Day 3 - Scandinavian Cycle Touring

Just before we fell asleep last night, the tent was suddenly illuminated with colour. The sun had returned, with a spectacular sunset.

In the morning, the blue skies ruled and we were forced from the tent at 7am due to the heat. The classic tour breakfast of yogurt, banana and granola was served with a revitalising mug of hot lemon.



We were soon repacked and ready to hit the road (cycle track actually).



There was a stiff headwind and a long exposured section to start with, but before long, we’d done our first 20km of the day and arrived in the town of Landskrona.



It was an arty little town, with a ferry to a nearby island too.



After leaving town we carried on along the coast after a few short breaks.



But first we visited the old Citadel which is surrounded by some elaborate moats. We explored around them, some colourful gardens and really cool little holiday homes.



But by lunch time, the heat was getting to us, so we pulled over at a beach for a refreshing swim. We both agreed that the water was warmer than the Welsh lakes of recent days.



Almost as nice as the swim, was finding a beach shower to rinse off under. We left the beach, fed, cooled and washed to carry on north past plenty of little marinas. Perfect.



We reached our target destination of Helsingborg mid-afternoon and stocked up with food.



In an alpine style, the heat of the day had begun to create some black looking clouds. We set off out of town under a darkening sky. Just as the first drops of rain began to fall, we had the unbelievably lucky discovery of a little wooden shelter. We rode straight in as a deluge erupted.



Then, to make the most of the situation, had a little revitalising snooze.



Once the rain had passed over, we rode down to the beach to have a brew and maybe cook dinner. We watched the rains move out towards Denmark. Midway through our second brew, we noticed another wave of black clouds. The clock was ticking, so we hurried to pack away, making the shelter of a beach hut canopy just before the heavens really opened. 



We sat out the worst, before putting on waterproofs and heading back up the hill to our wooden shelter.



Here, we stripped off wet gear and set about making a delicious meal of broccoli and chicken in a tomato sauce, served on a bed of cous-cous. Fine dining indeed.



We got the bad news from England about Great Aunty Sheila that evening while sat in the shelter. I’ve been sending postcards to Military Road from my travels, for as long as I can remember - even before I started expeditioning. 



While the family back in Colchester toasted her over a glass of red and white wine, (and some iffy apple pies), we raised a mug of hot lemon in her honour. 



Then it was into the tent, where we soon fell asleep, between listening to snippets of England getting beaten in the semi-finals of the Russian World Cup.



Total Ride Today: 57.7km