Tue 27th:

We slept reasonably well. My earplugs keeping out most of dad's snoring but with the Sun heating the tent around 8am it was time to get up. We stopped at a "Baggery" for some Danish Pastries and rolls which we ate over coffee at Ringkobing.


There is a stretch of land protected from the North Sea by dunes on one side and with a lake, called Ringkobing Fjord on the other side. This is clearly holiday country with lots of campsites and holiday huts. The large farms and larger houses all had thatched roofs.



By this point we were just about done with Denmark, a flat windy land, with more windmills per head of population than anywhere else and decided to dash for the 2:30 ferry from Hirtshals to Kristiansand. The Satnav calculate if we rode non stop for the next 3 hours we would get there at 1:30. So off we went along wide and very straight country roads through Hostebro, Viborg and then eventually onto dual carriageway south of Alborg. The sun was a joy but the wind a pain. A refuel and bum rubbing session then back on the bikes every northward.

It was two happy bikers that collapsed into the luxury leather seats of the huge ferry, enjoying our first proper meal since yesterday's cheese pizza. The sun belted down on the calm Skagerrak that separated us from Norway.




Our simple plan was to find the tourist information with some local accommodation and bike no further that day. However, the Kristiansand Tourist Information was not to be found. This large and busy town proclaimed it the most popular place for Norwegians to holiday but dear knows where they stay because we drove round and round, past beautiful coves with red painted holiday chalets, but not a B&B or hotel in site. We followed a couple of signs with a picture of beds but they ended in dead ends or roads under construction. The first hotel we found was full. Thirty minutes later we found another. I went in, they had spaces, for £170 a night per room but it was Hobson's choice. So Grimstad it was. And its not a bad looking place, even at 9pm!