Category: hiking

Cycling Arctic Norway ➙ Lyngen Alps to Lofoten

On By Rick McIn cycling, food, hiking, travel, travelogues, video2 Comments

Trip report by Rick McCharles

Part 1 of 3

  1. Cycling / Hiking Lyngen Alps to Lofoten
  2. Cycling / Hiking Arctic Norway ➙ Lofoten
  3. Cycling Bodø to Trondheim + Kristiansund & Atlantic Road

Click PLAY or get a glimpse on YouTube.

I flew into Tromsø, Norway summer 2022. BUT Scandinavian Airlines left my bicycle sitting in Heathrow airport for 5 weeks. … And finally sent it back to Canada. ☹️

Making the best of it, I rented bikes in Tromsø and finally travelled by bus down to Lofoten.

I decided to try again summer 2023. And this time my bike and gear did make it to Tromsø.

Tromsø

Hoo hoo.

Cycling the north of Norway was my #1 goal following the pandemic.

Tromsø to Lofoten / Bodo is the most interesting section, for me.

I spent 2 days in Tromsø getting the bike set-up and packing groceries. Then set off south on a Komoot app route I bought from guru Matthew of CycleNorway.com.

So far it’s mostly been the very popular Eurovelo 1 cycling route.

Day 1 — July 1st, 2023

To start I took a 64km detour 😀 to hike Brosmetinden. Beautiful weather. But WINDY.

That night I set up the tent at Grotfjord beach. Free and fantastic. By law you can camp almost anywhere in Norway at no cost.

Day 2 — July 2nd, 2023

I headed for quaint Hillesøya, a short detour off my route.

There’s a steep day hike up Nordkollen that’s interesting. Rope and chain assist.

I stash my bike in the trees for these hikes.

I put the metal to the pedal to make it to a favourite campsite from the previous summer.

Fjordgård, Senja

Norway is expensive. I rarely eat at restaurants.

Camp cooking is great — but I do prefer having a picnic table.

Day 3 — July 3rd, 2023

Weather forecast was excellent for one of my main highlights of Norway. The Hesten / Segla hike.

I’d climbed Segla in 2022, posting my most experimental and worst VIDEO yet. 😀

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

TRIP REPORT

From Segla I cycled south until reaching a tunnel temporarily closed to cyclists. After an hour or so of waiting around, two of us crossed by putting our bikes and gear inside vehicles.

This young German speed demon (140km/day) and I set up our tents at yet another amazing free government campsite called Ersfjordstranda outdoor recreation area.

Day 4 — July 4th, 2023

The great weather continued.

But for reasons unknown, this July Senja island was tortured by big, slow horseflies. I put on my rain suit for protection.

I was waiting for the ferry — FREE for cyclists in Norway — to the next island ➙ Andøya.

Weirdly, I never saw another horse fly. Only Senja island was plagued.

Early evening I came upon this surprisingly modern building.

An ultra modern toilet block. At a push of a button, those windows could be made opaque. Cool.

I decided to set up my tent. It was me and the sheep.

Day 5 — July 5th, 2023

The following day was long and uneventful. No hikes.

The bike and gear working perfectly, my main complaints were muscular soreness in the upper back and neck. I tried to take more short breaks. I’m in no rush.

Andøya is less popular with tourists. The bog better for  peat and cloudberries.

I needed up camping on the beach.

Day 6 — July 6th, 2023

Next morning I caught the ferry to Lofoten.

It was a great start to my trip.

Heston

On one list, Norway is ranked the BEST nation in Europe for multi-day cycling.

I’d agree. But that list is suspect.

So far as I’ve heard from cyclists, France is best set-up. Germany and Austria quickly improving.

Personally, I’d go to Germany next. In addition, Germany is offering a rail pass for tourists ➙ €49 / month for anywhere in the country. You could hop on some trains with a bike.

Travelogue PART 2 is next:

Cycling / Hiking Arctic Norway ➙ Lofoten

Visiting Tromsø, Norway

On By Rick McIn cycling, hiking, travelLeave a comment

I spent a couple of weeks cycling and hiking out of Tromsø in 2022.

Returned to start a long cycling tour summer 2023.

It’s an unforgettable tourist destination. All the cruise ships stop.

It’s a year round attraction. Winter is even more popular as folks come to find the northern lights.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube. Two of my favourite travel vloggers.

Want more?

Tromsø, Norway: Full Travel Guide

I NEED a First-Person-View (FPV) Drone

On By Rick McIn cycling, hiking, travel, videoLeave a comment

My retirement hobby is making hiking videos.

Best of all is drone video.

What’s next?

Certainly I’ll be getting an FPV drone … sometime.

If I HAD to buy one today, it would be the DJI Avata. But the price of U.S. $1428 is too steep.

That will come down quickly.

My current drones cost me about U.S. $300 each.

Here’s the kind of fun shots you can plan and shoot with an FPV. It’s radically different than a normal drone.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Spring Hiking/Skiing Banff

On By Rick McIn health & fitness, hiking, travel1 Comment

Having grown up in Calgary, I’d done a LOT of hiking in the Canadian Rockies in the SUMMER.

But for the past 3 years I’ve stayed in Banff for Spring skiing and Spring hiking.

Hiking in March / April was NEW to me.

Each time I stayed in the Samesun Hostel, the best overall of 3 good hostels in Banff.

I learned the hard way trying Sundance Canyon that micro spikes are essential for hiking ice. I backtracked to town and bought Yaktrax. An excellent product.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

BEST Spring Hike in Banff?

For sure that’s Sulphur Mountain. You MIGHT be able to ride the gondola down free. Soak in the Hot Springs at the bottom.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

MORE VIDEOS:

For a short hike right from town I typically simply walk the rivers and creeks. Lovely.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

VIDEO – Why I Travel The World Alone

On By Rick McIn hiking, travel1 Comment

This over-the-top video by Bashir Abu Shakra won the 2022 Skypixel Drone Grand Prize. It features some stunning footage from the Alps, Brazil, and Mongolia.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Lisa’s Birthday Adventure Week – Moab, Utah

On By Rick McIn cycling, food, friends, hiking, travel1 Comment

I had a GREAT time with Dave and Lisa Adlard in one of my top 10 hiking towns of the world – Moab.

End of March should be ideal weather for outdoor activity. BUT 2023 was colder than usual.

Lisa rented a huge house. We had 19 people.

AND another 10+ over at other rental properties.

Click PLAY or watch a HIGHLIGHTS VIDEO on YouTube.

The birthday girl and friends enjoyed a SPA session.

That same day we were at a Climbing Club in Salt Lake City.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

The Rapel at William’s Bottom was a highlight.

I was video guy for this one. Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

I skipped the Side-by-side Quad adventuring. Jason only rolled his quad once. And only a quarter turn into sand. No injuries.

We had 2 dirt motor bikes, as well.

Corona Arch was the hike where most of our group got together for sunset.

Arches National Park was cold and windy when we were there. A fantastic place.

Dead Horse Point is wonderful. We had one group hike. And one group cycle.

Click PLAY or see Deadhorse on YouTube.

We ate most of our meals at the house. One restaurant blowout was hosted at Zac’s.

The infamous mountain bike circuit is called Slickrock Trail. I survived it in 2007 and did NOT want to risk a second time. BUT some of our group cycled it safely. Jeni and I hiked Slickrock.

A wonderful adventure vacation. It reminded me of a similar trip with Adlards to the Oregon Coast in 2021.

For Want of a Nail

On By Rick McIn cycling, hikingLeave a comment

I’m typically the guy who says: “Why carry a nail? It’s too heavy! … We probably won’t need it on this trip.” 😀

#FamousLastWords

The proverb is found in a number of forms, beginning as early as the 13th century.

For want of a nail the shoe was lost.
For want of a shoe the horse was lost.
For want of a horse the rider was lost.
For want of a rider the message was lost.
For want of a message the battle was lost.
For want of a battle the kingdom was lost.
And all for the want of a horseshoe nail.

Related sayings are “A stitch, in time, saves nine” and “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”. 

Farewell Bermuda

On By Rick McIn gymnastics, hiking, travelLeave a comment

I escaped the Great White North winter for about 5 weeks. I’m a volunteer with the Gymnastics Federation and did some coaching at the two competitive clubs.

Population of Bermuda is only about 65,000.

I’ve been coming to Bermuda since 2016. But still treat every goodbye as my last. 😎

My VIDEO Highlights 2022

On By Rick McIn hiking, music, videoLeave a comment

Happy New Year!

To celebrate, I’m posting my hiking highlights of the past year.

I got a cheap drone December 2021 and most of the clips are from the drone.

My favourite music of 2022 was by Odesza — so it’s appropriate that the soundtrack is one of their songs: Wide Awake.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

PLANNING to Hike the Canary Islands

On By Rick McIn hiking, travelLeave a comment

I spontaneously flew to the Canary Islands from the U.K.

Flights are cheap.

Weather is great in November. 😎

On arrival I found you couldn’t easily purchase camping fuel. Nor are hiking guidebooks available for sale.

Surprising.

I decided to stay just one week. And only on Tenerife. Reconnaissance.

But I’ll be back.

The best islands for hiking are:

Some of the best hikes require complicated permits. Some are only open on weekends. I’ll need to do more planning next time.

I’m thinking at least 3 weeks. At least 4 islands.

Buy my hiking books online. Book permits well in advance.

November ➙ February look to be the best months.

There are plenty of European tourists. But I didn’t meet even one American or Canadian over a week.

Also, you need to speak Spanglish here.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

P.S.

Once I bought a cheap flight to Lisbon, I found the fuel canister I needed in a hostel FREE BOX. So I know they exist on the Canary Islands.

They MIGHT be for sale from either Leroy Merlin or Decathlon in Santa Cruz, Tenerife. Some have found them at petrol stations and ferreterias, hardware stores.