Twilight Incel

Expectations for this morning were high. The ferry connections from Andenes towards Tromsø are described as being very busy. On September 4th is already the end of the season to get from Andenes to Gryllefjord by sea. Two ferries per day can transport around 40 vehicles each. So if that doesn't work this morning, the overland route of 470 km would be required. The evening before I had already seen two campers in waiting line 1 while walking. Today at 5:55 a.m. I was very excited. Breakfast, pack, saddle Hildegard and go. I'm 8th in line, phew. That should be enough. Wait almost two hours and then it starts. This time the motorcycle has to be lashed down because the ferry is heading out into the open sea. The crossing takes 1 hour 40 minutes in pleasant sea conditions. Yesterday I thought it would take longer.

Gryllefjord is already on the island of Senja. This island is - I have read - another scenic pearl in Norway. Unfortunately, I only get to know Senja from her feet to her waist, the rest of the way up remains in the clouds. All day long. It's about 12° Celsius without rain. That's good, no rain. But the sun no longer has the power to dissolve the haze of the mountains.

So I have to drive along the narrow road 86 with some dark, long tunnels. Here on Senja, the 86 is also the European cycle path 1. In some places there are freshly made street corners that have a height difference of approx. 30-40 cm to the road embankment. Here I see a crashed car for the first time on the trip. Since there is often not enough space to avoid it and the next designated bay was too far away, he is now hanging half over the abyss.

I leave Senja in Botnhamn on another ferry. Young people draw my attention to a road closure on the next section. So I use road number 7764 on the route from Brensholmen to Tromsø.

Here now memories of my youth come to mind, what the street was like back then. Hildegard is happy; In any case, she jumps like a young foal over bumps, potholes, cracks in the asphalt, masters tight curves and doesn't even grumble.

In Tromsø we park on the slope near today's accommodation - somehow many coastal towns in Norway are very mountainous. 🤪

I go explore the city a bit and am very happy that after a lot of landscape there are now people and houses around me again.