Strömstad, northern Sweden - Monday, 8 August

Geoff

A really good walk this morning before breakfast. I followed the Bohusleden trail alongside the large fjord which is close to our service area. Part of it was wooded and really nice. Then it got right to the edge of the water before climbing up to a road. I followed the road for a while and then took a turning down a lane which led to a boatyard and car park. After that, it was pedestrians only to a bridge over to an island. I'm sure the island must have a name but none was given on the map. It was small, maybe 400 yards by 300. There was a cafe and some holiday chalets and, at the far end, I came across a wooden bandstand with marvellous across the fjord. Not wanting to double back, I followed a winding path through woodland which eventually brought me out just above the cafe. Then it was road walking back to the camper, about one and a half miles. I got back minutes before the heavens opened with gusting, torrential rain which lasted half an hour.

We drove to Uddevalla this morning, a sizeable town, in search of a gas stove. The first stop was a large out of town shopping area. Bauhaus didn't have one. We went over the road to a camping store but they didn't have what we wanted either. On then into Uddevalla to Lidl. In the car park there an elderly gent came over to admire our camper, saying it was the perfect size. We agreed with him. In fact, we are seeing very few campers the size of ours. They are nearly all bigger, some massively so. We got to talking about our gas problem and he suggested a large store called Biltema, which was at the shopping area where we had started. It was on our way back to the E6 road so it wasn't out of our way. They had a camping section and, whilst they didn't have the particular type of stove we wanted, we ended up buying a rather neat little single burner camping stove with three legs that fold out. It uses butane gas, the cylinders being the well known Camping Gaz blue colour but they were Biltema's own brand (blue is their colour). We bought two of the larger size gas cylinders and so I think we'll be OK now, once our Calor gas runs out, assuming it does, as we've agreed that we won't use gas to operate the fridge from now on, just using the hookup when available and the leisure battery when we are on the move.

I thought at first that the new stove was faulty as the gas wasn't coming through but Amanda was a bit more forceful in tightening the screw fitting on the cylinder than I was and it works fine.

We then headed up the E6. Not long after a lunch stop, I felt a little sleepy so we pulled off on to a rest area. There were loos but no other facilities. After a snooze for half an hour, I wandered off to explore. It appeared that we had stumbled upon a World Heritage area. Here, there was a display of the history of the surrounding countryside where Stone and Bronze Age relics and rock carvings had been found. From the display building, there was a wooden walkway maybe 200 yards long which ended at a platform which afforded panoramic views of the valley and forests ahead, with the odd farm house. We could so easily have missed this. When I returned to the camper, Amanda was chatting up a young Norwegian motor cyclist!

An hour or so later, we arrived at Strömstad, our stop for the night being a section of a park and ride car park with some basic facilities. There are around twenty camper vans here. We may stay a second night. There is a free park and ride bus into town from here and there is quite a bit to see. The town is famous for its seafood.

Amanda

G was out walking for 2 hours before breakfast. I was beginning to think that he had set off along the cross-Sweden long distance footpath which runs alongside the Rastplads and decided not to stop. The Rastplads was very pleasant for overnighting. We had been slightly concerned at the presence of several families camping in cars (two of which had no number plates and were clearly going nowhere) but they were quiet and no trouble. The others moved on this morning.

Today's major experience, an exploration of out of town shopping centres! The quest - a camping stove of some sort. At the first centre, just off the motorway, we managed to resist the temptation to visit IKEA and tried Bauhaus, where we were redirected to a camping shop across the way. Nothing doing there, but the girl told us she thought there was a place that might have one 30 miles in the wrong direction. So we gave up and headed towards Uddevalla for a Lidl. In the car park we were approached by an elderly Swedish man who admired the camper. 'It is perfect' he kept saying, which is exactly what we think, too! We chatted for quite a while. He told some stories of his youth, and how as a young boy he remembered seeing the German soldiers. He told us that we would be able to get a camping stove in a big camping shop called Biltema - back in the shopping centre we had just come from! So back we went, and it was indeed there, virtually next door to the one where the girl had been so 'helpful'. So we now have one small burner and two camping gas cylinders in reserve. Mission accomplished. G is now able to relax! Onwards.

We needn't have hesitated about driving on the E6, the motorway which runs up the west coast and into Norway. It is a stunning road. Not much traffic and wonderful views, although G didn't get the full benefit because he needed all his attention to keep the camper steady in the wind. We stopped at two Rastplads, one for lunch and the other for a snooze and leg stretch, and both were excellent. The second was actually in a World Heritage Site, with an information display about the history of the area. The smart Rastplads were explained. They were all part of improvements to the motorway and done sensitively to make up for the impact on the area. G went off for a few minutes, and was surprised to find me in conversation with a good looking Norwegian chap in leathers who was on his way back home from a holiday in Croatia on his motorbike. Just goes to show that I can occasionally chat to strangers, too!

Tonight we are in a designated Camper place adjacent to a small Park and Ride at Strömstad, quite near the Norwegian border. A free bus runs into the town, and we plan to make use of it tomorrow. The stopover takes 25 Campervans and is about half full. The individual parking places are clearly marked out and very spacious. They know how to look after Husbils (literally house cars) over here. We would love to see something similar at home.