North of Skaland the outer coast of Senja gets wilder still. The road works its way along the shore between steep, bare peaks, cutting through tunnels where the mountains drop straight into the sea and emerging into small, sheltered bays where a handful of houses, a boat shed and a fish rack make up a village. Steinfjorden and Ersfjorden lie along this coast, each with its own narrow inlet and its own wall of mountains, and further north the road reaches Tungeneset, where a jagged ridge of peaks known as the Devil's Teeth rises from the sea.
The landscape here is the result of ancient rock and recent ice. The mountains of Senja are among the oldest in Norway, made of hard gneiss and granite, and the glaciers of the last ice age carved them into sharp peaks and deep fjords. The sea has since rounded the shoreline into coves and beaches, and on the beaches the sand is pale and the water clear. In summer the sea can look almost tropical, although it remains cold enough to make your breath catch.
People here have always lived from the sea, fishing for cod and other species, and the villages still have the feel of working places rather than tourist resorts. Life was hard, and during the Second World War this coast, like the rest of northern Norway, was occupied and suffered heavy losses. Today tourism has added to the old way of life, but the villages remain small and quiet.
Riding here is about patience and attention. The road is narrow and twisting, with blind bends, single-lane tunnels, steep pitches and a surface that varies from good to poor. Traffic is light, but camper vans can make passing difficult, and the tunnels can be dark and wet. The wind can be very strong on the exposed sections, and the weather changes fast. On a clear evening in summer, the light on the peaks and the sea is unforgettable.
There are small shops in some villages, but no towns of any size until you reach Finnsnes on the mainland side. Make sure your tank is full before you start the outer coast, and take a break at Ersfjord, where there is a fine beach and a rest area.