Bodø-Trondheim, Part 3

July 22^nd: Herøy – Torghatten (80 km)

Today was a 3-ferry day! We got off to a fairly early start in order to catch the 8am ferry to Søvik. The trip doesn’t take long, but it’s a complicated schedule and route, with multiple stops.

It’s 22 km from Søvik to Tjøtta. We knew that we had a good amount of time before the next ferry connection, so we took a fair number of pictures of the beaches, cozy farms, and the high mountains all around. We also stopped by Alstahaug church, a beautiful church from the 1200s. We managed to eat a bit before the next ferry, which takes about 1 hour to get from Tjøtta to Forvik. 

Alstahaug church

We didn’t think that our chances of catching the first possible following ferry (̇Åndalsvåg-Holm) were very high, so we decided to take our time and made a 2 km detour back north to see some old rock carvings. The practice of painting over the carvings to make them more visible has actually stopped, but I have to admit that the paint was a bit helpful for me. Even if the rock carvings we saw are less iconic than the skiing man (which inspired the artwork for the Lillehammer Olympics), it was pretty cool to see something that was made more than 4000 years ago!

4000 year-old rock carvings

We continued along in a cycling paradise: flat, well-maintained roads with approximately zero traffic, and a beautiful sunny day. The 18 km to the next ferry passed quickly, and we even caught an extra ferry which was not in the printed schedule. That meant that we reached Brønnøysund relatively early, and were able to get some groceries and stop by the tourist office before continuing to Torghatten. 

View along the road

My legs were pretty tired from yesterday, so I was happy to get off the bike. We put up the tent before walking up to and through the famous hole in the mountain. It’s a natural tunnel – with lots of light. We also went for a long walk along the coast near the campsite before a quick dip in the fjord and the rest of the evening routine. 

Looking into the natural tunnel

Looking out from the end of the tunnel

   

July 23^rd: Torghatten – Kjelleidet (85 km)

We had to retrace our steps from Torghatten back to Brønnøysund before continuing our journey. Even though we woke up to sun, it clouded up by the time we started cycling. We could see rain in the distance, and we only rode 6-7 km before we felt raindrops. A bus shelter presented itself before the storm really hit, so we hid in there for a while. By the time I had read a few chapters of a book, the rain had passed through. The weather improved throughout the day, so we felt quite justified in our decision to wait it out!

Warning sign before the ferry: don't drive straight into the water.

After the bridge, we followed the cycling path back to Fv17, and continued south. The road passes through farmland with mountains on either side. It’s pretty flat all the way to Vennesund, and we saw a lot of cyclists who were headed north. We treated ourselves to ice cream before the ferry to Holm. The ferry trip also had a bit of extra excitement: one driver managed to get the exhaust pipe caught on the ramp. The crew managed to pull it the rest of the way out of the car, and she made it off just fine on the other side, but I doubt that it was the best day of her vacation. 

Looking forward before the ferry left the terminal

  

The rolled became hillier after Holm, and we had to climb a few hundred meters and pass through a few short tunnels. We passed the starting point for a hike up Heilhornet, but definitely didn’t have enough energy left for that climb. We’re camping in a quite lovely spot by the sea. I think we’re both about to fall asleep after a solid meal plus some homemade chocolate cake! 

View from the camping spot