CLEAR YOUR SATURDAY PLANS.

We hit the Bermondsey Beer Mile as part of our epic 5-day trip through Brussels, Bruges and London – which you can read about here.
 
The Bermondsey Beer Mile is an unofficial crawl of breweries that’s tucked under a stretch of railway arches, and spans about 2 miles long. There are more breweries than there is time in a day, so I am just going to highlight the ones we stopped at. Of course, this is a choose your own adventure sort of thing so do not take this guide too seriously. I suggest going where the wind blows. Something to note, these breweries are only open on Saturday’s, so plan your trip accordingly.
 
However, we do suggest starting your day at the Maltby Street Market to lay down a nice layer of food before you completely destroy your stomach on alcohol, a solid base. This is probably the best food market in London, so take your time and eat everything you can. The pork gyozas are something I still think about it…
 
Since we did not bring our camera with on this beer fueled walk, here are some pictures from our phones, enjoy :)
 
Southwark Brewing Company > Hawkes Cidery and Taproom > Anspach & Hobday > Moor Beer Co Vaults & Taproom > Brew by Numbers > Affinity Brewing Company > EeBria Tap > Fourpure Brewing Co.

Southwark Brewing Company – 3 min walk

Hawkes Cidery and Taproom – 3 min walk

Anspach & Hobday – 1 min walk

Moor Beer Co Vaults & Taproom – 3 min walk

Brew by Numbers – 30 second walk

Quick selfie - location unknown.

Affinity Brewing Company – 16 min walk

EeBria Tap – 1 min walk

Fourpure Brewing Co – 10 min walk.
 
This is the point where we had to call it quits. It was an absolutely awesome day outside and we had so much fun popping in and out of the railroad arches to sample all of the great beer London has to offer. 10/10 would do again.
 
We definitely did not hit all of the stops – here is an unofficial guide with all of the breweries listed - https://www.bermondsey-beer-mile.co.uk

This is just a portion of our overall roadtrip across Denmark, Norway, and Scotland, so we are going to break it down by country. Here is the lineup for Scotland:
        Day 1: Glasgow - arrived by Train
        Day 2: Oban
        Day 3: Ben Nevis (stop in Glen Etive)
​        Day 4: Isle of Skye (stop at Glenfinnanen Viadcut)
        Day 5: Isle of Skye
        Day 6: Isle of Skye - Shieldag
        Day 7: Inverness - Grantown-on-Spey
        Day 8: Castles - Aberdeen - Inverbervie
        Day 9: St. Andrews
        Day 10: Edinburgh
        Day 11: Glasgow - fly home

What we packed:
        Checked bag - Camping/hiking gear
        Checked bag - Clothes/toiletries
​        Carry-on bag - Camera backpack
        Carry-on bag - Hiking backpack

Day 1
Total drive time: 0h
Route: Glasgow
Accommodations: Clyde Hostel

We arrived to Glasgow from Liverpool, after attending The Open golf tournament for Saturday's 3rd Round.  Once we arrived to Glasgow we decided to venture out to find a spot to watch the final round of golf.  We found a nearby pub called O'Neills, which had a projector screen with golf on, nothing memorable about the pub itself.  Then we went to dinner at a nice place called The Butchershop, which had excellent food.  The hostel was not a good stay; find something else.

Day 2
Total drive time: 2h 40m
Route: Glasgow - Oban - Benderloch
Accommodations: Seaview Caravan and Camping Park

The day began with picking up a rental car and heading northwest to Oban, a 2.5 hour drive.  A little over halfway, there is a decent place for lunch in Tyndrum called The Real Food Cafe.  Once you arrive in Oban, you can just find a place to park and walk the town.  We began with a tour of the Oban Distillery.  The tour is £10 per person, and is a good deal if you are interested in observing the process.  You get a sample shot at the end of the tour, and you keep the glass it comes in.  In addition, you get a coupon for a discount off any whiskey purchase at their store.  If you plan to visit other distillery's in Scotland, there is a coupon book you can take with you.  Walk the pier for sight-seeing, and find some fresh seafood.  Atop the city is McCaig's Tower, which appears to be the crown of the city.  You can walk to the top of the hill to get there, or just drive.  The views are nice.  We had appetisers at Ee Usk before heading to our campsite for the night. Just north of the city is a nice campground called Seaview Camping Park.  Great staff, great sites, and a walking trail to the beach.

Day 3
Total drive time: 3h
Route: Benderloch - Glen Etive - Fort William 
Accommodations: Glen Nevis Caravan & Camping Park

On our way from Oban to Fort William, we ventured off to the place of the iconic scene from Skyfall.  It is a scenic drive back into the valley. Here is the exact location via Google Maps.

Next, we headed towards the base of Ben Nevis and prepped for the hike to Scotland's highest peak.  This hike is on the easier side (steep, but easy), in fact local athletes run to the top and back down for exercise.  Average-paced hikers can expect this full hike to take about 6 hours; about 3 hours and 45 minutes to reach the top and 2 hours and 15 minutes to get back down.  The first 2 hours of this hike are great, it is somewhat slow and steady inclines with great views, and even a lake.  The latter half of the hike is a steep climb on loose rocks.  No cliffs to deal with, but be mindful of your ankles.  As we approached the top, it became windy and the clouds engulfed us for a moment.  This hike was difficult for us because we were running out of gas from our trip.  There were multiple occasions where we wanted to turn around and go back to the bottom, but it is worth getting to the top, especially if you're there on a clear day.  When we reached the bottom, we went to the Ben Nevis campground to stay for the night.  Here, is where we found out about MIDGES - Scotland's version of a mosquito. They are much smaller and come in larger numbers.  If you plan to camp in the Highlands of Scotland, it is advised that you get some repellent.

Day 4
Total drive time: 3h 30 m
Route: Fort William - Glenfinnanen Viaduct - Portree
Accommodations: Torvaig Caravan & Camp Site

​After camping at the base of Ben Nevis (Ben Nevis Self Catering Park), we drove towards Fort William.  You Harry Potter fans are on your way to the magical bridge.  There IS a parking lot along the road, with a coffee shop.  This is paid parking and allows you to take the 10 minute walk up a small trail and be able to view the bridge.  However, this view is a letdown.  If you head north just a little bit more there is another parking lot with free parking, and you'll get out for a 10-15 minute walk towards the bridge.  If you google images of this bridge, you'll see quite a few angles, but the best one resembles what you see in the movies; back behind the bridge overlooking the valley.  To get here, follow the paved road/trail until you're underneath the bridge.  You'll take a right and still be walking beneath the bridge and see a boggy hill that you can walk through to get the image below.  We didn't see a steam engine roll through but you might!

We used the remainder of the day to continue our travels up to Portree in the Isle of Skye.  Portree serves as a great home-base for exploring the Isle.  We stayed just a few minutes drive north of the city at Torvaig Caravan & Camp Site.  This is a well maintained campsite with great owners.  Showers and laundry available.  

Day 5
Total drive time: 2h
Route: Portree - Fairy Pools - Talisker Distillery - Dunvegan Castle - Portree
Accommodations: Torvaig Caravan & Camp Site

The Old Man of Storr!  Just north of Portree you'll see a place to park for the mile-long hike up the hill towards the vertical rock formations, with the Old Man of Storr being the most notable.  As we approached the base, the wind was so extreme we could hardly stand!  It was unreal.  Something we hadn't experienced before.  You'll likely get here on a better day.  It is an easy trek that just entails a steady incline.

Next we worked our way back towards the Fairy Pools.  This is a small stream coming from hills that has some unique formations built into it, primarily a few spots where the riverbed is shaped like a big round hot tub.  I don't believe anyone gets into the water, but it is a nice, easy walk along the water with the hills surrounding.

Continue to head west towards Dunvegan Castle, which is tucked along the shores of a bay on the western coast of the Isle of Skye.  This castle is very well kepted, and has a great variety of gardens and short walking trails to stroll.  Admission is €12/adult.  Inside the castle you'll some unique artifacts as well.  Overall, we find most castles to be interesting to attend, and this one is worth seeing if you are in the area.

Next, we headed back to Portree for dinner and back to our campsite.

Day 6
Total drive time: 4h 15m
Route: Portree - Quiraing - Fairy Glen - Plockton - Shieldag
Accommodations: Shieldag Camping Area

​Waking up early in Portree, we have just one more place to visit prior to leaving town, and that is the Quiraing area north of Portree.  This can easily be paired with the Old Man of Storr as a day trip.  Park at the base of Quiraing, where you'll likely see other cars parked, or a small coffee shop as an indicator as to where you'll park.  This was one of our favorite short hikes, as it resembles (in our eyes) something out of Lord of The Rings.  The hike is easy, with a small incline and no drop-offs.  The trail will take you back into the hills between the steep foggy peaks as you approach Mordor (if only!).  As you've likely realized by this point, the weather in Scotland changes every 20 minutes, so we experienced some intermittent rain.  This is an extremely unique place that is definitely worth seeing.

Next, we went to the Fairy Glens, which is also efficiently routed had you began with Old Man of Storr, then Quiraing, then Fairy Glens.  These are small, unique landscapes that seem to swirl up like ice cream cones.  There are a few plateaus you can get to the top of, but we remained on the ground and simply walked through a few areas of the glens.  Nothing too dramatic here, but being that you are likely passing through, this is worth a short stop.

Next we depart Isle of Skye to get back to the main island and continue heading towards northern Scotland.  We've picked a spot to camp in Shieldaig along the way, which will serve as a break from the hiking as we continue towards Inverness.  If you want to continue heading northeast towards Inverness, you'll have the option to not detour towards Shieldaig while on your way to Inverness.  On our way to Shieldaig we stopped in Plockton, which is a small town on the shore.  As with all of the shore towns we visited, this was similar in that it is a small town within a bay and has a quiet laid-back culture.  We primarily used these stops as rest areas for breaks from driving.  

Continue to Shieldaig, where you'll find a small quiet town with one bar/restaurant to hang out at for the night.  We stopped here for dinner and had our first Haggis (you gotta try it at some point during your stay in Scotland!).  We left briefly to setup our tent at the campsite, which is an honor system plot of land just above the bar (easily accessed with a 5 minute walk).  We went back to the bar to hang out for the night and mingle with the locals and get a better feel for the culture (and accents!).  

Day 7
Total drive time: 3h 15m
Route: Shieldag - Torridon - Inverness - Grantown-on-Spey
Accommodations: Grantown-on-Spey Caravan Park

​Heading north towards Inverness, we took in the scenery along the way.  Some cool harbours and always a joy to drive anywhere through Scotland.  At our destination, Inverness, we parked the car downtown and walked around for lunch.  We found a paved trail that goes up the canal and comes back on the other side, so we took that little stroll to stretch the legs.  Overall, Inverness didn't have much to offer, but was a stopping point as we trekked further north along the western shore towards the site of the Lochness Monster.  We explored the area, and of course, DID NOT see Nessy :).  But the vibe around this old tale is still going strong.  We stopped at a restaurant that had good reviews, The Dores Inn.  Our food was sub-par, perhaps just an off night or we selected the wrong menu item; we'd still give it another try.

To conclude our day, we headed east towards Grantown-on-Spey to setup camp.  This is at the northern edge of Cairngorms National Park, and was a great spot to stay until we went into the park the following day.

Day 8
Total drive time: 3h 45m
Route: Grantown-on-Spey - Balmoral Castle - Braemar - Aberdeen - Stonehaven - Inverbervie
Accommodations: Inverbervie Caravan Park

Next we went through the Caringorms, exploring multiple castles along the way.  The primary spot to visit is Balmoral Castle, vacation home of the Royal Family!  This was honestly the coolest, most well-kept castle grounds we've ever visited.  They have it all, including the family history, so it is great to experience the life of royalty if only for a few hours.

Continue heading southeast towards the coast and you'll see Dunnottar Castle.  This is one of the true island cliff castles.  We arrived as sunset approached, and we must say the views turned out much better than the pictures.

Day 9
Total drive time: 1h 30m
Route: Inverbervie - St. Andrews
Accommodations: 34 Argyle Street Guest House

​We woke the next day with plans to head to St. Andrews.  The original plan was to get there as early as possible so that Derek could get his name on the list to hopefully play the Old Course that day.  The local advice is that you arrive to the course around 5:30am and get your name on the waiting list and hope that there are cancellations.  We didn't have the ambition to get there by 5:30, so we pushed it off a bit and didn't arrive to the course until 10:30am.  We still put Derek's name down as an alternate in the queue, but did not expect to play.  As time passed, it became more of a possibility, and by 1:30pm, it was certain that I would get to play.  With the 2:20pm tee time, I joined a group of three other players and got to play the Old Course at St. Andrews.  What an experience!  Our day ended up being dedicated towards golf, but we went out for drinks afterwards and explored the town of St. Andrews.

We absolutely loved St. Andrews.  It is hard to describe why, but it just felt so welcoming, we'll go back any chance we get.

St. Andrews also has some history, and we visited the remains of a church just on the south-end of town.

Our B&B was, to this day, the highest quality B&B we've ever stayed at.  5-Star amenities.  The hosts are extremely welcoming, they offer great advice and prepared a delicious breakfast the next day.  When we go back to St. Andrews, we intend to stay with them again.

Day 10
Total drive time: 1h 30m
Route: St. Andrews - Edinburgh
Accommodations: Airbnbwww.airbnb.ie/rooms/14057087

We made our way to Edinburgh with the intentions of enjoying a night out in a larger city. We found our Aibnb and took the bus to the city centre. We walked the Royal Mile and went to Edinburgh Castle. This castle is well worth a visit if it is your first time to the city. You can spend a couple of hours here easily. After the castle, we were wiped. We knew it was the last day of our month long road trip, so we grabbed dinner and headed back to our Airbnb. Dinner was at a lovely Thai place that came from Hugh and Barbara (the owners of 34 Argyle Street in St. Andrews). Chaophraya, has a rooftop eatery and great food!

Day 11
Total drive time: 1h 15m
Route: Edinburgh - Glasgow

Our flight home was out of Glasgow, so we made the short drive from Edinburgh. Before heading to the airport we stopped at The Necropolis and Glasgow Cathedral. The history here is really remarkable and just look at that cathedral!

We had cut short our road trip thru Northern Ireland and [Northern] Ireland by a day due to the weather on the Wild Atlantic Way. So since we had the day off of work and the rental car still, we took a trip through the Wicklow Mountains.

Our destination was the Glendalough Monastic Site, but it is always more fun to take the back roads then to drive straight to your destination. We opted for the military road that passes through Sally Gap. This will also give you a glimpse of Lough Tay.

When we arrived at Glendalough, there was a small fee to park the car. This early Christian monastic settlement was founded by St. Kevin in the 6th century. Most of the remains are from the 11th and 12th century. Take some time to wander the trails. We took the walk to upper lake and grabbed a coffee and a hot chocolate for the walk back.

We headed out to Bray Head after Glendalough. We took in the coast and decided to have dinner at Mt. Everest of Kathmandu. The food was absolutely delicious!  After dinner we headed back to Dublin.

It has been two month since we moved to Dublin from Minnesota, we have spent that time apartment hunting and settling in (aka getting acquainted with the pubs). We thought with the long weekend over Easter, this would be the perfect time to have our first adventure. Where else would we start than a road trip with car camping to Northern Ireland to go hunt down all of the Game of Thrones filming locations. Bubba came along for the ride as well. Here is the line up:
        Day 1: Dublin to Larne
        Day 2: Larne to Bushmills
        Day 3: Bushmills to Creeslough
        Day 4: Creeslough to Dublin via Sligo

Day 1
Total drive time: 4h
Route: Dublin - Larne
Accommodations: Curran Caravan Park

Narrow Water Keep -

Inch Abbey - Game of Thrones - Inch Abbey is a large, ruined monastic site founded by by John de Courcy. The buildings are mainly of the late 12th century and the 13th century. In season 1,  amongst the ruins of Inch Abbey, Robb Stark's army sets up camp near Riverrun. The Houses of the North and the Riverlands swear his allegiance to Robb, "The King of the North", marking the beginning of the War of the Five Kings.

Winterfell - Game of Thrones - Castle Ward is an 18th-century National Trust property located near the village of Strangford. The historic farmyard at Castle Ward, referred to as Old Castle Ward, was used for the filming of the Winterfell scenes in Season 1. The cost to enter the grounds is £9.50 per person. If you are expecting to actually see Winterfell, you will be disappointed as most of it is CGI. We enjoyed our time more at Inch Abbey, but we had to go, it's Winterfell!

The Gobbins - we were really excited to do this walk, but when we arrived we found out it was closed for renovations :(. It is reopening April 28th - so we will have to go back!

We continued to Larne and found Curran Caravan Park. It was £10 to stay the night with our tent. We walked to the the restaurant Carriages in town for dinner.

Day 2
Total drive time: 2h 30m
Route: Larne - Bushmills
Accommodations: Causeway Coast Wigwam

Cushendun Caves - Game of Thrones - These caves were super fun to explore. In season 2, Stannis Baratheon orders Davos Seaworth to smuggle the red priestess Melisandre into a cave below Renly Baratheon's camp. To Davos' horror, Melisandre gives birth to a dark shadow, which creeps into the camp and kills Renly.

Kinbane Castle -  Kinbane Castle sits on a long, narrow limestone headland projecting into the sea. The castle was built in 1547 by Colla MacDonnell. We found this castle randomly on our drive and I am so glad we didn't miss it. It is a pretty steep walk down to it, but we had lots of fun exploring it.

Carrick-a-rede Bride - is a famous rope bridge near Ballintoy in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The bridge links the mainland to the tiny island of Carrickarede. We decided to skip actually walking on the bridge, it costs money and is packed with tourists. We opted to view it from a lookout point above.

Ballintoy Harbour - Game of Thrones - Ballintoy Harbour is at the end of the road leading down to the sea from the fishing village with the same name. The Harbour is used for many scenes throughout the show, but mostly for the Iron Islands (seasons 2, 4, and 6).

The Dark Hedges - Game of Thrones - Just a road lined with beech trees planted in the 18th century by the Stuart family that is now known as The Dark Hedges. In season 2, it is used as the Kingsroad.

Portrush - We were looking for a good place to eat and decided on Kiwi's Brew Bar in Portrush. The food was absolutely fantastic. Best wings we have had since we moved here.

Dunluce Castle - We chose to see this castle from a view point above. There was a lot of traffic in the area. We would have loved to have visited it. It was built in the 13th century.

Giant's Causeway - This is not a Game of Thrones filming location, but it should be. The Giant's Causeway is an area of about 40,000 interlocking basalt columns, the result of an ancient volcanic fissure eruption.

We found camp at Causeway Coast Wigwam. I'm not sure that they normally take tents, but the woman working was very nice and welcoming - £10 for us to stay with the tent.

​Day 3
Total drive time: 3h 30m
Route: Bushmills - Creeslough
Accommodations: Wild Atlantic Camp

Mussendun Temple and Downhill Beach - Game of Thrones - In season 1, the beach is used as a scene below Dragonstone castle where Stannis Baratheon swears allegiance to the Lord of Light and burns the effigies of the Seven Gods.

Binevenagh - Binevenagh is a mountain in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. We drove one of the scenic routes through the mountain.

Murder Hole Beach - Murder Hole Beach is one of County Donegal's hidden secrets. The spooky name is rumoured to originate from the 1800s, when a young woman fell from one of the cliffs surrounding the beach however other reports say that the name is derived from how dangerous the currents are; and how perilous it is to swim there. This beach is definitely not on the map, you have to know what you are looking for, but once you make the trek thru the private farm land, you are greeted with the most spectacular view. Pictured below is super secret muder hole beach. Not pictured: the bull, the rain, and the 40 mph winds. We are happy to point you in the right direction, just ask!

Horn Head - An awesome walk that gives you great views of the cliffs. The only problem for us was the wind! It was insane. We quickly ran from the car park to the first tower to take shelter. We thought we were going to get blown away - otherwise we would have pictures to share. Still highly recommend it!

After two days of camping in the cold and wind. We decided to upgrade to a wooden pod at the Wild Atlantic Camp. It was warm and comfortable and the facilities were great. We lucked out, they had a last minute cancellation. It was a bit more than we wanted to pay, €50, but it was worth it. We went into town and ate at Rose's. The food and service were great.

Day 4
Total drive time: 6h 40m
Route: Creeslough - Dublin

We set off for Slieve League, but took the long way thru Glenveagh National Park. The views were amazing. I love the long drives on the tiny roads through the mountains. Go get lost on the backroads!

Slieve League - So there are two different view points here - Pilgrim Pass and Bunglass Point. I am laying this out here because on trip advisor and other sources I was confused. We originally drove to Pilgrim Pass. Again, the weather was not great. We saw a car continue beyond the car park on the tiny road so we decided to follow. Mistake. We turned around promptly when we realised this. This road is not for driving on. Leave your car at the car park. This would have been an awesome hike had the weather been better. We decided to skip Pilgrim Pass and head for Bunglass Point. There is a car park at the cattle gate, but open that bad boy up and keep driving. There is another car park at the top. The views were amazing even with the fog. We hiked up for a good 20 minutes before turning back down. We will be back here to hike Pilgrim's Pass!!

Mullaghmore Head - This was a nice little drive. Plenty to see. You can also view Cassiebawn Castle from afar. You should be able to see Benbulbin from here as well. But as you can see from the pictures - it was quite foggy.

Benbulbin - a large rock formation in County Sligo. It was entirely too foggy to see any of it. We even drove to the base and around. Will have to come back to see this neat neature feature. We attempted to see Benbulbin, but it was just too foggy out. Headed home.
​
The plan was to spend the night around Sligo, but we decided just to head back to Dublin to get into our warm bed. We still had the next day off and the rental car, so we took a day trip from Dublin to Glendalough - you can read about it here.

Overall, a great Game of Thrones and County Donegal trip. Still so much more to see for both. Will head back up North soon!

This is just a portion of our overall road trip across Denmark, Norway, and Scotland, so we are going to break it down by country. Here is the lineup for Norway:
        Day 1: Stavanger (arrived by ferry from Hirtshals, Denmark)
        Day 2: Stavanger
        Day 3: Bergen
        Day 4: Geiranger
        Day 5: Geiranger
        Day 6: Geiranger
        Day 7: Flåm
        Day 8: Trolltunga
        Day 9: Travel to Liverpool for the British Open

What we packed:
        Checked bag - Camping/hiking gear
        Checked bag - Clothes/toiletries
​        Carry-on bag - Camera backpack
        Carry-on bag - Hiking backpack

Day 1
Total drive time: 0h
Route: Stavanger
Accommodations: Airbnb

Our road trip doesn't actually begin until we get to Bergen, Norway. Prior to arriving in Bergen, we spent 2 days in Stavanger - mainly to hike Preikestolen.

We took the overnight ferry from Hirtshals, Denmark to Stavanger, Norway, and arrived in Stavanger at 6:30am.  The ferry port is west of Stavanger in a town called Tanager, so you will need transportation to the city.  A taxi is quite expensive - 400 NK. You can make arrangements with Fjordline for affordable bus transportation to the city, which is the best option. We dropped our bags off at our Airbnb and familiarized ourselves with our surroundings. Our Airbnb was centrally located and walking distance to many restaurants, the mall, other shops, and the ferry port. Everything can be found in this area.  Around 10:00am, it is time to start heading to Preikestolen (Pulpit Rock).  Before our ferry for the Preikestolen hike, we went to a delicious bakery, Kanelsnurren. We crossed the street to the grocery store to grab snacks for the hike, and then walked a block to the port. No need to buy Preikestolen tickets in advance, you can purchase the ferry and bus ride tickets at the port. The ferry was about a 35 minute ride and the bus about a 25 minute ride.  And now you're at the base camp of Preikestolen!  Note - they've got a pretty well organized operation here.  Restrooms, snack bars, a restaurant, organized bus pickup/drop-off, etc.  

The hike itself is absolutely breathtaking. Plan for about 2 hours to Preikestolen, at least an hour at the top to rest and enjoy the surroundings, and two hours for the way back. This hike is of moderate difficulty with some steep "stairs" combined with long flat areas.  The first of these three images shows a shallow pond with some tents in the background.  If you're feeling up for some wild camping, that pond is a great spot.

We arrived back in Stavanger by 6:00pm. We ate dinner at Mogul India Restaurant - the food was absolutely delicious! After dinner, we headed back to our Airbnb to shower and sleep. This is where we stayed - Airbnb - the location was super central, you could walk to everything and anything you needed, but the conditions were extremely unsanitary. We should have read the reviews more closely :(. 

Day 2
Total drive time: 0h
Route: Stavanger
Accommodations: Airbnb

We had planned to hike to Kjeragbolten, but after the ferry and hike to Preikestolen we were just too exhausted and decided to spend the day exploring Stavanger. We hit up Kanelsnurren again for breakfast. Then we walked towards Gamle Stavanger (Old Stavanger). This is a preserved historic part of the city on the west side of Vågen, the inner harbor area of Stavanger.  The houses are 19th and 20th century and all of the houses are white - you can't miss it. We went to Døgnvill Burger for lunch and then to Øst to get our hands on some craft beer - we also never leave home without our travel cribbage board!

After Øst, we stopped the grocery store to pick up something for dinner (and a few beers). After dinner, we went to Øvre Holmegate, which is also known as "the colorful street." We went into Bøker og Børst and decided to split a flight of craft beers. There was an awesome patio in the back where we met some locals and played Cards Against Humanity.

Day 3
Total ferry time: 5h 30m
Route: Stavanger - Bergen
Accommodations: Airbnb

We woke up early to catch the Fjordline bus from the train station in Stavanger to go back to the Fjordline port at which we arrived. We took the same ferry to Bergen (7:00am-12:30pm). After arriving in Bergen, we walked to our Airbnb to drop off our bags. We then headed into the city and went straight for the Torget Fish Market to eat a late lunch. We had some awesome fish and chips and also the prettiest cup of fruit.

After the fish market, we wandered over to Bryggen - a series of Hanseatic commercial buildings lining the eastern side of the Vågen harbor. This is the old wharf of Bergen.  It has a unique collection of shops behind the face of these buildings, which reminded us of a village from Lord of the Rings or something.  Bryggen is on the UNESCO list for World Cultural Heritage Sites.

Just behind Bryggen is St. Mary's Church - which is a beautiful church from the 12th century.

We then wandered the streets to get to the Fløibanen, which is a funicular that connects the city center with the mountain of Fløyen,  At the top, you get a great view of the city. There are snacks and souvenirs, along with a walking trail.

We grabbed a frozen pizza on our way back to our Airbnb. We ate and rested. The Airbnb was nice and central - we would definitely stay again!

Day 4
Total drive time: 5h
Route: Bergen - Geiranger
Accommodations: Geirangerfjorden Feriesenter - Cabins & Camping

In the morning, we walked to pick up our rental car, and what a start to the day because we lucked out with a free UPGRADE to an automatic black AUDI wagon!. The drive to Geiranger was the most beautiful thing we have ever done. We lost track of how many times we stopped to pull over and take pictures. Every turn was more breathtaking than the last. The drive was filled with tunnels, mountains, fjords, waterfalls. You will not be disappointed by this drive!

When we arrived into Geiranger, we found the perfect spot to pitch a tent - at the Geirangerfjorden Feriesenter - Cabins & Camping. We took a quick drive into town for dinner at ​Restaurant Olebuda. After dinner, we went back to our campsite to hang and enjoy the views.

Day 5
Total drive time: 0h
Route: Geiranger
Accommodations: Geirangerfjorden Feriesenter - Cabins & Camping

For breakfast, we hit the Geiranger Bakeri - it is on the main street into town, you can't miss it. We planned to kayak today, but it was too cold and rainy. So we waited for the sky to clear up a bit and went on a short hike, Vesteråsfjellet.  We drove to the Westerås Restaurant, and the hike begins just beyond that. The hike was quick, about 25 min, but there was an awesome overlook of the fjord. We were basically walking in the clouds, which was really cool.  There always seems to be a random animal somewhere.

After our hike, we went to the grocery store to grab a few snacks and drinks. Alcohol is expensive in Norway and hard to find outside of a restaurant. Aside from Stavanger, we don't recall seeing any actual bars again. We played card games in the tent while enjoying the rain and watching the cruise ships pass through. We went back into town for dinner at Friaren Bistro. The food was so-so in Geiranger. We really wanted to eat at Brasserie Posten, but reservations are required.

Day 6
Total drive time: 6h
Route: Geiranger - Flåm
Accommodations: Flåm Camping

In the morning, we made PBJs for breakfast (we always tried to keep a loaf of bread and peanut butter with us!). We then rented a kayak for three hours, the rental was right near our campsite. We kayaked to the base of Skageflå, which is a historic mountain farm. It took us about 45 min to reach the base by kayak.  We had a small map with us, so we had an idea of where the base would be. We then got out of the water and pulled our kayak out. We then had to hike straight up the side of a cliff for 30 minutes (250 meters). The hike was very challenging and there were many parts were the footing was sketchy. At the top you can see the Seven Sisters Waterfall. There were a few old buildings at the top as well. It was an awesome view. The farm had been there since the middle ages, but has not been used since 1918. We then hiked back down, which was much quicker, and kayaked back.

After kayaking, we decided to drive to Flåm. We found dinner in Øvre Årdal, The long drive was again spectacular, the route we took ended up taking us on Sognetjellet. Route 55 across the Sognefjell mountain area between Luster and Lom is the highest and most impressive mountain pass in Northern Europe (highest point 1434 meters), and it has been awarded the status of National Tourist Route because of the spectacular and wild mountain scenery it passes through in the Jotunheimen National Park. The route also took us through Lærdalstunnelen, which is the world's longest tunnel at 24.51 km - yikes! There was a cute place to grab a pastry and a coffee somewhere along the Sognetjellet. We found camp in Flåm and went to bed.

Day 7
Total drive time: 3h 15m
Route: Flåm - Trolltunga
Accommodations: Trolltunga Parking Lot

Our plan for the day was to do our own version of the Norway in a Nutshell tour, but honestly it was not worth it. After our two long scenic drives, I am afraid nothing will ever compare to it! We went down to the Flåm train station and here is what we booked - 

• Train from Flåm to Myrdal
  
• Train from Myrdal to Voss
  
• Bus from Voss to Gudvangen
  
• Ferry from Gudvangen to Flåm 

The greatest thing about the tour, was the train from Flåm to Myrdal. Here are some pictures from the ferry.

Back in Flåm, there are so many cute shops, we ended up getting a lot of gifts here to take home to friends and family. That night, we drove to the Trolltunga Parking Lot, so that we would be able to get started on our hike early in the morning. We literally set camp in the parking lot in front of our car. Drive to Tyssedal (6 km from Odda) on route 13. Follow signs to Skjeggedal and Trolltunga. After about 7 km you reach the parking lot in Skjeggedal. Parking in Skjeggedal (NOK 300/day).

Day 8
Total drive time: 3h 15m
Route: Trolltunga - Bergen
Accommodations: ​Midttun Motell & Camping

We picked up hiking supplies in Flåm - 6 ham and cheese sandwhiches, nuts, protein bars, fruit. The hike is 27.5 km in total and takes anywhere from 10-12 hours. We started at 7:30am, it took us 4.5 hours to Trolltunga, 1.5 hours for views and pictures, 4 hours back to parking lot. The hike can be broken down like this -

• The first hour is a gravel road up hill - tough
• The second hour is flat than steep with rocky terrain
• The third hour is the easiest, but there is snow
• The last hour is a bit of an incline, but not terrible
• At the top, we had to stand inline for about 45 minutes to get our picture taken - well worth it. 

We advise that you bring a couple pairs of extra socks and clothing for all 4-seasons.  Also it doesn't hurt to bring plenty of food. There are numerous places to fill water up along the way, so don't worry about that. This hike was the hike of a lifetime for us. I would do it again and again. You will not be disappointed.

After our long hike, we drive to a seedy little motel/campsite outside of Bergen. We really just wanted a cheap place to shower and rest our heads for our flight in the morning.

Day 9
Total drive time: 30 min
Route: Bergen - Bergen Airport
Flight: Bergen - London

We woke up early to head to the airport, return our car and prepare for the last leg of our trip! Stay tuned for our next blog post of the British Open and our Scotland road trip!