Norway Roadtoll and ferries and the 2 bridges

[Kalleiviken]

If you drive in northern Scandinavia, you have to be observant on reindeer along the roads. I have spent all summers of my childhood in northern Sweden and every year someone was hit a reindeer and killed it. They do not run into the forest but try to run away from the car on the road. They can reach up to 50 km / h. Be observant and look along the roadsides!
In southern Sweden, moose, deer and wild boar can walk across the roads. Usually in the morning or evening. In the summer in northern Sweden we have midnight sun.

 

[colinm]

If you drive in northern Scandinavia, you have to be observant on reindeer along the roads. I have spent all summers of my childhood in northern Sweden and every year someone was hit a reindeer and killed it. They do not run into the forest but try to run away from the car on the road. They can reach up to 50 km / h. Be observant and look along the roadsides!
In southern Sweden, moose, deer and wild boar can walk across the roads. Usually in the morning or evening. In the summer in northern Sweden we have midnight sun.

Funny enough the UK has quite a problem with accidents due to deer's on roads, up to 20 people a year die, and up to 1000 injured, also more than 40,000 deer get killed ever year, hardly ever gets in the news.

 

[jagmanx]

There's a Loose Moose about the Hoose ?

 

[Derekoak]

Whilst on Norway and Sweden, do people find they can manage totally on cards for payment or do we really need a small amount of the respective Krone/a, for small shops. What about supermarket trollies. Would a Euro/ pound do ?

 

[jagmanx]

Cash only needed for small campsites with minimal facimlities.
We survived in Sweden for 1 month and no cash !

 

[mid4did]

Only needed cash once to use the washing machine in Norway. I bartered using some low alcohol Swedish lager with a fellow camper.

 

[mid4did]

Only needed cash once to use the washing machine in Norway. I bartered using some low alcohol Swedish lager with a fellow camper.

 

[saxonborg]

Whilst on Norway and Sweden, do people find they can manage totally on cards for payment or do we really need a small amount of the respective Krone/a, for small shops. What about supermarket trollies. Would a Euro/ pound do ?

We needed some small change to use the washing machines on sites in Sweden, we would never rely on cards totally.

 

[jagmanx]

Yes some cash is handy.
For the reasons given AND.
If you are in a fix and a kind individual helps you out..cash is king.
Perhaps @Kalleiviken could tell us if euros would be well received ?

 

[Deleted member 86180]

Keep a check on your fuel consumption from Denmark onwards, our van on UK fuel does 26--28 to the gallon at home, on our trip up to Sletnes lighthouse at the top of Norway and round the Artic circle we were averaging 35 to the gallon,
There chip oil must be of a better standard than ours

Not in my experience, I was getting 30 + mpg until we got to Sweden. Now a few mpg lower.

 

[Deleted member 86180]

Cheapest diesel is £2.10/ltr

 

[Deleted member 86180]

 

[Kalleiviken]

Yes some cash is handy.
For the reasons given AND.
If you are in a fix and a kind individual helps you out..cash is king.
Perhaps @Kalleiviken could tell us if euros would be well received ?

Credit cards work in most places in Sweden. How it's in Norway I have no idea. In Denmark, credit cards work but they charge a fee (gebyr) for all international cards, Danish cards are free. Euro can work in southern Sweden but if it works you get a bad exchange rate. We in Sweden often pay with a mobile app (Swich), a local payment system developed by Swedish banks. We are probably one of the world's cash loose countries. There are many businesses that do not handle cash.

 

[suneye]

My son lives in Norway and he does everything with his phone, shops, buses, ferries, says he can’t remember the last time he used cash.

 

[Deleted member 86180]

Agreed, cashless is fine. Reached the Arctic circle yesterday, the centre was four foot under snow. Have to keep stopping to get rid of the ice build up. Big snow forecast for later tonight and tomorrow

 

[Deleted member 86180]

The snow plough was busy all day!

 

[saxonborg]

AA bit further up the road there is a turning off to the east signposted to a place called Sulitjelma, a nice little diversion to this old mining centre, once you have driven through the road takes you upto an outdoor centre at Jacobsbakken and where there maybe overnight parking. 50+ years since I went to Jacobsbakken and it was a very unspoilt area then. For info the turning is near Finneid.

 

[Deleted member 86180]

AA bit further up the road there is a turning off to the east signposted to a place called Sulitjelma, a nice little diversion to this old mining centre, once you have driven through the road takes you upto an outdoor centre at Jacobsbakken and where there maybe overnight parking. 50+ years since I went to Jacobsbakken and it was a very unspoilt area then. For info the turning is near Finneid.

Unfortunately we needed to beat a hasty retreat down to Lulea, it’s a balmy 0 degrees here and only likely to drop to minus 9 tonight. the snow forecast for tomorrow up there is shocking. This early in the trip I don’t want anything bad to happen to the van. We’re warm as toast but ice build up around the van is worrying, the shear weight of ice I’m pulling off is incredible the grey drain is completely frozen in a big block of dirty ice. I managed to melt enough off to operate the lever to drain the tank and that’s the way it’s staying probably until we get to Helsinki.

The Lofotens now off the agenda. We saw snow plough convoys all the way up there and don’t fancy getting corralled into barriered holding pens to await the next snow plough and have leave when they tell you! If the weather picks up in a couple of days we’re off to Rovaniemi (wife still believes in Santa), before heading down through Finland to get a ferry over to Tallinn, want to pay tribute to Joey Dunlop’s memorial.

 

[Deleted member 86180]

Grey drain and lever, don’t see it? Neither do I

 

[saxonborg]

Unfortunately we needed to beat a hasty retreat down to Lulea, it’s a balmy 0 degrees here and only likely to drop to minus 9 tonight. the snow forecast for tomorrow up there is shocking. This early in the trip I don’t want anything bad to happen to the van. We’re warm as toast but ice build up around the van is worrying, the shear weight of ice I’m pulling off is incredible the grey drain is completely frozen in a big block of dirty ice. I managed to melt enough off to operate the lever to drain the tank and that’s the way it’s staying probably until we get to Helsinki.

The Lofotens now off the agenda. We saw snow plough convoys all the way up there and don’t fancy getting corralled into barriered holding pens to await the next snow plough and have leave when they tell you! If the weather picks up in a couple of days we’re off to Rovaniemi (wife still believes in Santa), before heading down through Finland to get a ferry over to Tallinn, want to pay tribute to Joey Dunlop’s memorial.

Best to air on the side of caution nevertheless sounds like a great trip.