A look at one of the 3 bedrooms upstairs, and the wooden stairway in the center of the house...
10:36am, on ferry to Rost/Bodo...
Woke up to the 7:30am alarm, after sleeping uninterrupted, soundly, and comfortably in my cozy bed. It was still foggy out. I took a morning shower (enjoying the luxury), and cooked up a big oatmeal/muesli breakfast. I bumped my head several more times on the low ceilings, and was starting to wonder if all the head bumps were worth it to stay in this quaint, cozy, inexpensive cottage. Answer was still "yes", though less enthusiastically. After cleaning up the dishes and the kitchen, we signed the guest book and left our money on the table. As we loaded the car, Karl and Mariann arrived, and we drove to the ferry terminal together shortly after 9am. Karl and Mariann said it had been a damp and chilly night out on the beach, but they had no trouble weathering it out.
The clouds were heavy this morning, and as we drove to the south side of the island, we discovered the fog had overtaken the entire island. We reach ed the ferry terminal and wait in line behind ~12 cars.
A look at one of the 3 bedrooms upstairs, and the wooden stairway in the center of the house...
A very unglamourish, but functional bathroom. The sink and stove were ultra old-fashioned. Certainly a lot of character in this low ceilinged cottage...
A very familiar breakfast of oats and cereal, with some chocolate spread mixed in today. The line for the ferry stretched out far, but we had reservations, and didn't worry about not finding room on board...
The guy parked ahead of us in line was the person camped on the saddle from yesterdays hike. He said it was amazing watching the fog roll in, and he stayed in the clear all night, until this morning. While waiting for the ferry to arrive, I researched tonight's destination using information packets we had picked up along the way. The plan was to stay at a campground before reaching the Svartisen glacier, or instead taking a the small boat to the glaciers base and backpacking there. I made some calls regarding camping info. We deicded to keep our reservation at a Mosjoen hostel tomorrow night, which allowed me to work backwards, and figure out the last available ferries necessary to reach Mosjoen tomorrow. Extra itinery planning is necessary when dealing with ferries.
The Ferry to Rost/Bodo arrives late, ~10am. We load and depart in the 13 degree Celcius morning. It's not too cold and not windy, but the heavy humidity makes semi-cold air potent. No views on the boat today, so Wendy and I hang out in a small, quiet upper deck lounge, about to dooze off. I hear the infrequent click of dishes from the main lounge below. I'm so grateful for the ideal weather all trip, given we avoided fogged in conditions during all of Lofoten. It's fortunate our house stay coincided with the humid cold weather last night. Sure enjoyed its warmth.
I'm on to my 2nd 16GB SD card as of yesterday morning. Lots of pics, and some time to browse them on my camera today. Lots of napping planned as well.
A foggy farewell to Vaeroy, and the Lofoten Islands. Would have been sweet for a scenic ferry to Rost and Bodo, but the foggy weather makes it easy to take a nap without missing any action...
Karl and Mariann weather out the misty conditions on the deck with Darwin. No dogs allowed in the lounges. Wendy and I found a quiet lounge on the upper deck and crashed...
11:08pm, Svartisen Glacier...
A fine view for the last night of camping in Norway, and our last night above the Artic Circle...
It was ~1hr from Vaeroy to Rost, I dozed a bit before rousing in time to see small rocky islands pass by as we neared the main islands of Rost. Unfortunately, the big islands with cliffs of nesting birds were chopped off by the low fog, so my photo ops were minimal, as we reached the flat main island of Rost.
After a short nap, I woke up in time to catch the outer islands of Rost as we approached. Still plenty of fog...
The main habitable island of Rost is "flat as a pancake". The cliffy islands nearby are chock full of nesting birds, a popular tourist attraction...
Some pics of Rost as we near the main town...
Tons of birds on this sea house. A look at the town as we near the ferry terminal...
At Rost, a few cars exited the ferry, and several more entered for the trip back to the mainland of Norway (Bodo)...
A look at some ducks in the water, and a close-up of the bird infested house, as we depart Rost...
A look back at the main island of Rost, as we start the voyage to Bodo...
Karl and Mariann leave Darwin in the car for the 3hr trip to Bodo, so they can hang out in the warm lounge. Karl works on dynamics equations (for school), while I sleep another 1.5hrs. I wake to a patch of blue sky, that quickly gets snuffed out by the clouds. Having rested, I hang out with K & M until we reach Bodo at 3:30pm (1hr earlier than scheduled).
Bodo is the largest city in Norway north of the Artic Circle, and one of the largest in Norway. A couple of looks as we make our way to the ferry terminal...
We landed at 3:30pm, under still-cloudy skies. Houses here weren't all traditional red...
We filled up on gas in Bodo, which was cheaper than on Lofoten, and drove south towards the famous Salstramen maelstrom, which is the strongest maelstrom in the world. A maestrom is a whirlpool in the water, caused by the tides pulling water in and out of a channel. We reached the Salstamen ~45 minuets from Bodo, and stopped to admire the swirling water and fishermen. The bridge crossing the channel was quite scenic too.
The marshy terrain on the drive south from Bodo was a change of pace compared to mountainous Lofoten surroundings...
A stop at the Salstamen maelstrom is a must do when in the Bodo vicinity. There was a short walk from a parking area under the bridge to reach the water...
The maelstrom is a popular area for fishermen, as the swirling waters attract lots of fish. I watched as they cleaned their catch...
More pics from under the Salstramen bridge...
A look up the wide river at another fishing hot-spot, and a house along the river...
It was fascinating to stare and the churning water. Several sections of the river were moving swiftly in opposite directions. The maelstrom is at its peak during high and low tide (happens 4 times a day). Fortunately we arrived near high tide...
The banks along the river were pretty, and I spent some time with the camera before returning to the car...
Found some purple flowers along the path back to the parking area. These purple flowers grow everywhere in Norway. They're basically a weed that is found frequently along the highways...
A look at the Salstramen bridge, as we prepare to cross it...
We crossed the Salstramen bridge at 5:30pm, and worked our way south along the coast. Many tunnels bore through the mountains on this stretch, the longest being 7.4km. Waterfalls draped several of the towering slopes. We reached a campground ~30 minutes before Svartisen, but decided to continue ahead and pursue camping near the glacier.
A look at a bridge under the low hanging clouds. A pic of me from the passenger seat...
Another bridge as we drive south to Svartisen Glacier...
The clouds hung with us, and kept the views a drab grey, but it was still scenic and enjoyable...
A close-up of a waterfall. A look down a fjord, where several streams of water pour down the mountainous arm. Clouds were starting to part...
We arrived at the Svartisen boat harber at 7:20pm, with a narrow window before the 7:45pm ferry to prep our backpacks with dinner/breakfast/lunch and the usual necesities. After rushing our packing, Wendy and I decided last minute to wait for the 9pm boat and have a relaxing dinner at the rest area (after all, there was an infinite amount of daylight left to set up camp). Karl, Mariann, and Darwin took the 7:45pm boat to the Glacier. At dinner, I finally tried some of the canned Liverpasti (sort of like Liverworst?) I bought back in Trondheim, but it wasn't good, and really high in fat. Eating it with brown cheese didn't help it become any more appearling either.
The view from our dinner spot near the boat harbor to Svartisen. Blue sky is back!
I spent some time with the camera, taking pics near our picnic table, while Wendy prepped dinner. This boat is just a white dot in the middle of the pano above. Not sure how you get to that boat, unless it's via another boat...
Another shot of the white flowers. We also happened to catch an avalanche on an upper portion of Svartisen...
We finish dinner, clean up in the restroom, and return down to the boat deck for the 9pm ferry ride (last of the day) to Svartisen. Just one other guy joins us on the 10 minute voyage. I wonder how many people spend the night on the Svartisen side of the fjord.
A look across the calm waters as we prepare to "lift anchor"...
A look back at the dock, and out towards the waters ahead. We'll be rounding the dark peninsula towards the low hanging arm of Svartisen behind it...
A couple of minutes into the voyage we get our first glimpse of the glacier...
A look back and then out towards the glacier. The low evening sun lights up the glacier, but can't reach the water in the fjords...
After arriving at the boat dock, we follow a flat 3km road leading to a closed visitors cafe/center along a large lake in front of the glacier. We find K & M near the building, and learn they have scouted out for good campsites, and found a sign saying 100 NOK for camping here. We're surprised, cause there aren't even any facilities here (until the cafe opens tomorrow morning). There's no one around to collect money, so we set up camp in a large clearing near a view of the glacier.
A look at the Svartisen glacer from the boat dock, and after hiking 3km to the lake...
A close-up of the glacier at 10pm. And a view from our campsite, with the glacier in the background...
A wide view of Svartisen. We will be hiking up the left side tomorrow to become more intimate with it...
A close-up of the roaring stream pouring from the snout of Svartisen...
There are sheep here! We here the clanking of bells in the distance, and the familiar, "baahhhh" from not too far way. The noise grows louder, ane soon we find a parade of sheep circling the perimeter of our camp. That explains all the sheep droppings we had to avoid when choosing a tent spot in this clearing. Darwin takes interest, after all, he is of a sheep herding breed, so perhaps he has some instincts kicking in. After a few minutes the sheep realize we are serious about staying here, and they head off.
Our last night of camping in Norway. The Hubba Hubba HP served us extremely well. A last look out at the pink rays hitting Svartisen at 10:49pm before we head to sleep...
The plan is to do some light hiking around the glacier tomorrow, before heading back to pack up camp, hit the ferry back to the car, and drive down to Mosjoen (2 ferries along the way) for our hostel reservation. We'll need to take the 4pm boat from Svartisen at the very latest to ensure we make it on the last available ferries to Mosjoen.
There's lots of pics of the outside of our tent, but what about inside? Here you go! A wide angle lens sure helps it look extra roomy...
The sun may actually set below the horizon tonight, since it's already 3+ weeks past the solstace, and we're not far above the Artic Circle. What perfect weather for our final night camping in Norway! Clear skies, no wind, and just a bit cool out. We never had to deal with any rain while camping this entire 12 day trip!!! One night left in a hostel tomorrow, then back to Trondheim.