I am a bad boy as I didn't get to write this last night. By the time I had arrived, found the hostel, showered, eaten and bought lunch for tomorrow it was time for bed. However I am getting ahead of myself.
Up at 0500 and a quick check on the weather wasn't encouraging. Heavy clouds that looked full of rain drifted heavily in the sky and it looked ominous. Crept around the kitchen as quiet as I could so I wouldn't wake up anybody. I think it was successful because as I ate my muesli there was a chorus of snoring coming from the bedrooms.
On the road by 0600 with my first destination of the day being Örebro. Arrived there at 0800 soaked to the skin and cold so headed for a coffee shop to warm up. Maybe I was looking in the wrong places but I couldn't find any and had to settle for a good old fashioned konditori which served a wicked bulla :) While I was warming up and dripping onto the floor I took the time to check my route.
I have a big confession. I spent 700SEK on some excellent cycling maps of my route but instead elected to navigate using Google maps. I mean how inaccurate could they be? Good job I checked the proposed route as it had me going onto the E20 which is something I most definitely cannot do. 30 minutes pouring over the maps didn't really shed much light on just how I was to get to Mariestad, in fact it looked like the E20 had basically been built over the original road and despite the abundance of secondary roads leaving and joining the E20 I simply couldn't find any that didn't require detours of 20 to 30KM. Memories of going north and the cursed E4 came to mind so in the end I elected the lesser of tow evils which meant a wide detour via Gullspång.
The ride there was ok though the weather still wasn't great. The road was good though and little or no traffic so I was happy enough. Some the villages were pretty.
Arriving in Gullspång my computer decided to stop. Not a huge problem but it is nice to know how far you have come and how slow you are going so you judge arrival times. Route 26 wasn't so pleasant and at times I was forced to hug the shoulder. Luckily I had packed my visibility vest so I felt safe enough. Didn't have to stay on the road too long because soon various holiday properties, caravan parks and seaside villages appeared which meant there was a network of connecting roads I could use.
Passed through Sjötorp which is the official start of the Götakanal and eventually arrived in Mariestad at about 1630. An epic 190KM ride which on top of yesterday makes this my highest total todate for 2 days.
Mariestad has a charming old town and a good Indian restaurant. It also has a charming old Vandrahem right on the harbor which is where I crashed for the night
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