motorhome newbie, old hymer, one year in europe....

[craigthecoupe]

seiben said:

OP, would you mind sharing your IG handle? I wouldn't mind a following this

Sure. The main one for the trip is while_we_wander
My personal one, complete with crap pics and sarcasm is
crgwtts

[seiben]

craigthecoupe said:

Sure. The main one for the trip is while_we_wander

Gotcha. Thanks - looks awesome!

[craigthecoupe]

Yeah, my wife is a photographer, and though her kit is limited with the space we have, she takes a nice picture.

[craigthecoupe]

nadger said:

Brilliant adventure! I’ve really enjoyed reading it so far.
When you travel north through Denmark, if you head up to Frederikshavn to catch the ferry let me know. I know the place really well, if you need recommendations for camping stops/restaurants etc I know a couple of places off the beaten track I can recommend!

Thanks for that. We were thinking of heading up the west coast, popping over to Aalborg, then up near skagen and back to hirtshals to take the ferry. Is Frederickshavn worth seeing?

[nadger]

craigthecoupe said:

nadger said:

Brilliant adventure! I’ve really enjoyed reading it so far.
When you travel north through Denmark, if you head up to Frederikshavn to catch the ferry let me know. I know the place really well, if you need recommendations for camping stops/restaurants etc I know a couple of places off the beaten track I can recommend!

Thanks for that. We were thinking of heading up the west coast, popping over to Aalborg, then up near skagen and back to hirtshals to take the ferry. Is Frederickshavn worth seeing?

Now I love the place, however that because my family all live there. The truth is that there isn’t a massive amount there to see, beyond an excellent municipal swimming pool, the gunpowder tower and a small island called Hirsholmene which we spend each summer on and is delightful (although again, may not be that fascinating to anyone else!). Skagen is lovely and far more tourist-aligned than Frederikshavn! If you go, and you like your watches, pop into the Skagen watch shop on the high street!

[nick997]

Just read your blog, keep it up, it’s an enjoyable read. Don’t know you from Adam but can feel you relaxing as each day goes by, good for you.

[craigthecoupe]

[quote=nadger]
Now I love the place, however that because my family all live there. The truth is that there isn’t a massive amount there to see, [quote]

Thanks for that. If we have the time or take a fancy to it, we’ll pop by.
I read Helen russell’ book, the year of living danishly, and have been excited about getting here ever since. I’ve always liked the design and architecture that comes from the Nordic area, and loved our brief trips to Finland and Estonia, so am excited for denmark Norway and Sweden.

We overnighted in a town called Ribe last night. It’s the oldest town in denmark, and it is just stunning. I’ll load some pics up soon (three’s coverage has been awful thus far). We’re going to have a bit of a potter around again today before moving on.
I do finally feel like i’m Beginning to unwind (so thats one calendar month for anyone reading that needs to de stress). Hopefully we can truly embrace hygge and get ourselves levelled out for the rest of the trip.
Thanks for the comments, and taking an interest, pics to follow soon.

[nadger]

I left a message on your Instagram account recommending the home of the Viking Kings in Jelling. It’s honestly well worth a visit. Utterly draw dropping interactive museum which is utterly free to get in to! Definitely swing by there if you get the chance (it’s also close to Legoland for your little one!)

[craigthecoupe]

Here are a few pics from the previous couple of days. Firstly here’s the van parked up safely on the beach on Romo island. And me parked up next to it


All in all a throughly good fun day watching people literally beach their cars on the patches of soft sand. Gladly we made it on and off with no drama

We headed out to this little spot for a quiet nights sleep.
It was very calm here, just outside of ribe town. The other side of the dyke, was marshland and then the sea. Loads of birds flying about and nesting in the loch gates (i’m Not birdy, perhaps they were swifts or swallows?)

Whilst the other two went to a nature reserve, i snuck out for a quick spin on the bike.
Cycling not far, but into Ribe for a coffee, first for a month!, and a croissant. Very pleasant apart from the never ending flatness.


Passing this great little cabin in the middle of nowhere. Perfect for a few days of walking and whiskey to get away from it all, not sure i fancy it in January mind you.


This was the nature reserve mentioned previously. My wife said it was as impressive inside too. I loved this building, so much texture. I do like the thatching around here, much crisper lines rather than the teletubby shape i associate with thatch.


We did an overnight in a Camperstop in Ribe town proper, and though it was just a car park, the town was superb. The oldest town in Denmark apparently. This building, though a little newer housed the remains of of possibly the oldest building in denmark 1145! Sadly, being the pleb that i am, they just looked like the remains of an old brick wall, but the building sheltering them certainly had my attention.
Something a little more in keeping with the town, lots of little buildings like this one

Many with some form of defective wall. I’m not sure if it would be subsidence or dodgy building practice, but lots of pissed doorways, jaunty windows, and precarious wobbly walls.

weve travelled inland a bit now, mainly to get the laundry done, and are mulling over weather we go east or west from tomorrow, i think the Viking museum and the promise of rolling countryside along with a couple of fjords, seems to be edging it. The beaches are wonderful, as is the marshlands, but it really is all weve seen for weeks now. If anyone thinks contrary you’d better speak up in the next 15 hours or so.

Ta ta

[oblio]

We went to Hamburg for 5 days on our trip around the NL and northern Germany last Sept. Great city.

On your way up to Denmark there is a Stelplatz right on the Kiel Canal...€10 a night...and I mean RIGHT on the canal. The ships pass within 30m or so of where the MH are parked up. I can recommend it for a night....

http://wohnmobilpark-sad.de/

They also have EHU (first come first served) and showers (€2 from memory).

[craigthecoupe]

nadger said:

I left a message on your Instagram account recommending the home of the Viking Kings in Jelling. It’s honestly well worth a visit. Utterly draw dropping interactive museum which is utterly free to get in to! Definitely swing by there if you get the chance (it’s also close to Legoland for your little one!)

Thank you. We’ve changed plans a bit, and are heading that way tomorrow. Will visit the centre and then head north probably through frederikshavn, so fire away with any ideas for the area.
Appreciate your input, cheers

[craigthecoupe]

oblio said:

We went to Hamburg for 5 days on our trip around the NL and northern Germany last Sept. Great city.

On your way up to Denmark there is a Stelplatz right on the Kiel Canal...€10 a night...and I mean RIGHT on the canal. The ships pass within 30m or so of where the MH are parked up. I can recommend it for a night....

http://wohnmobilpark-sad.de/

They also have EHU (first come first served) and showers (€2 from memory).

Thanks for that, sadly we are already beyond the stopover, but it looks like a beauty.
For the record, and slightly knobby, that is not so close. This


Is close.
Too close as it turns out. I woke in the night, maybe more than once in a sweat about putting the handbrake on!

[nadger]

craigthecoupe said:

nadger said:

I left a message on your Instagram account recommending the home of the Viking Kings in Jelling. It’s honestly well worth a visit. Utterly draw dropping interactive museum which is utterly free to get in to! Definitely swing by there if you get the chance (it’s also close to Legoland for your little one!)

Thank you. We’ve changed plans a bit, and are heading that way tomorrow. Will visit the centre and then head north probably through frederikshavn, so fire away with any ideas for the area.
Appreciate your input, cheers

No worries, more than happy to help! The main camp site is to the north of Frederikshavn, and has a massive soft play centre opposite it. It’s also really close to palmestranden (palm beach) which is a lovely white sand beach with an awesome ice cream kiosk! It’s also worth going down to møllehuset (the old mill). They’ve re done the whole area, and reopened the old botanical gardens which are lovely. There’s also s brand new play park been opened there too. Whilst you’re there, take in the bangsbo museum as well, which is all about the occupation of Denmark in WW2 (if you don’t know about Denmark’s unique situation during ww2, it’s well worth a google!). My grandfather is actually in the museum because of his actions during ww2!
If you do decide to visit that area, there is another excellent ice cream kiosk there (møllehus iskiosk). I’d also recommend parking up here Søsportsvej
9900 Frederikshavn, Denmark
https://goo.gl/maps/xnjfEqAW4bx
and visiting the terribly titled restaurant Nerd which is in the sports harbour! It’s better than it sounds, with an excellent buffet with all you can eat herring etc!
There’s also a brilliant municipal swimming pool as well, which would be great for your little one too, as it has an artificial beach-type sloping pool and a large kids pool with floats, etc. They also have a one and three meter diving board for the big kids too! ;-)
Oh, nearly forgot the bunker museum, which is up on the hill. The Nazis fortified the whole upper area of the hill you’ll see as you come into Frederikshavn from the south. It’s also a lovely run up there, should you be that way inclined!
Finally, if you have the time and inclination, there is the island I mentioned called Hirsholmene, which is a 45 min boat ride away. It’s a bird reserve and full of all kinds of seagull and other birds! I love it, but it’s not cheap to get to. You’d need to catch the post boat (www.seadog.dk) to get there.
Well, perhaps there was a little more than I’d given the city credit for!

[craigthecoupe]

Thanks ever so much for all of that info. We did indeed head to Jelling yesterday, and explore the Viking museum. As you said, very impressive and very interactive too. I could have spent much longer there, but little one had had enough after a while so we had to move on, had a nice picnic in the grounds and walked the perimeter of the stone ship, before moving off to an amazing free stopover. In the gardens of someone’s house, they have a garden room, waste dump, water and wonderful views, and all for free. Very generous.

[Spuffington]

Sorry I've not replied on this, but I've taken a really good look at your blog site and love it. Well written and some great photos.

Keep on rolling and enjoying the time together. What an amazing experience for the three of you.

[nadger]

craigthecoupe said:

Thanks ever so much for all of that info. We did indeed head to Jelling yesterday, and explore the Viking museum. As you said, very impressive and very interactive too. I could have spent much longer there, but little one had had enough after a while so we had to move on, had a nice picnic in the grounds and walked the perimeter of the stone ship, before moving off to an amazing free stopover. In the gardens of someone’s house, they have a garden room, waste dump, water and wonderful views, and all for free. Very generous.

I’m just delighted that you enjoyed it! Is the interactive dead bloke with the many weapons still there? That scared the bejesus out of my older son last year when he grabbed the axe and the blood splattered on the screen! 😁

One more must do, if you haven’t already, is have a red hot dog with everything on it (mustard, ketchup, remoulade, raw and fried onions and sweet pickled cucumber) with a cocio chocolate milk. Food of the gods!

[craigthecoupe]

Having just written a whole post only for it to disappear before adding the images, i’m A bit pissy, but the gist of it goes like this. Sorry nadger, but after your excellent info, we skipped fredrikshavn, and left denmark rather quickly. A combo of trying to sort a ferry, and staying with friends in Norway put us on an awkward schedule, so we just decided to get on with it. Also finding free overnights in northern denmark is tough.

A week into Norway, and i love it here. The scenery is beyond words, and everywhere too. Ive not taken many pics, simply because everywhere looks so good. Here are a few of the end of denmark.
This was an abandoned lighthouse built on top of a huge dune near Lokken. It will fall into the sea in the next few years, but you can climb to the top as it is now, and the views are worth overcoming a fear of heights for.

The music hall in aalborg. I thought beyond this building aalborg was a bit st really, turns out its the happiest city in denmark, which is often touted as the happiest country in the world, what do i know!

And another amazing sunset from the west coast of denmark, the beach name escapes me

And from Norway so far.
To be honest i cant remember where these are, except the third one is taken from a free stopover in Oanes. We drove the 44 along the south coast heading towards stavanger. An amazing road with spectacular views. Driving heaven!



Speaking of which, the van has managed Norway brilliantly so far. Some of the hills are bloody steep here, and there have been a few first gear hairpins. It smells like an old diesel, rumbles away, is slow, and noisy, but i’m Still so impressed with what it’s managed so far.

[GIYess]

Beautiful! I'm adding Norway to my bucket list.

[craigthecoupe]

Honestly, it should be on everyone’s bucket list.
As weve travel further north, the views have kept coming, the weather is improving, to the point we are seeing some of the weather you in the uk have experienced of late, and the terrain is constantly on the move. Ill pop up more pictures than words, because most things here involve the outdoors, and speak for themselves.


We stopped over here a few nights ago. A free overnight in the car park of a glacier. I’ve never seen one before, and now I’ve cosied up to one only 300 meters away, magnificent.

I love how small i feel when i’m In amongst this kind of terrain. A good one for reflection, and keeping life in perspective.

One of my favourite pictures of the trip so far

And last nights free stopover, overlooking Molde and the nearby islands

Edited by craigthecoupe on Sunday 1st July 07:40

[Rumblestripe]

craigthecoupe said:

One of my favourite pictures of the trip so far

Edited by craigthecoupe on Sunday 1st July 07:40

Oh.

My.

Word.