touring sweden

[ratfink]

hi all - i'm planning to cycle from the UK to Finnish Lapland via
Sweden. Does anyone have any tips regarding the roads in Sweden. For
example: Is the (eastern) coastaI road awash with traffic? Is there a
better upland route that's not too mountainous. Absolutely anything
would be helpful. regards

 

[Helen Deborah Vecht]

"ratfink" <[email protected]>typed


> hi all - i'm planning to cycle from the UK to Finnish Lapland via
> Sweden. Does anyone have any tips regarding the roads in Sweden. For
> example: Is the (eastern) coastaI road awash with traffic? Is there a
> better upland route that's not too mountainous. Absolutely anything
> would be helpful. regards

The E4 wasn't too busy when I did it in 1988 but that's not recent.

Make sure you take yourself off to bed/tent at a reasonable hour every
night, even if it's light in the midnight sun. You need your sleep and
can easily ride too long.

Shops and garages are spaced quite widely, so always carry 24 hours
worth of food and water. Fresh fuit is a rare treat in these parts; snap
it up and enjoy when you see it.

Make use of moist towellettes to keep your hands clean.

The local mosquito repellents are good; use them frequently.

Don't forget you can easily get sunburn north (and south) of the Arctic
Circle.

--
Helen D. Vecht: [email protected]
Edgware.

 

[Nick Kew]

On 1 Apr 2007 11:17:14 -0700
"ratfink" <[email protected]> wrote:

> hi all - i'm planning to cycle from the UK to Finnish Lapland via
> Sweden. Does anyone have any tips regarding the roads in Sweden. For
> example: Is the (eastern) coastaI road awash with traffic? Is there a
> better upland route that's not too mountainous. Absolutely anything
> would be helpful. regards

What time of year? If you go for the summer weather, you get
big mozzies. Early summer will see a lot of water as the
snow melts. The other time with adequate daylight is round
about now-ish, when snowmelt won't yet have reached the north
and the higher ground that feeds the bigger rivers.

FWIW (and of course generalising), the mountains themselves are
pretty gentle and rolling: more like Scotland than the Alps
or the med.

--
not me guv

"I'm able-bodied. Why should I want a car?"

 

[ratfink]

> What time of year? If you go for the summer weather, you get
> big mozzies. Early summer will see a lot of water as the
> snow melts. The other time with adequate daylight is round
> about now-ish, when snowmelt won't yet have reached the north
> and the higher ground that feeds the bigger rivers.
>
> FWIW (and of course generalising), the mountains themselves are
> pretty gentle and rolling: more like Scotland than the Alps
> or the med.
>

i am likely to leave the UK around the start of August. I know Finland
quite well but Sweden is a complete unknown. By then the mosquito
situation will hopefully be easing off.

 

[GeoffC]

ratfink <[email protected]> wrote:
> hi all - i'm planning to cycle from the UK to Finnish Lapland via
> Sweden. Does anyone have any tips regarding the roads in Sweden. For
> example: Is the (eastern) coastaI road awash with traffic?

I drove up that road two years ago all the way to Narvik in north Norway Its
a beautiful route, I would say that the traffic density was at most 30% of
what you would expect in say France or Germany and less than that for a
comparable road in UK (Southern half).
Its a bloody long way though. Took me more that a day to get from Stockholm
to Luleå @ 80km/h

--

Geoff

 

[[email protected]]

On Apr 1, 7:17 pm, "ratfink" <[email protected]> wrote:
> hi all - i'm planning to cycle from the UK to Finnish Lapland via
> Sweden. Does anyone have any tips regarding the roads in Sweden. For
> example: Is the (eastern) coastaI road awash with traffic? Is there a
> better upland route that's not too mountainous. Absolutely anything
> would be helpful. regards

I'm going to cycle the opposite way in August, from Kiruna to Smygehuk
in the very south. Most of the way I'll be following road number 45
which is running from Gothenburg (on the west coast) all the way up to
the Finnish border (at Karesuando). There is much less traffic
compared to going along the E4 on which you are not even allowed to
cycle from Malmö well up north of Stockholm (even North of Uppsala).
If you want to cycle on the east side you need to get a good map and
do it on smaller roads.
Since you don't write it I assume you'll enter Sweden in Malmö, one
way of doing it is by following smaller roads to Gothenburg, then
follow road 45 for ~800miles before turning east towards Haparanda/
Tornio and the Finnish border, a good place to leave 45 would be
Arvidsjaur.

 

[ratfink]

On 2 Apr, 13:10, [email protected] wrote:
> On Apr 1, 7:17 pm, "ratfink" <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> > hi all - i'm planning to cycle from the UK to Finnish Lapland via
> > Sweden. Does anyone have any tips regarding the roads in Sweden. For
> > example: Is the (eastern) coastaI road awash with traffic? Is there a
> > better upland route that's not too mountainous. Absolutely anything
> > would be helpful. regards
>
> I'm going to cycle the opposite way in August, from Kiruna to Smygehuk
> in the very south. Most of the way I'll be following road number 45
> which is running from Gothenburg (on the west coast) all the way up to
> the Finnish border (at Karesuando). There is much less traffic
> compared to going along the E4 on which you are not even allowed to
> cycle from Malmö well up north of Stockholm (even North of Uppsala).
> If you want to cycle on the east side you need to get a good map and
> do it on smaller roads.
> Since you don't write it I assume you'll enter Sweden in Malmö, one
> way of doing it is by following smaller roads to Gothenburg, then
> follow road 45 for ~800miles before turning east towards Haparanda/
> Tornio and the Finnish border, a good place to leave 45 would be
> Arvidsjaur.

Hey this is is great stuff - i am going from Gothenburg to Pudasjarvi
(near Oulu, Finland), so your route is a close fit. In fact, I know
Karesuando - I was there two winters ago.

Is route 45 much longer than the E4? Is it a tough one to cycle? The
distance is ambitious enough for me - I dont want to be climbing the
Alps on a daily basis.

 

[dabac]

Does anyone have any tips regarding the roads in Sweden.

The highways, ( where north/southbound have separate roads) are off-limits to bikes and other slow vehicles, so you need to stay on smaller roads.
If you manage to avoid roads with names like E4, E20, E18 etc you're home free. Usually there is an older, twistier road that runs more or less parallell with the newer wide E-something available.

... Is the (eastern) coastaI road awash with traffic?

I don't think traffic will be an actual problem in practical terms, although it can be a bit intimidating when the big trucks thunders past.

... Is there a
better upland route that's not too mountainous.

Although there are a number of decent hills it's not really mountainous to any larger extent. Sweden's highest mountain is 2104 metres and it's quite far away from any public roads!

Besides, Sweden isn't exactly crowded. Once you get north of Gävle towns of size are quite widely spaced, and if you turn inland they'll turn outright sparse. Plan ahead if you choose to travel there.

...Absolutely anything
would be helpful.

There IS a suggested bike route available that's mapped and partially signposted called "Sverigeleden". A quick google didn't turn up anything in English, but maybe you'll have more luck. Otherwise it doesn't take too much to figure out start-stop and distances. Might be a good place to start.

 

[[email protected]]

On Apr 2, 3:46 pm, "ratfink" <[email protected]> wrote:
> On 2 Apr, 13:10, [email protected] wrote:
>
>
>
> > On Apr 1, 7:17 pm, "ratfink" <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> > > hi all - i'm planning to cycle from the UK to Finnish Lapland via
> > > Sweden. Does anyone have any tips regarding the roads in Sweden. For
> > > example: Is the (eastern) coastaI road awash with traffic? Is there a
> > > better upland route that's not too mountainous. Absolutely anything
> > > would be helpful. regards
>
> > I'm going to cycle the opposite way in August, from Kiruna to Smygehuk
> > in the very south. Most of the way I'll be following road number 45
> > which is running from Gothenburg (on the west coast) all the way up to
> > the Finnish border (at Karesuando). There is much less traffic
> > compared to going along the E4 on which you are not even allowed to
> > cycle from Malmö well up north of Stockholm (even North of Uppsala).
> > If you want to cycle on the east side you need to get a good map and
> > do it on smaller roads.
> > Since you don't write it I assume you'll enter Sweden in Malmö, one
> > way of doing it is by following smaller roads to Gothenburg, then
> > follow road 45 for ~800miles before turning east towards Haparanda/
> > Tornio and the Finnish border, a good place to leave 45 would be
> > Arvidsjaur.
>
> Hey this is is great stuff - i am going from Gothenburg to Pudasjarvi
> (near Oulu, Finland), so your route is a close fit. In fact, I know
> Karesuando - I was there two winters ago.
>
> Is route 45 much longer than the E4? Is it a tough one to cycle? The
> distance is ambitious enough for me - I dont want to be climbing the
> Alps on a daily basis.

The distance is about the same, if anything route 45 is shorter. The
route does not go over the mountains in the west, I think the highest
point is just over 500 meters somewhere in the middle, maybe between
Mora and Sveg. Of course it's hilly most of the way but nothing like
the Alps.

 

[Helen Deborah Vecht]

dabac <[email protected]>typed



> Besides, Sweden isn't exactly crowded. Once you get north of Gävle
> towns of size are quite widely spaced, and if you turn inland they'll
> turn outright sparse. Plan ahead if you choose to travel there.

Gävle was the smelliest town I ever traversed...

--
Helen D. Vecht: [email protected]
Edgware.

 

[Andrew Price]

On Mon, 2 Apr 2007 17:08:26 +0100, Helen Deborah Vecht
<[email protected]> wrote:

>Gävle was the smelliest town I ever traversed...

Why - sugar beet/pet food (or worse) factory?!?

 

[dabac]

...
Is route 45 much longer than the E4?

Don't ride the E4! It's off limits to bikes. (ignoring the obvious risks of being an unexpected item along a high speed road) Bikers are often met by aggressive behaviour from motorists, and the police will pick you off the road.

 

[Helen Deborah Vecht]

Andrew Price <[email protected]>typed


> On Mon, 2 Apr 2007 17:08:26 +0100, Helen Deborah Vecht
> <[email protected]> wrote:

> >Gävle was the smelliest town I ever traversed...

> Why - sugar beet/pet food (or worse) factory?!?

Some sort of wood/paper processing. Horrid!

--
Helen D. Vecht: [email protected]
Edgware.

 

[Helen Deborah Vecht]

dabac <[email protected]>typed



> ratfink Wrote:
> > ...
> > Is route 45 much longer than the E4?

> *Don't ride the E4!* It's off limits to bikes. (ignoring the obvious
> risks of being an unexpected item along a high speed road) Bikers are
> often met by aggressive behaviour from motorists, and the police *will*
> pick you off the road.


They must have 'upgraded' it since I was there :-(

--
Helen D. Vecht: [email protected]
Edgware.

 

[ratfink]

On 2 Apr, 16:02, dabac <[email protected]>
wrote:
> ratfink Wrote:> Does anyone have any tips regarding the roads in Sweden.
>
> The highways, ( where north/southbound have separate roads) are
> off-limits to bikes and other slow vehicles, so you need to stay on
> smaller roads.
> If you manage to avoid roads with names like E4, E20, E18 etc you're
> home free. Usually there is an older, twistier road that runs more or
> less parallell with the newer wide E-something available.
>
> ratfink Wrote:> ... Is the (eastern) coastaI road awash with traffic?
>
> I don't think traffic will be an actual problem in practical terms,
> although it can be a bit intimidating when the big trucks thunders
> past.
>
> ratfink Wrote:
>
> > ... Is there a
> > better upland route that's not too mountainous.
>
> Although there are a number of decent hills it's not really mountainous
> to any larger extent. Sweden's highest mountain is 2104 metres and it's
> quite far away from any public roads!
>
> Besides, Sweden isn't exactly crowded. Once you get north of Gävle
> towns of size are quite widely spaced, and if you turn inland they'll
> turn outright sparse. Plan ahead if you choose to travel there.
>
> ratfink Wrote:> ...Absolutely anything
> > would be helpful.
>
> There IS a suggested bike route available that's mapped and partially
> signposted called "Sverigeleden". A quick google didn't turn up
> anything in English, but maybe you'll have more luck. Otherwise it
> doesn't take too much to figure out start-stop and distances. Might be
> a good place to start.
>
> --
> dabac

Aparrently the Sverigeleden runs from Karesuando on the northern
border to Smygehuk in the south, possibly via Gothenburg (I could be
wrong). Even the Swedes says "it's difficult to find information about
this trail on the Internet". Anyone got more on this?

 

[[email protected]]

On Apr 3, 11:21 am, "ratfink" <[email protected]> wrote:
> On 2 Apr, 16:02, dabac <[email protected]>
> wrote:
>
>
>
> > ratfink Wrote:> Does anyone have any tips regarding the roads in Sweden.
>
> > The highways, ( where north/southbound have separate roads) are
> > off-limits to bikes and other slow vehicles, so you need to stay on
> > smaller roads.
> > If you manage to avoid roads with names like E4, E20, E18 etc you're
> > home free. Usually there is an older, twistier road that runs more or
> > less parallell with the newer wide E-something available.
>
> > ratfink Wrote:> ... Is the (eastern) coastaI road awash with traffic?
>
> > I don't think traffic will be an actual problem in practical terms,
> > although it can be a bit intimidating when the big trucks thunders
> > past.
>
> > ratfink Wrote:
>
> > > ... Is there a
> > > better upland route that's not too mountainous.
>
> > Although there are a number of decent hills it's not really mountainous
> > to any larger extent. Sweden's highest mountain is 2104 metres and it's
> > quite far away from any public roads!
>
> > Besides, Sweden isn't exactly crowded. Once you get north of Gävle
> > towns of size are quite widely spaced, and if you turn inland they'll
> > turn outright sparse. Plan ahead if you choose to travel there.
>
> > ratfink Wrote:> ...Absolutely anything
> > > would be helpful.
>
> > There IS a suggested bike route available that's mapped and partially
> > signposted called "Sverigeleden". A quick google didn't turn up
> > anything in English, but maybe you'll have more luck. Otherwise it
> > doesn't take too much to figure out start-stop and distances. Might be
> > a good place to start.
>
> > --
> > dabac
>
> Aparrently the Sverigeleden runs from Karesuando on the northern
> border to Smygehuk in the south, possibly via Gothenburg (I could be
> wrong). Even the Swedes says "it's difficult to find information about
> this trail on the Internet". Anyone got more on this?

Sverigeleden's main route is from Karesuando to Helsingborg but there
are lots and lots of branches going to most bigger places. Information
is very hard to find on the Internet. There are three books published,
unfortunately they are in Swedish but I think there is some kind of
supplement in English. I was toying with the idea of following this
route but decided not to since following the same road for almost 1000
miles makes map reading easy. I might follow parts of Sverigeleden
from Gothenburgto Smygehuk but almost certainly unintentionally.

 

[dabac]

Aparrently the Sverigeleden runs from Karesuando on the northern
border to Smygehuk in the south, possibly via Gothenburg (I could be
wrong). Even the Swedes says "it's difficult to find information about
this trail on the Internet". Anyone got more on this?

You find bits of info easily enough, but something comprehensive, like "I rode this and experienced that" (and in English!) doesn't seem to be available.
I did find this: though. On page 2 there are what they call info-folders, and on pg 3 you find the real stuff, no.0601-0603.

Here: is another link that at least can lead you to an email address to the people who should be able to answer your questions.

 

[dabac]

On Mon, 2 Apr 2007 17:08:26 +0100, Helen Deborah Vecht
<[email protected]> wrote:

>Gävle was the smelliest town I ever traversed...

Why - sugar beet/pet food (or worse) factory?!?

I think this paper mill might be the biggest culprit. But if memory serves me right you can also find producers of the rather pungent regional delicacy fermented herring hereabouts. The latter, by volume, a far worse source of stink than just about any industrial process.

 

[dabac]

dabac <[email protected]>typed
They must have 'upgraded' it since I was there :-(

Well, it's not like it's physically impossible to ride the E-somethings by bicycle, and if the police are having a bad day it might be a while before you receive their personal attention.
But you will get mentioned in radio alerts and "righteous" motorists are likely to honk their horn and maybe even swipe at you.

 

[Helen Deborah Vecht]

dabac <[email protected]>typed



> Helen Deborah Vecht Wrote:
> > dabac <[email protected]>typed
> > They must have 'upgraded' it since I was there :-(

> Well, it's not like it's physically impossible to ride the E-somethings
> by bicycle, and if the police are having a bad day it might be a while
> before you receive their personal attention.
> But you will get mentioned in radio alerts and "righteous" motorists
> are likely to honk their horn and maybe even swipe at you.


It only looks like a motorway on short stretches of my admittedly
ancient AutoRoute but doesn't appear to be a motorway on Google Earth
either.

The motorists were OK. I did get buzzed by an aeroplane and honked by a
train when I was on the E10 in the far North though...

--
Helen D. Vecht: [email protected]
Edgware.