My 2019 Trip to Norway
8 Days solo
After completing my most ambitious and, in many ways, most satisfying trip to Namibia earlier in 2019, I suppose it is no surprise that my trip to Norway felt less satisfying.
Although this was another solo trip, it felt less so, because I spent a lot of time texting with various friends. That can be nice, of course, but it meant that I felt much less present on this trip than I had on my other solo trips. Add this to the fact that, being distracted by said friends in preparing for the trip, I failed to plan very well, and I was poorly prepared for the cold, rainy weather.
I took far fewer pictures and wrote far less in my journal. The trip itself does not stick out in my memory. It would be my last true solo trip for several years.
My route
Day 1 - Saturday, August 24, 2019
On plane Copenhagen-Oslo 07.53
On my flight to Oslo.
Dry Chute
Down by the mill
Downfall
Just by the side of the road
Mefjordvær 19.31
I’m finally at my hotel, at the restaurant, eating garlic bread, drinking a gin & tonic.
Rushing Sunset
20.48
Yikes, I’m stuffed!
I ate garlic bread, a whale steak with veggies and cream potatoes, plus a brownie with cherry compote, and I drank a gin & tonic. Blah! It was all very good though.
I went for a walk and took some pictures, but it’s cold, so I retreated quickly to my hotel room (which is tiny). I don’t think I’ve packed well for this trip!
I did not bring gloves, but should have. I threw in a fleece and rain jacket, but I don’t think that is so appropriate. I didn’t bring my full size hiking boots, just my hiking shoes. I did bring slippers at least.
Breakfast is first at 8am (to 10am). Sunrise at 4 something am. We’ll see how long I sleep. Perhaps I’ll take the short hike before breakfast.
Day 2 - Sunday, August 25, 2019
Mefjordvær 06.38
I woke with a headache quite early, then allowed myself to fall asleep again several times. Woke for real at 5:30, but lay in bed until after 6am. Now I’m back in bed after a visit to the toilet and my am workout. It’s mostly cloudy, so I am not feeling upset that I missed early morning photo ops.
Not really feeling super motivated to take pictures. We will see.
There are several potential hikes for today. I’n not sure which I will take or if I will take multiple. We will see.
My shoulders have lots of small pain points. That’s been going on, off and on, since London. Perhaps I had pulled a muscle. That’s possible. I also have a sensitive spot on the roof of my mouth, back from the center and on the right. Perhaps an opportunistic virus infection.
I need to think about how to repack my stuff. I did not pack smart for this trip. Complete lack of focus because I’m so distracted.
Feeling I need a nap already.
08.24
And I did. I slept until 8am. Got up, got dressed, and came down for breakfast before a shower. I’m feeling a lot of aches and a bit of a headache. Will take a headache pill when I get upstairs to me room.
I’m not sure what I’ll do today. There are three different hikes to consider. I’m not really in any rush, though.
09.24
Ouch. I’ve taken a shower and gotten dressed again. It’s raining and expected to continue all day. I have a headache and body aches. I may get out, but I’m moving very slowly.
11.51
I did not sleep much, but it was comfortable to lay there. Now I’m down to get lunch in the restaurant. After lunch I will try to organize my stuff and go for a hike up to the little lookout close to the town.
Happy in the rain
Hidden Pond
Walking in the rain
18.17
Well, I had lunch and then had some energy, so I went out for a hike. It wasn’t raining much, at first, and I had put on both my rain pants, fleece, and rain coat. I got to the trail head after walking about 800 meters. There was a little cabin, so I got into some shelter (because the rain had started, but I was getting hot) and took off the fleece and put it in my backpack.
Then I hiked to the top of the hill and took a few pictures with my iPhone. But I had only hiked less then 2km, and I wanted 4.8 to get the hiking award, so I hiked back down and past the cabin towards the bigger mountains. I knew I wouldn’t go very far, but I took some short hiking videos and pictures, also with my big camera.
Finally I headed back to the hotel and got the award just before getting back. I took a shower and slept some more.
18.50
I managed to watch the news. I’ll go eat in a moment.
Day 3 - Monday, August 26, 2019
Mefjordvær 07.55
Raining hard this morning. I have a long drive ahead of me. The ferry is not showing up on Google maps this morning, so it seems that I will need to take the 7 hour drive. Oh well. That’s OK with me. I’ll just need to do my best to take breaks as often as possible.
It will be interesting to see if I’m only going to have rainy weather on this trip. If so, I’ll live. I’ve never been 100% certain about going on the long hikes I knew about. The last long hike is the one that scared me most.
The restaurant is not open yet, so I’m sitting on the stairs. I should only have to wait about 5 minutes, so I don’t consider it worth it to go back to my room.
Yellow Hitchhikers from Russia
Andenes 19.06
I’m so sleepy!
I had dinner fairly early (a burger with fries, followed by a chocolate fondant with a decaf coffee). I just watched the news on the TV in my airbnb (which had DR 1). I’m sitting in my cozy chair and feeling sleepy.
Today I picked up a pair of hitchhikers. The were wearing bright yellow jumpsuits. A young guy and girl. They looked harmless, so I decided to give them a ride.
22.10
My watch died today. Yesterday it was acting strangely. It reported 10% battery life in the middle of the day, then would not charge until I moved it to a very stable location. Today it was 100% charged, but completely unresponsive at the start of my drive. Annoying! The last one died when I was on vacation in Ireland, although that time because the face fell off.
I’ll wait and buy a new one in Copenhagen, I suppose, or perhaps wait even longer and buy one in the US.
Day 4 - Tuesday, August 27, 2019
Light on the house
Twisted by the wind
Andenes 18.41
I made it out to hike today and hiked for a few hours. I turned around when it started raining and was getting cold. Still, I was back to the car at 12:45, exactly 2 hours after I started.
20.50
Damn. I just decided to check what was up with my Danish citizenship application. I was right that the folketingsvalg delayed everything. The bill that they submitted in April was not handled before the election, so they need to start over again with the new parliament. So now they are expecting a new bill in October, then 2-3 months to handle that, so I don’t expect that this will make it in 2019. So, 2020 will hopefully be my year.
Day 5 - Wednesday, August 28, 2019
A place of quiet and solitude
Tucked Away
Sun over Nyksund
You can tell I'm on vacation when...
...I order both coffee and dessert with dinner.
Nyksund's busy harbor
A bench with a view of the beginning
Day 6 - Thursday, August 29, 2019
Nyksund 08.23
I have my nicest apartment here in Nyksund. It’s a very cute little harbor town, a good 15 minute ride down a dirt road. There are a handful of mobile homes parked outside and only two or three restaurants to choose from. The weather when I got here was sunny and warm. Very pleasant. Today the web is promising rain. I will go for a hike even so.
08.34
Actually, I just checked again and it may rain a little, but not enough to register any longer.
Don't look down
My Cliff Hanger, well, Cliff Sitter moment
Getting in the way of the landscape
14.36
Ouch! OK, not too bad. I am just a little tired and, now that I’m back from my hike, my knee hurts a little. I’m in the restaurant to get some lunch. I’ll try the fish and chips, a small version.
20.12
I’m getting a little hungry now, but I had a big lunch fairly late. I’d rather not have a big meal again, and I need to go out to eat, since I only have 2 bananas left and my Cliff bars. Perhaps that will be enough. On the other hand, I have also slept for much of the day. I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep very early today.
I listened to a Malcolm Gladwell Podcast today, which was a chapter out of his newest audio book. He points out that, by default, we trust people, even when we have suspicions. The suspicions have to be beyond a normal amount before we really stop believing that people are OK.
Day 7 - Friday, August 30, 2019
Everyone is so friendly in Norway! This guy wanted to give me a big hug!
Trømsø 19.12
Done with my long drive today. It was no problem at all. The only difficult part was getting to my hotel parking, due to construction. All good though. I’m in a restaurant now, waiting for my meal. May take a while. It’s packed.
20.55
Back to my hotel room. I had a brief conversation with a woman sitting in the table next to me at the restaurant. I left when her food arrived. I could sense from her expression that she felt a little hurt or insulted, but I tried to be gracious.
Day 8 - Saturday, August 31, 2019
Cookie Monster
Trømsø Airport 06.38
I’m at the airport quite early, as I prefer to be. I went through security then discovered I had forgotten to drop of the rental car key, so I needed to go out again and back through. The airport here is so tiny that this was not a problem.
Now I’m in the SAS Lounge and it was pretty empty when I got here, now packed.