After my little stunt at the monument (read yesterday's report), I drank my victory coffee, had my victory breadrolls and rode off on my victory bike. Within a few hundred meters though, I was brought back with my feet firmly upon this earth. The entire Nordkapp was shrouded in mist. Moreover, the high road was wet as a whistle and extremely slippery. The back wheel of the bike started started sliding left and right, as I tried to make my way down. At one point, on a steep descent, the bike nearly fell over. Thank God the traction control self-corrected. Needless to say, I proceeded further down with extreme caution and was very happy to leave Nordkapp behind me.

A little more about the motorcycle I'm riding. It's a somewhat older BMW R1200 GS. Of course it's one of BMW's most popular models, but that's not why I bought it. I prefer the aircooled version from before 2013; less weight and less hassle, but still with a decent ABS and ESA system. I fitted it with Anakee Adventure tires and some extra protection for the engine, fumbled around with the gear ratio and put some extra lights on (quite essential in these parts). Took a FuelFriend with me for some extra petrol. I kept the standard Vario cases, they are more sturdy than given credit for. Up till now, I'm pretty happy with it all.

OK, enough with the bike commercial. How was I faring after Nordkapp? Pretty well actually. The weather soon improved. The road to Oldenfjord and Lakselv follows the coastline and gradually the sun came out over the Porfangerfjord, to stunning effect. I saw a whale playing in the sunshine, jumping over the waves again and again. The whale was black and quite big, about 10 metres. Could have been a blue whale, or a 'potvis', as we call them in Dutch. Wonderful sight.
I didn't get to film the whale, but I made a short video of the bay, take a look here: https://youtu.be/nMXOem-6jJY

After a few coffee and petrol breaks I left the peninsula behind me and rode into the Finnmarksvidda, 'the Finnmark emptiness'. Well, it's empty of people, but certainly not of trees! Millions of them as far as the eye can see. The Ruska, the Lapponian autumn, is in full swing now. So the birch forests shine with red, yellow and brown's. It's as beautiful as the arctic sea's different kinds of blue.

Close to Karasjok, I decided to take the bike off the road one last time to take a picture of the tree-sea. But as I took a turn, I hit a spot of soft sand. No chance to steer clear off it anymore. The bike slipped and fell over, and I was launched into the green. Luckily I escaped without any harm, thanks to my protective suit and helmet. The bike seemed ok as well. But how to get it up again? It weighs about 320 kg's. I stopped some passing cars, and the people were very helpful. But the bike was in an awkward position, so it took 4 people, me included, to get it up again. I thanked them from the bottom of my heart. In the end, the bike started without any problem and I was able to ride off as if nothing happened.

When I got to my cabin in Karasjok, I was glad to have a rest and finish the day. But the day had one last surprise in store for me. When I came out of the kitchen with my freshly cooked meal, I was greeted by waves of green in the sky. Northern lights! I yelled out like a four-year old in the toy shop. I enjoyed the spectacle for as long as possible.

The Sami in Karasjok seemed to do as well. Karasjok is the Sami capital and most of the people here are of Sami descent. When the northern lights started to show, they started huge bonfires in the town centre and I could hear the drums beating. It looked and sounded great, but I was too exhausted from this long day to join them. It was magical though, and when the northern lights returned later that evening, I couldn't resist to have one last look.