[RD] Hiking through Norway

[warpus]

I don't think that's expected to happen anytime soon. A lot of people who make the hike climb on top of the rock.

From what I read the most likely time for it to fall would be when there's ice around it freezing or thawing (so in the fall or the spring). But it might not fall for thousands of years

 

[warpus]

Day 27 - Kjeragbolten (continued)

Right by the "entrance" to step out onto the rock (just to the right) there's a bit of room where you can get a better look down.

You can walk out onto that ledge on the left and get a great view of the waterfall.

 

[warpus]

Day 27 - Warpus on the Kjeragbolten Rock

At first I wasn't going to do this, due to the high winds and slippery conditions on the trail. So I sat down with a clear view of the rock and ate lunch, watching people get on it one by one.. The winds had died down by then, and I talked to a couple of the people who had done it.. They said that the rock is not really that slippery.. and that it seems safe..

Okay then!.. I made it that far, and after examining the staging area it didn't seem so bad.. I would have to be very very careful, but I was going to try it!

I got up closer and watched a couple people get on, so that I knew exactly what to expect. I wanted to see every single thing they grabbed and every single step they took. The girl due to get on right before me took off her jacket, sweater, and hiking boots, in order to get a better grip on the rock with her feet, and not allow the wind to move her by turning her jacket into a sail.. She ended up crawling on the rock, which I personally think was a bit more dangerous, but it worked for her..

I passed my camera to a person I identified earlier. He had the best camera that I saw, with a large lens. Surely he would be a photography master, able to capture almost any situation and make it look amazing on film!

But.. he did not even.. know how to zoom in..

Getting off the rock was a bit more sketchy than getting on. The rock itself is not a problem, and is actually large enough for you to comfortably stand on. You can't quite tell from this angle, but it is twice as wide in the other direction from what I remember. But in order to get off you sort of have to end up on this very narrow ledge, with nothing really to hold on to. You hug the wall and slowly make your way to the other end, where there is something to hold on to. Getting on the rock is easier, because you're hugging the rock still holding on to something with your right hand. As you let go, you are well balanced and almost on the rock.

This will all become a lot more clear once I post the video.

 

[warpus]

Warpus on the Kjeragbolten Rock video

Here's a short video of me climbing on top of the rock.

It includes waiting in line a bit, in order to build suspense.. and so you can get better pulled into the moment

Warning: Do not pump up the volume just because it's a bit quiet, as the volume increases suddenly when I adjust the camera, which happens a couple times in the video.

 

[warpus]

Day 27 - Kjeragbolten (continued)

It was time to begin the hike back to the parking lot

I made it back with 90 minutes to spare! I used that time to relax at the restaurant you see right at the edge. Average eats but amazing views

Back in Stavanger I took one last stroll around town.

 

[warpus]

Kjeragbolten Video

This video gives you a much better idea of what kind of hike this was than the pictures did. You also get to see all the friends I made along the way, and all of my slips and falls

 

[warpus]

Day 28 - North of the arctic circle

I woke up just after 5am and took an express shuttle to the airport, and via Oslo ended up north of the arctic circle in Bodø. From there the plan was to jump on a Hurtigruten cruise ship heading north to the Lofoten islands.

I got off the plane in Bodø and started walking towards the harbour.

I had a couple hours to spare before my cruise ship arrived, most of which I spent in a coffee shop eating cookies.

Once on board I made my way to the top and tried to claim a good seat.

 

[Silurian]

Is that a cookie monster!

 

[Broken_Erika]

Is that a cookie monster!

If it is, then @Snerk must have really let himself go.....

 

[Snerk]

If it is, then @Snerk must have really let himself go.....

Are you suggesting I live in Bodø?

 

[warpus]

Day 28 - To the Lofoten islands

I stayed on the top deck for a while, as the scenery along the way was stunning and the weather was the best I could have hoped for.

The Hurtigruten cruise ship has many amenities on board, including several trolls.

My first view of the Lofoten islands was the small town of Stamsund

The scenery here really reminded me of Patagonia.

 

[warpus]

Day 28 - Arrival in Svolvær

The weather changed rather quickly and forced me to retreat below deck..

This was something I was expecting, as I had read up on the islands ahead of time.. but I did not expect it to happen so suddenly.

I was able to take one other picture before the rain started. I am not sure what is happening in it though.

I had a (Best Western) hotel room booked in Svolvær and walked there in the rain. Upon checking in and getting settled I decided to go after the rather annoying fly that had been buzzing around..

The fly evaded my initial attempts to destroy it with ease.. It eventually landed on the ceiling, near the light fixture, which gave me an opportunity to strike. I grabbed a towel and swung it at the fly like Indiana Jones. The end of the towel cracked like a whip and all of a sudden.. all the lights in my hotel room went out.

That's a weird coincidence, I thought.. maybe I dislodged the lightbulb in the lamp though? Nope, I couldn't get it to turn on again. Furthermore, none of the outlets in my hotel room worked anymore, and nothing worked in the bathroom either.

I walked downstairs to the lobby and talked to the young girl behind the counter. She was not ready for what I was told her in any way, and had no idea how to deal with the situation. The only thing she could do was to call the owner, who was not answering his phone.

At that point I began to suspect that some sort of a circuit breaker must have kicked in when the force from my Indiana Jones whip did whatever it did.. So it should have been a simple fix, assuming that somebody with enough electrical training was on call.

But this was on an island north of the arctic circle so the girl ended up going home.. and I got stuck trying to call up Best Western to file a complaint, which lead to nowhere either. I talked to some nice lady somewhere in the U.S., who ended up forwarding me to a Best Western somewhere in France.. for some reason.

Frustrated and unable to see, I went to sleep

 

[Valka D'Ur]

I got stuck trying to call up Best Western to file a complaint, which lead to nowhere either. I talked to some nice lady somewhere in the U.S., who ended up forwarding me to a Best Western somewhere in France.. for some reason.

Reminds me of the time a friend and I were rooming together at a science fiction convention (don't recall whether it was in Calgary or Edmonton). About 5 minutes after we got into the room, the light bulb in the lamp burned out, and housekeeping promised to send someone up with a new one... which didn't arrive for several hours.

We had to call a couple more times to assure them that yes, we really did want a working light bulb in the lamp, and the only light we had to see by was either in the bathroom or the area just outside the bathroom. Since I still had sewing to do for my Costume Bacchanal outfit for Saturday night, housekeeping found me sitting on the floor outside the bathroom, sewing pearl beads on my headband and shoes.

As for getting transferred to France... there are times when I call customer service for some problem with my apartment, and end up talking to someone from Quebec (after-hours calls can end up just about anywhere that the company has at least one building).

When I have a customer service issue with my phone/TV/internet, chances are I'll be talking to someone in a call centre in the Philippines.

 

[warpus]

I assume it is a whale.

Yeah, maybe you're right! I wish I could remember something about this or knew more about whales to confirm

 

[Cutlass]

It looks sorta like cavitation bubbles, if the boat had just finished a sharp low speed turn.

 

[Silurian]

Though looking at the size of the ripples something smaller than a whale.

@Cutlass the ship warpus was on is a couple of thousand tonnes so will not turn in its own length.

 

[Cutlass]

Though looking at the size of the ripples something smaller than a whale.

@Cutlass the ship warpus was on is a couple of thousand tonnes so will not turn in its own length.

If it has bow thrusters it can spit out force that could do that. Or steerable props. I've been on car ferries that could make that churn in the water. And they were several times the size of that boat warpus was on.

 

[warpus]

Day 29 - Magic Ice

I really wanted to visit the nearby Trollfjorden, but all the tours for the day were booked solid. I got added to a waiting list, but wasn't hopeful as the weather was not looking great and tours were getting cancelled one after the other..

Instead I decided to visit "The World's first permanent ice gallery and magical adventure" aka Magic Ice.

It's about -6C inside so you have to wear a special Magic Ice branded jacket. There are all sorts of interesting ice sculptures inside

 

[Arakhor]

Impressive photos!

 

[Leifmk]

Though looking at the size of the ripples something smaller than a whale.

Not all whales are equal though. Both orcas and porpoises are commonly seen all along the coast, and can often be in a playful mood near big ships.