best Doner Kebab I think I’ve ever had

There are a lot of Turkish immigrants in the city, many having moved here after the Second World War; I think they helped rebuild Hamburg after much of it was destroyed by the RAF and USAF. I read that in one operation called Gomorrah, the RAF and their US counterparts bombed Hamburg with incendiaries, creating firestorm that killed over 40,000 civilians and practically destroyed the city. It felt a bit odd wandering through the narrow streets, years after those terrible times, thinking about such things and what it would have been like in war-time.

It’s a very relaxed area now, especially in the sunshine, and has a very Bohemian atmosphere to it. There’s a lot of graffiti too, and not all of it good. People were sitting out in cafes, or just on the pavement, chatting and drinking coffee or cold beer.

St Pauli wall art

Post Kebab I had a bit of a rest, then went out for a cycle around the city, heading to the centre and some of the parks. As well as the impressive looking town hall the parks were lovely, along with the lakes and waterways. Tourists abounded, as did street performers, expensive cars, and as mentioned before homeless people.

: Hamburg Rathaus – town hall

: Hamburg Rathaus – town hall 2

: Hamburg Centre – lots of waterways

: Hamburg Street performers 1

: Hamburg central lake – Binnenalster I think

: Binnenalster from other direction

: Smaug and Lobster in Hamburg

: Hamburg Centrum

: Rathaus through an arch

: Rathaus 3

: Hamburg Street performers 2

: One of Hamburg’s many parks

: One of Hamburg’s many parks – many people lounging in sunshine

Being on a bike I could see a lot of Hamburg quite quickly, so was back at the Hostel in an hour and a half, in time for a quick shower then to meet up with Alex to head out for a few beers.

Alex proved an excellent guide, his passion for Hamburg coming across as he walked me around St Pauli and down to the waterfront. He showed me the house where the Beatles lived at a point quite early on in their careers, when they were resident in the city for quite some time. I think Hamburg proved quite a formative experience in shaping the band and their music.

Beatles house – plaque showing they live here

If you didn’t have someone to show you, you probably wouldn’t find this vine shrouded doorway, and know this world-famous band once lived here; as always local knowledge is much better than any guidebook in getting to know a place.

Beatles house 2

We also walked past the Kaiserkeller, where the Beatles used to play, including at least one gig that went on for 12 hours. I think they played one show here with toilet seats around their heads for some reason.

Kaiserkeller – venue where Beatles used to play

Typical Reeperbahn side street

From a cultural point of view I guess no visit to Hamburg would be complete without a wander through the Red Light District, a slightly odd experience having not encountered anything quite like it before.

Reeperbahn Red Light District – this street is closed to under 18’s and women, unless the women work there

We walked through fairly swiftly, ignoring the invitations from various ‘shop’ windows and their employees!

Waterfront – the Elbe

After a walk along the waterfront we headed back into St Pauli for a few beers, and a Curryvurst. An excellent evening was had taking in a few different bars, one of them very English (the London Pub), and chatting about travelling, life, the universe and everything.

: Currywurst – brilliant invention

: More Union Jacks here than you see in most of the UK

: London Pub, St Pauli

Alex also introduced me to a few of the local spirits/shots including one called Mexicana, which is like a Bloody Mary but with chilli, and different degrees of chilli depending on the bar; it was lovely. Here are a couple of others I tried, both warming.

Kuemmerling

Underberg

Feeling decidedly merry we headed back to the hostel, stopping for another kebab on the way, just cos they’re so good here; I did mention I’m always hungry when cycle touring didn’t I?! It was nice to chill out with a few of the other residents in the common room; a few Australians over visiting Europe with their guitars, and one guy who works for VSO and has just got back after several months in Malaysia and China. Hostels are great places to meet up with diverse and interesting people, and to find out about new places you then add to your list of destinations you want to visit someday.

So a late night, but a great night, and many thanks to Alex for hosting it and bringing the city to life. Back to cycling posts tomorrow.

05 & 06 June 2015 – to Bad Bramstedt and Hamburg

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After an entertaining evening with Claudio, Larissa, Alex and Romulus I had a bit of a late start on 05 June, and still half asleep I left my shampoo in the campsite shower; won’t be the last time. I think there’s something karmic about leaving shampoo in campsite showers, as generally you find someone else has done the same at one of your subsequent campsites, and you can use that instead.

Morning in Jarplund; Stuttgart crew heading off to Flensburg

Claudio headed off early to get to a nearby garage for a tyre change before Iceland, and the others pedalled into Flensburg for a day’s sightseeing. It was good to meet them all, and probably marks the start of running into more tourers at campsites now I’m further South, and the touring season has started in earnest.

Sunny day in Jarplund – thumbs up to meeting more folks on the road

I set off about 10.00, and had a great day’s riding down to Bad Bramstedt, most of it on cycle paths, or pavement doubling as cycle paths that run next to the road. I covered 119km in 6 hours and 45 minutes of pedalling, but was on the road for quite a bit longer than that due to a puncture repair session. Here’s a link to my route and stats for 05 June:

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/794919245

The only drawback of riding on some of the marked cycle paths, especially in the towns, is they’re a bit juddery, and can be stop/starty due to junctions, so I have to admit I didn’t use them all the time as it made progress too slow and increased discomfort in various body parts.

My route took me down to Schleswig, and on through gorgeous countryside, often lovely woodland; a lot of it Beech which is my favourite.

Riding through Beech woodland

It was the hottest day of my tour yet, and the first time I’ve worn only one layer; just my Icebreaker top, plus my lightweight buff under my cycle helmet to stop sunburn on receding spots and the back of my neck.

Schleswig waterfront

Close to Dannewerk I decided to follow a cycle route that pointed in the right direction, disappearing into farmland. I was a little dubious as to what the route would turn into, after yesterday’s experiences on Route 8, but thought I’d give it a go.

Pedalling through farmland following a marked cycle route

It started off well enough but deteriorated into a farm track, which the bike coped with fine, but it knocked me about a bit; no suspension!

Cycle route turns expedition like near Dannewerk

I think there must be an airbase near Dannewerk, as I’m pretty sure that’s what I passed at one point. I also passed a lot of wind turbines, doing their bit to help save the environment. I hope they checked the areas for bats, as wind turbines can have unfortunate effects on these delicate creatures due to the air pressure changes they create; causes bats to haemorrhage. Nearly everything humankind does has some sort of adverse impact on another species, even if we think we’re doing right; wind turbines can screw with bats and birds, tidal power with whales and dolphins. It’s a bit depressing really however I guess it’s a case of choosing the lesser of evils; got to be better than fossil fuelled power-stations.

Pedalling past lots of wind turbines

I reached the 60km mark and noticed my front tyre was going flat. This was slightly vexing, but on such a fine day it was going to take a lot to annoy me. And besides, I was able to stop next to the village bakery/ice-cream shop so it wasn’t all bad.

Puncture repair in Hohn, Lobster claiming he’s trying to help but pincers make it awkward

On examining the inner tube the last patch had come loose, maybe due to a combination of hot weather and friction. I tried to patch it but it wouldn’t take for some reason; I might’ve rushed it. I stopped for an ice-cream break to consider my next course of action.

Ice-cream break in Hohn

Whilst mulling things over, and trying to keep Lobster away from MY ice-cream, a friendly local pointed me in the direction of a bike shop a few hundred metres down the road. Great I thought, I can just get a new inner tube. Unfortunately they didn’t have an inner tube in the right size, which is an issue I’ve previously had on this tour, however I dug out an old one I’d repaired from my panniers and put that on instead. It’s still going over 100m later so the repair job seems to have been a good one, touch wood. I’ll definitely be buying a few spares in Hamburg.

After a protracted break I got back to it and rode to the Nord Ostee Kanal, which I had to cross via a car ferry; only a short jaunt across the canal.

: Transport across the Nord Ostsee Kanal

: Smaug on board the ferry

: Crossing in progress

: Nord Ostsee Kanal

: Crossing the Kanal – superb weather for it

I still had quite a way to go to get down to Bad Bramstedt, so after the canal tried to speed up a bit, making good progress, aside from on the cobbled bits.

German roads often cobbled through villages

Riding along wooded roads very pleasant and shaded

I arrived at Campingplatz Rolande in Bad Bramstedt a little later than anticipated, but reception was still open; I think the owner lives on site as he was wandering about doing stuff for most of the evening, including trying to speak to me in German which whilst appreciated wasn’t very successful as far as a two-way conversation goes.

The Campingplatz Rolande is a little small and quite noisy, but did the job for me after a fairly long and hot day in the saddle. The owner was able to supply me with a couple of cold beers which went down a treat.

Cold beer always brings a smile to my face

Note – beard still present, decision still pending on its fate.

I passed quite a lot of other cycle tourers today, including one guy looking very relaxed on a recumbent. I noticed a lot of them seemed to be around retirement age, or older. I guess people have more time on their hands for touring once they’re retired, however I wonder if this was just today’s sample or if the trend will continue; great to see people travelling by bike well into their sixties and possibly seventies though.

I spent the rest of the evening trying to decide what to do next, settling on a short leg tomorrow to a campsite just on the outskirts of Hamburg, followed by a hostel for one night on Sunday. This will allow me to see a bit of the city, whilst not getting trapped there for too long, and it’ll save on money too; hostels are expensive on Saturday nights. It’ll also give me a chance to do some laundry! I need to think about getting Smaug serviced, as I’m pretty sure he’ll need a new chain soon, and maybe a new rear cassette, and the stand needs tightening; don’t have the right allen key and too wobbly to use at present.

Top tip: If there a flying bugs in your tent, and I had quite a lot mine, shine your torch into the porch area to lure them out, then shut the door quickly; worked well for me.

Luring the bugs out of my tent via head torch

–> 06 June 2015

I had a rather broken night’s sleep, partly due to passing traffic which proved pretty noisy, but also due to the massive thunderstorm that struck about 03.00. I didn’t get out of my tent to watch, as I could quite happily see the lightning flashing from inside, followed by thunder and heavy rain. Thankfully I stayed dry again, and it probably explained all the thunder flies around earlier.

Today’s ride was just a short 38km down to the outskirts of Hamburg, which only took around 2 and half hours, at a pretty slow pace. Here’s a link to the route and stats:

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/795595199

Not a lot to report from the ride. I did go around some road closed signs at one point, and just carried on to the next bit; they were resurfacing, but no-one was working on Saturday, and it was fine to cross the short stretch by bike.

Road closed – thou shalt not pass, unless you’re on a bike

I made it down to the Knaus Campingpark in Hamburg just before midday, and checked in. To my surprise there was another cycle tourer with a Hilleburg Akto Tent right next to my spot. Yannick is from Belgium and currently touring up to Norway. It as great to meet up and chat about routes, bikes and share a few stories.

Another tourer with a Hilleburg Akto

As the day progressed 3 more cycle tourers turned up, however I’ve only spoken to them briefly so far as I’ve been busy doing laundry, and a bit of bike cleaning/maintenance. One couple are on their way up to Sweden for some island hopping, so we shared a few route suggestions.

Laundry dome and drying; feeling accomplished

I’ve also discovered that, at least so far, MasterCard isn’t so widely accepted in Germany. This proved a problem whilst trying to get supplies in an Aldi earlier. I ended up having to take some cash out on my debit card, which’ll cost a lot more than using my Prepaid Travel card; something I’ll have to prepare for in Germany, however I reckon l be able to use it more easily in the centre of Hamburg.

That’s all for today. Blog now up-to-date. Tomorrow I head into Hamburg for some sightseeing, but also to visit a bike shop or two to top-up on inner tubes and get a couple of things fixed.

04 June 2015 – willkommen in Deutschland

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I woke up and listened; only a faint rustling of the tent canvas, the wind had dropped, and it was sunny! Could this be the glorious day’s cycling I’d been waiting for?

Morning in Svendborg – glorious day

Feeling buoyed by the thought that today was going to be a good’un, and with a new country in my sights, I was up, breakfasted and packed in good time. The campsite cat brought me a present, a mouse wrapped in leaves, which was a bit odd, and then ducks started following me around.

Stalked by Mallards

When the goats in the mini zoo started bleating I started to wonder if I’d developed Dr Doolittle traits overnight, or maybe this was all a dream and I was in fact still asleep, and it wasn’t such a nice day after all. Not wanting to consider the latter a possibility I got on the road quick.

Svendborg Sund Camping morning view 2

There were plenty of people up early, paddling in canoes, or sailing in small yachts down the narrow stretch of water between the campsite and Svendborg. It all felt very relaxed and holiday like.

Goodbye Mallard

I rode over the bridge to Svendborg and then turned left, following nice cycle paths alongside the road to Faaborg. The scenery was more varied and interesting than yesterday, with a few hills thrown in for good measure.

: View from Svendborg Bridge

: Svendborg Bridge panorama

: Pedalling through Danish countryside

: Windmill on the way to Faaborg

: Descent to Bojden – ferry awaits

: Arrived in the nick of time for the ferry

It was so nice to be cycling without a headwind. I hardly looked at my Odometer, and could just relax and enjoy the sunshine and countryside. Before long I reached Bojden, just as the ferry arrived from Fynshav; a short 10km crossing to Als and Jutland.

: Ferry to Fynshav

: Smaug looking cool next to motorbike

: Off to Als, then Jutland

: Leaving Bojden

: Happy days! No wind

: Ferry – looking back to Bojden

: Ferry panorama – on way to Fynshav

: On board ferry – everyone out in the sunshine

After enjoying a hot chocolate and pastry on the ferry I pedalled on from Fynshav to Sonderborg, which didn’t seem to take very long, arriving in time for lunch. I walked through the town stopping to buy a hotdog from one of the many purveyors of such fine foodstuffs.

Sonderborg and first hotdog of the day

Hotdogs in Denmark appear to be very popular, with several different varieties. I preferred the Ristet, which comes inside a bun and is topped with pickled cucumber, crispy onions, mustard, ketchup, and remoulade.

Lots of people out in cafes in Sonderborg

Needing to use up my Danish Krone and I decided I’d eat my way through the rest of Denmark, and had another Ristet for good measure; I’ve been losing too much weight anyway, at least that was my excuse.

Sonderborg waterfront

I paused on the bridge out of Sonderborg, hoping that the folks at home might be able to see me on the webcam, but also to stop as the middle section was raised for a boat to come through. Unfortunately I couldn’t delay long as it was just too busy, and I’m not sure I timed it right for the webcam. I cycled on to Dybol, then turned South and crossed the small island before rejoining Jutland; lovely quiet roads and cycle paths again.

Marina – Egernsund

I followed the Route 8 cycle path a lot of the time, not out of any particular design, it was just going in the right direction. I was also having a day of being open to possibilities, so if I saw a cycle track or nice road that went the way I wanted it to, I took it. I rode down the side of Flensburger Ford, through a number of small towns. This is obviously quite a big tourist spot, and very beautiful, with some lovely yachts out on the water (when I win the lottery etc).

: Flensburger Fjord 1

: Flensburger Fjord 2

: Flensburger Fjord 3

: Ristet number 3

: Followed by a humongous icecream (Lobster helped)

: Flensburger Fjord 4

: Flensburger Fjord 5

After relaxing next to the Fjord for a bit, and of course taking on vital nourishment, I thought I’d better get on with the task at hand. I continued to follow Route 8, which decided to take me off-road and through the woods for a bit, as I got closer to the border with Germany.

Route 8 goes off road

It was slightly awkward cycling for a bit, and my bike developed an annoying squeak which I couldn’t identify the source of; it’s still doing occasionally now, a few days later, and I don’t know what’s causing it – I’d better investigate further in case it’s a problem that’s going to get worse.

Route 8 – the forest continues

I finally made it out of the trees, which had provided some welcome shade and smelt nice, and could see Germany across the bay. There was a beach and people swimming; in fact one cyclist arrived in the spot below and decided to go for a swim; I nearly joined them.

Route 8 – that’s Germany over there

In this case I resisted the temptation of a dip, as I needed to get through Flensburg, and carried on towards the border. I was keeping an eye out for customs officials as I’d seen a few signs suggesting they might patrol round here, but didn’t see any. In fact, when I got back on the road, I barely noticed crossing into Germany.

Beach just across the border in Germany

For some reason my Garmin decided to switch off at this point, so I had to restart it and my route tracking, hence there are two links to today’s ride; a total of 119km pedalled in 6 hours and 45 minutes:

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/793985036

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/793991399

I was in country number 6 of this tour! I rode on to Flensburg and walked through some of the city. Again there were a lot of tourists out and about, enjoying the sunshine and street cafes. Flensburg looks nice, with some lovely older parts to it.

: Flensburg – shoes a dangling

: A square in Flensburg

: Flensburg street

The cobbled streets were slightly jarring on my still wonky hand, and always make me worry about my wheels, however I made it through and cycled South the Jarplund, where the ACSI app on my phone told me there was a campsite. It was a bit of a maze getting out of Flensburg whilst trying to avoid the busier main roads, and stay on cycle paths. I made it to the campsite but had to go around the houses a bit to get there.

At the campsite I met up with 3 other cycle tourers from Stuttgart, as well as an Italian motorcyclist from Italy; Larissa, Romulus, Alex and Claudio. Claudio is on his way to Iceland, and will be getting the ferry with his motorbike from North Denmark; there are a limited number of ways of getting to Iceland by ferry. Larissa, Alex and Romulus were just finishing a week of touring around Northern Germany, and are heading home on Saturday; Romulus has done loads of cycle touring in the past though.

Campsite in Jarplund – fun evening with new friends

Needless to say a fun evening was had, with a few beers and lots of chat about Europe, travelling, politics, and the economy, to name but a few topics. Claudio cooked pasta for everyone which was most welcome; in fact he kept producing food from his motorbike panniers. Thanks Claudio! Hopefully I’ll meet up with the all somewhere on the road in the future.

One thing about a new country – you have to relearn things in the supermarkets; took me about twice as long to pick up supplies, however at least they still have mountains of Haribo still.

All in all, a splendid day!

03 June 2015 – a bridge too far?

02 June 2015 – spoke trauma and short leg to Vordingborg

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Okay, today was a bit crap, until the evening bit anyway. It started off alright, with no sign of rain, and a successful fix of the puncture in my front tyre, then I headed into town for 09.00 to see about getting my broken spoke fixed; tip of iceberg springs to mind.

Morning at Koge campsite – dry at the moment

Unfortunately I discovered the bike shop I’d pinpointed last night doesn’t open until 10.00, so in a fit efficiency I whizzed back to the campsite and packed up my stuff, so I could get straight on the road after maintenance was completed.

I liked this big Oak Tree

About 6 kilometres later I was back at the bike shop and checked-in Smaug, or at least his wheels, for a bit of TLC. The bike shop owner recommended a local cafe whilst he performed an initial diagnosis, so I headed there for my own bit of maintenance.

Smaug undergoing maintenance, so I thought I would too

The cafe did a very good Danish pastry and hot chocolate, and feeling things were moving in the right direction I ambled back to Garant Cykler to get on the road. It started to rain; not to worry I thought, it’ll only be a shower, the forecast said overcast but dry all afternoon. Hah!

Garant Cykler – great bike shop in Koge

The bike shop didn’t have the greatest news on Smaug’s wellbeing. Unfortunately the spoke issue was not contained to just one spoke. A few days ago the chain had slipped off the top rear cog, and had slid down in between the rear cassette and spokes. I’d extracted it but unbeknownst to me at the time, it had chewed up several of the spokes on the drive side. This meant they were also in danger of snapping and needed replacing. You can’t see this sort of damage unless you remove the rear cassette, which I don’t have the tool for. Thankfully the owner is also a proficient wheel builder, and did a great job of replacing the dodgy spokes and truing the wheel, despite being stacked up with other work. It took him quite a long time and one broken set of clippers to remove the compromised spokes, which due to being chewed up didn’t fit back through the spoke holes very well; tricky. Whilst he was doing this I mended the punctured inner tube I’d kept, for future use.

If you’re familiar with my Bike around Britain tour in 2013 you’ll perhaps know I had a lot of trouble with my back wheel and broken spokes then. It seems to be a feature of cycle touring, with so much weight on the bike, however hand-built wheel help with this, and I’d hoped having 26 inch wheels, which are stronger than their larger counterparts, would also assist in preventing issues. So I had a feeling of ‘oh no, not again’ building, with not a small amount of dread. I was therefore extremely happy when the owner presented me with the fixed wheel to put back on Smaug, and we then adjusted the gears to stop the chain slipping off again; I reckon the shifters got moved slightly out of alignment during the plane flight to Nordkapp, as I’d noticed a few things knocked out of kilter and tried to move them back into place.

Smaug fixed – thanks Garant Cykler

I was also going to pick up a couple of new inner tubes, just in case, however it appears Schrader valves are pretty rare in Denmark, where they go for Presta more. I’ll just have to fix any punctures I get before buying some new ones in Germany. I’ve still got one spare, even after another one blew up in the bike shop due to a weak spot. I bought up a couple of new tyre levers after breaking one this morning; getting Schwalbe Marathon Plus tyres on and off is hard work, and I’m not the best bike mechanic you’ve ever met, very amateur really.

Just realised my pump will fit either Schrader or Presta valves; reversible hose. So I could get Presta valve inner tubes.

If you’re cycle touring and pass through Koge, I’d recommend Garant Cykler if you need anything fixing or tweaking; good skills and really helpful. I really appreciated their assistance, and don’t know what I’d have done if the breakage had happened somewhere more remote; I’d have no doubt coped, and improvised something, but it would have been a much more painful experience.

I eventually got back on the road and started pedalling South, in the rain, at about 12.30, so quite a bit behind schedule for the day but not too worry, these things happen. It was wet and windy all the way to Vordingbord, so not a lot to report other than rain, spray, wind, and crankiness. I did get another puncture in my front tyre, which I fixed, however I’m developing a suspicion that the replacement Schwalbe tubes I’ve got aren’t as tough as the original Continental tourers I had on.

D’oh – yet another puncture

My no puncture stat from the other day definitely jinxed my run good luck on the wheel/tyre front, however hopefully that’ll be the last of them for a while; I don’t know why I say these things!

Break from the rain en-route to Vordingborg

For a while my morale really dipped on the ride down to Vordingbord. It was only 60km, but the incessant rain, coupled with the driving wind, really grinds you down after a while. After a break I enforced a change of mental state on myself, accepting the weather, putting a big smile on my face, and belting out a few songs; American Pie always a favourite. It always seems to work, you can either gradually spiral down to a meltdown, or pick yourself up and think positive. The weather certainly hadn’t got any better but my morale suddenly improved, although I probably confused a few people in the towns I passed through by smiling at waving at them.

Vordingbord achieved I decided that was far enough for the day, and checked-in to the Ore Strand campsite, still smiling; insanity can’t be ruled out.

Arrived at campsite in Vordingborg – still smiling

It’s a great little campsite, right next to the beach, with a good kitchen area I could sit in to get out of the wind; thankfully the rain had stopped. I nipped to Lidyl once I was set up, to resupply, then settled in for the evening, munching my way through a lot of pasta, salad, and snacks, as well as a glass of wine or two for medicinal purposes.

Haribo heaven – visit to Lidyl

I took a wander down to the beach, just to stretch my muscles after the short but arduous ride; bit damp but would be nice when the sun shines.

: Ore Strand beach 1

: Ore Strand beach panorama

: Ore Strand beach 2

: Ore Strand beach 3

There was meeting of the Ore Strand beach committee in the kitchen building that evening, which I kinda inadvertently gate-crashed by being there at the same time. I chatted to several of the locals, and got given a Danish pastry to top up my energy reserves; a good result. Really lovely people, interested in what I was doing, and they recommended I take the island hopping route rather that getting the ferry straight over to Germany, so I think I’ll do that.

Link to today’s route and stats, shortest leg for a while at 58km in about 3.5 hours:

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/792180933

The weather forecast doesn’t look great for tomorrow. It’s supposed to improve later in the week, so finger’s crossed. However, if one more person in Scandinavia shrugs and says ‘that’s Danish weather for you’, or insert Sweden or Norway to that statement, there may be violence. I’ve heard that in every country I’ve been through, including the UK, in response to changing weather and it not matching the forecast!

News just in; I’m in Svendborg tonight typing this up, and the campsite owner just told me there’s been 2m of snow in parts of Norway, which is really unusual for this time of year. The bad weather is supposed to continue for the next few days, so I’m glad I’m not there now, and hope no other cycle tourers are stuck in it.

01 June 2015 – København, Koge, and things that pop and ping

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To say it rained a bit last night would perhaps be regarded as an understatement. I awoke in the early hours of the morning to the thunderous roar of rain hitting my tent, and was somewhat alarmed I’d spring a leak, or get washed into the Oresund, however I’m happy to report I remained dry; another win for the Hilleberg Akto, now 3 years old but still going strong.

Smaug looks damp after torrential rain overnight

After the overnight rain at least there was sunshine in morning to dry off everything off, including a rather despondent looking Smaug. And for a change I didn’t have to pack my tent up wet! Today was also a new map day, always exciting; time to explore Denmark. I’m still wondering if I can get to Tarifa by 05 July, my birthday. It seems a bit of a stretch and might mean rushing things too much, but would be nice to celebrate my fortieth at the Southernmost point of Europe, or thereabouts.

New map day, always exciting

Got on the road about 09.30, pedalling out of the campsite past the small tent of the cycle tourer I met last night; no sign of life, I hope she didn’t drown. The tiredness I first felt wore off quickly as I rode towards Copenhagen (Kobenhavn – havn means port, but can see where the word haven comes from) in the sunshine. Even the wind seemed to die down a bit as I approached Denmark’s capital, on the island of Zealand.

Road to Copenhagen – sun’s out

I made it into the city centre after riding along lovely quiet cycle paths, to suddenly find myself immersed in masses of traffic and pedestrians, a bit of a shock to the system. Copenhagen also turned out to be somewhat of a building site, with development going on all over the place, including a new subway station right in the centre.

Copenhagen centre, flash hotel

I overheard a tour guide talking about the hotel in the above pic; I think she said One Direction stayed there recently, woohoo. Of more interest was the story about a Danish hero who attempted to assassinate Himmler when he was travelling back from Norway to Berlin during the Second World War; Denmark was occupied at the time. Unfortunately Himmler bypassed Copenhagen in the end, otherwise certain historical events might have turned out quite differently. I think tagging on to, or drifting between guided tours, might become a new hobby.

Copenhagen- canals

It was tricky to do much sightseeing with all the crowds and traffic, whilst laden with a heavy bike, so I didn’t end up delaying long in the city, instead pedalling slowly South West and stopping occasionally. I could have detoured to see the Little Mermaid statue, and Tivoli Gardens, however it would have been awkward and I wasn’t really in a sightseeing mood.

Copenhagen – bikes in abundance, bit of a building site though

True to what I’d read Copenhagen really is full of bicycles, they’re everywhere. It will be interesting to see how Amsterdam compares if I go that way (still not decided).

Copenhagen – cool cafe

Before I knew it I was out of Copenhagen, which I guess isn’t that large in comparison to other European capitals, and pedalling through suburbia. There’s not a lot to report from the ride down to Koge, it was fairly flat, straight, and boring. I did keep having to stop for traffic lights which was a bit tedious, and interrupts your rhythm. The cycle paths are good but I’m really noticing the increase in cars compared with Sweden.

I arrived in Koge after having to stop to pump up my rear tyre several times. After recording in my last blog post a puncture total of zero, I fear the tables have turned, and perhaps I have attracted the attention of Loki again. Luckily it was only a slow puncture so I was able to get to Koge campsite, book in, and get set up before addressing the issue.

Bike repairs – 1st puncture of tour

I mended the puncture successful, thankful of the dry weather, but noticed a more nefarious problem during my endeavours.

Found a bigger problem – broken spoke

Unfortunately a spoke had broken somewhere along the way; I thought I’d heard a distinctive ping earlier. It was on the rear drive side too, which I can’t fix as I don’t have a cassette removal device; maybe I should have bought a hyper cracker . Thankfully there are loads of bike shops in Koge, and the guy at reception recommended a couple for me to try in the morning, so I’d be able to get it sorted. There was no point in just suring up the surrounding spokes and carrying on, as it’d just get worse, more spokes would break, and I’d find myself really in the lurch.

Koge – nice house

One good thing; as I was fixing a puncture I changed my front and back tyres around, thus prolonging their lives with any luck. I felt quite chuffed to be following sage cycle touring advice successfully, however those Schwalbe Marathon Plus tyres aren’t half stiff to get on and off.

Koge central square

Bike maintenance partially completed I paused to chat to a couple of German cycle tourers who turned up towing trailers, on their way to Finland. They don’t like their trailers, and recounted how unstable they make the bike, meaning you can’t really stand up on the pedals or go fast down hills. I’ve often wondered about one myself but am quite glad now I didn’t go that direction, and will stick with my panniers.

After a shower, but still with slightly blackened hands (impossible to get them completely clean after maintenance session) I headed into town to grab some food, and ended up succumbing to temptation and eating out at the Cafe Vivaldi, in the town square.

Dinner at Cafe Vivaldi – Burrito boost

It was truly awesome burrito, with a nice beer on the side; portion size worthy of any cycle tourer, and with a salad too, so health bit covered. Post dinner and after a quick walk about I headed back to the campsite.

Cafe Vivaldi, Koge

Koge square – pretty flowers

Nice house again

Streets of Koge

On the way back I noticed my front tyre going flat, so I’d either pinched the inner tube when changing the tyres round earlier, or picked up new puncture somewhere; it turned out to be a small metal staple, but I didn’t fix it until the morning.

Here’s a link to today’s ride – route and stats, a slow 75km, taking 5 hours, best speed up soon;

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/791586108

Not sure on route for next few days. Could go direct to Germany by ferry from Rodby, or round the islands; will depend on the weather and if I want to get serious on challenge of getting to Tarifia for my birthday. I think I’d prefer the island route, as it’ll be nice to see a bit more of Denmark. I did try to work out the number of miles to Tarifa; think I’ve got about 2,000 left, or 4,500 to get to Istanbul, or 6,500 to get all the way round and back home. Should be doable in the 5 months I’ve got left, considering I’m already over 1,700 miles in under 1 month. I guess it also depends on any problems I have with the bike, which as I’d discover tomorrow should never be underestimated.

Self Propelled

Self propelled adventures through life; blogging on cycling, touring, micro-adventures, general shenanigans, and environmental news