I saw a F800GS with a customized Malaysian plate in Tallinn. I wonder if they came all the way in the motorbike, that would be more than 9000 kilometers!. Also, whenever I see an adventurer like this, I would like to know what they carry for the trip and what advices they have for me. In any case, hats off to them!.
The surroundings of Sipoo are the best area for off-road motorcycling that I have found around Helsinki (Update: Ylimmäinen is much better). I have been there before I started this blog and I went again to take note of the good roads. Keep in mind that it’s also an area where locals use the same unpaved roads to ride their horses.
I finally learnt that it’s best to take a main road to leave the city far and fast before looking for good ones, so I took the E18 east, then Eriksnäsinte and Söderkullantie north, and then Gesterbyntie east to find the first unpaved road in Gästerby.
I took Storträskintie, Källängintie and Tarpolantie to reach Boxintie. The two first form the best off-road track that I have found around Helsinki so far. A lonely curly narrow track between trees and some parts paved with stones. It also had muddy parts as it had been raining the previous days, and it was in one of those parts that I felt off my bike.
You can see in the tire marks how I lost control before falling on the grass where the bike is standing. I’m an unexperienced off-road rider, but I blame most of my difficulties over mud to the worn inadecuate tires that my bike has. Something I plan to fix in the next season.
Without more consecuences than a bended fairing, I lifted the bike and continued to the stones parts of Källängintie.
Stones like those make the bike shake and slide, quite tricky and fun. They will also hit the bottom of your bike, better have protectors.
Back on asphalt, I took Boxintie and Brobölentie north to Sipoo. Sipoo is a small town with an old church worth seeing. I crossed Sipoo through Iso Kylätie and Humalistontie, and took Paippistentie north until the former Moottorikahvila.
It seems the Moottorikahvila was a bikers cafe, but unfortunatelly it’s closed. Next to it there is an old gas station where I took this picture.
I left the asphalt taking Snickarbackantie east and Impaksentie north to cross Impaändan.
I missed the north-west turn near Fransas and I countinued north-east. This put me in a forest track that got worse and worse, first with mud and ponds, then tall grass, rocks and deep holes. I realized my mistake but in such situations I have a voice in my head challenging me to go further. I felt two more times and, since I have another voice reminding me that if I get stuck the rescue truck isn’t going to tow me out of there, I decided to turn around. Such maneuver is always difficult in my big heavy motorbike.
But, before leaving, I took a picture of the worst part I reached. The grass hides how irregular the terrain is.
I followed Koivuniityntie north-west and Brusaksentie south-west. I couldn’t find the beginning of Sivenojantie until a local came to me and we overcame the language barrier making gestures.
I took Sivenojantie and Jungfrustenintie north, finding more loose gravel than usual in similar roads.
On asphalt again, I took road 146/Järvenpääntie east and Brusaksentie south to get back to business in Hommanäsintie. It’s worth to make a stop on the bridge over the river.
It’s precisely in Sivenojantie, Jungfrustenintie and Hommanäsintie where I usually find horses, so be careful and avoid scaring them.
My return started taking Paippistentie south, crossing Sipoo again, and Brobölentie south. But instead of continuing straight to the E18, I took Hindsbyntie south and Martiksentie west to Mosabacka. It paid off because most of Martiksentie is a dirt road and part of it a nice forest track crossing Sipoonkorpi National Park. I took my last picture there.
Finally I took Vanha Porvoontie and the E75 motorway south to Helsinki.
So yes, the best off-road area around Helsinki. I try to avoid annoying locals by not repeating the same area in a short period of time, otherwise I would go there again. I think I should explore further north-east, it looks similar in Google Maps.
I spent a fantastic weekend in Vetepere with some friends, and of course I did the trip on the worst tracks I could find. To give you an idea, I’ll first share a picture of the dirty bike after the trip.
Compared to the south of Finland, in Estonia it was easier to find unpaved roads that were also longer and more challenging. There were less houses by such roads, I crossed few other vehicles and even less pedestrians or byciclists. I guess the later has something to do with the fact that it was raining all weekend.
The trip started crossing taking the Eckero Line ferry to cross the sea between Helsinki and Tallinn. I had an entertaining ferry trip talking to a fellow biker that transformed a Honda Gold Wing into a cafe racer. There was also a 1st generation Africa Twin in a state worth of taking a picture and sharing.
My plan was to stay east of road 2 (E263) going south-east and looking for dirt roads. My experience with the main roads of the baltic countries is that they have too much traffic for one lane per direction and overtaking is not for foreigners. I didn’t have a detailed plan and I was using My Tracks to record my trip, but it proved to be unreliable and it missed some parts. Fortunatelly, I remember the main things.
I first went east on roads 1 and 11 to Pildiküla. A totally worthless loop that I should have avoided on road 2. The second attempt went on roads 303, 201, 156, 202 and 310 to Pikavere. Nicer roads between fields and trees but smooth curves and still asphalt.
Finally, the first dirt road was the 124 from Pikavere south to road 12. Wide, in good shape and with smooth curves, it allowed driving at a good rythm. Back on asphalt I took road 12 east to Alavere, and then 137 to Voose. The 137 was slightly narrower and curlier than the 124, and it was the first road I considered worth of a picture.
But the best part was going south from Voose on forrest tracks and dirt roads. The tracks were curly, bumpy, full of puddles and went through beatiful forrests. I don’t know exactly the route I took because there was a network of tracks and My Tracks stopped recording, but I remember I took many turns and dead-ends. A couple of times I couldn’t continue and the conditions were so bad it was difficult to turn my heavy long motorbike around. I worried about getting stuck or dropping it. I was in off-road heaven and I left a lot to explore, I should go back there.
I saw signs indicating routes for byciclists but I only crossed a SUV, probably because it was raining. From Vahesaare lake to the south the track improved and somewhere it becomed road 177. It’s by the lake that I took this nice picture.
At that point I realized I missed my destination, mostly because of Google giving me the wrong location. It was getting late and I had to make a big loop through roads 2 (E263), 156, 5, 141 and 142. Main roads and mostly asphalt, a route not worth of comments.
During the weekend I stayed at a house next to Simisalu watchtower. A nice place that would be great if it had separate showers for men and women.
For my return trip I decided to go straight north, and I actually found long straight roads that took me the coast pretty fast. I first went on roads 142, 131 and 141. Right before Soosalu I went off-road through Mõnuvere to Peedu.
The fun of such straight roads with broad visibility and no traffic is that they allow to drive at a good pace. A little bit more of the 141 north and from Lehtmetsa I went on the same direction on a good dirt road.
I stopped at Mägede liivakarjäär, a small lake with a sand beach that must be great in a hot day.
I continued to Aegviidu and the track became nicer and more challenging.
From Aegviidu, north-west, west and north to Soodla veehoidla reservoir. The tracks were long and straight similar to the ones near Mõnuvere. There are almost no houses by such tracks, they seem to be used only by the wood industry or something related to the forrests.
The reservoir is a beatiful place for a walk. It is where I took the picture of the dirty bike at the begining of this article.
My last off-road stage of the trip continued north through Härmakosu, west of Rehatse MKA until Kuusalu. Soon after I left road 13 I became suspicious of the “grey asphalt” I saw there and previously in other parts of my trip, so I decided to stop and have a close look.
This was my first experience with gravel roads. In general, they offer a good grip and that’s why I confused it with asphalt. But don’t get confident, they also have patches of loose gravel which are impossible to spot. I almost learnt it the hard way.
Next to Rehatse MKA the road was good, straight and really wide. I crossed other vehicles as I was approaching more populated areas of the country.
From Kuusalu I avoided road 1 by taking the 260 west, and then I decided to approach the coast going north-west through the 266 to almost Kaberneeme, and then the 263 and 260 south-west to Jõelähtme. Asphalt all the way, smooth curves, houses, traffic, and I hardly saw the sea. Not sure if the route is worth for road bikers, but not for me. At least I found a nice area to have a house by the beach.
The last stage I recorded took me through Rebala and Ülgase to Kallavere. Same as before, only more solitary. I was running out of time for the ferry so I filled the tank, jet-washed the bike, and headed to Tallinn‘s port. I arrived just in time.
Estonia is a paradise for off-road riders. There are many areas to explore, challenging roads to follow, and beatiful landscapes to enjoy without going too far from Tallinn. It left me wanting to go again, perhaps before this season ends. Few years ago I went to Saaremaa by car and I loved it, it would be worth to go again by bike.
