After a great night sleep, I said goodbye to the Nordland and the Lofoten with a feeling of gratitude and sadness. But I was also very ready to go back home. Weather was sunny again, perfect for traveling.
Originally I had planned to drive down the Norwegian coast but a quick reality check showed that I would have to take too many ferries which would complicate and prolong the journey. Since I will board the ferry to Travemünde in 48 hours that would be a little to risky.
So I went back the E10 via Kiruna to Luleå and from there turned south onto the notorious E4. This road is hell for cyclists but for cars it is the only possibility in Sweden to get from north to south quickly.
Norway has meanwhile protected its inbound borders with military. Outbound was no problem however. The Swedish border was totally unmanned.
In Kiruna I got myself some meds against diarrhea and they seemed to work quickly. A real relief!
Temperatures in the Swedish East-coast were around 25 degrees. What a difference to the Lofoten just yesterday!
In total I covered 800km today. Close to Umeá I found a nice motel. I still needed to do some laundry before I re-enter civilization. My clothes smell like a cage of lions.
Learning of the day: it is amazing how far you can cycle with a bike in just 23 days. It will take me five days by ship and car to get all the way back to where I started from.
