Hey!
Welcome to Day 12 of my Arctic Ride blog. I've been on the road so long now I'm forgetting the week days and the day numbers of my trip!
I arrived in Alta about 7pm and set up camp for the night next to a fjord with some Dutch and German bikers next to me. It's obvious I'm getting close to Nordkapp as the number of tourists is rocketing and campsites are getting full.
This morning, with a heavy heart, I said goodbye to the amazing city of Tromsø (don't worry, I'll be back), and my hosts and new friends.
It was great to get back on the bike after a rest day and I felt fully refreshed. Making use of the local knowledge, Geir suggested I take the scenic route East via the Lyngen Alps, and my it was worth the detour. Geir and Anniken road the first 30 miles with me to my first (quick) ferry, which was great fun.
I then spent the next few hours riding and stoping frequently in awe of the high mountains which were simply stunning.
As I carried onto Alta I passed what seemed like a limitless amount of waterfalls and rivers, created by the melting ice from all the mountains. There were a few times again when I ride so close to these waterfalls that my face got wet!
However my progress was hampered by 2 of the 'R's in my title. Firstly it seems that the whole of the main E6 route is currently being revamped. I stopped at no fewer that 5 different roadworks, some if which lasted up to 10 minutes waiting. All of which were followed by riding through gravel, puddles, as sometime oil... NOT fun on a bike.
Secondly my progress was slowed by the reindeer. To be fair I'm now riding through Finnmark which is reindeer country but my oh my these little buggers are random. They run into the road on all directions and on the bike I had to slow to almost a crawl to ensure I didn't hit them which would have been bad for both of us. At one point, one ran into the road from nowhere and I'm not sure how I didn't hit it (gopro footage to follow) I think my heart is still in my mouth!
But this is all a learning curve and highlights some of the dangers of this ride!
Tomorrow I head for Nordkapp, the aim of my trip. I'm not sure how I feel to be honest. On one hand I'm SO excited to get there and achieve my aim but at the same time, after 14 months of planning and not making it here 3 years ago... I'm not sure what will fill that gap in my motorcycle brain after I've done it. A lot of my ride today I was feeling down as Nordkapp has been 'my' destination for the best part for 4 years now and, hopefully, tomorrow I'll have achived it.
But I've still got lots more riding to come after that and the small matter of 3,000 miles back home to my wife :)
Hopefully they will have wifi tomorrow at Nordkapp so I can do some social media updates.
Thanks to all for your support!
Ride safe,
Gordon