CB500X – Solo Norway trip Part 30 – One of those days

This is Part 30 of my trip continuing the journey through Latvia and into Lithuania. I’d spent the night in a nice hotel and had a very good breakfast, loaded up the bike and went to move it and… I’d forgotten to take the disk lock off, so over she went… not the best start to a day and I don’t know if it is the same for you but if you get off to a bad start minor irritations can seem just to build through the day so that in the end you’re glad when the day is over?
In the scheme of things these are just so trivial but at the time seem real enough. After all, by choice, I am lucky enough to be travelling through wonderful scenery, meeting great people, enjoying great weather and roads on a motorcycle, what have I got to complain about?!? This trip has been truly fantastic, not to expect the odd hiccup along the way is just being naïve.

The whole journey took me through the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Sweden and into Norway right the way up to Nordkapp, the furthest point you can travel by motorcycle or car in mainland Europe and then back through Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Germany, Belgium and France over a 7 week period late May – mid July 2023
I am back in the UK now, but please do add your comments and I’ll get back to you.

Hoping you can “Like” the video, as this does help the channel.

All my best wishes, thanks again for watching

Nick

CB500X 2022 model
Hepco & Becker Tank bars
Rally Raid CB500X 2019-on Engine Guard-RRP 747
SW Motech Footrest Kit
R&G Kickstand Shoe-RRP 474
Outback Motortek Pannier rack and Rear rack (including exhaust heat shield)

Metzeler Tourance Next tyres

SW-Motech dry bag (60 litres)
Lomo dry bag motorcycle waterproof panniers -soft
Oxford tank bag (need to use rain cover in heavy rain)

Garmin Zumo XT GPS device
Rally Raid Billet Multi-Mount for 12mm (1/2″) Crossbar – part number RRP 643

GoPro Hero 10 (helmet mounted)
Adhesive universal helmet mount for GoPro
Purple Panda microphone (helmet mounted)
Sonicake wireless microphone (walking about)
Insta360 X3
DJI mini 3 Drone

Vango Tryfan 300 (3 person tent)
Sea to Summit Camp Plus Self Inflating Camping Mat
Trekology air bag (topping up mat inflation)
SLAAPLEKKER 800 Goose down mummy sleeping bag
Eurohike sleeping bag liner
Trekology Aluft pillow

Cyberlink PowerDirector 365 – video editing

RST textile jacket
RST textile trousers (slight seepage in crutch area in heavy rain)
TCX Airtech 3 Gore-tex boots
Nolan 80 helmet

Stupid mistake left the disc lock on don’t normally have it on just moved forward and over she went oh pick it up and go again welcome folks it’s Nick here it’s day 42 just stayed in this uh Hotel it was € 38 for the night and breakfast really good

Was so that was omelette some salad orange juice coffee donut Etc the town itself I need to put its name up you to see but it’s so peaceful it’s 8:30 in the morning um blue skies Lithuania and it’s just uh a lovely start of the day anyway the bike’s

Parked around the back with a cover on so I need to go and sort that out and then we’ll be off I’m going to head off to vus the capital of Lithuania and from there South down to to a town in Poland called hel hope I pronounce that right if not

I’m in trouble anyway um more when we get on the road stupid mistake left the disc lock on don’t normally have it on just moved forward and over she went oh pick it up and go again well had to take the luggage off and then just do a uh sort of handlebar lift

Couldn’t move it the uh getting my back into it cuz the rear wheel was very much off the ground oh dear oh dear let’s see look like that sheared yes scuff on here anything else I think we’re okay what a stupid mistake fishous start day to take a slight detour here there’s a

Scenic Viewpoint somewhere along this way don’t quite know where it is 15 km or something let’s just go and explore decided I really don’t like this I’m going to turn around and go that still heading to vilus but I’m on the motorway so I will stop as soon as

Possible and see whether I can get a curvier route petrol here is quite a lot cheaper €48 .9 per ler pretty good of which I need to stop soon and get some picture topped up with fuel Chang the GoPro battery cuz that as usual dies whenever I want to film anything um 348

Km 12 L it’s saying that that’s 3.3 L per 100 km according to the bike oh yeah it was one 140 per liter pretty good got a bit of a Ferrari thing going on there with their sign for watching out for the Wildlife they got a prancing

Deer opposed to the pring Pony veryy active I think the uh ones in the UK here just doile walking across or something well it’s nearly 1:00 just come across this little place here the the next town apparently is 53 km away so I might as well stop here see if

I can get some lunch that was a shame they had a very big group of people in in there and after 15 minutes and they still couldn’t really get any service so they were still just sort of bringing out meals well there’s a petrol station I think it does food too so I’ll

Just grab something here sandwich and vegetables light hot sauce heated hope it’s all right Coca-Cola sandwich handam vegetables light hot sauce eat hope it’s all right stalks Nest Telegraph Pole my plan today had been to go to vilnus the capital of Lithuania and I’d plumbed in Garmin I

Wanted to go to vilus and then into Poland to a place which is on the Ukrainian border right middle the way down Poland and um what I didn’t notice is that the Garian my GPS de guys had rooted me through bellus which in 2023 is a no no so I’ve had to

Change my plans it meant doing 100 km to vus and 100 km back along the same road I really didn’t you know so I’ve bypassed vas plumbed in a give me an adventurous route to where I’m going um which known locally is the White Lake I

Need to put its official name up and I will head there the adventures routing has taken me off the main roads taken me through some little country lanes and Villages which is very nice which means I can stop in a place like this easily and finish the C which I got with me

Lunch so that is one of the advantages of traveling solo I can make these decisions on the fly like stopping here and also not going to vilnus anymore and also I was going to go down a 15 km Gravel Road to a beauty spot got got a little way down decided you know

What it’s not for me so I turned around and came back uh yes I wimped out but nobody need know apart from you and me and I’m sure you won’t tell anyone anyway I’m going to Dish my Coke and then get back on the road I won’t

Make it to this spot tonight it’s still several hundred kilometers uh but I will do my best to find an appropriate camping spot one of the little towns on this back route generally I’m quite happy with Garmin adventurers rooting sometimes a bit torturous taking you off a road and then

Back onto the road just for the sake of it just approaching the border with Poland am I going straight through look like It well I reckon this is Poland then yep it’s a sign saying Poland and all the r speed limits pretty Countryside oh look deers sort of prancing not like the prancing pony Ferrari thing that we saw in Lithuania oh there’s a stalk as well I if I call that they’re just stood

In these fields like they do in water I assume they’re after reptiles or insects or maybe small mammals in these fields don’t know I’m not sure whether it would make the edit but I was saying that this road is quite straight there had been a lot of trucks

On it but I stop to change the battery on the GoPro and by the time I got in back on it was nice and clear well I’ve reached the tail end of it again and it’s probably tailing back 800 M to a roundabout but it’s double white lines

And there’s a lot of traffic coming the other way anyway so I think I’m just stuck here for the while anybody know any good jokes the town Of apologies it’s a rather Grand Church see that bigger town we’re heading towards the old stock not stock so I’m Hing to find somewhere to camp near here there is potentially a campsite here on the right according to google but doesn’t look much like it with it I don’t think

So that is not a campsite that’s a housing estate block of flats giving up with Google Maps so don’t judge me the deed is done I’ve booked a hotel I can’t find camping anywhere the campsites on Google Maps look like public parks um the hotel I’ve got is 16 km away

It’s 144 polish zi which is about £ 27 which includes breakfast in something called Barrow bar Resort we’ll see when we get there but it looks pretty good in the pictures I’ll let you know I didn’t really expect this but um the first turn was closed 2 kilm to where I’m going quite

Unexpected there you go there’s probably a Motorway route around the front way or something Dusty I am hoping that this place does actually exist and it’s not another one of those oh yeah just follow this this bit and it’s going to be a development site no this is different I’ve booked it on

Booking.com this is a horribly rutted Road as if I had any guts I just of ride over it at speed but I don’t so I’ve just taken it gently well I think this is it on the right oh looks like it let’s assume it is for now

Definitely having one of those days let me start by showing you the the room for the 27 including breakfast so that looks pretty good to me and bathroom and cupboard scoring things lights work that’s all pretty good um couldn’t find a campsite but having one of those days

I left the other hotel and left the disc lock on so as soon as I tried to move the bike it fell over so I’ve pulled that back up I don’t think my technique was absolutely correct cuz I’ve got a bit of a sore back hopefully it’s just

Muscular so that was that thing um good news bad news about the waterproofs which weren’t waterproof they’re just an extra layer i’ bought a very cheap roll back dry bag it was about £3.99 or £2.99 and I’d stuffed them in there so that I could get easy access to

It good news is the problem is resolved with regards to them making me wetter when I’ve got them on the bad news is it’s because the bag has dropped off I think the back somewhere over the last or however many 283 km that we’ve done today so but the most annoying bit

Is not so much the waterproofs cuz I I was going to dump them when I got home anyway cuz they’re just not working um is I had two little waterproof bags for the tank bag and I’d stuffed those in there as well just in case it rained easy access

Because I’ve lost the other bag these two little cheap bags as well again they were only £2.99 each but that’s annoying um anyway at least I’m in this hotel it’s 27 course say don’t take card I don’t have any zotes so we have to negotia in

Euros but it’s done now and um yeah room looks okay I say inclu to breakfast so I’m just going to uh settle in for the night I’m hoping that there’s campsites somewhere where I choose to stop anyway all that need me to Do bye for Now