Emirati bikers reach Arctic circle

Dubai: A group of five UAE nationals said they recently became the first Emiratis to reach the Arctic Circle on motorbike.

Group leader Abdul Wahid Al Sayed told Gulf News over the phone from Sweden, on their return trip, that they traversed around 4,800km from Hamburg, Germany to Nordkapp, Norway, which falls within the Arctic Circle.

The adventure took them through remote, scenic regions and bone-chilling weather, even during summer.

The five men — two from Sharjah and three from Umm Al Quwain — are motorcycle enthusiasts and friends who are no stranger to long rides, Al Sayed said.

“As far as we know — and we have been researching this for years — no Emiratis have reached the Arctic Circle on motorbike. [On June 2] we became the first UAE nationals to do this. We did it as an adventure with friends,” he added.

Around two weeks ago, the men had flown from Abu Dhabi to Hamburg, shipping their Honda Goldwing touring bikes to Germany. They then rode through Germany and Denmark, from where they took a ferry to Norway.

Nordkapp, translated as North Cape, is the northernmost point accessible by road in Norway, and falls within the Arctic Circle.

“It was beautiful but it wasn’t easy. We would ride between huge walls of snow. If we were in the wilderness, we would sleep under the sky in our sleeping bags or tents. If a guesthouse was close, we would check in. We would usually ride 850km every day, taking a break every two hours.”

Abdullah Al Hamer, one of the bikers, sent pictures of their trip during a short stop in Sweden on the way back on Sunday. The other three riders are Jaber Al Hamer, Omar Al Mansouri and Hasan Al Maazmi.

The bikers are riding back to Germany, this time going through Sweden and Finland as well, before flying back from Germany to Abu Dhabi early on Wednesday. It means their total riding distance during the adventure would be around 8,000km, taking around two weeks.