How to get to Iceland by bike, part 1: cycling through Denmark
A week before departure, everything is ready: the polished bike loaded with four neatly packed panniers, the ferry and train rides all booked, accommodations and campsites reserved. Cycling in Iceland is a complex activity: ferry to Amsterdam from Newcastle, trains to Aarhus, up through Jutland to the port of Hirtshals, near the northern tip of Denmark, ferries to the Faroe Islands, which I will explore by bike before embarking on more biking around eastern Iceland. Three weeks in total and no flying involved. A small sacrifice for the climate emergency, but also a chance to alert everyone to the wonderful adventures that can be had without flying.
But four days before departure, I find myself in the hospital contemplating a very sick person who cannot be not leave. Weeks of planning and preparation are in jeopardy. The day of departure passes, but the miracle of intravenous antibiotics occurs and I realize that I can still travel, catch up with my own itinerary if I make some changes.
I have to giving up the idea of riding my own bike, using rental machines instead; I also have to leave immediately and – gurgling – take a short flight. I hastily stuff a few things into two of the panniers and fly in hand luggage only to Denmark. From the airport, I take trains and buses to the town of Thisted in Jutland, where I rent a Dutch-style city bike with pedal brake. I load up the panniers and my handlebar bag, then head out into the rolling, empty countryside towards the coast, and some dark clouds.
It feels good to be on the way. Planning an international trip without a bike theft is a lot harder than it should be. Ferry routes have been reduced in recent years - travel would be much easier if there was still a ferry between the UK and Scandinavia. Not only that, but taking bikes on international trains can be frustrating and tricky (regional services are much easier). Our transportation systems are hopeless when it comes to being kind to the planet.
A week before departure, everything is ready: the polished bike loaded with four neatly packed panniers, the ferry and train rides all booked, accommodations and campsites reserved. Cycling in Iceland is a complex activity: ferry to Amsterdam from Newcastle, trains to Aarhus, up through Jutland to the port of Hirtshals, near the northern tip of Denmark, ferries to the Faroe Islands, which I will explore by bike before embarking on more biking around eastern Iceland. Three weeks in total and no flying involved. A small sacrifice for the climate emergency, but also a chance to alert everyone to the wonderful adventures that can be had without flying.
But four days before departure, I find myself in the hospital contemplating a very sick person who cannot be not leave. Weeks of planning and preparation are in jeopardy. The day of departure passes, but the miracle of intravenous antibiotics occurs and I realize that I can still travel, catch up with my own itinerary if I make some changes.
I have to giving up the idea of riding my own bike, using rental machines instead; I also have to leave immediately and – gurgling – take a short flight. I hastily stuff a few things into two of the panniers and fly in hand luggage only to Denmark. From the airport, I take trains and buses to the town of Thisted in Jutland, where I rent a Dutch-style city bike with pedal brake. I load up the panniers and my handlebar bag, then head out into the rolling, empty countryside towards the coast, and some dark clouds.
It feels good to be on the way. Planning an international trip without a bike theft is a lot harder than it should be. Ferry routes have been reduced in recent years - travel would be much easier if there was still a ferry between the UK and Scandinavia. Not only that, but taking bikes on international trains can be frustrating and tricky (regional services are much easier). Our transportation systems are hopeless when it comes to being kind to the planet.
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