Pictures and Stories About Bicycle Tour Adventures

Above: Wall Painting of Historic Söderköping in the Brunn Hotel's Parlor Area.

Above Left: Statue of a Lock Operator/Operation - We will have a Lock Gate picture later in the day. Basically, a Circular Gear is rotated by use of a long lever/wood shaft (probably oak). The rotating gear is not on a ratchet. Later in the day, we will see blocks of wood used as wedges to hold Lock Gears in place (see close-up of gate controls). Most of the Kanal Locks have Lock Houses for Lock Operators but some do not. In some cases, a boat Captain or Sailor will have to operate the lock.

Above Right: The ever important do it yourself beverage service.

Above Left: We're packed and ready to go.

Above Right: Grade School Yard.

Above: We're on the go, we will be on the Göta Kanal 3/4 of the day, we will get off the Kanal to find our lodging in Linköping.

Above Left: Small to Medium sized Boat Lift. Camping/RV park in the background - We actually saw quite a few campgrounds throughout Sweden

Above Right: Big boat (river tug/push/barge boat).

Above Left: Cattle in a field.

Above Right: Maintenance workers trimming grass around a Lock.

Above Left: A Lock House; as far as I can recall, all Lock Houses were labeled with a Location Sign ('Dufkullen' in this case). As our cycle touring time went by, we learned to use these Location Names for our own Navigation.

Above Right: Another Lock and a nice sized home just beyond the Lock.

Above Left: Terry.

Above Right: A Lock close-up. Most Locks facilitate pedestrian and cyclist walk/cross over. The big wood beams on the Locks are the door levers for opening and closing.

Above Left: Another Lock.

Above Right: Carlsborg Lock House.

Above Left: Bridge crossing the Lock.

Above Right: We followed a hard road for about 300 yards/meters and then reacquired the Kanal Pathway.

Above Left: A Swing - Fun times happen here.

Above Right: Cows grazing near the Kanal.

Above: As soon as the grain dries, it will be harvested.

Above Left: Typical bicycling view along side of the canal.

Above Right: It seems unusual to have a special water supply for animals located next to the canal.

Above Left: Draw Bridge - All structures across the canal must support something like a 20 meter/yard clearance.

Above Right: Hark, a person and her dog.

Above Right: This is an operational lock but both gates are open.

Above: Terry and a 'Giant Hockey Puck' - This lever operates gate closing and opening. Notice the wood wedges (one on each side) that hold this gate in this position. We suspect that this lock may be both and emergency lock and also used for low water conditions.

Above Left: This Gate/Lock Structure controls vertical Gate Positioning. I figure that the control would not be there if it were not occasionally useful. It may be that the device helps manage spill over (or spill under) water volume. Also, it may help clean out erosion debris on the bottom near the gate.

Above Right: Two huge Blue Bells.

Above: A little picnic area above the canal.

Above Left: Apples always look better on the other side of the kanal.

Above Right: A view along the Canal.

Above: We have reached the point following the Göta Kanal where it meets a large lake whose shoreline is all private property. So we must follow this road over the bridge, northward, and cross over westward on public access roads for about 3M/5k. Most of the access roads proceed through a Forest Reserve on dirt roads with steep slopes (i.e. walk the bike up gravel slopes and steep slopes). This will take a couple of hours time.

Above Left: Pushing our bikes.

Above Right: Mail boxes and a 'Children on Road Warning Sign'.

Above Left: Viola, Children on Road.

Above Right: This is a Midsommarstång (Mid Summer's Pole, a Maypole) for celebrating Midsommarafton (Mid Summer's Eve). It is a Summer Fest with lots of dancing, food, song, and cheer. Midsommarafton is a National Holiday celebrated on a Friday (just after the solstice) to give everyone a three day weekend).

Above Left: Overview of the lake.

Above Right: Grandma lives here.

Above Left: Traditional Scandinavian Fence (Gärdegård).

Above Right: Modern rendition of a Traditional Scandinavian Fence.

Above: The Suburban roadway becomes isolated and then remote.

Above Left: The road becomes very remote and we wonder if we are on track.

Above Right: Our worries are abated with positive road signs.

Above Left: Some major pushing on a loose rock slope.

Above Right: Ahh, the Penny Farthing Route, we have arrived 100 years late (it still tells us that we are on the correct back country road).

Above Left: After an hour of not seeing the lake or any water, we find the headwaters of the lake and the Göta Kanal.

Above Right: Locks at the headwater.

Above: Crossover the locks to be on the correct kanal side and we are only 1/4 of the distance needed to travel today.

Above Left: Echelon Right.

Above Right: Cud Time.

Above Left: Kaffe and Choklad time. The sign is for Ice Cream.

Above Right: The Bike Attractor.

Above: Kaffe and Choklad time.

Above Left: On the road again.

Above Right: Bypassing a paved road and bridge area.

FLAT TIRE!

Above: Flat Tire with a few Complications.
1) The cause of the flat was that the tire has been skidded upon (by a previous user) and a large chunk of the rubber carcass was missing.
2) The tube and spare were Dunlop Valves, and NOT Schrader NOR Presta.
3) Dunlop Valve tubes can not be pre-filled and then mounted (which reduces tube fold and tear events) - The tube must be mounted, sans air, first.
4) Dunlop Valve tubes must be placed onto the rim first, into either a full tire mount or a one-half mount (one tire lip mounted inside the rim walls, the other outside), only then can the tube can be partially filled (with the valve stem loosly mounted through the rim hole). This is not a big deal but it is time consuming compared to a Schrader or Presta valve tube mount. I never thought that I would give praise to the Presta Tube.
5) The bike additionally had a rear gear hub with internal gears. The shift cable was bolted down and no nut or driver was issued in the tool kit, deliberately (must keep non mechanical people out, or else more setup problems).
6) The tire was attached to the bike by way of a cable, so I could not easily work on the wheel for it was still attached to the bike; the tube and tire could only be placed on and off the rim from one side (the side NOT attached by a cable). I had to work at frustratingly non-efficient angles that were not pleasing to the back.
7) Any tube repair would not last because the tire was worn away in one spot - It was only a matter of time before the next flat. Riding 10 meters/yards was a risk.
8) The best that I could do was put a temporary patch over the tire hole, ride out of the remote location, and then call for help. We were not exactly sure where we were (within a kilometer). In the worst case scenario we would have to ride or walk back to Norrköping (about 2-3 kilometers behind us). These were not bad options; it was not night, I had good company, it was not raining, we were not hungry, it was a nice day, and I just happened to have a micro roll of Duct Tape that I carry for emergency situations (such as this). Lets hear it for our Eagle Scout - Be Prepared.

Terry was a big help. We made the changes and we rode out to a place where the Göta Kanal crossed a ramp for the E-22 highway. We then called for help; Alex, our Bike Mech, met us with replacement tubes, tires, and a new bike within 1.5 hours. It was our option to decide what we wanted to do. He even offered to drive us part way or all the way to our destination (still 20 miles or 32k away).

We swapped bikes and we decided to finish out the ride. We were to arrive at Linköping at 1800 hrs (it still was a better situation than our all day 100 mile adventure at Hadrian's Wall, years ago).

Above Left: What a Dunlop Tube Valve looks like.

Above Right: The black spot on the inside of the white carcass was the Inner Tube. We lined it with Duct Tape just to get us out of this location. We had no phone reception. We would call for support down the trail, next to a hard road crossing

Dunlop Valve Part Names and Tube Issues:
It's an OK tube; the tube predominates in Northern Europe, a cyclist just need to know the RULES:
- You can NOT pre-fill the tube
- The tube can be, and should be, mounted loosely
- Then partial fill with air
- Then adjust the tire fit
- Then tighten down the stem nut
- And then pressure up

Why is it Important to partial Pre-Fill with Air?

Partially Pre-Filling a tube with Air helps the tube fit inside the tire evenly and reduces or eliminates tube folds or wrinkles which in turn cause spot rubbing/ware on the tube which then causes flat tires. ALSO, Pre-Filling a tube with Air helps to reduce tire tool pinching of the tube (which also causes flat tires). Pre-Filling a tube with Air is one of those Touring Longevity "Things to Know" and "Trick of the Trade".

On the Road Again!

Above Left: On the Road Again.

Above Right: Basically, for the route, we were to find a store like an American 7-11, then go behind it, use the pedestrian walk way, walk across the tracks with our bikes, then follow the frontage road southeast for about 2k. It was easy-peasy. An old Depot Building is located behind the railroad lights.

Above Left: Old Railroad Depot, common to most of Europe; strangely, this little area reminds me of Sicily.

Above Right: We are safely across the tracks and will now generally head Southwest, away from yet another Lake that is surrounded by private property. The nearest arm of Lake Roxen is behind Terry, with some boats. We will not see the Göta Kanal until tomorrow morning. We're still heading for Linköping.

Above Left: Pedaling Southwest.

Above Right: Small passage under E22.

Above Left: Bumps Ahead (in Italy, the bumps are smoother and some people swear that the Italian/Sicilian sign looks like Boobs).

Above Right: Old Petro Station.

Above Left: Terry and Me (and Old Petro Station).

Above Right: Turnoff for Lillkyrka (Little Church).

Above Left: Lillkyrka (Little Church).

Above Right: Girls talking and sharing a bike.

Above Left: Cool rocks bend a road.

Above Right: Break time.

Above Left: 'A Road Runs Through It' (between a barn and a home).

Above Right: Hunter's Tunnel; you can get on your knees and see a kilometer under some of these woodland tunnels. The effect is caused by grazing animals, usually cattle but I've seen deer and elk herds do the same.

Above: Two simple signs but such a pain to navigate: We understood the issue on our map, we had to find a precise route, but the problem was that we had three choices of routes located at one place. Well, we tried each of the three routes and only our last route was the proper choice that led us to the sign on the right. That's right; we were looking for this sign (on the right). The route behind the sign (on the right) is a public access shortcut across private property and it goes though some woods.

Above Left: We went into the mystery woods (absolutely no signage).

Above Right: We emerged from the woods. This is the point when we realized that we were on the final inbound leg to Linköping. That shadows are getting long.

Above: We are in Horse Country (like around the Louisville, Kentucky [Derby] area in the USA) but neither of these huge barns are operating, the grass is tall and there was no sign of horses, cars, or people. We feel badly for the local industry.

Above Left: Heavy Duty Fence.

Above Right: Church.

Above Left: Finally, a sign, 7k to go [to Linköping].

Above Right: We are in the industrial outskirts of Linköping and we get to follow this bike path all the way into the city which just happens to be in its automobile rush hour.

Above: We navigated routes under viaduct bridges, river bridges, pedestrian pathways, parks, signals, and ended here on a major highway bridge over a major river.

Above: View from the same Linköping bridge, above - Opera House.

Above Left: Church on the central Linköping plaza.

Above Right: This is the Linköping commercial market plaza.

Above Left: Linköping commercial market plaza.

Above Right: Statue on the plaza.

Above: Our room for the night; the place has the look and feel of having been a college dormitory at one time.

Above: The floors on the Elevator are Letters; photos would not focus in the elevator.

Above Right: The Swedish word Rum is not hard to figure.

Above: Wood Carving outside of the hotel restaurant.

Above Left: Apéritif.

Above Right: Dinner.

Above: Evening on the Linköping main plaza.

Above Left: Evening on the Linköping main plaza.

Above Right: Statue of Ghostly Horseman on the Linköping plaza.

Above Left: Dragon in the carpet.

Above Right: Spiral staircase.