June 23, 2023
Oslo --> Kongsberg
The first day with real distance and hills
Check out my activity on Strava: https://strava.app.link/dH3DJ5H3KBb
I woke up this morning staring at daylight coming through the rainfly of my tent at 3:00am. Only 3 hours after going to sleep. The whole "no night" thing, at first a cool novelty, was now getting old. I I genuinely do not know how any of the campers on Langøyene got any sleep with only 2 hours of darkness. After shifting around and strategically shading my eyes with the hood of my sleeping bag, I managed to sleep another 4 hours. When I woke up again at 7:00am, the tent was getting "death clocked" by the midday sun. I was roasting alive, and sleep was no longer an option.
I packed up my tent and loaded my bike. I rode to the other side of the island where the ferry terminal was. After sitting down on a shaded bench, I checked the ferry schedule. It was 8:30, and the first ferry did not leave the island until 9:30. I decided to capitalize on the fact that the ferry terminal had a good cell signal. I used the next hour to plan my route for the day, and decide on my itinerary.
While waiting for the ferry, I noticed herds of geese noisily honking away just a few yards from me. On closer inspection, they were a type of goose I had not seen before: Barnacle Geese. I also noticed an interesting type of giant bumble bee pollinating a patch of lupines. They were black with two orange stripes and one white one.
I took the ferry back to Oslo, and stopped again at Huk. After swimming I used the fresh water showers to freshen up. By now it was noon, and I decided to get on my way to Kongsberg. While the route was only 90km, I added a lot of time and distance by getting lost. RidewithGPS is not a very effective directional aid in Norway I'm finding, Komoot seems to be better. There were two main climbs between Oslo and Kongsberg: The pass between Asker and Drammen, and the pass between Vestfossen and Kongsberg. Both about 700 feet of elevation. On paper this didn't sound too bad, however the first pass had an incredibly steep grade. By the time I got to the top I was ready for a break. Thankfully the top of the pass had a large truck stop where I found a kabob truck selling kabob pita wraps for 130NOK ($13). I also tried a lithuanian drink which roughly translates to "Bread Soda", essentially Malta for those familiar with the Puerto Rican version.
| Heart | 3 | Comment | 1 | Link |
1 year ago
The ride down from the top of the pass was super fun. All downhill on a separated bike path. The views of the surrounding fjord and valley were incredible. As I entered Drammen, I rode on a bike path along the Drammenselva River. There were tons of swimming platforms dotting the bike path. The path between Drammen and Hokksund were my favorite miles of the day. Flat, gravel, and riverfront, with the fjord walls rising steeply on either side in the distance.
Eventually I made it to Vestfossen and decided to fill up on water before the second pass. By now I was out of water. I couldn't find any public restrooms or water fountains, so I stopped at a grocery store and bought 2 liters of water in bottles. I guessed my way through the norwegian self check-out UI, and then set off the store alarm because I didn't scan my receipt at the kiosk before walking out of the store. Whoops.
The next climb was the same elevation, but a far more mild grade, so it was no issue for my legs. Descending into Kongsberg, I cycled through downtown, where the "Agenda" street fair was going on. Apparently a lot of local companies were trying to get investors or something. At that point I just wanted to find a place to crash, so I headed to the hostel in town and luckily got a private room. For 810 NOK ($80), I got a private room with a bathroom, as well as free breakfast the next morning. I set up my devices for charging, washed all of my dirty clothes in the sink, and hung the clothes out the window to dry. I then went to bed early. With real blackout curtains I got my first decent night's sleep in Norway.
Today's ride: 60 miles (97 km)
Total: 112 miles (180 km)
| Rate this entry's writing | Heart | 9 |
| Comment on this entry | Comment | 4 |
A factoid that surprised me on a Lompe recipe site: "During Norway’s Constitution Day on 17 May, around 13 to 16 million sausages are consumed (the most of any other day of the year), which averages to about 2.5 sausages per person."
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