Showing posts with label Denmark. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Denmark. Show all posts

Thursday, June 28, 2012

Day 21. Odense to Hirtshals DK 499 kms, & Ferry to Kristiansand, Norway.

Location: Hirtshals, Denmark

Well, again, the riding was pure pleasure.   I took it easy until about 3 pm, and then took the freeway the last 200 odd kms to Hirtshals.

I took the time to visit a Danish Viking Village (Museum).   It was well done and I don’t think the people did it so tough, although maybe harder in winter.   They seemed well equipped with life’s comforts, just no smartphones.   A GPS would have been handy, too, for out at sea.   Aren’t we lucky?

Another thing on the road that I found interesting is that many small towns in Europe have your speed displayed as you enter the town from the highway.   They are not a speed camera, just an indicator.   I think it’s a good idea.   Some displays show in red if you are travelling too fast and in green if you are below the 50 kph.   Others have flashing lights above them if you are over 50 kph.   Some of the displays, however, I think are too close to the edge of town or the 50 kph sign, so you just can’t throttle off; you have to brake, and I have seen some motorists slow down too suddenly.   But generally, I've been OK, and under the 50 kph.   They are particularly useful when you come off the freeways, just to bring you back to reality speeds.

I did see the WWII bunker ruins, as advised yesterday.   They are showing many signs of age, and I suppose in a few years they will need to be removed for safety for fear of collapse.   I learned that these bunkers were a part of the Atlantic Line.   This was series of bunkers to provide a defence line running from Norway to Spain.   (I need to google that for some more info).

The ferry from Hirtshals, DK, to Kristiansand, NO, took 3 hours.   The ferry was modern with an assortment of restaurants and entertainments.   It was nice to be on-board.  As usual, I explored the ship, spending a lot of time on the outside decks, until it got too cold.   This really is a very pleasant way to travel, I think.   I managed to get an hour’s sleep sitting upright on one of bench seats in the Pizza Restaurant.   Not ideal, but not bad.   As I will write later, this turned out to be essential.








































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Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Day 20. Rheinsberg DE to Odensa DK. 431kms

Location: Odense, Denmark
After a good night at the hotel with everything big, I headed north to catch the ferry at Rostock, Germany to Gedser, Denmark.

The ride was enjoyable and I reached Rostock at about 11:30 am.   I caught the ferry at 1300h, 1 pm,   Cost € 61, for me and the bike, and the journey was 1 hr 45 mins.   One of the other motorcyclist on board remarked that it was a lot of money for a short trip.   I agreed, but said it would be a long swim.   It was a fairly old ferry, but did the job well.

On board I talked to a couple of HOGgies, (Harley Davidson Owners Group) that I had met on the wharf.   They had just completed a ride from Copenhagen to Tuscany, Italy, and were on their way home.

I was warned that everything is expensive in Scandinavia, so I have prepared my self for some shocks.   The first couple of hotels in town were over € 100, so I rode out of town.   I found a nice one for about € 65.

While having dinner at the Blommenslyst Kro (Motel Brasilia) in Odense, the waiter suggested that I ride past the WWII German gun emplacements, on the western shores of Jutland, Denmark, if I wanted an interesting ride.   He said that I may also see the see lions sunnying themselves on them.   “Sunny tomorrow, then rain again”, he said.  More rain, heh??

So it will be up early.   (It is now 10 pm here and it is still daylight.)






















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