Preparations

For years I’ve had an idea in the back of my mind to ride my motorcycle up to the top of Norway to visit Tromsø and Nordkapp and this year I’ve been fortunate enough for my circumstances to mean I can take some time out of work.

A few years ago there was a direct route from Newcastle to Stavanger in Norway, but sadly it was shut down in 2008 as it was making a loss. So now, the only practical way to get there is to drive for most of the journey and when I looked at the map back in December I thought it was a shame to drive all that way to turn around and come straight back the same way. Fortunately, Tallink offer another route into Eastern Europe from Helsinki in Finland to Talinn, Estonia, or I have the option to apply for a visa into Russia and go through St. Petersburg. Then from there I can wander back to the UK over land.

So, I’ve got my tent, my sleeping bag and my bike, my ferry is booked for the 16th June and I’ve given myself about 10 weeks to go where I’d like to. Some friends have given me advice on places to go and things to see, and I’m always open to suggestions or to meeting people on the way, so feel free to send me a comment on here or to @beezly on Twitter.