Leaving Kongsberg, where I enjoyed a great Polish host family, it was time to continue south to Tønsberg. Having contacted Bjorn and Marieke about possibly hosting me, they readily agreed to have me as a guest even though they were heading out sailing for the weekend. It was a good 50 mile ride and I arrived into town where Bjoern and Marieke met me on their bikes and we all headed to the ocean for some swimming. Little did I know, they were going to become good friends of mine as I was going to spend the next 6 nights with them.

After talking and hanging out, they invited me to join on the sailing trip. I was really excited about this since I have never been sailing before. The plans were to leave Friday afternoon and sail the weekend away. It was a blast being out on the water and camping on different islands. The small wooden sailing boat they had was perfect and as you sit so close to the water.

Exploring the different islands we stayed on was a ton of fun. Either climbing to the highest point of the island or hiking and jumping from rock to rock making our way around the island. I love being on the water and this was such a great experience and time. It was refreshing to travel and see a different part of Norway off of the bike as well as hang out with some great people.

We arrived back into the marina on Sunday afternoon and enjoyed a post trip ice cream. A tradition Bjoern and Marieke have and I can’t complain much because…quite frankly I love ice cream so much. The following day they both had work and I set off for an 8 hour hike around the island. With intermittent rainfall, the hike was very enjoyable following the coastline of Nøtteroy.

Rain was forecasted for the entire following day and Bjoern and Marieke graciously let me stay another night. I spent the day relaxing and catching up on the blog before the final ride to Oslo. They were such great hosts and definitely helped make my time not only in Tønsberg but in Norway as well. Thank you so much for everything, opening up your house, taking me sailing, and all of your generosity!

The ride to Oslo was great with not too many climbs as I followed the coast. Arriving into a big city is always a bit hectic, but I was able to find a hostel and next on the list was sourcing a bicycle box. The guys at Oslo Sportslager were fantastic at hooking me up with what I needed. All packed up it was crazy to think I would be home in less than a day. Super excited to surprise everyone at home (absolutely no one knew I was coming in town), didn’t help as I tried to get some sleep at the airport that night. Boarding the plane, it was surreal that this was taking place. Goodbye Norway, I will be back in just over a week to continue this epic journey!