Norway

Lofoten 2019 - Norway

Norway, above the arctic circle

31/08/2019 - 06/09/2019 45 °F
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My first sailing journey.

I headed from Oslo to Svolvaer in northern Norway, above the arctic circle. This is in the Lofoten region consisting of a pensinula and lots of islands sticking into the north Atlantic. It has a long history of islands, sailing, fishing, incredible natural environment, and fjords. Myself and a small group spent a week on board a sailing catamaran.

We checked out several fjords; which of course are long, narrow, deep inlets of the sea between high cliffs typically formed by submergence of a glaciated valley. The first and most impressive was Trollfjord. The last and equally beautiful was Ulvagfjord. The entire landscape of the region is unique with the dramatic rising of steep cliff walls onto rocky and jagged peaks. All of this is wrapped in a vibrant green coating of trees and moss and shrubs. On the few areas that are a bit flat are the coastal towns, the occasional sheep farm, or even a few beach sites. But since the locals thrive on the fishing industry, you'll see lots of harbors, ships, fish drying racks, and water based businesses.

One of the nights, we spent glamping in teepees. Even woke up at 2 in the morning to catch glimpses of the northern lights. There we also got treated to an amazing meal from a local chef - cod and mackerel caught that day, some herbed potato mash, and the worlds best cake for dessert (it's actually named that; search it and be amazed).

Another couple of days were filled at the town of Henningsvaer. It's an artsy and hipster town, that got a bit of viral Instagram fame for it's soccer pitch on a rocky island. There's also several art shops, local craft and clothing stores, and a brick oven and sauna pub to spend time at. There's even about 25 posters around town that provide information on the history; most in Norwegian but they also have a code to scan to get translations.

Near the very end of the chain of islands is the town of Reine. It has a few places to check out in town, but the real draw is the hiking and views around the town. Despite some strong winds and rain, we trekked up to the top of Reinebringen to be amazed at the sight of islands, seascapes, towns, and mountains. The entire drive on Lofoton is covered by the E10 highway. If you take it, you can find some hidden lakes, fields, additional hiking, and some surf spots.

Recommend:

glamping on Skrova island
Reinebringen hike and views
Henningsvaer sights
Trollfjord and Ulvagfjord
fresh caught fish

Trip Map

Relive Video

A hike around the fjord

Pictures

see more on Facebook Murk Travels albums
or for this Lofoten trip: Norway album
some of my favorites:

The dramatic landscape from the water - sailing to Trollfjord

The dramatic landscape from the land - hiking around Trollfjord

Ulvagfjord

rainbow during a sail and a hot tub with a view once we got to a destination camp on an island

Our glamping site with multiple beach options

The famous Henningsvaer soccer pitch and a sunset with some pizza

A lonely but picturesque church in the countryside and some local beach graffiti art

The stair hike up Reinebringen

The view of Reine and surrounding towns and islands from near the top of Reinebringen

Links

MurkTravels Vimeo - videos of my trips & entertainment
MurkTravels Youtube - videos of my trips & entertainment
MurkTravels Facebook page - pictures, posts, and regular updates
MurkTravels Facebook photo albums
MurkTravels Instagram - my attempt at artistic travel images
MurkTravels Travel Map - all the places that I've been and the things that I've seen

Posted by MurkTravels 14:53 Archived in Norway Tagged waterfalls lakes boats travel sailing camping europe boating norway challenge 2019 Comments (0)

Oslo 2019 - Norway

Norwegian capital

28/08/2019 - 31/08/2019 80 °F
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What a fun little city.

Well, it' not exactly a small city, because the greater urban area does have over a million people in it. However it does have a welcoming neighborhood feel. The main downtown area is very walkable. You could get from the Opera house on one side of it to the Royal Palace on the other side in 25 minutes. A little quicker with their multiple public transit options (subway, street cars, buses ... and technically boats, but that wouldn't help in this situation).

There's a pedestrian shopping and entertainment street. There's a few parks, random art, the hidden gem pubs and the typical chain restaurants. You have great views of the harbor (especially from the mentioned Opera house) and can still get into the natural environment quickly away from shore. There's a few cool neighborhood areas just outside downtown (also walkable), which include Bygdøy, Frogner, and Tøyen to name a few.

I spent part of my first arrival day checking out areas around my hotel. That included the harbor, Opera house, Royal Palace, and the new luxury neighborhood of Aker Brygge. It has sculpture gardens, bars, restaurants, art stores, a walking tour path, a beach and swimming area, among other public spaces.

The second day was a big museum and park day. I got the Oslo 24 hour pass and it was completely worth it. It covered all the city transportation, and I took them all. It also included entry into most of the tourist sites around town. I started with a ferry ride to the Bygdøy peninsula. It includes museums galore: Fram, Kon-tiki, Maritime, Norwegian Cultural History, Viking ship, Holocaust and Pharmacy museums. I saw the first 5 of that list and they were all entertaining. The Viking ship was the smallest and had the least to do, however it was so packed. I think most big tour buses and paid packages include that. If you go, it's fine to skip that one because you learn and see so much more at the rest of them.

Probably the most impressive of those that I saw in the morning was the Cultural history. It has indoor displays about the local nature, clothing, art, and history. But the amazing part is the outdoor sections covering over a 1000 years of the past. There are a ton of old buildings from towns and villages around the country. Some of them are the originals that have been moved, and others are replicas that have been rebuilt using only the tools that would have been available at that time. A countryside area includes a working farm with livestock, gardens, mills, textile machinery, and other tools from 17th and 18th century living conditions.

In the afternoon of my big tour Olso pass day, I continued with some more local displays. First up was the Oslo city museum with all the information you could want about how the city came to be. There was also the Vigeland museum, about a local sculpture who carved average everyday people in the buff, and a display of all his works in the nearby Frogner park. Also visited the Munch museum for the local artist, most famous for the Scream painting. Next up was the Natural History and Zoological museums. Right next door was the botanical gardens, so I walked through them back towards the city center. I closed out the day with a visit to the Nobel Peace museum.

There's definitely more to do that what I covered as well. You could check out the Astrup museum and center, Akershus fortress and castle grounds, Ekeburg neighborhood and it's sculpture park, the ski jump and winter Olympics training grounds, the National theater, day trips to islands in the harbor, or eat and drink all day from the best chefs in the country at the Mathallen.

Recommend:

Fram museum
Norwegian Cultural History living museum
Frogner park and Vigeland sculptures (free)
Nobel Peace museum
Botanical gardens (free)
Aker Brygge food and drink
Opera building with harbor and city views from the top
Mathallen