XK Club Norway Tour - By Robin Green

The tour assembled at Harwich.  Unfortunately the direct ferries between Newcastle and Norway stopped in September last year and the most direct route was now from Harwich, via Esbjerg in Denmark.  Much to everyone's relief the first overnight ferry crossing was very calm.  From the ferry we drove north through a rather flat Danish landscape, past an unbelievable number of wind turbines, to our first hotel in an old baroque-style manor house in Nibe, where an excellent introductory dinner was served.

En route, John's car had expired in a cloud of steam.  The filter which John had fitted to stop the radiator getting blocked had itself become clogged up.  Joan wisely announced, "John is always telling me to check the filter on the washing machine".

After a short drive, we reached Hirtshals for the ferry crossing to Kristiansand in Norway, where we were met by Terje and Marianna in their E-type who had brought another dynamo for Reagan's car.  Unfortunately that one didn't fit either, so he had to rely on overnight recharging of his battery and the spare bought in Denmark to keep his car running.  The view from the ferry over Norway was of a very black sky which did not bode well.  Luckily there was only drizzle for a short while as we left Kristiansand.  Terje and Marianna joined us for the drive up to the Dalen Hotel, which was a beautiful wooden building with turrets and carved dragon's heads overlooking the head of the Telemark canel.  The interior was ornate with a large painted glass ceiling over the central wood-panelled hall, where we were serenaded by a piano player  before and after dinner.  We were joined by Fred , a veteran of five Monte Carlo classic rallies in his XK 140 FHC which he has owned for more than 30 years, and by Thor and with his E-type.

A few miles from the hotel was our first sight of a Norwegian Stave church built in the 13th Century with traditional wooden construction using pine.  Those of us who were there early enough managed to look inside at the elaborate wooden carvings and wall paintings.  The sky was blue for the wonderful drive over the mountains to Bergen.  A detour along the old road, which was used before one of the tunnels was built, took us up to about 3000ft with a snow at the sides of the road and a spectacular icy blue lake.  Our hotel in Bergen was ideally situated in the very centre on the quayside of the World Heritage Site that is called the Bryggen.  After a very long drive we were delighted that, unusually for a hotel, free batter and a hot plate were provided in the restaurant for customers to make their own pancakes, to which could be added jam and cream.  Hungrily we all dived on them to ensure that we had one before Philip 'Pancake' Porter could arrive and eat the last one.

With considerable effort and much kindness from the Norwegian XK & E-type contingent, another dynamo arrived in Bergen for Reagan's car, courtesy of Lasse Nordang.  Within no time Ron had it fitted and Reagan was on his way again.

A day off in Bergen came as a welcome break from driving and provided a chance to explore the historic wooden buildings of the Bryggen, next to the hotel.  A funicular railway ran to the top of one of Bergen's hills and gave a beautiful view over the city, its islands and the sea.  The fish market, museums and Troldhaugen, Edvard Grieg's home, gave plenty to keep us interested.  There was also an extensive range of shops to keep the ladies amused, although prices were rather high with the current rates of exchange.

From Bergen we were joined by Lasse and Sylvi in their XK 150 roadster for the next two days.  The road took us up over more snow-covered mountains and past still-frozen lakes.  The descent gave a wonderful view over the village of Vik, birthplace of the Vikings, basking in the sunlight at the bottom of the valley.  After a short ferry crossing we arrived at the hotel Kviknes in Balestrand, a lovely timber building unusually constructed in the Swiss style.

On the drive up to Alesund in a steep valley we met a large herd of goats walking down one side of the road.  I stopped, as I thought our XK and the goats might make a good photo.  Surprisingly all the goats surrounded the car to have a good look at it.  The chief billy goat was obviously annoyed that all the females were paying more attention to the XK than to him so he started head butting the front wing.  If anybody needs a panel beater I now know where to find a cheap one.

Passing through Stryn, we also met up with Egil and Kari, who drove with us back to their home town of Alesund, in their E-type, as their XK is currently being restored.  The coastal city of Alesund is on a narrow peninsula and we stayed in a beautiful converted warehouse overlooking the inner harbour.  Two nights there allowed time for exploring the handsome Art Nouveau buildings and, for the fitter, climbing the 418 steps up to the top of Aksla hill for a dramatic view over the city, turquoise sea and surrounding islands.

We celebrated the longest day on 21st June with a private boat trip from Alesund down Hjorundforden for a barbeque supper at a restaurant in a tiny settlement, accessible only by boat.  A sign on the quay which read 'Gods Buss' did cause a certain amount of concern.  The place was eccentric, with delicious food, and gave the more daring of us the chance to play on a swing which went right out over the fjord.  We arrived back in Alesund in broad daylight, because at this time of the year the sun only sets after 11.30pm and rises before 2.00am resulting in 24 hour daylight, which is a rather strange experience for the body clock....

Photos by Barry Lewis, Robin Webb and Stephen Crew

Stephen has just driven the 303 miles from the Lake District back to Hambledon – and he still has a smile on his face. In fact, we both have smiles on our faces, because we have just driven back in the most glorious sunshine, with the roof down most of the way, from the most exhilarating three-day South Lakes Tour with Mike Griffiths. Quite how Mike keeps pulling these fantastic routes out of his hat, I don’t know, but we knew we were off to a solid start when we read the inside front cover of our route book. Mike said, “I can safely say I do not recall a road I have not driven at some time or other – this is my patch”! This is exactly why it works so well. He seems to instinctively know what we like to do, where we like to go, where we like to stay and – dare I say it – he even knows our favourite food excesses!

This trip started with the sun shining and it finished with it shining too. There were some testing roads to be driven and some important shopping opportunities to be assessed. Monday kicked off with everyone as keen as mustard to get going. New members joining in the fun were Robin Webb and Sue Mabbott in his brilliant red 150 FHC and Albert Bessudo with Eliane Mathieu in his cool and minty green 140 roadster (with whitewall tyres).

The autumnal tints tried to tell us that the summer had passed. So many of the trees were losing their leaves and the dry stone walls were glistening in the morning mists. Our first coffee stop on the Monday was well deserved, having negotiated the climb to the top of Kirkstone Pass. The most sensational views accompanied us all the way but with one particular highlight at the top: a jet

fighter, in training, roared by so close that you felt that you could touch its wing tip. It sped into the distance on its side and appeared to drift expertly round a distant hill. There it was one second, then gone like a flash the next: it must have a five-speed conversion. Lunch, sitting on the terrace in the sunshine at Leeming House Hotel, could not really have been more spectacular, overlooking Ullswater. Eric Knowles from the Antiques Road Show made Carole Davenport’s day by saying hello! Our finale was a visit to the Lakeland Motor Museum, where the Campbell Bluebird exhibition was on display. It is likely that the K7 hydroplane restoration will be completed by the end of next year and put on show at the Ruskin Museum on Coniston. It was getting even warmer by Tuesday and Trevor Fearn had already told me at breakfast that he had left his vest off! Slight ‘over-share’ you may say; but those who know Trevor are always gladdened to have these little insights to keep  us going. So, I promise that it was not me who put him in the stocks at Muncaster Castle!

Muncaster has been the family home of the Pennington family for over 800 years. Many of us met Patrick Gordon-Duff-Pennington, who still keeps a watchful eye on his beautiful house. He welcomes visitors with tireless enthusiasm and was very happy to give Barry Lewis permission to climb the battlements to take photographs of our 20 cars lined up below. This was followed by lunch and an owl  display: the World Owl Trust is based here. I love owls, so I was particularly thrilled to have my photograph taken holding a barn owl. For me I am guessing that this might rate alongside driving an XK. So, when I say that being formally introduced like this to anything wild (outside the XK Club that is) definitely comes on my “must do before the zimmer” list, you will know how pleased I actually was. We left the Castle to drive over Birker Fell and past Coniston Water: a rather poignant reminder of the Bluebird story the day before. Events and tours often leave the best till last. But that is not Mike’s way: he makes sure that every day is the best of the trip. So the last day was the best, just like the other two – and it isn’t just the shopping in Kirkby Lonsdale that I am referring to...golly, that is such a

pretty little town.

But Wednesday provided us with yet more spectacular views and testing opportunities for our cars. Really steep hills, hairpins, narrow roads with passing places and plenty of sheep (and cattle) to watch out for. As far as I know, there was not one car that had a moment of real concern. Twenty was the perfect number and, do you know, there were very few occasions when any of us was navigating these roads together.

In short, the balance was perfect: The Swan Hotel was excellent – with plenty of opportunities to sleep The route book was faultless – with happy drivers and happy navigators (no arguments, so no opportunities for WIBL*)

The food was simply delicious (note to self – eat lettuce all next month) The driving was stupendous – the thrill of hearing an XK effortlessly powering through the gears never fails

to excite

The shopping was brilliant – and I normally hate shopping Finally time for chatting and

catching up – what more perfect way to relax than with old friends in the autumn sunshine.

Patrick and Jean Robson had been among the very first to go on one of Mike’s tours, so it was fitting that Patrick should give the ‘thank you’ speech on behalf of us all at supper on the last evening. He spoke of a job well done, of the minute attention to detail and of all the help and support that Sylvia had contributed too. It is the fact that they never rest until the last person has left the car park that makes each trip such a success. Bring on the next one, Mike. *WIBL (pronounced wibble) = Words In Bed Later