Southern Norway Part 4

July 13th: Lomsesanden - Spangereid, with a detour to Lindesnes lighthouse (60 km?)

Breakfast by the beach/sand dunes, on a sunny but windy morning, was a lovely start to the day. Since our route yesterday deviated a bit from the original plan, we are a bit ahead of schedule, and we definitely didn’t rush this morning.

 

View from our breakfast spot

Farsund

We passed through the idyllic little coastal town of Farsund, where it seemed that everyone was on their way into a boat to enjoy the day. From Farsund, we followed a rolling road between the water and the woods, then turned off onto a steep side road to cross over the little peninsula. The hills were steep and somehow - without getting above 200 m - we really did a long of work. Climb, descend, climb again!

It was a nice quiet road on a pretty day, so it wasn’t too bad. By the time we reached Lyngdal, I needed a lunch break. It was funny to see all the swimmers with an oil rig (in for repairs, it seems) just a few hundred meters away.

From Lyngdal, we continued our hilly route toward Spangereid. The first hill was the longest - but these roads never cease to surprise me with sudden rises and switches to gravel. One can’t really guess what is ahead based on the map, either. The benefit is that the coastal roads often rise far above the fjords, offering lovely views of the coast. At Spangereid, we did two days’ of shopping, and found a self-serve campsite. We put up the tent, washed some clothes, and left the heavy gear so that we could travel light to Lindesnes.

It was a hilly ride to get there, and fascinating to ride in the lee of the peninsulas, only to arrive at the lighthouse in strong wind. The sky looked a bit threatening, but we enjoyed the visit to the lighthouse nonetheless.

The glass itself is quite old, but the tower was replaced in 1915. Lindesnes is also the site of a memorial to a tragic accident from WWII - English bombers sank a German cargo ship, only to find that 900 Soviet prisoners of war were on board. The lighthouse is still manned, and they have done a terrific job with information and visitor-friendliness, especially given that it is an operational lighthouse and weather station. Could be a bit blustery at times, though! 

By the lighthouse

I went for a little swim here before dinner

July 14th: Spangereid - Kristiansand (85 km)

We’ve really had a lovely day of cycling! A short swim and a shower last night, plus a warm night, led to very sound sleep. We’re were a bit slow getting going since the tent was soaked, but the warm sun dried it out enough that we could get on our way. The bright sun disappeared and we’ve been cycling in overcast, humid weather all day. It’s a bit of a treat in a way - we can still see lots (the clouds aren’t too low), but we aren’t getting quite as cooked. The road has also been gentler!

We stayed largely along the coast, twisting and turning through small villages with picturesque boathouses, cabins built right into the rocks, amazingly neat gardens... and views of the sea and rocky islands.

The biggest town that we passed through was Mandal, which was hopping, and which had a terrific bakery. It was well-timed (another old gravel road had left my legs a bit tired).

We mostly just rolled along, enjoying the views and taking frequent photo breaks. The route was mostly well-marked, too! We diverged from the “modern” route when we approached Kristiansand. It’s probably more efficient to ride on the path next to E39, but that path is loud and not that interesting. The old post road through the forest was lovely, though I had to walk up a few slopes. We were pretty impressed but the fellow who towed two kinds up to the lake at the top of the hill. (He did approach from the more manageable side, but still...). 

On the post road

We ended up in Kristiansand, in a slightly strangely run campground. We got a pretty great spot, since we didn’t need to have a car nearby, but the selection process is... inefficient and a bit random. Despite all the delicious bread from Mandal that I have eaten, I’m looking forward to dinner soon!