Day 7 – Tuesday, 6/12/01
Up early and manage a call to Jerry, who hasn’t been able to reach the warden. He says
wait. Either way I’ll be leaving, so I go out and load my gear on the bike and watch the
8-year-old son of the proprietor as he rides his new, tricked-out mountain bike back and
forth across the slanted asphalt parking pad. The motel is on the side of a hill above the
highway and the parking area in front is in pretty bad shape, but the kid makes the best
of it. Pretty soon he overcomes his shyness and is asking all about my bike and we’re
deep in conversation when his father and sister come out. Another couple had noticed
me as they were leaving and told him, so now he wants pictures with his kids.
He’s very pleasant now; must be the daylight. As we’re talking and I’m getting things
buttoned up, the phone rings. Jerry says it’s no go. He gave them the whole shpiel
about my having been part of the defense team, visited Joe on death row, etc., but they
won’t let me come in. They have agreed to a compromise, however, a phone call, so I
should just wait while they move him into an office with a phone.
After a few minutes, the phone rings and a woman’s voice asks if it’s me. It is. She asks
me to hold the phone and then Joe is on. He is amazing, this guy. He maintains,
somehow, an easy going attitude and sense of humor in spite of almost being executed,
being shunted all over the country by a system trying to hide him, and now, back home
in Virginia, being in Super-Max “lock-down,” in his cell 23 hours a day, most days, with a
possible hour out for a shower or “recreation” in another concrete box a couple of times
a week. He has educated himself and developed an ability to deal with his situation,
manage apparently good relations with the guards, help other prisoners with legal
questions (communicated through smuggled notes, the air vents or the toilet) and
maintain an amazingly positive attitude. He’s become quite a legal scholar and
philosopher, which is astonishing enough in itself for one who was a victim of childhood
abuse, a drug addict and alcoholic from 11 years of age and was barely literate when
imprisoned in his early twenties.
Quite a guy. We’ve developed a meaningful relationship over the years and I –
sometimes Shelley and I – have visited him in many different situations as well as having
maintained a fairly regular correspondence. On the phone, Joe twits me about calling
Jerry. “What the hell did you want me to do, come up and knock on the door?” “They’d
have let you in,” he responds, “you’re a movie star.” He says the way the system
operates is that when you go through channels they always say no. If I had come up, he
assures me, and asked to see the warden, they’d have let me in. I think he’s full of crap
and tell him so, but then he finishes me with the news that the new warden there is
Major Braxton, a guy I had gotten to know at another prison Joe was in years ago.
“Braxton loves you,” he goes on. “No question he’d let you in.” Well, crap, maybe I
should just go up now? But no. “Once they’ve said no, it’s no. You get ‘em to change
their minds they think they look weak.”
After a pretty good talk we sign off. He goes back to his cell and I get to climb on my
bike and go wherever I damned well please. God, what a world.
Saying goodbye to the kids in the parking lot, I pull down the steep drive and back onto
the highway. Having taken a good look at another map, it’s now clear to me that
however I got the idea that it was 1,000 miles from New Orleans to Toronto, it was very
wrong. I’ve got some distance to travel in order to get there and have the time to
reconnoiter that I’ve counted on.
So it’s up out of Virginia and into Kentucky, then northwest across the mountains to
West Virginia. God, John Denver really knew what he was talking about! Miles and miles
of beautifully wooded Appalachian hills (‘hills’ being the appropriate term – these are not
the Rockies), a feast for the eyes.
One of the things I love about motorcycling is the feeling that you are where you are.
Unlike the air-conditioned cocoon of a car or train, on a bike you get the feel of where
you are at the moment. If it’s hot, you’re hot. If it’s cold, you’re cold. If it’s raining,
you’re wet. And the assault on your senses doesn’t end there. There are aromas, some
of them great, some quite unpleasant, that help identify where you are at a given time.
Wild animals, when you see them, are often close enough (as in Australia) to be a
concern, but always a wonder. Even the bugs. Sometimes one will smack into the
helmet or face shield with a “thwack” that is startling. And stopping for gas every
couple of hundred miles always entails using the offered facilities to clean off the helmet,
face shield, little windshield, headlight and the backs of the twin rear-view mirrors. (All
of which will have to be washed thoroughly, I was warned, before shipping the bike out
of Canada because of concern about bringing bug-borne disease from one country to
another.) In these hills, at any rate, the temperature fluctuations as I gain and lose
altitude are quite dramatic. It’s cool up high and getting very hot in the valleys.
Down low the heavy jacket I’m wearing becomes a bit much, but between the needed
warmth in the higher altitudes and the protection it provides from that which flies into
me, not to mention the question of where to put the bulky thing if I take it off, I opt for
keeping it on.
Across a lovely river I pull into Charleston and look for a health food sign (Shelley swears
they have a magnetic attraction for me, somehow pulling me down odd streets to their
door). No luck here, though. I do find a place that claims to trade in health, but it’s
simply a pharmacy that sells vitamins. Inside, however, a young man tells of a good
health-food restaurant he’s heard about in Morgantown, just south of the Pennsylvania
border. A couple more hours, but what the hell? Goodbye Charleston.
It’s getting into the late afternoon and hot as hell by the time I roll into Morgantown, a
small college town off the road north toward Pittsburgh, so I have to scramble a bit to
figure out which road goes where. Finally I cross another bridge and am in downtown
Morgantown, a colossus of about three streets, but can’t find anything resembling a
natural food restaurant. No one seems to know anything about it, so I’m thinking of
heading on into Pittsburgh and seeing if I can find the little Italian restaurant Marvin and I
discovered when we shot “Dominick and Eugene” there. Then, suddenly, right in front of
me is “The Mountain…” something. Can’t remember the exact name, but it’s a little
joint with a deli-case full of salads and goodies, a few small tables and a couple of hippies
behind the counter. I love it!
I order a sandwich and a couple of healthy drinks, then find there’s a health food store
connected, so go wander and look. I love health food stores and can’t leave one without
buying something, so pick up a couple of snacks for later (in case I end up in a dump like
Pound again).
Back to my food and drink, I’m a happy guy. Once out into the heat I find the road north
and decide to bypass Pittsburgh and continue north on Highway 79.
Even with the wind blowing on me it’s too hot to wear the heavy riding jacket, but given
the bugs and the fact that I only have one long-sleeved shirt, I’m happy to spot an outlet
center in Meyerstown and pull off, figuring to stop for the night. There are a few motels,
but none with outside doors directly from the rooms and I’m reluctant to leave the bike
just sitting in a parking lot, so pass. The outlet center has a Levi store where I pick up a
couple of shirts, put one on and wrap the jacket in a kind of embrace around the bags
behind me, its sleeves pulled around and under the bungie cord in back. Feeling
considerably lighter as well as cooler, I figure I can hold the jacket there by leaning back
on it and take off down a side road in search of an inviting little inn I’d seen advertised
on a sign in town.
The little inn turns out to be a hell of a ways out, in a beautiful spot by a river in the
Pennsylvania countryside. Problem is, though it’s a lovely little place, it’s not an “inn” in
the sense I was expecting, but rather a restaurant. It’s dark now, and the wind has come
up, so instead of heading back toward Meyerstown I aim north and then cut east toward
the Interstate, figuring I’ll stop at the next town I find.
Coming over a rise by a field, a huge gust of wind hits me and, as I must have
instinctively leaned forward against it, the jacket behind me took flight. I quickly hit the
brakes, thank God, and pull around to see where it has gone, but can’t spot it. The bike
seems to be running strangely as I try to pull forward, so I stop and discover that the
sleeves of the jacket had stayed firm, held in place by the bungie cords and the velcro
on their cuffs while the jacket had flipped up and over, hit the back wheel and been
pulled up beneath me. It was now crammed into the small space between the rear wheel
and the seat.
I’m not sure what might have happened if I hadn’t noticed the jacket fly and stopped.
Maybe nothing. Maybe the jacket would have simply been shredded by the tire and gone
on through. But it could have jammed or caught on the chain and caused the back
wheel to freeze, a notion that gave me chills as I rolled the bike backward and pulled the
scuffed jacket out, vowing to tie it down more securely if riding without it on in the
future.
At a small town about 30 miles south of Erie I spot a motel and pull in for the night.
Day 8 – Wednesday, 6/13/01 –
Loading up in the morning a guy packing up a van, traveling with his family, nearly wets
his pants when he hears what I’m doing. It’s an interesting thing to see the envy in the
eyes of so many of the men I run into. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. I’m envious of
me too.
Cutting off south of Erie I take the Interstate east toward Buffalo to cut around the
eastern end of Lake Erie. Nearing Buffalo I find myself thinking of Timothy McVeigh’s
father, who must be going through the tortures of the damned right now. God bless
him, and God bless Bud Welch, who has tried to find a way to help him through this.
Quick stop at a little diner and store to see if there’s a short-cut I can take without going
all the way into Buffalo, but a highway patrol officer says there’s pretty much only the
one way. A man sitting in his car gets out to talk. MASH and now Providence have
eliminated any hope that I can go anywhere in this country anonymously once the helmet
comes off, but this man’s self-conscious struggle to articulate the most mundane
comments is somehow touching. The fact that people can be so moved – some to say
amazingly kind and generous things – just because someone they’ve seen on television
happens to be in their vicinity can be disconcerting. It makes me feel a huge sense of
responsibility, but it also raises for me the issue of invisibility, of whether people feel
that their own lives are somehow less significant than they should be, might be, ought to
be, and that those of us whom the media dub “celebrities” have a more heightened
importance that will somehow rub off by contact.
On down the highway, through the rising heat, to Buffalo and up and over the Peace
Bridge into Canada. There’s something about Canada and Canadians that I like. There is
a sense that things don’t have to go at such a crazy pace here and there seems to be an
almost palpable sense of decency, or civility, about Canadians in general that makes me
feel comfortable.
Now I’ve got to figure something out. Through Hamilton and toward Toronto I have to
keep an eye on the gas situation. Unlike most motorcycles of my experience, this one
has no ‘reserve’ tank. Most bikes – actually all of them that I’ve owned prior to this one
– have a little petcock you pull down when you run out of gas that gives you access to
an extra gallon. Since most motorcycles get 40+ miles per gallon, this usually allows you
to get to a station. This bike, though, has a warning light that comes on when you are
down to your last gallon. It’s actually more convenient this way (unless you miss seeing
the light), but my problem is that they’ve told me that I can only have 1 gallon of gas in
the bike when I ship it, so I can’t fill the tank between here and Toronto or I’ll have too
much gas. (I suppose I could siphon the excess, but having gotten a mouthful of
gasoline in the past I’m not anxious to do that again.) Anyway, it becomes a dance: ride
until the light comes on, then get enough gas to go until you either get to the city or
the light comes on again. And of course, as I pull into the first Canadian station, gasoline
here is sold by the litre, multiples of which add up to an Imperial gallon, so I have to try
to figure out what that means in terms of what I’m accustomed to.
So I struggle along, buying a couple of litres of gas at a time and following the signs to
Toronto’s airport. Once there I spot a sign pointing toward the cargo-loading area and
follow it. Arriving and feeling very smug I ask around for what I remember the
company’s name to be and can’t find anything. I’m reluctant to dig into my bags to find
the paperwork because it takes so damned long to pull everything down and then put it
back together, but finally am forced to do just that. And of course I had the name
wrong. The airline is ATA, a Montreal-based Canadian airline, and its loading dock was
right next to the place where I was asking.
Finally inside the right office I find they’re expecting me and all is well. I have to have
the bike in here by 4PM tomorrow and the flight leaves at 11PM the next night. One
gallon of gas is all that’s allowed, the positive pole on the battery has to be taped off
and it should be washed down. No surprises, so I head over to a Days Inn Hotel just
across the road and check in. The nice folks here let me park the bike in a no-parking
zone just outside the door and I unload and haul everything up to my comfortable, airconditioned
room. Pulling off the last of the bags I notice that a strut is broken on a
device connected to the rear axle. It must have happened when the jacket flipped and
caught in the rear wheel. It’s not critical, but if the broken piece were to get into the
spokes it would quickly become that way, so I go in and grab a phone book to find a
BMW dealer.
After a frustrating round of telephone-chasing I finally find a dealer who does have the
necessary piece and race off. Turns out to be a nice bunch of guys who haven’t seen
many of these Dakar models yet and are delighted to learn of my trip. They’re very
helpful and, when I mention needing to clean off the bugs, give me the necessaries and
let me wash the bike down right there.
Back at the hotel I find that there are a couple of vegetarian restaurants in town but
none close by. Because there is another Laker game to watch I head down to a local
place and am delighted to learn that they have a veggie burger on the menu. It’s served
with a huge slice of onion and I smile as I slap it on, realizing that under normal
circumstances I’d probably pass for fear of offending someone. Here, I am on my own
with nobody to offend.
Back to the hotel for the game, which we win, a good phone call to Shel and to bed.
Day 9 – Thursday, 6/14/01 –
Up early to take advantage of the hotel’s laundry room and get myself caught up. I
really have too many clothes and have to figure out what to carry on the plane and what
to ship, so run over to a local mall and pick up, among other things, a small carry-on bag
that the saleswoman insists is waterproof.
Take the bike over to the cargo loaders in the afternoon. Turns out they’re all MASH
fans and very helpful. The bike weighs in at about 195 kilograms (approx. 430 lbs.),
which is fine by them, but it’s too tall for the crate, so they ask if I can take off the rearview
mirrors. No problem. That done, the gas issue is next. I had evidently over-filled
last time because even though I rode around quite a bit I still couldn’t get the reserve
light to come on, but when the guy comes to check the gas level I tell him it’s about a
gallon and he takes my word. (I’ll feel terrible if it explodes mid-flight.) Next comes
disconnecting and taping off the positive pole of the battery. That had me worried
because it involves removing the cowling (on this bike the battery is inside the round
thing that has traditionally been the gas tank on a motorcycle - the gas tank on this
model being below the seat.) and that means first taking off the seat, then removing
about a dozen strategically placed screws, some of which are difficult to access, and
that in turn involves taking off the turn signals. I’m a bit intimidated by all this because I
don’t want to foul anything up, but go at it as if I don’t have any choice – which I don’t.
About a half-hour later I’m covered in sweat and the mission has been accomplished,
wire taped off and lights, cowling and seat replaced. I’m feeling very Zen and the Art of
Motorcycle Maintenance. Then, paperwork completed, I give it a pat, turn the bike over
to the guys for crating and walk back to the hotel.
Later I take a cab downtown and find that the vegetarian restaurant is in fact one I’ve
been to before. Nice place, kind of an English coffee-shop feeling, and very good food.
Rather than take a cab back I ask directions to the subway, which is about a mile away,
and take off. This part of Toronto is very much middle class, the street lined with twostory
duplexes. It’s a pleasant walk, if still a bit warm. Confirming the directions with a
man on the sidewalk in front of his house I’m again struck by how decent and courteous
Canadians always seem to be. He goes over it a couple of times to make sure I’ve got it
right and almost seems as if he’s going to walk me there to ward off any mistake.
Finding my way on subways and buses is great sport and this system is particularly clean
and well-maintained. The subway fare covers the connecting bus ride, so I get a transfer
and make my way to the street at the appropriate stop, wait a bit with a distinctly
mixed-race group and then we head north toward the airport. One of the passengers
knows me from “Providence” and makes a big deal out of finding me on a bus instead of
in a limousine. He’s nice, but a bit loud about it, so I try to answer calmly and eventually
he brings down the decibel level. I have one more transfer to make, so soon get away
from the fan to wait on another corner. It’s now dark and when the right bus pulls up I
climb aboard as a young woman who is standing talking to the driver turns to me and
says, “Mike Farrell! What are you doing here?” She’s so friendly and pleasant that for a
minute I think I’m supposed to know her, but she quickly makes it clear that she just
knows me from TV. The driver is also very friendly, telling me how much he loves
“MASH,” how meaningful it’s been to him, etc. When I tell him where I’m headed, he
says the end of the line is about a mile short of the hotel. No problem, the walk will do
me good. A bit later he leans over and says, “When we get to the last stop, just sit still.
I’ll take you on to your hotel.” I try to tell him that’s not necessary, but he won’t hear
of it. “I owe you,” he says, “consider it my way of saying thanks.” So a little while later
my personal bus pulls up in front of the hotel and lets me out.
They have Internet access at the hotel, so I check and find 288 e-mail messages waiting.
Jesus! I’m going to bed.
Day 10, Friday, 6/15/01 –
Up early and again I’m packing and sorting. No room to pack the boots, so wear them
and pack the shoes. Toilet article kit and books in the new bag, plus everything else that
won’t fit in the others. The side bags (which I tie together with bungies) and the other
handbag are chock full. Tight squeeze. I’ll have to wear my regular jacket and carry the
new bag, the helmet and the heavy jacket.
They kindly arrange a late checkout, so I grab the bus downtown for another meal at the
vegetarian restaurant. Who knows when I’ll find another?
The bus ride back terminates (as last night’s technically did) at the airport’s Terminals 1
& 2. AirTransat (ATA), my airline, goes out of Terminal 3, of course, where the bus
doesn’t venture. But a tram does, so I decide to check it out even though the flight
isn’t until 11 PM and check-in time 9. To my surprise, when I locate ATA, a huge line is
already checking in at 4 PM. This looks to be a bit of a zoo, so I collar someone and find
that there has been a cancellation and one first class seat “may” be available (having
booked coach I decided last night that this was a silly bit of economizing but feared I
was too late to do anything about it). A quick dash to customer service and another
MASH fan (bless them) gives me the last first class seat.
Walk to the hotel to gather gear and check out. Tram back to Terminal 3 and check in
what I can, then shlep everything else through security and up to the gate. There is a
snack stand not far from the gate with an attached bar, so I go in and ask the proprietor
if he’s willing to turn on the basketball game in a couple of hours. He seems cool with it,
so I go back and sit and read and start on the crossword puzzles I’ve stashed while the
crowd gathers around me.
ATA, it turns out, is a charter airline and feels a bit like Mrs. Johnson’s Airline and Barn
Door Company. People are jamming into the waiting area and I watch as those with too
many or too large bags are told they must send them back to be stowed with the
luggage. This makes me fear for my helmet and jacket – and I’m not all that sure my
new ‘smaller’ bag will fit in the dinky rig they’re using to check sizes.
Ambling back to the snack stand, the barkeep remembers and turns on the game. I’m
glad to get to watch the first half, anyway, but the price I hadn’t figured on is having to
sit in a thick haze from the smokers who fill the room.
The flight is called and getting back into fresh air makes missing the second half less
painful. They’re boarding first class when I get there, so I casually wrap the helmet in
the big jacket to try to make it look less like I’m carrying a body and step up. No
problem, I’m shown right in…
…to a dinky seat. First class on this airline is a bad joke. This would barely pass for a
coach seat on a normal airline, and to top it off they’ve got me stuck against the
bulkhead so I can’t straighten my legs.
Oh, relax, dammit, next stop London!
Relaxdammitrelaxdammitrelaxdammit. Six hours and twenty minutes. Read, do a
crossword, read more, eat, try to sleep, read, try to flex my legs, relaxdammit! I think I
actually got about 20 minutes of sleep and, finally, we’re coming down at London’s
Gatwick Airport!
Day 11 – Saturday, 6/16/01 –
This is exciting! The flight happily forgotten, I fight my way out, go through passport
check, grab a trolley and get the bags, load all of the gear aboard, get a cursory glance
from customs, change some money and find out where the cargo docks are.
Outside at a tram stop it’s hot, actually steamy. The wet streets indicate it’s been
raining, but is holding off now. Two buses pass, not going to the cargo area, so when a
cab unloads at the curb I grab it. Getting all the gear (four bags [the bungies came
loose and the side bags are no longer together] the helmet and big jacket) in the cab is
a pain, particularly since we can’t be going far, but he seems fine with it.
In five minutes he stops at a row of warehouses. Not wanting to duplicate my mistake in
Canada I have the paperwork out and point to the one marked ‘GHI.’ He pulls over, I pull
out all the gear and find a dry spot to set it on, pay him and off he goes. The stuff is
heavy and I’m already sweating, so I leave it piled where it is and walk over to an open
door, find a man and tell him I’m here to pick up my motorcycle.
“Not here,” he says. “This is export. You want import. It’s over there, beyond the red
truck.” He points to the next warehouse, about 40 yards away. “Aha,” I say, thinking
about shlepping the bags, “Once I’m done there, will I be coming back here?” “Nope,” he
smiles.
“Uh huh. Thanks.” Pick up the bags, can’t get the jacket and helmet; pick up the jacket
and helmet, can’t handle the bags. Finally, three bags in one hand, the jacket, helmet
and fourth bag in the other, I make my increasingly sweaty way over to the truck, past it
and into an office marked “Imports.” After a bit of a wait there a pleasant looking man
appears behind the plexiglass window and I give him the papers I have and explain that
I’m there for my bike. He nods, looks them over and disappears. A few minutes later he
comes back and hands me the form, saying, “It’s not out here yet, but you’ve got to go
to Customs and get them to sign off on this anyway. By the time you get back the
motorcycle should be here.”
“Okay. Where would that be?”
“Not too far,” he says, coming out from behind the window. At the door he points,
“Down at the end of these warehouses there’s a car park. See it?”
“Uh huh.” It’s about 100 yards away. Maybe150.
“Beyond the car park. Not the first building, the one after.”
At least 150. “And then I come back here?”
“Yes.”
“Sure. OK if I leave my stuff here?”
Shakes his head. “No, sorry.” He points. “See, it’s not too far.”
Not too far if I don’t have to carry this load. “Can’t I just stick this stuff in a corner here
somewhere?”
“No. Sorry.”
“Sorry?” You piss on my date and you’re sorry? Two bags in one hand, two plus the
helmet in the other and the jacket tossed precariously over my shoulder I trudge out
into the heat.
Unbelievable. As I pass ‘Export’ this stuff is really getting heavy and as I sweat I’m
getting more and more pissed. In the next warehouse a woman is sitting at a desk by a
window. I drop everything, explain the situation and ask, “Could I possibly leave this
stuff here for a few minutes?”
“Sorry, sir,” she shakes her head. “Security.”
Of course. Bombs, etc. This is London, isn’t it? Shit. I guess I can understand it, but it
doesn’t make me like it. And it might have made it a bit easier if the guy at the first
place had at least told me it was against security regulations instead of just smiling
stupidly and saying “No.” Shit.
So I stumble along in the heat, the jacket slipping, the bags banging. Before I’m 30
yards further on I’m soaking wet and puffing, giving serious consideration to having a
heart attack. That’ll show the security-conscious bastards! Shit.
After stopping twice to catch breath and rearrange jacket and bags, a guy about 50
yards behind me whistles. As I turn he points down at my helmet at his feet and yells,
“Is this yours?” Shit.
By the time I crash through the door of the Customs Office I’m wringing wet and ready
to jump down someone’s throat. Thank God the room is air-conditioned. And of course
the woman behind this counter is very cheery, very helpful and perfectly nice. She takes
care of everything, has me fill out a form promising that I’m not bringing animals or fruit
or guns or bombs into the U.K., gives me the necessary document and says, “Now you
take this back to the man…”
“Yes,” I say,“ managing a smile. “I know. Thanks for your help.”
Flipping the heavy jacket over my back I pull the sleeves around in front and connect the
two cuffs by their velcro flaps, as I had done when the jacket flipped off and almost did
me in. Picking up the helmet and bags I work my way out the door and back toward the
warehouse. It’s not as hot, it seems, so the sweat doesn’t come quite so soon. I
discover why as it starts to rain. Shit.
This is so nuts I’m finally beginning to see the humor in it. If a truck were to run me over
now it wouldn’t be a surprise.
Back at Import, now rain-soaked, I drop the gear, present the papers, pay the 31 pound
fee and wait. Soon the guy comes over and tells me the bike is in the warehouse.
Outside, another man pulls the big door open and beckons me in, opens the container
and there it is. He loosens the straps and we roll it out onto the ramp, though still under
the overhang to avoid the rain.
The mirrors are in my bag, so I put them on, then pull off the seat, get out the tool kit
and take off the cowling and lights. Having gone through it once before I’m a bit less
intimidated, which is good because I now have an audience. A couple of truckers have
come to watch, not believing all this stuff will fit on the bike. Good guys, they’re full of
questions about the trip.
Cowling off, I hook up the battery, check the connections and put it all back together,
feeling very much the mechanic. Once it’s all tight I pull my rain gear out of the bags,
put it on and gear up. Side bags go on, rain covers in place, then the tinfoil sheets,
which seem to have worked so far. Those set, I wrap the red bag in plastic and tie it on
the back of the seat with bungies, put the new black bag in plastic, place it on top of the
first and hook it with more bungies. One more check of the map, which I’ll have to put
away to keep dry, then the helmet, gloves, a quick check to make sure everything is
secure, a wave to the guys and out into what has now become a steady light rain.
One of the truckers had recommended the Ring Road, which is a by-pass that circles
London. Gatwick is south of the city and I have no need to deal with all the traffic in the
city on my way north, so decide to loop around it to the west and once at the top of the
ring take the M-1 north toward York. Pulling into the street I keep telling myself,
“remember where you are. Left side of the road; be careful of the roundabouts.”
Roundabouts are a great, if sometimes confusing, English addition to driving. Major
intersections – and some not-so-major ones – have a circle in the center so that instead
of having to deal with traffic crossing in front of you one comes into an intersection and
goes around the circle (to the left, I remind myself again and again) and pulls out of it in
whichever direction is desired. A bit confusing at first, roundabouts are actually a much
more congenial method in that you’re merging with other traffic instead of fighting your
way through an opposing stream.
Excitement at the beginning the European leg of this adventure has adrenaline cutting
through the fog of jet lag, sleeplessness, rain and riding on the wrong side of the road.
I’m doing OK, but have to maintain focus. And oh, yeah, gas! As soon as I’m out on the
Ring Road the warning light pops up to remind me that I’ve only got a gallon left.
“On the Ring Road” is clear. Which direction I’m going is not. There’s no indication of
east or west on the signs, in fact no indication of anything that I recognize, so I’m
hoping I’ve chosen east, as one of the truckers suggested, but resigned to the idea that
if I’m going the wrong way I’ll still end up north of London and will find the M-1. It is a
ring, after all.
“Remember where you are,” I remind myself. It’s not so hard to stay to the left on the
Ring Road, which is essentially a freeway. It’s turning corners and maneuvering through
traffic that can get tricky. Signs whizzing by tell me of roads going other places, but I
don’t see any communities immediately at the side of the road, so keep going and
looking, hoping for a sign that tells me gas is available somewhere.
“How the hell did I get out in the country,” I wonder aloud into my helmet. No towns, no
homes, no businesses, no gas. I pass a sign before a turnoff that says services are 8M in
one direction and 34M in another. 8M is 8 miles? I thought they showed everything in
kilometers here. Can’t be 8 meters, I guess. Is it something else? Shit.
Finally, concerned that I’ll run out of the diminishing gallon I have left, I pull off and head
down some beautiful, if wet, country roads in search of a community. After an
increasingly worrisome ride (I don’t want to start this trek standing in the rain trying to
bum a ride to get a can of gas) a sign leads me to Leatherhead, a small community that
at first appears to be all residences, no businesses. Shit. Then, finally, businesses! But
no gas stations. Is this possible? Riding in the rain, watching for cars coming at me,
staying on the left side of the road, going around the roundabouts and I can’t find a
damned gas station! Through to the other side of town, apparently, and no gas station.
Turn around and go back. Take another road. No. Finally I spot a cab and flag him
down. “Go to the roundabout, stay to the left, first turning.” Thanks. I do as he says
and end up at a train station. I said gas station, not train station! As I look around in
desperation I see the cabbie coming up the street behind me pointing back to the last
corner. The other way. Back down the road, under a trestle, again the “first turning”
and there’s a blessed sight. I coast in, practically running on fumes.
Thankfully filling the tank I look to my sopping boots and rue the fact that moving into
warmer weather in the States caused me to forget to look for boot covers. The man in
the station says it’s Saturday, nothing is open in town. Ah well, the boots are already
soaked. And at least I’ve got a full tank of gas (all four gallons), so it’s back to the
highway.
Back on the Ring Road the rain lets up for a while and the signs to Heathrow make me
know I’ve been heading west instead of east, but no big deal. Passing the Heathrow
turnoff the road curves north and then towards the east and the M-1. And it starts to
pour. Think cats and dogs, turtles, alligators and crocodiles.
Onto the M-1, it’s now early afternoon on Saturday and everyone in England who owns a
car has apparently chosen to head north. Amazing. The traffic is stopped, jammed as
far ahead as I can see. Literally sitting still. Then creeping ahead. Then stopping. This
is ridiculous. It’s worse than the 405. And I don’t know any ‘alternate routes.’
Well, I hate it when those guys on bikes go buzzing by me on the freeway at home,
riding between lanes of stalled cars, but by the time the third bike zips past me and
makes its merry way along I’m very tempted to do the same. Problem is I don’t know if
it’s legal here or not and I really don’t need to get pinched.
Now the rain, which had let up for a bit, is pouring down again and when the sixth or
seventh bike goes tearing past me I figure ‘what the hell?’ and go for it.
Picking my way carefully along, convinced everyone I pass hates me and everyone I’m
about to pass is either going to change lanes or open his door and knock me down, I
note that this is the longest traffic jam I’ve ever seen. It goes on for miles! After a bit
there will be some slight movement and I move back into the traffic lane, but then it
stops again and I sheepishly move over onto the line and slip ahead.
And there never seems to be a reason for the stopping. There is the typical accordion
nature of car traffic, one slowing in front causing a ripple effect for miles back, but
there’s usually an accident or some disturbance visible somewhere down the line.
Nothing here.
As the traffic opens up for a bit and we can make some time the rain comes down even
harder. Then it comes so hard as to be astonishing. It crashes down so hard it hurts,
stinging my arms and my thighs, where it hits most directly. It’s not excruciating, of
course, but it’s the hardest rain I think I’ve ever experienced, certainly felt.
Another jam and I pull off, thinking I’ll look at my map and figure out an alternative
route. In a small lane I pull over and try to get under cover to look at the map. Pulling it
out of my pocket I find what I’ve been suspecting: my jacket is not as water-proof as I
had thought. The map is soaked, as am I. Trying to open it is futile, as the sopping
paper just comes apart. So back in the pocket it goes and back on the M-1 I go.
Ride, stop, move over between the lanes and slide through traffic, ride again. Finally it
eases and we’re out onto the open road. By now I’m worn out from the combined
stresses of the night and day, so decide to quit trying to make it to York and pull off at
a sign pointing to Northhampton. Once nearing the town I follow signs indicating the
Town Centre and look for something like a hotel or motel. Up a road I see a sign for
what looks like The Moat House. Around a block and back and I see it again. Looks like
it says hotel all right, but I can’t find an entrance. All one-way streets and none of them
seem to provide a way in.
Amazing! How the hell do you get in here? Going around this place makes me think of a
trip years ago with Shelley and the kids. We were in Manchester, England, on a big Ring
Road and I could see the hotel we wanted but couldn’t get off to get to it. Thought I’d
go crazy as we went around and around the damned thing. Everybody else thought it
was funny as hell. And they’d sure be laughing now, as I circle this joint. Finally, I find a
small alley-like road that takes me to what looks like the back of The Moat House, but
it’s in fact the front. Once there, an electric gate bars the way, and after sitting there in
the rain for a moment I realize the bike apparently doesn’t have the mass to set off the
electric eye to open it. So, wet, tired and disgusted, I turn around and ride up over the
curb, onto the sidewalk, past the stupid gate and down to a covered area in front of the
hotel.
I’m sure a lake formed beneath me as I trooped through the lobby and stood at the desk
inquiring about a room, but by this time I was too tired to care. The place is veddy
British and a bit stuffy in appearance. There’s only one young man at the counter taking
care of guests, answering the phone and dealing with what-all, but he doesn’t blink an
eye when he turns my way. And he has a room, bless him, so I sign in and slosh my way
back out to unload the bike, wheel the gear in on a handy trolley and am just barely able
to squeeze trolley, bags and wet self into one of the tiny elevators European hotels tend
to feature.
Sixth floor, small room, but warm and dry. I peel off and hang clothing everywhere I can
find, placing the already wet trash bags beneath the wettest things in order to catch the
worst of the running water. Toilet tissue sops the water out of my boots and then I set
them upside down on a radiator in the hope they’ll dry out overnight. Gloves, too. The
other trash bags had done their job for the most part, so I do have dry clothing to put
on for the trip back out to move the bike away from the front door.
This is the first opportunity to check the international cell phone I’ve rented for the trip
in order to be able to stay in touch with Shelley and I find it won’t work! Very
frustrating. A message I don’t understand comes up and won’t allow me to either check
for messages or call out, so I schlep back downstairs and happily find they have an
international phone in the lobby.
Shel is OK, but a bit concerned about some redness and what appears to be slight
swelling around the one tube remaining from the surgery. She insists she’s OK and that
the liver coordinator assured her it was nothing to worry about, but I’m glad to be able
to give her the number here so she can reach me if she wants to.
The Nextel person is friendly and tries to be helpful, but it’s very frustrating. He takes
me through some maneuvers with the phone, but it’s no go. He says because it’s the
weekend it’ll be difficult, but he’ll figure out what the trouble is and get back to me.
Getting back to me won’t be easy, I explain, because I’ll be heading out tomorrow and
until I land again the only way he’ll be able to reach me is on the phone that won’t work.
Get the bike locked up out of the way and when coming back in I run into a group of
Americans, a Rap group called Gangsta here for a rock concert. They’re quick to invite
me to sit down, so I do for a bit. They’re having a big time on this tour and for all their
street-talk, seem to be pretty good guys. They tell me the Lakers won again, which
delights me, but the leader is heavy into knocking Shaq. He’s too big, too rich, too full
of himself, etc. We spar for a few minutes, have a few laughs, then I beg off their
invitation to have a drink and go up and fall into bed.
Day 12 – Sunday, 6/17/01 –
Wake up early after a long, sound sleep. God, I needed that. Call Shel again from
downstairs. Because of the time difference she’s about to go to bed and is more
concerned than when we last spoke. I’m ready to turn around and head home, naturally,
but she calms me down, reminding me that the doctor insisted that anything unusual
had to be noted and reported. They have people who can answer questions and she has
a call in. She’s not panicking and is sure she’ll be OK; she just wants me to stay in touch
until she understands what’s going on. She knows we’ll both feel better if we can be in
touch every few hours until this is resolved. OK. What’s frustrating us both is that she
can’t seem to call me, so I call Nextel again and get a different guy, tell him it’s critical
that this phone gets working. He can’t seem to do it either. Again, someone will call me
back. Really? Where?
It’s cloudy and gloomy but not raining yet, so I load up. The Gangsta guys are loading
into their van, as well, so we talk a bit more. One of them cops to being knocked out
about having met a guy from MASH; he’s really sweet about it and it touches me. Hardass
kid’s not such a hard-ass at all. Finally they jump in the van and I climb aboard the
bike and we take off. Being Sunday not much is open but I do find a little shop where I
pick up a cheap plastic raincoat to pull over my heavy-but-clearly-not-waterproof-jacket
when the need arises. Again, no boot covers. On the way out of town I’m surprised to
find a motorcycle shop open. There I’m able to get a good, lightweight rain jacket to go
over the heavy one, plus a rig that will keep the rain from running down the back of my
neck and inside my coat, but still no boot covers. Fellow says there’s a big bike shop in
Nottingham that might have them.
Electing to stay off the M-1 I’m able to ride through some beautiful rolling countryside.
A field of incredible red flowers fills the side of the road at one point. Later I stop to
watch a flock of birds play as they follow a farmer on his tractor, apparently either
feasting on what he’s turning up or devouring much of the seed he’s putting down.
Riding the little roads is great, but “remember where you are.” Now and then I pass a
biker going the other way and discover that the “salute” here is apparently a rather staid
British nod. Occasionally there’s a wave, but usually I find it’s just the most modest dip
of the head. Funny.
After lazing my way along through some picturesque countryside and small towns I
decide to make some miles so follow a sign pointing to the M-1. Once back on the
highway I’m quickly confused. I’ve got a good sense of direction and it appears to me
I’m going the wrong way, so after puzzling it for a bit I get off and check out the signs.
It says M-1 North all right, so back I go. Again, I’m sure it’s wrong. Finally I realize that
I’m just not used to these signs. This isn’t the M-1 North but is taking me to the M-1
North. Like the roundabouts, the signs are great once you understand them. The things
listed show what’s coming up, but in parentheses. I thought it was telling me that this
was the road I was on. Now a bit more relaxed, I ride on and sure enough the M-1 North
comes up and on I go, heading for Nottingham where I’ll get some gas, call Shel again
and see if I can find that bike shop.
The Nottingham turnoff takes me past a nuclear power plant. That always gives me the
willies. I find myself holding my breath as I go by, as if that’ll make any difference.
Nottingham is a good-sized city. Like many English cities, it’s not on a grid, is threaded
with one-way streets, is short on street signs and is very confusing. And again, there
are very few gas stations. I ride through the City Centre and around again, then out and
can’t find one. Finally, the reserve tank light on, I ask a driver and am pointed down a
road where, after a search, I finally find a BP station. Tank full, I look in a phone book
and find a motorcycle shop. The gas station attendant gives me directions, I take off
and am almost immediately lost. Round and round I go again, looking in vain for the
names of streets, pulled this way and that by one-way routes, continually reminding
myself to stay on the right (left) side of the road. Finally, through a patch of
construction work, I find the proper street and the shop, which is closed. Screw it, I’ll
just hope it doesn’t rain again.
Back in City Centre I stop at a hotel and call Shel, who is feeling much better. The
redness and swelling have receded and there is no soreness, so she’s pretty clear there’s
no infection to worry about. She’s much more calm about it and insists I stop worrying
and just check in once in a while.
Relieved, I head north out of the city, staying on the smaller roads. Once away from the
hustle-bustle it’s wonderful. The day is dark and overcast but dry, so far, and I find I’m
riding through Sherwood Forest! No Robin and his Merry Men, but it’s gorgeous.
Once out of the forest the countryside is a succession of undulating farmland, green
fields and flowers, dotted with the occasional small town sporting the inevitable pub.
Picking my way carefully along I’m soon on the outskirts of one of my favorite English
cities.
The walls around York take me back hundreds of years. Cobblestone streets, turrets,
narrow lanes, short doors, the very old mixing with the occasional new building and cars,
trucks (lorries) belching fumes. This city bustles with people and traffic, but does so
without losing its essential grace.
Just at the river (The Ure?) in the city center I find, of all things, a Moat House Hotel, so
of course pull right up. They have a room with a view back across the river to more of
the old city, so I check in, unload the gear and put the bike in their car park.
Checking with Shel I find she’s up and feeling very well. Checking with Nextel I get yet
another guy who also can’t figure out the problem. A technician will call me, he says.
“Wonderful,” I respond. “But I’m only here until tomorrow morning. Otherwise, I’m on a
motorcycle and will be on a ship tomorrow night, so there’ll be nowhere to call.”
The natural food restaurant I remember is still here, but only open for lunch, so the
woman at the desk suggests another, The Rubicon, just across the river in the heart of
the old city. It’s a great walk through streets reeking of history. Beyond a great square,
The Rubicon is a nice place in a quiet lane. It offers an imaginative menu and, since it’s
Sunday and things are pretty quiet, I can just relax and take it all in. After a lovely
dinner I walk back to the hotel. It’s odd to come out of cobbled lanes through buildings
hundreds of years old to a street of modern stores with window displays featuring the
latest British fashion, but here it is. I walk slowly, enjoying the sense of quiet, the
warmth, the luxury of freedom as I spend Father’s Day in York, England.
Back at the hotel I grab the lobby phone to again check with Shel, who is still doing fine.
She has a call in to the Liver Coordinator to get her opinion. I’ll stay close to the phone,
I reassure her, then hang up and put in a worried call to Nextel and reach the same guy,
who says the technical experts won’t be there until Monday morning. I explain once
again that this won’t work for me and he says he’ll see what he can do. Frustrated, I
climb back up to my room to find the phone ringing. It’s the fellow from Nextel, who has
thought of something. He walks me through some steps on the little phone and Voila!, it
works! So relieved it tells me how tense I’ve been, I thank him voluminously and then am
thrilled to be able to pick up messages and then call Shel to tell her the phone is now
working. She’s still feeling OK and she too becomes a lot less anxious, knowing she can
reach me at any time.
Smiling, I’m able to go to bed relatively anxiety free.
Day 13 – Monday, 6/18/01 –
After a sound sleep I’m up early. Thinking that Shel is going to be in touch with the
medical people this morning I put in a call. She says, “Honey, it’s a little after midnight
here. I just went to bed.” Ah, yes, the time difference. Trying to keep it all straight has
me goofy.
It’s a bright, sunny day and the river looks beautiful below the window, so I go down for
breakfast, check out, load up the bike and head west. My lovely daughter Erin, who
studied and worked in London, has suggested that I should be sure to see the Yorkshire
Dales if I have a chance. With most of the day ahead of me before I have to make the
ferry in Newcastle, I figure I have the time to take a look.
Passing through York toward the west involves going through a residential area I’ve not
seen before. Tree-lined streets, substantial homes, nice neighborhoods. I like this city.
Once out of the city I’m quickly into farm country, but across the M-1 and into The
West, as the signs say it’s called, it quickly becomes more dramatic. Rolling hills roll
higher until steep cliffs and green grass-covered heights border the road. Sheep abound
and the land is dotted with precarious old stone buildings, some falling down but
nonetheless lovely, all fairly bursting with a sense of history.
Cutting north into the Yorkshire Dales proper is stepping back in time. It’s a huge sweep
of fields of green, patterned by stone fences and separated by the occasional lane.
Sheep and cattle abound, crops too. The narrow road fairly swoops along through rolling
hills, then dives into an unforeseen dell that houses yet another little stone village. A
fairyland, it’s perfect for a motorcycle ride, though it would still be enchanting on foot or
in a car. Picking my way along these lanes the sense is that one could spend days here,
investigating and discovering.
Coming into a section of homes there is a ‘diversion’ and a barrier sends me off onto an
even smaller road just behind a truck almost too large for the available space. Oncoming
cars, though there are few, have to back up to find a wide enough spot to manage
passage.
More farms, horses, cattle, beautifully tended crops, stone fences and lovely little
homes. Nothing is particularly showy in and of itself, but you get a sense of pride in the
community, a feeling that those who live here know what they have and treasure it.
A fork in the road offers the opportunity to head back out toward the east and north for
my ferry ride, so I grab it and race along wonderful country roads, sometimes between
tall hedgerows, then again suddenly diving into hidden dells to discover small villages and
on up the other side. What a wonderful spot!
Back to the Midlands I find the A-1 and figure the M-1 doesn’t come up this far north.
Apparently the M-1 is more of a freeway that denies access to intersecting roads. The
A-1 is a regular highway that allows access as well as cross traffic.
Within a couple of hours I’m headed into Newcastle-on-Thyne and the City Centre.
Looping around a bit in mid-city I determine to quickly get out of the confusion and ask
directions from a cabbie who steers me to a road with a series of signs, one of which has
the outline of a ferry. Following the trail I’m soon at Tynemouth, through a gate and into
a large asphalt area delineated with lanes. A question tells me that the long line is going
to Amsterdam, the shorter one is for the ferry to Bergen, Norway, so I move into that
one, shut the bike down and wait.
We’re up high and the wind coming off the Tyne is cold. Clouds are behind me in the
west, so there’s sun, but the blasts of wind are bitter, so I pull out some of my cold
weather gear, put it on and nestle in for the wait. Getting out a book will be a hassle and
it’s too cold to take off my gloves, so I just let my thoughts wander. I think about where
I am, what I’m doing and who’s at home cheering me onward. I’m clearly the luckiest
man in the world. After about a half hour the line begins to move forward, but it’s only a
re-shuffling. I’m then pulled out of line and moved to the front of another, this one for
motorcycles. Soon a man and woman on a big BMW pull in behind me. It’s got about 11
or 1200 cc’s, so has nearly twice the power of my engine, and they’re loaded for bear.
Two people, a lot more bags than I have – they’re stacked on a rack behind the woman,
on the tank and hanging off the handlebars – it’s a miniature wagon-train.
An English couple, they’re friendly and open. He’s hoping to be able to get above the
Arctic Circle and as far as Murmansk. Says she’s not too excited about getting that far
north so he’ll probably drop her at a bed and breakfast somewhere along the line. He’s
full of stories of trips they’ve done together and is delighted to hear of my adventure.
When he asks where I’m headed and I tell him I’m not all that sure, he laughs, pleased.
“Go where the front wheel takes you, eh?” He offers “Don’t speed” in Norway and
“Don’t drink and drive.” They’re evidently very tough on both. Good to know, and
another example of bikers taking care of one another.
Before I lose the ability to connect I call Shel and find her up and feeling well. She’s
going to get in touch with the Liver Coordinator this morning and, if necessary, go in to
see her, but she feels that things have sorted themselves out and there’s no problem
now.
We’re waved aboard and the bike and I are starting our first ferry ride together. We’re
directed to a spot on the starboard bulkhead near the bow on the main car deck where
there are straps and cinches to tie the bike down. As our two bikes pull in we're joined
by two more, these ridden by Englishmen in their late 60’s or 70’s, also headed for the
far north. Hardy bunch, these folks.
The very existence of the straps and cinches indicates the possibility of rough seas, so
even though I figure it’s unlikely to be the case during the summer months It’s
intimidating enough to make me tie the bike down as securely as possible. While figuring
out how to do that an announcement tells us to take everything we need into the
passenger area because once the car decks are sealed there will be no access until we
put into port. Shit. I’ll probably need a little something out of every bag, so I’ll have to
unload everything and schlep it one more time.
As I’m rigging the bike the car deck is filling up. Automobiles, vans, trucks, buses, even
semi-tractors with big trailers load in and are arranged in lines. Once our level is full
huge ramps come down and the rest of the vehicles proceed to fill the deck above. This
is some craft!
OK, bike secure I grab everything and work my way through the rows of cars to a
hatchway and struggle up two flights of stairs (“ladders” aboard ship) where I find a
directory that shows the layout. The cruise to Bergen takes 23 hours, so I’ve booked a
little stateroom. The bike is on the starboard side near the bow, so of course my room
is on the port side near the stern. And one more deck up. Once onto the passenger
levels, though, the stairways are actual stairways, with carpeting and pictures on the
wall, so I schlep my load under more esthetic conditions.
This ship is quite something for a ferry. Turns out it’s seven decks high, offers
entertainment, seven restaurants, video games, slot machines, stores, the works. It
even has elevators, I note belatedly, finally reaching the level my stateroom is on.
Down a narrow passageway in search of the number, I’ve worked up a pretty good sweat
by the time I stumble onto cabin 2715. The key is in the door so I push it open and fall
in. About 11 or 12’ long by 7 or 8’ wide, the room has a pull down bunk over a bench
sofa, a desk, a bit of hang-up space beside the desk and a tiny bathroom with sink, toilet
and shower. It’s a nicely compact little joint and looks like heaven about now. Cramped
heaven, granted, but heaven nonetheless. The bed is long enough, a quick check
reveals, and I can gaze out of my very own porthole. About 12’ down, it appears, the
water looms, but how can that be? I’ve come up quite a ways, I think. Hmmm.
After getting things set out I decide a look-around is in order. People are all over,
staking claims to lounging seats, playing the slots, shopping, strolling. No one seems to
pay me the slightest attention, which is a great feeling.
It’s pretty cold out on deck, but finding a place out of the wind and in the sun keeps the
chill off as I watch them untie us and then see the loading ramps slip away astern.
Goodbye England, hello North Sea. Next stop, Norway!
Since we’re still near land I try Shel again and find her in good humor, fairly clear that the
swelling and redness was either an anomaly or something she imagined, but, she agrees,
it’s best to be on the safe side and will check with the doctor.
Roaming, I find that one can make a near loop of the ship on the promenade decks, but
for some reason going up forward isn’t allowed. An astro-turf-like matting keeps one
from slipping on what are probably pretty slick surfaces at times and the rows of life
boats and lockers marked “life preservers” are either comforting or disturbing,
depending upon one’s point of view. I find you can’t go to the top deck, which is
reserved for crew members only, but I guess that’s fair; they’ve got business to take
care of. Most of the passengers braving the cold are on the large, three-level, astroturfed
viewing area at the stern and the rest, the majority, are inside gazing out through
the wide windows lining the walls (bulkheads) of the restaurants, casino and passenger
lounge.
After a while I decide to eat, so head back down to my stateroom to peel off a few
layers of clothes, enjoy the opportunity to simply sit and read for a while, then put on
civilian shoes and a clean shirt and go see what’s offered.
Walking through a crowded, garish spot designed as their idea of an American diner I
think I hear my name mentioned through the general buzz, along with the word MASH.
But no one looks my way or seems to be paying the slightest attention, so maybe I’m
hearing things.
An adjoining small Italian restaurant looks promising. It’s snug, quiet, has linen-covered
tables and subdued lighting and looks just right, so I ask the uniformed maitre-d’ – a
ship’s officer by the braids on his shoulders - if I can get in there dressed as I am (jeans
and a shirt, no coat). When he assures me it’s no problem I ask if they have any
vegetarian dishes and am delighted to have him produce a vegetarian menu. He takes
me to a small table, takes my order for a glass of Chianti and leaves me to look over the
menu.
After a very quiet, very pleasant meal and a couple of glasses of wine I ask for the
check, which is immediately brought by the maitre-d’ who calls me by name, apologizes,
tells me he’s a great fan of MASH (says it’s on every night in Norway) and wants to
know if I’d mind signing an autograph. Surprised, I say it’s no problem and then am more
surprised as he produces a print-out of a picture from “Providence.” Utterly flummoxed,
I ask about it and he explains that after seating me he had gone to his computer, found a
MASH site and printed out the picture.
It’s all done very quietly and quite respectfully, which reminds me that only a few days
back someone had remarked, “Oh, they know you all right. They’re just more reserved
over here than the Americans are.”
Take a stroll outside and sit for a while. It’s very cold now, and quite beautiful. Nothing
but the North Sea in every direction. Try to call Shel but can’t get through. Long days
up this far north. It’s a fabulous sunset at about 10 PM, with Old Sol dropping behind a
string of gorgeous red clouds. And, I note, if the sun sets in the west we’re going due
north. Colder soon. So, to bed.
Day 14 – Tuesday, 6/19/01 -
Morning. For all the romance of it I didn’t sleep worth a damn. As is too often the case,
since it’s cold outside they use more heat than you want. Because there’s no
thermostat to control it and you can’t open the damned porthole, you live with it. The
pillows are huge and like bricks. How the hell anyone sleeps with the aid of one of these
things is beyond me. And, over here they favor duvets rather than blankets. It was too
hot under the duvet and just a bit too cool without it. I finally figured out that I could
pull the cover off and use it as a light blanket, which worked OK.
Looking down from the bunk through the porthole gives the impression of looking into a
washing machine, but the sea really can’t be all that rough or I’d be feeling it. Once
down from the bunk I see no sign of land, so step into the tiny bathroom. A curtain
makes a shower area out of 1/4 of the room, but given the size of the whole place
you’re lucky to shower without stepping into the toilet or falling into the sink.
Ablutions completed, I’m getting ready to find breakfast when an announcement tells me
that we have to vacate the rooms by 1:30 so the staff can clean them for the
passengers who will come aboard after we disembark. We’d already been told we won’t
have access to the vehicle deck until an hour before we put in, and that’s at 6:30. Does
that mean I’ll have to carry all that crap around for 5 hours? Can’t be.
The best breakfast possibility appears to be the American-style diner, so I grab a seat.
The place is incredibly kitschy, with a large plaster statue of a car-hop on the order of
the old Stan’s Drive-In at Sunset and Highland, a Statue of Liberty, murals of the
Manhattan skyline next to New Mexican mesas, an old Indian motorcycle, street signs
from New York’s Little Italy and cans, signs, bottles and paraphernalia everywhere. But, I
can get a couple of scrambled eggs, toast and a glass of orange juice, so I’m in good
shape.
Out on deck it’s a bit warmer. The sea is calm. No land in sight. Go down to the cabin
to get my gear together and the young woman who is to clean up says once I pack the
stuff it’s OK to leave it here until the car deck opens, which is a big relief.
Shortly an announcement comes that the car decks are opening, so I must have
misunderstood. But the young woman says I can still leave the big jacket and the helmet
here, so I do. Schlep the bags down below and make my way between the cars, buses
and vans to our bike area. Big space, kind of like a warehouse. Cool down here. Dank.
Smells like machinery. Odd to think the ocean is just beyond the walls (bulkheads).
The bike came through fine, didn’t move a bit, so I only untie a couple of the straps,
leaving it secured to the deck while I load the bags. Once everything is loaded I head
back up to the above-deck, where I now see land off the starboard side. We appear to
be working our way up the coast of Norway and low islands or spits of land are all that’s
visible. They’re rocky and barren, nothing like the huge and dramatic fjords I had
envisioned. As we get closer I can see mountains – snow-topped mountains, actually – in
the distance, but the coastal topography, at least in this area, is strewn with these spits
or islands that appear to be simply huge, smooth chunks of rock.
As I’m standing there at the railing a man approaches. He’s a huge fan of MASH and
can’t resist saying hello. He’s all apologies for bothering me, but is a nut for the show,
etc. He’s a Brit who trained as a doctor in Canada and married a Norwegian woman so
now lives here. Sort of a one-man United Nations. Says he worked as a flying ambulance
medic, a service the government provides for outlying areas. Simply loved MASH and
can’t contain his admiration for the show and all it meant to him. Kept him going
through pretty rough times. So rough, evidently, that he’s left medicine. He says
because it was government run it meant they told him when to work and where. The
pay was good but he finally found himself exhausted and bitter, so quit. He’s now an
engineer.
Frank Sager is his name. Sweet fellow, he’s fairly bubbling with energy about meeting
me, to the point that it begins to feel like a religious experience. Shows me a picture of
his wife, whom he calls “Hot Lips,” and says they saw me at dinner last night but
wouldn’t approach (given his behavior now they really are reserved). To calm him down I
ask what would be a good thing for a visitor to the country to see. He thinks for a
moment, then suggests Voss, a town a couple of hours out of Bergen, where there is a
tour available called “Norway in a Nutshell.” It‘s a day trip over a circle that gives, he
says, a snapshot of what the country is like. He offers a room at his house, says I can
store my gear in his garage… It’s a bit overwhelming, so I thank him, take his card and
say I want to just look around a bit, but may call him if I decide to stay in Bergen.
As said, a nice man, and the thought of having a local show me around is somewhat
enticing, but I’m enjoying the freedom and it feels a bit claustrophobic to have to deal
with being so adored.
An announcement says we’re nearing port, so I head below, grab the jacket and helmet
and make my way down. Everyone is scurrying to get set, so I free up the bike, check
the gear and, as the hatch lowers, fire it up. We’re among the first off, over the ramp
onto the pier and into a new land.
Pretty day. Brisk. The line of vehicles proceeds slowly along the wharf and stops. We
each have to have our wheels sprayed with something, probably a germicide. Hoof and
mouth concerns, I assume. Quick stop for a passport check and we’re off. “Remember
where you’re not,” quickly becomes the mantra. Drive on the right side now and, oh yes,
they have roundabouts here, too, just to confuse me more.
Bergen is a lovely seaport city with high, tree-covered mountains dotted with brightlycolored
story-book-looking houses on the mountainside. Everything seems to be painted
in bright colors, possibly as a remedy for the long nights and stark weather, and the
buildings, homes and even the streets appear to be clean and well-maintained.
The city is busy and, of course, crisscrossed with one-way streets, so I have to remind
myself to stay on the right, watch for cars, watch for pedestrians, keep a relatively
steady speed so I don’t get run over or knocked down and try to figure out where the
hell I’m going. Very quickly I’m in the center of the city, which is dominated by a huge
square filled with people. Turn, turn, get out of the way, go around, find the square
again, watch for a place to park. Up ahead a bunch of bikes are parked on the sidewalk
just at the edge of the square so, assuming it’s legal, I jump the curb, pull up by a tree
and shut it down.
Once the helmet is off it’s a lovely cacophony. Music, cars, bells, people. Looking
around I see no one complaining about my parking here, so lock the bike and venture
into the square. (Unsure just how safe it is, I carry my helmet.) The cobbled square is a
couple of hundred yards long and very popular. Young and old sit, stand or stroll.
Skaters, bicyclists, pedestrians share the colorful and happy space, which is surrounded
by buildings of significant age that house shops, stores, offices, restaurants. It’s a very
attractive spot with great energy.
No local money, so I look for a bank, find something that looks like a bank but am told
it’s not. Finally a tourist center offers a money changing service plus brochures and
advice, so I get some Kroner (8.75 for $1.00) and a map or two. The young woman
behind the counter is quite beautiful and very charming. As I’m waiting in line she
speaks about four different languages to different travelers, an impressive feat I’ll see
more than once on this trip. Once I’m able to speak to her she’s very high on the Voss
tour, so I guess Frank was right.
Outside again I soak up a little more of the atmosphere, then head back to the bike. I
like this place. A policeman walks by, so I get directions to the E-16, the highway to
Voss, and climb aboard. Heading out of the city I spot a sign that looks like it indicates a
health food store, so stop. It’s a market with a health section, but the pickings are
pretty spare, so I go back to finding my way out of town, thinking about how lucky – or
is it spoiled? – we are in the U.S.
Once the city ends, the highway heads straight into the mountain. Literally. I’m quickly
into the first of what are some extraordinary tunnels. Because it’s cool outside and like
a refrigerator inside, I begin to wonder about ice, particularly if they have these at high
altitudes, but get through the first one without any trouble.
Frank had said that the Norwegian government made the decision that tunneling was the
right choice for safe road-building because of the amount of snow they get. Drifts,
slides and avalanches caused many problems that are largely eliminated by the tunnels.
Well, he was clearly right. Between Bergen and Voss I pass through about twenty
different tunnels, some of them two or three miles long. And the difference between
the temperature outside and that inside is significant.
The English biker’s admonition about speeding in Norway is apparently on target, as well.
On the road through the mountains people drive at a relatively stately pace, quite unlike
what I saw in Britain. There, 75 or 80 MPH was the standard. Here it’s more like 60,
which is kind of nice. Once in the tunnels, however, it’s Katy-bar-the-door, as without
the law looking on, the otherwise stately Norwegian drivers put their foot in it.
Outside the tunnels the countryside is spectacular. It’s very Alpine in feeling, though the
mountains don’t achieve the height the term suggests. The houses are the same as
those I saw on the hillsides outside Bergen, peaked roofs, bright – though not at all
garish – colors, clean, and well-maintained.
The mountains here are very dramatic. Sudden, steep drops, sheer cliffs, waterfalls,
rivers and lakes (fjords, I suppose) are everywhere. Sometimes it feels a lot like the
Rockies.
Rounding a bend, nearing the end of a tunnel, the flashing lights of an on-coming car
make me wonder if it’s a signal, so I slow a bit. Sure enough, as I exit the tunnel two
police cars are waiting beside the road, expecting speeders to come exploding out.
Thanks, whoever you were.
Entering Voss I find a rather small town with a 12th century church in its center. As
instructed by the young woman in Bergen, I stop at the railroad station and pick up a
ticket for tomorrow’s “Norway in a Nutshell” tour. The man behind the counter tells me
that there’s a school just up the hill on a road I passed coming into town that operates
as a B&B during the summer, so I head back that way, find the turn, make the climb, find
the place and discover two nice kids running the desk.
He’s a tall, thin, quite handsome Norwegian, though with dark hair. She’s a sweet,
smiling, freckled Scot. They’re a big help and I get a little dorm room with two single
beds and its own bath. Because the tour will take most of the day and the weather is
threatening, we leave open the question of spending tomorrow night here, then I head
back into town for a bite to eat before settling in.
On the lake behind one of the two larger hotels in town there is a big group of young
people gathering and a lot of noise. Stopping, I find a happy crowd watching the final
landing of four parasailers who, judging from the way they swoop in and land, running, on
the beach, are very proficient at what they’re doing. It looks, as they come in, like a
combination of the old method of hang-gliding, which involved a kite-like apparatus
below which one hung, and parasailing like many of us have done behind a boat, wearing
a parachute rig. In this incarnation the flier has much more control than I remember
having with the parachute and much more flexibility than it seemed the hang-gliding
apparatus offered. Looks like fun.
The sun drops quickly and I don’t find much in the way of restaurants from which to
choose, so I stop in a pizza place and, after a lot of explaining, get a cheese-less veggie
version. After chowing down and people-watching, I head back out to the school. It’s
early enough, so I do a bit of laundry before turning in.
Day 15 - Wednesday, June 20, 2001 –
Another under-the-duvet night, but cold in the room, so it’s fairly comfortable. Sleep
later than anticipated, so race upstairs for a quick breakfast of cereal and juice. It’s
raining, so some thought is required about what to wear and what to carry. It makes no
sense to leave all my gear on the bike at the station, so arrange to stow it in the room
with the understanding that I’ll probably stay there again tonight. Then it’s off to the
railway station.
There’s quite a crowd waiting for the train, a large part of it a group of Japanese
tourists. Have to leave the bike in the open, so lock it up, then am happy to find a
locker for my helmet and the heavy jacket.
The train is right on time. We’re quickly aboard and off at 9:57 A.M., just as it says on
the ticket. It’s a lovely, kind of old-fashioned-looking train, but well appointed with
wooden paneling and nicely cushioned seats. I have a whole seat to myself, which is
neat, and the largest part of the Japanese group is in the next car so I don’t have to
listen to the interpreter explaining everything.
The rain has stopped, though we continue to get occasional showers as we climb quickly
into the mountains and soon into a series of tunnels. Between them there is very much
an Alpine feel, with sweet, small, gaily-painted houses on the very steep sides of the
hills, with a few cattle meandering. Before long the incline becomes very dramatic, with
steep drops on the side, extraordinary, rocky chasms with white-water streams racing
through them just visible below. Huge, snowy, tree-covered mountains appear in the
distance when we reach the top of a rise. Before us is a valley full of beautiful, gaily51
colored houses with tile roofs, the tiles formed into intricate patterns. Ribbon-like
waterfalls pour down the mountainsides. It’s fabulous.
At Myrdal, on what is known as the Myrdal Plateau, we change trains. Also nicely
appointed, this one is effectively a funicular, though instead of a cable it operates with a
special traction system which allows it to make its way down an incredibly steep track
toward the fjord far below. There is a recorded narration on this ride that tells us of the
heroic work of the Norwegian tunnel-diggers who made their way through these huge
rock slabs at a rate of about a foot and a half a week, or something like that (it may
have been a month). A life’s work, some of this must have been. We are descending
from an altitude of 866 meters at Myrdal to Flam, beside the Aurlandsfjorden, at 2
meters – a bit over 1/2 mile down.
One of the tunnels we’re about to enter, the narrator tells us, makes a 180-degree turn,
evidently a stupendous feat of engineering. At a point I’d guess is halfway down we
stop at a huge cataract for the passengers to take pictures. It’s an impressive sight –
and an even more impressive sound. The roar of the water crashing down is gigantic,
the spray quite cold.
And down we go, through spectacular mountains striped with waterfalls, to the small
town of Flam (450 people), which is really a tourist stop. Clearly the town exists by the
tourist trade and is made up largely of shops, a couple of restaurants, the train depot
and a dock for the ship we’ll now take out over the fjord. With the mirror-like surface of
the fjord before us and the mountains behind and to both sides, this is quite an
impressive spot.
After time for a walk around and a quick snack, we’re called to board the ship for the sail
through the fjord to Gudvangen. The ship has a covered area below for seating, a
smaller cabin topside and an open viewing deck with chairs and a canvas tarp above to
protect from the rain which is still coming intermittently. I grab a chair under the tarp
on the open deck so as not to miss anything. It’s pretty cold and the wind tends to
blow the rain in on us, but it’s not bad.
The fjord is very dramatic. It’s essentially a wide watercourse between huge cliffs. The
sheer rock faces of the mountains making up the sides of the fjord are magnificent.
Broken occasionally by waterfalls, some are covered with trees and others are bare. All
give a sense of immense, innate power. Periodically settlements, clearly mostly fishing
villages, appear. To the naked eye they look to be hemmed in by mountains and water,
accessible only by boat. There may in fact be roads through the mountains, but if so
they’re not easy to spot. Little level land to cultivate, very few cattle visible. Clearly
these are hardy folks.
Again, ribbons of water, some merely strings, some quite substantial, lace the sheer rock
sides. It’s clearly ice/snow melt and gives me a bit of concern again about the road
surfaces inside the tunnels.
A huge arm of the fjord branches off to points north, but we continue east and, after a
couple of hours, come to the end of our lovely water journey.
At Gudvangen a bus awaits and we pile in. So far no one has spoken to me and I’m
having the time of my life quietly soaking it all in. The bus heads up a long valley
between high mountains and soon begins a steep climb. This is the old highway, used
until 1980 as part of the main road from Oslo to Bergen, since bypassed, apparently
thanks to some of the new tunneling. This particular climb has 19 hairpin-turn
switchbacks and it is pucker-time as the driver swings this crate around the corners.
One particular segment of the even older road that he takes us on is on the very lip of
an incredibly steep drop and has only room for one vehicle, eliciting prayers that no one
is coming down from above. The driver is meanwhile having a hell of a time entertaining
his passengers (read captives) with stories of how he hasn’t yet passed the driving test
and hopes to be able to do so soon.
A welcome stop at a lovely old hotel at the top of the climb offers tourists a chance at
more trinkets, a bite to eat or a toilet opportunity. Then it’s on to Voss, with rain
coming down all the way.
Back at the station my bike is waiting unmolested. The rain is looking to hang around, so
I find there’s a motorcycle shop at the west end of town and head there to catch the
owner just as he’s trying to lock up. A friendly guy, he invites me in and finds some
rubber boot covers that are too small, but he also has a roll of duct tape, so I grab it all
and figure I’ll jury-rig something to try to keep the water out of my boots.
Noting that I’ve lost my map of Europe to the English rain, I try to find a bookstore to
replace it. No luck, but the nice kid at the place I’m staying makes a copy of his map of
Norway and Denmark for me. There’s no point in trying to head out tonight, given the
rain and cold, so they book me in again. I try Shel a couple of times, but no answer.
Day 16 - Thursday, June 21, 2001 –
Good night’s sleep. The weather looks better this morning and I’m able to reach Shelley.
She’s doing very well and gives her happy blessings, so the feeling of relief that comes
over me brings one of release coupled with a surge of excitement that it’s OK to be
doing this. I can keep going!
At breakfast I’m approached by a couple of Americans who are here on an art study
program. They’re friendly and respectful, but it’s a bit of a let-down to be jerked back
to that “celeb” reality.
Loading up outside a group of these women come up and ask if I’ll come into the
classroom – their art study happens to be here at the school – and take a look at their
work. I do. It’s all very nice and I play the ambassador for a few minutes, sign
autographs and then get back to the work of loading up the bike. Finally I’m off down
the highway to get some gas and find my way south. Can’t find my wet-weather gloves,
but they must be in one of the bags. Anyway, it’s not too cold now and it’s not raining.
The kid had told me I had a couple of choices if I wanted to go to Denmark, another
country I’ve not seen and the home of one of our great friends, Rosa Nielsen. I could
head west to Oslo and then south into Sweden and across to Copenhagen or I could
head south, skirting the Telemark area, and get a ferry to Denmark out of Kristiansand.
As I looked over the map, the latter sounded like fun, so cut south at the fork on the
west side of Voss and we race into new territory.
An exquisite ride. The road climbs, then drops through a series of switchbacks complete
with a number of glorious waterfalls and into another fjordland. It’s fabulous. Ride
alongside the glassy fjord, through small towns and countryside dotted with the same
kinds of brightly colored, well-kept farmhouses with designs in their tile roofs; then, just
when I’m expecting to climb another steep hill, I’m into a tunnel that turns out to be 5
miles long. Thank God, no ice.
Soon there’s a dead end at a fjord and I have to wait for a ferry. Cross with a group of
German tourists on a bus, some of whom are fascinated by the California license plate on
my bike. Can’t believe I came all this way on a motorcycle. One keeps looking at me and
finally asks the question. (Whenever I pull off my helmet I immediately pull on a cap I’m
carrying and can usually manage to avoid making eye contact, so pretty much stay
below the radar. On the ferry I’m stuck.) He is a big MASH fan and can’t believe it’s me,
but he’s also kind about not making a fuss, so there’s not a lot of damage. Once on the
other side I continue south and they head off west.
The ride down is now, if possible, even more spectacular. I’m treated to a series of
fjords, waterfalls, small towns, gaily painted houses. But soon clouds are massing in
front of me and it begins to look like trouble. At one point I’m sure I’m going to have to
stop and put on my rain gear and put rain covers on everything – not awful, but it
involves unpacking much of the gear, is very time consuming and kind of a pain in the
ass. Anyway, just as I’m sure I should stop the road cuts into a tunnel and it’s a long
one. It’s clear I’m heading downhill, but I have no idea what I’ll find when I come out, so
am delighted to find bright sunshine.
After a while I’m climbing again, this time quite high. Fewer trees on the ground, lots of
snow. I assume this is the eastern portion of the Telemark area (skiers will know the
term). In and out of fjord valleys, down by switchbacks, up out of them the same way.
Each time, however, I seem to be getting higher and it is certainly getting colder. Soon
it’s freezing to the point that I stop and put on some of the rain gear just for the
warmth it provides. Next thing I know it’s raining, scattered showers at first, then
pouring solidly.
Finally, very cold and very wet, I pull into Kristiansand at the southern tip of Norway.
Silhouettes of a ferry lead me to the port and a long line, but it turns out this one is
going to England. The boat to Denmark doesn’t leave until 9:45PM, so I buy a ticket and
ride into the city. Seems to be a nice place. Busy. Lots of people about. Clean.
And suddenly, there at the side of the road off a happy turn, I find what I’ve been
wondering about: an Internet Café. Park the bike and go in, arrange for some time and
try to figure out the keyboard, which is very different from what I’m used to, then spend
an hour or so reading while I dry out. 300-plus messages are a bit daunting, so I only
glance at some, answer a few, then send a message to Shel and split. Up the street is a
nice-looking restaurant called the Havana where I have a pretty good dinner.
Back at the ferry there’s the usual line-up of cars, vans, trucks and, as seems to be the
usual thing, motorcycles go to the front of the line in their own little section. Behind us
are some small cars and after we wait around a while the young driver of one of the cars
gets out to stretch while his wife and kids rest and asks where I’m headed.
He’s Danish and is surprised to hear that I’m interested in seeing Denmark, having
himself just come from a holiday in Norway, which he found spectacular. I tell him of my
friend Rosa and ask about an artist’s colony that she had mentioned, but I can’t
remember the name. She said it was on the north shore of Denmark and may be, as I
look at the map, not far from where the ferry puts in. He thinks he knows, but goes
back to his car to talk to his wife. Soon he’s back with a very sweet, hand-drawn map
showing Skagen, the art colony on the northeast shore and also the route to Kobenhavn
(Copenhagen), which I hadn’t realized was on an island separate from the main land area
of Denmark. Just north of Copenhagen he also made a point of showing the location of
Helsingor, home of Castle Elsinore, the place where Shakespeare set Hamlet. What a
sweet thing to do. Nice man.
The ferry races in bow first and the captain executes a very impressive 180 degree
maneuver, putting the stern loading gate toward us, and backs into the dock. We’re
waved aboard and once more I find myself in a huge warehouse-like structure. Following
the directions of crewmen, about six of us on bikes make about 3/4 of a circle, having
entered in the far right-hand lane of the starboard side, ending up hard against the portside
bulkhead facing the huge loading ramp over which we’ve just ridden. This area has a
series of straps attached to the bulkhead and I watch as others hook their bikes up, then
follow suit, looping the strap through braces welded to the floor, up over the bike, then
securing it down through another brace. Very accommodating.
Up the ladder we go and again it’s like coming out of the industrial district into a Vegasstyle
casino. Slot machines and video games line a large, carpeted split-level area.
Shops are on the upper level, games on the lower. People seem to know where they’re
going so I follow along to find rows of seats, four deep on each side of an aisle, and, I
assume, a similar configuration beyond a wall to my left. Windows to the right of these
seats reveal the port facilities. It’s late, probably 9:30 or so, and the sun is just
beginning to make its descent toward the horizon.
My ticket gives a seat number, so I find it and watch people settle their children in, get
out books, magazines, newspapers and food, readying themselves for what appears to
be a simple commute. This is the “fast ferry,” the young man at Voss had advised me.
Will only take 2-1/2 hours to get across the Skagerrak arm of the North Sea to Hirtshals,
on the northwestern tip of Denmark. The alternative is a 4-1/2 hour ride, so I’m glad
this one worked out.
The trip, as it grows dark, is uneventful. As the lights of the port appear I make my way
down to the entrance to the vehicle deck and wait. Feeling safe under my cap I’m
enjoying the people watching when I begin to get the sense that I’m being watched as
well. Soon a young girl comes up and stops in front of me, looking. She says something
I don’t understand and then goes away. In a moment she’s back with a man, probably
her father, who asks if I’m the man from “MASH.” I nod and smile and the girl breaks into
a big grin and says, “Providence, too!” It’s sort of funny to have this generational gap
staring me in the face, but I’m soon too busy signing autographs for a gathering crowd
to reflect on it much. Thankfully, the hatch then opens beside us and I’m able to smile,
shrug and make my way out of the group and down to the bike.
While unstrapping the bike a very nice couple stops and tells me that they’d seen me
earlier and hadn’t wanted to bother me (so much for traveling incognito), but take a
moment then to talk about how much MASH has meant to them over the years. She, it
turns out, also knows Providence and has become a big fan. They’re sweet and rather
young, probably not yet out of their twenties, another testament to the power of the
medium.
Once the ramp is down we’re out into the cold, rainy night. There’s no passport check
here, for some reason, so I follow the traffic out onto the highway and then realize I have
no idea where I am or where I’m going. It’s very dark and the traffic has moved away
from the lights of the port and into what appears to be open country. The warning light
pops on, telling me I’m down to my last gallon of gas. It’s late, I’m tired, the
combination of pitch dark highway and glaring lights is blinding, the signs I can make out
are in Danish and only add to the confusion, so I pull over and try to figure out if I’m
getting a signal from God. Let’s see, no sleep, no clue where I am, no gas, it’s cold, I’m
wet. Yup, there’s a signal here somewhere. Next I try to figure out where I stashed the
glasses I sometimes use for night riding. (I’ve found in recent years that as the light
goes away, my vision isn’t as good as it used to be. In well-lit cities or familiar territory
it’s not a problem, but on the bike – particularly when moving fast and trying to deal
with unfamiliar situations – the glasses make a big difference.) The glasses, of course,
are stuck away in the bottom of one of the side bags, so… I get it. Let’s go back
toward the lights of the port and see what’s up.
Once there, a turn takes me to a port-side hotel, a happy sight. They have a room, so I
happily sign in, stick the bike in a covered area and unload, then carry everything across
the lobby, trailing water in my wake. In the warm room I hang everything I can hang,
hoping that it will dry out by morning. The plastic trash bags that have served so well in
keeping the water out of my bags are laid open on the floor and I have to dance around
to find footing as I make my way to the bathroom and then into bed. It’s almost 2AM
and it feels great to pull back the covers and climb in.