Riding north on the E45 this afternoon south of Jokkmokk, I glimpsed something white in the eastern forest fringes. The trouble with these northern glacial fields are that the glacial erratics can look like animals, but this was different, so I did a quick turnaround and slowly retraced my steps and I was privileged enough to witness for maybe five minutes, a startling white reindeer and two darker females grazing on the forest floor and eyeing me up with interest. In a few months time, the native Sámi people will gather these reindeers for slaughter. The white reindeer is more often selected for slaughter since they are said to be weaker and an easier prey for predators – I prefer the old adage that says that seeing the white reindeer means luck… after all I have at least another 6000km to ride.
Category Archives: Travel Blogs
Beast of Burden
Why ride a bike… the connection to place, to the land, the wind, the sun, stars, the moon… it sounds romantic, but it’s true – the visceral experience of motion, of moving through time on some amazing machine – a few cars touch on it, but not too many compared to motorcycles. I always felt that any motorcycle journey was special – Antoine Predock
Unknown Tumulus
I came across this simple burial mound, a heap of earth and stones, now grassed over near Nynas, I can only wonder ‘who’ and ‘why’ this elaborate memorial was originally raised over a grave of an unknown ancient.
Kinne-Vedums Kyrka
I am not sure why I did it… but riding west on the E20 from Skara out of the corner of my eye I saw something in the hillside and rode for a while arriving at Kinne-Vedums. This masterpiece of 12th Century building is as fresh and dominate as the day it was erected by the Master Stonemason Othelric. I wandered a little in the immaculate grounds seeking shade in the shadow of the surrounding trees and took refuge in the quite calm of the cross vaulted ceiling and frescoes from CG Hoijst and Johan Laurell comissioned in 1754. 
Live unlike the others
“Life on the road is hard. I talked to my bike. It’s a bit crazy, but I talked to it every day, not to abandon me, not to let me down, not to break down, my motorcycle represents my life, more than just a bike”. I though it was just me but this quote is from Cyril Neveu so I guess its normal behaviour from a solo motorcyclist in a strange far away land. If you are planing a trip, long or short my advice is just do it… you will remember the sites you saw and the things you did, they will travel with you forever and if you go… I promise you this… you will not come back the same.