Last update

Warning, this is a long post

After reaching the south point of Sweden on Saturday the 21st July I only managed two more days in the saddle. 

On the Sunday I cycled 35km from Trelleborg to Malmö where I got on a train to Kastrup, Copenhagen's international airport. This was not to fly back home but because the airport is the first station on the Danish side, I left Sweden from the last station on that side, Hyllie. Having fought against the wind going up to Malmö (north west) I thought I'd be ok going south in Denmark but no, somehow I still had the wind against me. 110km from Kastrup I gave up and found a youth hostel in Vordingsborg on the south part of the Danish island Själland. 

Monday morning was ok until I hit the road. The sun was out and it was actually warm, the first day of the trip when I started the ride with a short sleeved top. Unfortunately the wind was still against in a really bad way. 60km later I managed to get to Rödbyhavn where there is a ferry to Puttgarden, Germany. Unfortunately I was not feeling well at all at this point. Having had "medium" to "bad" tummy problems for ~10 days it all of a sudden accelerated a bit out of control with me vomiting while on the bike, not a good combination. The last 20km to the ferry took around two and a half hours with me spending more time lying down on the ground than on the bike. On the German side things continued on the slow side and it got a tiny bit dangerous. Luckily they have cycle paths everywhere but as these are full of other cyclists I managed to cycle into an older man while being busy feeling sick. In the end I got to Oldenburg in Holstein and found a hotel. The night between Monday and Tuesday was "interesting". Not only did I feel sick I could also start feeling aches and pains all over. It was as if my body told me, "Right, I've taken you through Sweden but this is the price you have to pay".

Tuesday started off bad, not much sleep, absolutely no energy left, neither physical or mental. I could possibly have stayed in Oldenburg a few days to recover but in the end I decided against it. There was nothing left in the tank and I very much doubt a couple of days would have helped. After having decided to abandon the project the next challenge was closer in time than I really wanted.............

Crossing Germany and Holland by train is easy, as long as you don't have a bike with you. If you have a bike you should not be completely exhausted and just do what the Germans tell you to do. Ein Herr Sven Schwartz of Deutsche Bahn came up with the following route, all on local trains

Oldenburg - Lübeck - Hamburg - Bremen - Osnabrück - Bad Benthem - Hengalo - Zutphen - Arnhem - Ede Wageningen - Amersfoort - Amsterdam

Eleven and a half hours, eleven changes, carrying a bike plus panniers on and off trains, in 30+ degrees, no AC, not feeling well. Needless to say, it was a bit of a challenge. Finally, on the train to Ede-Wageningen a friendly ticket inspector explained to me that it's possible to take a bike on Intercity trains in Holland, something Herr Sven Schwartz had claimed was impossible, hence the marathon route. I could have taken an IC train from Hengalo (first stop in Holland) and saved myself several hours travelling and agony. I guess you live and learn.

Having spent the night in Amsterdam the Wednesday was nothing compared to the day before. Train straight to Brussels Zuid/Midi and then on to the Eurostar for a mid afternoon arrival back in London. The hardest cycling of the whole trip was getting home from St Pancras. Not because it's a long way, ~1 mile, or because I was feeling extremely disappointed arriving back on the train, I really wasn't, but because it's uphill.... just slightly but enough for my legs to implode a couple of times on the way.

It feels great being back home. Of course I'm disappointed not managing to get all the way back to London but I did manage to get through Sweden which I feel rather happy with.

If I ever do something like this again I'll try to pace myself differently, avoid silly 240km days etc. This time it felt really good all the time in Sweden but I guess I was burning to much to fast and it caught up with me in the end, luckily after I'd left Sweden.

There is not much more to say. A few thank yous and good bye

The trip would not have been possible without the help of

• Ryan Pickard, Revolution Personal Training Studios. Ryan managed to lift my general fitness to a much higher level than I thought possible in a short time. A great trainer and a great guy.
• Emerson Fernandez, Complete Physio. I got problems with my knees a couple of months before the trip. Emerson identified and treated the problem in a most satisfying way. Being a believer in self help he also supplied me with excellent strengthening exercises, boring but crucial.

I also have to mention MiCycle bike shop in Islington. All guys contributed in general but Julian in particular made sure my bike was in tip top condition. Nothing went wrong with it during almost 2400 kilometers (1500 miles), it was the rider that broke down.

I can't say thank to people without mentioning my wife. She very kindly allowed me to disappear out on the road for which I'm very thankful, thank you Anne.

That's it, thank you all for reading and thank you even more for your contributions to Kamran's Ward at John Radcliffe childrens hospital in Oxford. If this is news for you, read this.

Good bye, Håkan

Finally home

After 12 trains in two days I've arrived home. Not the way I wanted to but in the end I had no choice. I can't write much now, must sleep, but will write a bit more tomorrow.

Arriving back in London today

Yesterday Håkan took 10 bike-friendly local trains across Germany and the Netherlands, reaching Amsterdam in the evening. He wasn't that impressed with the goings on at the hotel I booked him near Amsterdam Centraal station but … it's Amsterdam, it's an hotel near the station, it was under €100 … In any case he is now on the Amsterdam to Brussels train and due to arrive back into St Pancras at 16.03 today!

 

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Tummy problems mean the cycle ride has to end in Oldenburg

Håkan has been suffering from tummy problems for a week or so but is now having extreme difficulties keeping food in at either end…. In view of the 30 degree heat and absolute exhaustion he has very reluctantly decided to end the cycle ride. He will catch a train to Hamburg-Amsterdam-Brussels-London and should be back home in a day or so.

 

On the plus side, he says he NEVER wants to cycle in Sweden again and I am to hit him over the head and shout at him if he ever suggests it – not that this has prevented him from doing crazy things before, but at least I have permission now!

 

He is feeling pretty bad about having to abort mission. I am sure he would appreciate a text message to keep him entertained on the journey back home. He may have access to wifi on the European trains but I can’t be sure – Anne.

 

 

 

 

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This message and any attachments (the "message") are confidential, intended solely for the addressee(s), and may contain legally privileged information.
Any unauthorised use or dissemination is prohibited. E-mails are susceptible to alteration. 
Neither SOCIETE GENERALE nor any of its subsidiaries or affiliates shall be liable for the message if altered, changed or
falsified.
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Germany

Håkan says the kinky Germans have used up all the wifi so he is unable to blog tonight. He is staying in Oldenburg. The cycle ride is wearing him down a bit now and he is looking forward to some rest at home or possibly on the golf course.

Last update from Sweden

I'm now crossing the bridge to Denmark. Updates will be few and far between from now.

I've run out of Sweden

After 22 days I finally reached the very south of Sweden. Three weeks of hard work. When it wasn't raining or the wind was against there was a big hill to climb, quite often all three obstacles were combined.
Rolling into the little harbour at the end was a relief but also felt a bit strange, it'll take a few days to sink in.
Tomorrow I'll roll from Trelleborg (today's destination) to Malmö, get a train across the bridge to Copenhagen and then start heading south.

The pictures show

How far I've come and how far I've got to go (as the crow flies)

A tiny celebration

Some random ship from a walk in the dirty harbour where my hotel is.

At the south point

2150 kilometers, 1344 miles

Maps and map reading

The day started off very wet but got drier towards the afternoon. Unfortunately the wind was against most of the day which really made me work hard.
60km from my starting point in Ljungby I passed the "Skåne Län" sign (county Skåne). This was significant as Skåne is the southernmost county in Sweden. The northernmost, Lappland, took almost seven days to get through, Skåne is a lot smaller.
I learned the value of having an up to date map today, mine is from 2001. Who would have known so many roads could be built in only 11 years? When the map and reality do fit together it's still a good idea to know how to read the damn thing. As you can see from the picture I ended up on a tiny road in the middle of a field.
After 145 adventurous kilometers I finally made into Eslöv, an insignificant village. If my map is with me I'll make it to Sweden's south endpoint tomorrow.

Beautiful when it's not raining

River Lagan

More rain

I managed to cycle 32 kilometers before a thunderstorm stopped me. The forecast for today and tomorrow is rubbish, heavy showers and thunder. So close but .....

In Ljungby, getting very close

Today was the wettest day so far. 120km in total, the first 80 in heavy showers and the last 40 in a never ending torrential downpour. No wind and almost no hills or traffic made the ride less horrible and I recorded my best average speed for a day, 22.5km per hour, ~14 miles per hour.
The picture shows Ljungby by night, just as boring as it looks.

Only two more days until I get to the very south of Sweden, it feels a bit weird.

On the road again

Having a rest day yesterday was probably a very good idea. It was a very slow day, some sight seeing with my sister and a bit of bike maintenance, add a long snooze in the afternoon and you get the idea.

I'm now on my way south at great speed. It's flat and there is no wind but unfortunately it rains quite s lot.

Finally, a mushroom!!!!

68 kilometers from Hjo to Jönköping. Best of all, rest day tomorrow!!!! I found a sister, a brother in law and a mushroom to celebrate.
Only 350km to the very south.....

Tired friend

My friend Urban is cycling with me today, or at least I thought so....

Short day, ending in Hjo

68 kilometers going down the west side of lake Vättern. Sunny but an absolutely brutal headwind. I felt completely drained when arriving in Hjo and it got worse in the early evening. I finally realised I hadn't eaten enough in the day and after a pizza, chocolate and a few sticky buns I'm feeling better.

One positive thing with the day, I met my friend Johan and had a nice chat and a walk around town.

Another friend will join me for the 60-ish kilometer ride to Jönköping tomorrow, I'll hold on to him going uphill.

I've decided to have a rest day the day after tomorrow, I think I deserve it after ~800km in seven days.

In the middle of nowhere

Yesterday saw me get another 120 kilometers closer to London. It was a nice sunny day but very windy. I was struggling badly trying to get to some youth hostel when I suddenly came upon a small hotel. I got a room and have a brilliant stay, good food, a comfy bed and very scenic views. The pictures show the hotel and its surroundings.
For those of you in search of somewhere to stay just northwest of lake Vättern, remember to try Pensionat Tiveden.

Big annoying yellow light in the sky

The sun is out! It was nice for about five minutes then I got sweaty. Go away!

A road sign for Stockholm, I'm actually making progress.

Headwind, again!!

Yesterday wasn't bad at all apart from the wind. It was against me from the start and grew stronger as the day went on. 112km through small villages, pine trees (are there other trees?) and next to beautiful lakes and streams. Lots of up and down since I was going on the small roads, next to the big flat one, massive mistake. The final destination of the day was Filipstad where I found a room at the youth hostel.

Exciting day today, so far I've cycled 998 miles, will I make it to 1000?

Into the wind

109km straight into the wind yesterday. Heading south on the west side of lake Siljan I passed through a few lovely small villages before hitting even more endless stretches of pine trees. It has rained a lot in these parts of Sweden, streams and lakes are very full, see the first picture.
The day ended at a youth hostel outside Vansbro, the last four pictures are taken just around the corner from it.

Food for cyclists

Another long day in the saddle

Yesterday's ride wasn't finished until well after 10pm and almost 200km (125 miles). The weather was terrible at times, heavy showers the last 50 miles and quite cold.
I could feel early in the day I'd had enough of pine trees, no villages and loneliness on the road so decided to push on all the way out of it. In the end I made it to Orsa which was more or less what I wanted. I've really broken the back of Sweden, more than half way and back in the south.

Only one picture, mountain Sånfjället in the distance. This was taken very close to the village where my mother grew up and where I spent loads of time when I was younger. I did visit the village and talked to a few people that still remembered me, very nice.

Ortholmen, another good spot for second breakfast

Fast descent into Vemdalen

125km today. Started off fairly flat but in the last 40km there were two proper climbs. Going down the last hill into Vemdalen I touched 65km per hour which is scary with panniers (but not as scary as 74). I'm very much in a more deserted area again, two more days of wilderness (ish) ahead.

Pictures
Klövsjö village, between the two big climbs, a very cute place sandwiched between mountains.
Vemdalsskalet ski resort, probably the highest point during the whole trip, I think it's ~740 meters above sea level.
Four pictures from my destination, Vemdalen, the last one from my window at a youth hostel.

Not a bad place for second breakfast

Some more cyclists

I've met my long distance friends from Moskosel. Four nut cases in one picture, all having a rest day.

The distance so far

With yesterday's achievement I've cycled more than 1000 kilometres, 620 miles, since the start

Östersund

I got carried away in the nice weather yesterday, or as my wife would put it, I was a bit of an idiot. In Strömsund, after 128km, I realised it was only ~100km to Östersund, the first proper town on my trip. I just had to do it..... arriving around 1am after 240km, 150 miles, for the day I was regretting my decision badly. It was hard work the last three hours.

Rest day today, both me and the bike are due for service. The bike in the nearest bike shop, me I'm the nearest bar.

Pictures:
The bear in the picture was 32 years old and weighed 280kg when it was shot just metres from where I was passing. The woman telling me this tried to wond me up with all sorts of horrible stories about bears attacking cyclists in her village.

Blue sky from under a tree where I had a short snooze.

On my way out of Lappland

No rain today (yet) so I've been able to take a few pictures on my way south. The 55km from Vilhelmina have been flat and there are lots of lakes, streams and the odd river, very nice.

Forced stop in Vilhelmina

When I set off this morning I was convinced the weather would stay dry. It did, for about 28km. Just when I'd negotiated 10km of slippery road due to road works the rain started chucking down. I was soaked through in twenty minutes, water proofs are very much mislabeled. After just over 40km of agony I hit a town, Vilhelmina, and that was it for the day.
I'm now holed up in a hotel where they let me use their washing machine for free provided I washed a few loads of towels for them, bargain!
I'm not going to predict anything about tomorrow's achievement, the weather looks rotten. It would be nice to leave Lappland (the most nortern county) behind but I need to cycle ~100km to do that, not easy to do in rain when you are a fair weather cyclist.

Noooooooooooooooooooo

Short day ending in Storuman

Yesterday's hills made me really tired. I was aiming for another 125km but felt after 200m that was never going to happen. In the end I settled for 71km and ended up in Storuman, http://m.google.co.uk/u/m/z9zIOs

I can tell I've left the most northerly parts behind. When cruising through a river valley (Vindelälven) there were literally a house/hamlet every five kilometers, quite nice for a change.

Tomorrow look like the last day of sunshine for a long time, I'll try to use it to my advantage and press on to Dorotea, 130km.

Pictures:
I like the name Blattnicksele, just wanted to share it.
Train bridge across Vindelälven. For those of you interested in scenic train journeys, have a look at http://inlandsbanan.se
High life in Storuman. I could hear people screaming in the distance, there is a "swamp soccer" tournament in town.

Sorsele, whohoo

This morning I set off with the three cyclists I met yesterday at the camping. It turned out they were quite tired from four days of hard cycling and in the end I speeded up a bit and left them behind. I'm sure we'll meet again, they are young and fit whereas I ....

The first 85km were VERY hilly. Leaving my lunch place Arvidsjaur I found myself in a gradual 20km climb only to realise that the real steep climbs started after that, puuuh.

With 15km to go I got caught up in a massive, vicious thunderstorm. Just before a wall of water hit me I found a very, very nice man who let me join him in his car waiting for the rain to pass. It took more than an hour. Thank you Ingemar (please send me an email) for helping me, it would have been dangerous being on the road under those conditions.

Welcome to the mountains

This is not what I want to see after having climbed for 20km just to get to the sign.

Breakfast by the water

I can't think of a more beautiful place to have breakfast, such a shame about the mozzies. I woke up by loud buzzing and killed more than 30 in 5 minutes. They have bitten me all over but I'm lucky enough to not react much at all.

Almost not in Moskosel

120km today, could have been about 6 or 7 less had I not got a bit lost. Important lesson learnt, don't ever go out on the small dirt roads in search of anything without a very long string to lead you back.

Almost as nice weather as yesterday, only a drops of rain and some clouds at the beginning.
It was very hilly all day, the last climb into Moskosel, 100m in 2km, almost made me cry.
Magnificent scenery all day, loads of streams, lakes and big rivers.

I'm staying in a cabin at a camping and an hour ago three other cyclists rolled up. They are doing the same route but at a higher pace, or at least they have longer days in the saddle. We will do the first 25 miles together tomorrow, have lunch and then I'll let them go.

Four pictures today

Some river
The first reindeer of the trip!
My little cabin
View from the cabin

In Moskosek, finally

Hello

So, there is one road to follow through the north and I managed to get lost. Someone told me about a nice view when I had lunch and also that the road was good. He was right in both cases but forgot to tell me about the maze I had to navigate to get there, on the way back I made a wrong turn and was lost-ish for about 30 minutes. I just stopped and thought hard about it, got my bearings and set off towards the road. When I could see the main road I met four blokes with a caravan who offered me smoked fresh fish and lightbeer! Very nice.
I'm now at the camping waiting for some food. It's a glorious evening but the mozzies are bonkers, no point in going outside. I'm quiet tired after a long warm day so will update blog, read my book and go to spleep.

How is opera and how was day?

Kram h

Arctic Circle

Not the best picture but I'm there! All mosquitos in the known world are also here, help!!!!