Thro' Denmark'n' Sweden on a Ducati 750
Trip Start
Jun 02, 2008
1
5
48
Trip End
May 01, 2010
Aarhus,
Denmark
Thursday, June 5, 2008
It was a sweltering day in London as I boarded the train from Richmond to Stansted airport . Not that I'd had much time to notice the weather, most of the morning had been spent inside frantically packing, weighing, and repacking to reduce the load to 15 kilos ...the limit imposed by cheap airline carriers. Made more difficult by large items like a tent, stove, a pair of red shoes I couldn't part with... (yet) and some leather trousers for the bike ride. In the end I just stuffed everything into the rucksack and hoped for the best. If the worst came to it I could carry the tent and wear the trousers ....
At the airport I gave in and put the stifling leather trousers on for check in .. my hand luggage already looking suspiciously large with two bags and a third handbag hanging round my neck ...lucky I was just one kilo over and got let off with a stern warning... even more lucky she missed all my hand luggage...
Arriving in Aarhus, the second largest city in Denmark I made for city sleep in - the hostel I was staying at for the first night
Anyone know what to do with these controls?
. As with many hostels - it was both basic but friendly and in a great location. However the noise from the festival outside meant my sleep was interrupted and I woke several times during the night. Beginning to realise I've got far too much baggage....Denmark - Aarhus to Skagen
next morning i woke to clear blue skies and warm sunshine. Denmark was in the middle of a hot spell with temperatures soaring to around the 28 degrees mark. ..Thomas - my Danish friend was meeting me around 10 so I ambled down to breakfast and helped myself to coffee, fruit and rolls. At 10.30 he arrived in long shorts and a casual shirt looking suntanned and relaxed. We took a cab to his apartment and then set about unpacking and repacking all the gear into three bike packs. We were going to be riding a red Ducati 750 sports bike...I was a little nervous as I've only pillioned once before and then quite slowly. I knew this was a fast bike and although Thomas had assured me he'd be driving slow for me - I didn't quite believe it.
The plan was to drive to the Northern tip of Denmark to Skagen then take the ferry across to Sweden - returning on the coastal road and crossing again just North of Copenhagen. We set off with me clinging on tightly - my legs rigid on the pedals. However after the first stop I started to relax , assured I wasn't gonna fall off and enjoying the speed and exhilaration ... biking rocks!! We rode for a few hours before stopping for our first night at an idyllic campsite just outside Skagen
Skagen Campsite Denmark
. Pitching camp Just yards from the beach and amongst trees, lit a barbecue of sausages , bacon , corn and potato salad and cracked open a couple of cans of lager. We should perhaps have stayed longer , the campsite was almost as perfect as it gets but we had a lot of mileage ahead,The next morning we woke early and headed off to the tip of Skagen where it is possible to stand with with both feet in separate oceans....however after just a few minutes walking we collapsed on the beach to enjoy the sun which was by now intense. I managed a swim - the waters round Denmark don't normally get much above 18 degrees but it felt closer to 22 - refreshing! We returned to Skagen touring the characterful fishing town of yellow houses and then set off for the port of Frederikshavn to take the ferry to Goteborg in Sweden.
