Sandvik

Today I waited for my ferry from Stavanger to Nedstrand for more than three hours, and the weather was less than nice. My initial plan was to go another 50km from my ferry stop to Haugesund. When I eventually reached the ferry stop it was raining, Nedstrand seemed like an exceptionally small town. The population got scarcer, the landscape changed slightly, and the road got very smooth. No construction sites, no people, just liminal spaces; houses, churches, schools and wide open land. All of a sudden the trip felt exciting again.

The rain didn’t seem to have any intention of stopping, so I thought of stopping. I saw a camp sign to the left and I veered. I thought I won’t be dry, but I wouldn’t have to ride in the rain at least. And on top of that the accomodation at Haugesund wasn’t particularly appealing; apparently the campsite there didn’t have any tent spots left; I have a pet peeve against campsites that treats itself like a hotel. I did consider camping in the wild, but finding a suitable spot in rain was even less appealing. Haugesund has quite a few hotels, but I wasn’t going to stay in a hotel; hotels and Airbnbs makes me too comfortable.

Turns out I turned left to a campsite which is also it’s own town I suppose. It’s probably the largest campsite I have seen so far, and also the most casually self-serviced one. There is no one, you can drop money (including Euros) in a letterbox and stay.

When I finally finished dinner, the Sun came out. For a moment I thought I could have biked for a few more hours, but then again, what’s the rush, right?

Sandvik, Norway