Leaving the Viking Barken just after 5am, I carried both suitcases and Jane grabbed the backpacks as we made a quick and stealthy passage around the Nordstan mall (sketchy at night) to the Goteborg train station. Arriving well before our 610am departure, luckily the 7-11 kiosk was open for some much-needed coffee and croissants.
Boarding our high-speed train, we enjoyed more of rural western Sweden and some Canadian Shield-esque landscapes as we neared the Norway border - lots of trees, lakes and rocks. I also learned a valuable lesson - remember to hit the red button when using the washroom on the train, lest someone open the door at an inopportune time! Even more awkwardly, when someone hits the button the open the door, it stays open for a good 20-30 seconds or so. Luckily my back was to the door at least.
After a three and half hour ride to the northwest, we arrived in Oslo, the capital city of Norway. With a quick turnaround for Jane to find a restroom while I bought tickets for the next train, we were soon aboard a local VY RE11 commuter train heading around the Oslo fjord and bound for Skien, including our stop in Sandefjord, a smaller town about an hour and a half to the south.
Arriving well before our scheduled meeting, we walked across the street for a nice lunch at Laroza. Burgers again, for those following along. Just before 2pm, the fine folks from Benzini Campers (Lenka and Vlado) delivered Winston to the train station - a 2002 VW California van with a 5-speed 2.5 L turbo diesel, that would be our home on wheels for the next two weeks in Norway.
They did try to discourage our plans to visit Lofoten in the North, given that it was about six days of driving just to get there and back to southern Norway. We noted that we liked road trips and were used to long driving days, but also that we would keep an eye on the weather if it stopped making sense.
After getting the run-down on all the important aspects, I tried a few test maneuvers around the narrow parking lot at the train station. Another valuable lesson learned last year in Iceland. We set out and quickly found the E-18, with the goal of getting as far north as possible with the hours remaining in the day. Unfortunately, that also put us into Oslo rush hour and some traffic jams. Let's just say stop-and-go traffic almost immediately was not how I planned to get comfortable with the clutch!
Trying to avoid the downtown core, we ended up crawling along through a two-lane tunnel on the E-16 - and learned another new lesson. When you hear sirens, everybody finds a way to squeeze over to leave a lane up the middle for emergency vehicles. It was our first introduction to the very patient and courteous drivers of Norway.
After about six hours of driving, to not really get very far (thanks to the traffic), the very early start and long train ride took their toll. After a late dinner of gas station hot dogs at a Circle K, we found a nice quiet rest stop outside Lillehammer to call it a night on the shores of a peaceful lake. Our first experience setting up the bed went well, and we were soon down for the count.
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