The little Fiat handled all our luggage and tons of food we packed for the 2 week adventure...
Wish I had a laptop to type this instead of writing with a pencil, but at least it's convenient that at 12:30am, it's as bright as a few minutes after sunset to see the paper. No headlamp needed on this camping trip.
We started off with a 6am wake-up call this morning, though I was again up several times during the night. After a hearty breakfast, showers, and last minute packing, we were on the road for good at 8:30am, retracing the steps of the airport bus's route from Friday night. We paid 45Nkr in tolls ($7), within the 1st 30 minutes from Trondheim on E6, passing through several tunnels. Karl led the way, and served as a good pace car, slowing down appropriately for each speed camera. Wendy choose the 80s song, "Take on Me", by the Norwegian group A-Ha, to be the first song played for our drive (very appropriate).
The little Fiat handled all our luggage and tons of food we packed for the 2 week adventure...
It was ~90 minutes to Steinkjer on E6, where we turned off to rv17. The views early on reminded us of a souped up version of upstate NY, with hilly green farm pastures, and occasional cows. Wendy was in charge of dispensing snacks during the drive, producing bread with sliced brown cheese, and pringles. It was a long drive up rv17, without much exciting terrain, until ~80km before the 1st ferry, where we reached a large fjord with cliffs and a cool bridge.
A look out the window of green farmland and rolling hills, early on in the drive...
Several hours later, well into the rv17 turnoff, the scenary started becoming more impressive, with big lakes and mountains...
A cool looking bridge, leading straight to a tunnel, ~1hr before we reached the first ferry stop...
As we arrived at the ferry stop, we saw the ferry just leaving the dock, giving us a 75 minute wait for the next one. We ate lunch at a nearby picnic table (peanut butter and chocolate spread on bread for me). We plan our hike, and check the timetables for the next ferry ahead. While walking out along the rocky pier, we see the ferry arriving back, and take photos. We're the first 2 cars on the boat.
We knew our attempt to catch the next ferry was in vain, when we saw it departing from the bend before the harbor (look for white boat behind tree). After hanging around for an hour, the boat returned (pictured in the distance behind me)...
A stitched shot of the rocky pier, as the boat arrives on the right...
A couple pics of the arriving boat, using my 70-200mm zoom. Wendy walks back from the end of the pier. The ferry opens its "jaw" to unload/reload cars...
We were the first 2 cars in line (having just missed the last ferry). Once on board, we came out on deck to view the scenery...
A look ahead at our destination landing...
~30 minutes up the road, following the ferry, we reached the trailhead of Traelneshatten, a 1600', 3 mile round-trip hike, that has been listed some years in Norways list of "10 recommended hikes". This fairly quick and accessible hike would be a scenic warm-up hike, and a good opportunity to get out of the car for a bit today. We started the hike ~3:40pm.
rv17 hugs the sea for the majority of its route north. After a 30 minute drive from the ferry, we arrived at Traelneshatten (the round mountain ahead of Karl's car)...
The trail started out flat, through green vegetation, parallel to the road, before turning uphill at a steady inclination. Mariann took a pic of Wendy and me early on in the hike...
Another pic by Mariann shows how Darwin (their dog) was leashed to her, via a belt. Darwin hiked at a quick pace, and helped pull Mariann up the hill, that is, when he went in the correct direction. It was a common sight to see Darwin tugging K or M off direction on an open trail...
A pano of the peak. Easy low class 2 trail, with fine views out to the sea...
The views back towards the ocean were spectacular throughout the hike. More and more tiny islands appeared as we gained elevation...
The wind picked up a bit as we neared the summit, and temp was probably ~60 degrees...
We reached the summit in 75 minutes, and took a rest. Haze was building up, diminishing the quality of the views...
A great pic by Mariann at the summit. Shelter from the wind was hard to find. We ate a small snack before starting the descent...
The descent took us 45 minutes, putting us in great shape for catching the 6:40pm ferry, a half hour's drive ahead...
Just as we're nearly back at the car, there is a loud "bang" from the road, and I think someone's tire may have blown out, but a glance shows 2 smashed cars, one of which is rolling into a ditch. It looks bad, and Karl runs over, but fortunately no one is seriously hurt. Several drivers had stopped and called for help. We're able to continue up rv17, since the accident was ~200 meters south of the trailhead. Soon we hear a helicopter, and eventually a police car and ambulance pass us from the north. They must have needed to take a ferry, since there are no major towns on this stretch of the road. Emergency response times are somewhat limited in these coastal areas. The accident is a serious reminder to me to be paying close attention to the roads/traffic at all times, despite the beautiful scenery.
We make the 6:40pm ferry, and drive another 17km north, where we take our 3rd ferry of the day. This ferry is 50 minutes long (the others were 10-20 minutes), and the low sun lights up the small islands and light houses we pass during the voyage.
This "no look" shot out my window of a church we passed by came out great. Karl, Darwin, Wendy, and Mariann all chill while riding the ferry...
More mountains started rising out of the sea, the further north we traveled. A look at the Norwegian flag, hanging from the mast of the ferry...
Wendy was enjoying all the ferry rides today. A bird rests on a signpost in the sea...
I played with my telephoto lens on the long ferry ride, taking pics of the islands we passed...
The sunlight was pretty at 7pm, and would stay low on the horizen for several more hours...
K and M pull up their hoods to combat the chill breeze. A few light houses were good targets for pictures...
More pics of light houses...
Mariann gets a great pic of Darwin looking over the rail. At 8:55pm, it was time to depart our last ferry of the day, and look for camping...
We decide to stay at Sandnessjoen Camping (170Nkr for 2 person tent), since it's advertised as being on the water, and having good views of the Seven Sister Mountain range. We find a tent spot well isolated from the rest of camp, along the sea. Temps are cool, and there is a gentle breeze. Wendy and I investigate the kitchen facilities, and Wendy cooks up a salmon, asparagus, and grape tomato dish, along with some couscous and toast. An extemely tasty meal! Following dinner, we use the nice hot showers, before heading back to camp. I hurry back to catch the last of the setting sun. A man is fishing at midnight on some nearby rocks below.
Wendy starts to set up the tent at a scenic spot on the campgrounds. We then went to the kitchen, where Wendy cooked up some salmon, tomatoes, asparagus, and couscous (very delicious!)...
Wendy has some brown cheese on bread with dinner...
After dinner and a shower, I rushed back to our campsite in time to catch the sun sliding behind a mountain...
These two pics, taken at 11:35pm, show the near midnight sun. We were still south of the artic circle by ~50 miles...
There's still pink alpenglow on the Seven Sisters mountains at 12:30am, and the sky is bright out to the horizen. This light is very convenient for late-night activity. Hopeful for good sleep, given the noise of waves crashing ashore, and the gulls. No wake-up call for tomorrow.
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