Three weeks to Bergen

I'm looking out of the window at the incredibly heavy rain and counting off the 21 days till I head off to Bergen, Norway on the first leg of my cycle trip around the North Sea Cycle Route. Twenty-one days may sound like a fair amount of time, but I know from my experience last year that the evil fairy of cock ups makes sure you only  just scrape together the necessary plans in time. (When I went to New Zealand last year, I arranged my proxy vote for the election at the airport.) I managed to defeat the evil fairy by making extensive lists - which, as I have mentioned in an earlier blog, is the way to save the world. It was touch and go last time but I made it. The main problem was that the bike I was taking was not up to the job. Hang on a minute, I'm taking the same bike with me this time... but I'm sure it is okay this year... gulp. The problem was the handle bars wouldn't come off, but that's sorted this time and you may have seen my beautiful new butterfly handlebars (on my blog) http://triboy57.blogspot.co.uk/2012/01/butterfly-handle-bars.html  which are designed to make my life easy as I cycle around the 3000 miles of the trail, haha. Whether I make the whole distance back to Scotland, is down to where I have got to by the end of July. I have decided that I must be home by then to welcome my daughter Zoe and grandson Soli who will be here from Melbourne for a month. So, if I happen to be in Holland or wherever, I will hop on a train and do the  rest of the route another time.
I'm guessing that the hardest bit of the route will be the first bit. Bergen is near the fjiords and no doubt the coast line will be hilly. By the time I get to Holland it will be nice and flat. It might sound like I don't know much about where I am going, but I have been reading up bit on the very good web-site called NSCR North Sea Cycle Route, it's well worth a look  http://www.northsea-cycle.com/ . By the way, my bike is getting new tyres and a cycle computer fitted. Those together in new front panniers and my brand new Smartphone (to put travel reports on my blog) and 'I'm good to go.' Although, I'd better not get to cocky or the evil cock up fairies will get me.