nbjtours

Torup, Sweden

Day Fifteen 110 miles 2638 ft

The morning dawned misty at the top of Mosseberg hill overlooking Falkoping, but it soon started to lift so that we could see the town under the cloud 

  
This morning Nigel and I spent a good deal of time running through some route changes to keep us on the country roads and not have the type of experience we had yesterday. 

I take a lot of time preparing the routes for these rides, running through them 3 or 4 times before being happy with the choice, but equally will change them if we can find better, which in this case with improved understanding of the Swedish road network, a new, longer but much safer and more enjoyable route was decided. 

The forecast for today was sunshine and showers. It was not wrong. 

   
 The first segment to coffee was almost dry with a light shower, I delayed the next departure by ten minutes to allow another one to pass, but it was in vain really because after 20 minutes the heavens opened and as I cycled through a village called Hokerum the Main Street I was cycling up became a river with my front wheel creating a bow wave. The pictures above show the other side of the cloud after I emerged into the sun. I started to dry out before it then rained again. So had another kit change at lunch.  A picturesque stop as below. 
   
The countryside had changed over the past two days and is very much more agricultural with a full range of cereal crops, some dairy herds and many horses. The pine trees and logging still remain however. 

One of the benefits of cycling is seeing everything at a slower pace than driving, but also it allows you to  take in the full smells of the freshly cut pine trees, ploughed earth or cut grass. I thought that we were experts in the UK at mowing, but we are amateurs in comparison to the Swedes. Going through almost every town or village someone was out mowing, or if not the robot mower was busy doing it for them. 

Road signs here have been amusing, today’s favourite, if it is not sensored first is this one. 

 
Although threatening more rain it held off, and making it a four leg day again, following a brief tea stop I got in just after 7pm for the third day running. 

The highlights of this last segment being the sight of some Common Cranes in the fields 

 
 For a change, we had rooms in a hostel and had a very interesting chat with a couple of Russians, who were inspecting the installation of a corregated cardboard machine for a Swiss Company? 

This is the last night in Sweden, tomorrow sees 75 miles to go to the ferry to Denmark. 

Really enjoyed it here, everything is clean, works and the people have been properly hospitable, with some spectacular scenery, if you like water and can cope with insects.