Ode to Summer '12

"In the depths of winter I finally learned there was in me 

an invincible summer"

- Albert Camus

Sun! sun! midnightsun!  Robbing you of sleep at night and giving you energy by day!

Dinner caught in the lakes with rod and reel, with no skis, cold extremities or ice-hole needed

Yes! Insects.... (lots of them ;))

Too warm to sleep in the tent really, but with the midge-mesh system you can sleep bathed
in midnight sunlight and to the gentle drumming of mosquitos trying to eat you.. 

A sea and sky blue and clear viewed from green hills!

Birdsong along the grassy lanes

Taking time to smell the flowers

...even the very smallest!

Yes, this is a Finnmark beach. A quiet and - surprisingly? - warm place on a summer's day

And the air is so warm you are tempted to swim up even up here at ca. 600m on the vidda... ;)

...and yes, you take a warm morning bath here :)))
(when there are  simply too many jellyfish in the sea to swim there comfortably...)

Oooh. So sleeeepppyy in the sun... 

Mmmmmmm......zZzzzzz

Festival time: Midnight sun music... 

Yep. More sun past midnight ;)

Exhausting but energising hikes in the early hours of a midnight sun morning...

You know 'tis summer when even the sheep (bathed in rainbow light!) are watching the sunset

Gamme haven

Me and Dovre spent one night in this gamme which is a traditional turf sami dwelling. You find these gamme in sparsely populated woodland areas, a bit like a rare species.  And when you finally locate them and Arrive they can be in varying states of condition and decay so you can't always guarantee a dry roof over your head...  This gamme was in tip-top condition.  It has actually been built as part of a tourist attraction, yet I think it has been constructed pretty faithfully after the sami tradition.  It was in A1 condition and a perfect place to stay as it was absolutely POURING with rain outside and the tent with a wet dog is no joke!  It was very rain-proof.  I was impressed!

These gamme are meant to be always 'open' and in theory can be used by anyone.  Of course, anyone using a gamme has to be prepared to collect their own wood to burn and be responsible (avoiding littering and leaving food waste that might attract rodents..).  Even though this gamme was actually in a Nature Reserve area and there were nearby staffed offices and a visitor centre, the staff were happy for me to use the gamme :)  So, myself and Mr D. had a really cosy night there - reindeer skins a plenty to be piled on soft mattresses of birch twigs also made it a very comfortable experience! Yes, Sir! Slept like a pig in mud...

 Advertising Plug for Stabbursnes Nature Reserve:

• you can see a fantastically-built Sami gamme (and maybe stay the night, if you ask nicely)
• the area is absolutely great for birdwatching (esp. for lesser white-fronted geese :)))
• ...but mind the mosquitos in summer.... (ouch!)

Stabbursnes Nature Reserve
(ooh.  See here!  I have worked out how to make a 'live link'... I am obviously a not-very-learned-blogger! Oh yes! (Oh dear! ...sigh.... ;))

Nature in the north

Well, summer is over - again! how did THAT happen, I ask? - and I am now again in Tromsø-town.  In fact, since I am such a LOUSY blogger, the autumn has ALSO passed and the snow has come :) ... the nights are drawing in... On November 21st we lose the sun for two whole months.

Here are some images from my summer in Kokelv, in the north.

Here is a link to where Kokelv actually IS: (cut and paste)

http://kart.gulesider.no/query?what=map&mop=aq&geo_area=kokelv&partnerid=google&_s_ref=21SbNWP6S&kw=%5Bkokelv%5D&creative=9413226364&s_kwcid=TC%7C21491%7Ckokelv%7C%7CS%7Ce%7C9413226364&gclid=CJCqnuL3w7MCFWZ2cAodlV8Agw

And a wee video 'Minute for Minute to Kokelv'.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lq4AYVZxJ6Q

(see from about minute 3 to miss the big discussion in Norwegian as you drive over from Smorfjord in the first long stretch through the birch forest)

This is a take off from when the National TV channel here showed in 2011 minute-by-minute footage of a Hurtigruten (coastal cruise liner) boat travelling along the coastline of Norway.... It was literally, minute-by-minute filming (with dodgy musical accompaniment)..   The boat stops at several ports (some small, some larger) as it travels northwards the 6 days from Bergen to Kirkenes....  The crowds greeted the boat and its passengers at every port and the crowds seemed to just grow more personal (and the messages on the banners). It was pretty avidly followed, as everyone wanted to catch their rellies on the TV, som far-flung place northwards.  Classic TV, and classic marketing for the cruise liners!! (I think the sales were boosted incredibly by this)

http://nrk.no/hurtigruten/?lang=en (cut and paste to view this)

(a small place, persecuted by the wind constantly but beautiful shifts of weather! - constantly...)

And here is what you might expect, in terms of nature and wonder up there...

Enjoy

Summer, Kokelv, Finnmark

I have moved up in the world - literally.  Meaning, I have employment for the summer, and its location is two days driving north of Tromsø, in a wee village called Kokelv.  It is a modest summer guide job.   But I am happy with it.

Yes, I am proud to have this job - perched on the edge of Norway's Northwestern tip, with a rich, living history to learn about and to - try! - and share with others who visit.  Home to the Coastal Sami people of the northern reaches of Norway, Finland and Sweden, I get to guide curious tourists round a classic 1950's farmhouse which has been preserved in an almost original state. Full of historical objects some of which relate to the Sami culture, and some of which, well, you might find them back home in Blighty (great old classics like churns and hand-wound milk separators).  The startling and grotesque history of Northern Norway under German occupation is also a very important story to be told. I am reading madly to become up to date on facts, but the most prominent war-time moment (after, of course, occupation itself) is when the Nazis departed.  Local people were forced to evacuate their homes, and then the Germans left, as abruptly as they came.  They caused terrible damage on their exit from Northern Norway, as they burnt and destroyed all and everything as they went, (to leave nothing for Russia or allied forces). This forced mass emigration of the local population.  Although some few people escaped (or tried to) to the hills, the vast majority moved southwards, as refugees in their own land, and with nothing left to come back to...

Hence the 1950's farmhouse: there's literally no earlier examples of pre-war houses left.

So, there's a decidedly dramatic war history that shapes the place, and the society today.  And I guess I was curious to learn more about this, and how the Sami people adapted on their return north.

Not least Kokelv is a truly beautiful location, with wide open uplands, (the trees in N Norway get considerably smaller and fewer up here ;)), broad empty valleys, post-glacial raised beaches and craggy plateaus... Yes, I have itchy feet just describing this!

So, here is where Dovre and I find ourselves, for summer.

..oh! and the weather is decidely 'mixed',  shall we say.   The Gulf Stream Hits Northern Norway's Tip.... need I say more! Sunshine, showers and the odd mosquito when the wind finally calms.... ;))

And here's a video link to wet your appetites:
(click and paste this URL link)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D8-lM7MtxZc&feature=youtu.be

Location of film: 'The cairn', Weather: 'windy and fair', Time: 'about 1am, midnightsuntime' :)

_____________________

Norwegian-isms: Enjoying Codfish...

Aye aye, cod heads galore a-drying in their thousands, and the stink of the rotten ones below was overwhelming.  (Even Dovre wasn't keen to investigate - it was a very rich aroma!)  

Easter Sunshine 2012

(..oops. bit of a late blog-entry, but surely late is better than never? ...apologies ;0)...)

So, it was EASTER time again, in Norway. In Northern Norway this means a trip to the mountains, to relax, to ice-fish, to drink schnapps late at night, and generally to enjoy the sheer joy of this sunshine-laden heavenly snowquality time of the year! I Love Easter should be the North Norwegian motto, as people seem visibly relaxed after the hard winter. The sun is back, it's not going to disappear for MONTHS to come now, and the worst is behind you. (mind you, I do love magical winter trips in the dark-time also - but I think you have to enjoy this part of a Northern winter to be able to manage here).

So, it was with a full pulk and an eager husky that Per and I set off for the Swedish border this year. I was out 6 days, and Per for 10.  (I have this little issue of a Norwegian Exam looming: not nice, but needs some attention, hence the foreshortened tour for moi) :( 

Mind you, one can't complain at all, when the temperature drops to -20C at night and is pure sunshine in the daytimes! We were lucky, out in the hills, as back in Tromsø it snowed the whole week - we were definitely in the Right Place. 

So, I was able to enjoy some days camping with Per and the dog, before Dovre and I peeled off, circled back through the woods and returned to the car... I drove out of the hills, and I caught up with friends back in Målselv for a few days before departing back to the city...  In Målselv it was lovely to be 'home' there, as having lived their 2 years I just love the place now I have left! (funny, but natural how that happens...). Whilst I was there, I entered an Ice Fishing Competition on Andsvatn, the lake where I used to rent my cabin (didn't get a single bite...), drank excess coffee and caught up with friends and had a lovely daytrip up the local hills :) All in all: a good Easter.

So, here you are: a sample of Easter 2012, for you all. I wish many of you could have seen and experienced it with me. It is such a simple pleasure to ice-fish and it is pure delight to pulk on skis in a thin layer of snow on a hard surface beneath.  Ah! 

I am lucky to be here, in Norway, and active and able to do all I am doing. I don't know who I should thank for this, as I am not the religious type - but I do count my blessings on such trips away. 

"I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived." 

Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) 

 (at the Swedish border - a sign reveals a warning of missile/rocket testing range area. 

Yes! We had been camping there. ...small wonder it was so quiet and we had the place to ourselves ;))

 One happy, tired puppy!

 Ice-fishing competition, Andsvatn, Målselv. 

People are SERIOUS - little or no small-talk between the competitors.

 Just row upon row of intent 'fishers'!  

It is 2 hours of intense concentration: not sure I can stand the suspense of more competitions like that. Think I would rather kick back and fish in my own time! ;)