Thirteenth day

Brønnøysund - Nesna

101km

20.4 kph average

Beautiful weather in the morning, with veiled clouds later in the day. Much warmer than the previous days (17-19 degrees)

Generally weak wind, if we felt it, it was as a tailwind

The three of us can't seem to separate. We have already become a well-coordinated team after two days. Today, we had several ferry crossings. The first ferry was only 10 km away and was supposed to leave at 8:50. To have a bit of buffer, we left right at eight. Since we got up early, we even had time to have a leisurely breakfast in the sun on our luxury terrace. As soon as I opened the door, I noticed that it was much warmer than the previous days.

With the tailwind, we covered the first kilometers very quickly and could still enjoy the morning atmosphere, the clear air, and the beautiful mountains. Even when we ride at 25-30 kph on the road, it's still slow enough to take in the surroundings. We waited at the ferry for almost half an hour and enjoyed finally feeling the warm sun on our skin (maybe you can't understand that with your heatwave in Germany and Switzerland). After the crossing, there were only 16 km of road left until the next ferry, and we still had 2 and a half hours. These 16 km turned out to be the most beautiful stretch of the day (ranking at the top in the 'most beautiful day' ranking so far). I know I'm repeating myself, but the road that winds along the coast, the crystal clear water, the green meadows stretching to the sea, low forests, towering round granite mountains, and last but not least, the tailwind; all of this confirms so much the choice of this trip.

At the second ferry dock, we spoiled ourselves. Ice cream, donuts, cherry yogurt, all enjoyed on a sheltered bench in the sun.

After the next ferry crossing, it was noon and we had only covered 26 km, so we went to eat again. After so much luxury, indulgence, and doing nothing, we really needed to do a bit of cycling. The good thing was that the next ferry was 75 km away. So, there was nothing to stop us from burning off a few calories.

Already from Brønnøysund, we saw a few high mountains in the northeast, some of them still covered with snow. Now, we stood, or rather rode, right at their feet and went around them in a large arc to the left. They seemed even more spectacular from the north, like the elegantly curved back of a dragon.

Slowly, the traffic increased as we approached the city of Sandnessjøen. We all shook our heads at a supermarket. A 40-50-year-old guy parked right in front of the entrance, got out, loud Norwegian pop music blaring, left the car door open, and went shopping.

Behind the town, a bridge over the fjord rose to a height of at least 50 meters. So high that presumably the Hurtigruten ships could pass underneath. The traffic on the bridge and unfortunately the next 10-15 km were very annoying and didn't allow us to enjoy the scenery anymore. But then, most of the traffic turned east into a long tunnel, and although we weren't alone on the road, we didn't have to constantly watch out for passing cars. And then we were already at the next ferry. I was somewhat surprised that we didn't want to continue for the next 30 km, but we had already done 100 km. In the port town of Nesna, we looked for a campground and paid the exorbitant price of 1750 kroner (about 180 euros) for a campground cabin.

I was really excited to finally try out my new fishing rod. Which was no problem here in the harbor, as you don't need a license for fishing in the sea. After just 15 minutes, I had my first fish on the line. It was a cod that was way too small. I felt very sorry for it because the hook had injured its eye. I gently removed the hook and threw the fish back into the water. A few seconds later, a seagull swooped down and swallowed it whole. After that, nothing else bit for two hours. Fortunately, the other two had not relied on my fishing luck and had bought three large steaks. After another delicious dinner, we made plans for tomorrow. There is only one ferry that goes to the point where we want to go, and it doesn't leave until 5:00. After that, we want to cover another 50 km, so we won't arrive until around midnight. And the beautiful weather will be over. There is A LOT of rain forecasted. But it doesn't matter now, we had a beautiful day, and we will worry about the rain when it rains.