Skoganvarre—Tromsø – the last stage of our car trip Jun 29 2026

This article is part of the series “2026-06: Obbola—Finland—Tromsø”.

Part four of the journey from Obbola to Tromsø

It is Saturday morning. My wife Annika and I are having breakfast in the kitchen of the campsite Skoganvarre Villmark. It is raining and people passing outside are wearing pyjamas and carrying umbrellas or wearing raincoats and crocs. Campsite fashion. Skuvvanvárri (Northern Sámi) or Skoganvarre (Norwegian) is located in Norway, but most of the guests here are Finnish, and it seems to me that more or less all of them are here for fishing.

The grey weather follows us to Lakselv where we meet the sea again in the form of the southern end of the huge Porsangerfjorden, the fourth longest fjord in Norway. We passed the road leading north before, but it was the first time that I saw the fortification high in the mountain walls left of the road. It is part of Banak fort, started by the Germans in WWII and continued by the Norwegians and used until 1987.

On the other side of the road the scenery is completely different. Stabbursnes nature reserve is a large protected area dominated by wetlands.

Annika started geocaching a while ago. Sometimes I join her in the search for I found a place to park the car, sometimes I focus more on looking for photo subjects, ideally I do both. At one of the geocache locations behind a gravelly area I first find this lonely birch and then surprisingly beautiful coastal cliffs, although it looked a bit dull in the grey weather.

I hardly take any photos of one of my favourite landscapes on this stage of the journey – the plateau of Sennalandet. I only stop for the Aisaroaivi kapell after the sky has cleared up a bit.

Some more photos from this day:

At 7 o’clock in the evening we arrive at our last overnight stay of this road trip near Sørstraumen. This time we used Airbnb and found a real gem, owned by Gunn, who is a fantastic host. Gunn rents out rooms in her private home and not only invites her guests to her kitchen for a chat but also provides huge amounts of waffles with jam. I can highly recommend her when you like meeting interesting people. We met two Germans who wanted to go north for fishing and a motorcyclist, who is driving all coastal roads of mainland Norway to collect money for ME-fondet, part of Norges Myalgisk Encefalopati forening. We are talking about 50,000 km – what a trip! This is his Facebook page: Around the Coast 2026.

A last photo of this day.

The next day at Gunn’s place began a bit like the evening before: a lively chat and waffles. One thing was different, though. Gunn already told us about whales she saw and showed some videos. While eating another waffle I looked at the fjord and saw movements on the surface. It was a school of white-beaked dolphins passing by the house. We observed them for a while, swimming, jumping, blowing and hunting. They were far away, so even with the big telephoto lens I only got images like this one:

Later than usual, we left this wonderful place to drive the last stage to Tromsø. We could have made it in four hours but it took us seven and a half. The reasons: geocaches, photo stops, detours and an outdoor lunch break. Here are some photos.

Around 18:00 we arrive in Tromsø, my “work home”. I’ll be here for about four weeks and Annika will join me the first two weeks.

After work visit of Kvaløya Jul 2 2026

A bit of hiking – a bit of dining – a bit of bathing – a bit of geocaching – a lot of sun.

All after a regular work day, together with Annika.

A summer overnight stay at Blåkollkoia cabin Jul 5 2026

The weather in Tromsø for the weekend didn’t look promising, but for Friday it did. I leave work just after lunch so that Annika and I can hike up to Blåkollkoia cabin together. At half past one I park the car in Tønsvik. From there, it is an 8 km walk up to the cabin. The first 2½ km we follow a gravel road that leads to some private cabins.

Then the road turns into a marked hiking trail. It leads through fern thickets and birch forests; it crosses grassy plateaus and bogs with cotton grass.

It is perfect hiking weather. The air is not too warm, but the sun is quite strong and we are glad about the occasional wind cooling us down. There are hardly any mosquitoes, but plenty of flies seem to fall in love with us and follow us everywhere.

Below the cabin we use the bridge to cross the river Goahtevuomieatnu/Tønsvikelva. We were here in August 2024 and took a bath; now the river carries a lot more water.

Then we arrive at the cabin. It is locked and we use the key provided by DNT (Den Norske Turistforening) to enter. We have booked two beds in Room 2.

I go outside several times to take photos, while the sun is slowly sinking lower and lower. It is still polar day in Tromsø, so the sun won’t set. I sleep a bit but after midnight I am out again enjoying the beautiful scenery that is illuminated by the low sun in warm colours.

The next morning the scenery is quite different. The sky is overcast, some mountains hang in the clouds and it has started drizzling a bit.

After a two-course breakfast (fried spaghetti and muesli), Annika and I pack our things, clean the cabin with the other guests and start our tour back to the parked car.

First it is just overcast, then it becomes foggy and in the end, when we are on the gravel road again, it starts to rain.

Luckily, a friend of ours lives nearby. Here we can change into dry clothes and we get hot soup and coffee. Thank you, C. for the food and good company! A perfect ending for a great hiking tour that took less than 24 hours.

Steindalsbreen 2026 Jul 26 2026

It has become a tradition for me to hike to the glacier Steindalsbreen on the Lyngen Peninsula once a year. I was there on 24 September 2023, on 28 September 2024, and on 14 September 2025. This year I’ll be away most of September, so I hiked there already yesterday with my friend Christine.

We know the way – the ascending forest path by the river Gievdanjohka (Steindalselva) …

… the Steindalshytta cabin, where my wife Annika and I stayed overnight last year, the bridge over the river Doaresjohka (Tverrelva) and the small hilltop from which you can see the glacier for the first time. Then the U-shaped valley, broad and easy to walk before the ascent where the landscape looks high alpine between 1500-metre-high mountains.

Now the landscape is dominated of rocks and the vegetation is sparse and low. Here a favourite flower of mine grows: Ranunculus glacialis – also known as glacier buttercup or glacier crowfoot.

The landscape rises in several waves and then we can see the glacier lake. The water level looks higher than usual. I don’t know if it’s due to the wet summer or the time of the season. This time the lake has some small icebergs in it.

I’m not sure if it is possible to reach the glacier without taking an icy swim but it is surprisingly easy to follow the small path on the scree slopes. The other years it was possible to walk along the glacier front on banks of sand and mud. This year I am limited to the tiny reachable edge of the glacier. This makes the photography part much shorter this year.

The lake looks murky and so do some of the huge ice blocks by the lake. They are covered with rocks, pebbles, and clay and only the smooth side reveals that under the debris there is solid glacial ice.

On our way back I hardly took any photos, just an snapshot of this flower with my mobile phone to look up what it is. According to my app “Flora Incognita”, it is Saxifraga aizoides – also known as yellow mountain saxifrage.

Thanks for the trip, Christine, and for driving all the way.

Flying a drone Aug 1 2026

I’m sitting on a bench at gate E18 of the Tromsø Airport. E18 means it’s an international flight. I am flying to Munich and will be spending a week in Augsburg. In Tromsø the temperature exceeded 20 °C on only two days in July, Augsburg will be hot with temperatures up to 35 °C. I like summer but this heat is not my thing and I’m longing for cooler temperatures already now. Like 6 May 2023, when temperatures in Tromsø reached only around 6 °C.

On that day I tested a drone of the Norwegian Polar Institute for an expedition. Flying a drone always means having to leave Tromsøya because of the airport restrictions.

Last week I tested again, this time a newer drone belonging to the Norwegian Polar Institute and a better remote control for my own drone, which I bought second-hand a few days ago. I really like the institute’s DJI Mavic 3 Pro because it is larger, more stable, and has three cameras. But I’m pretty content with my own DJI Mini 3 Pro, especially now with the updated remote control. Under good light conditions they both make great photos. Here is one from Kattfjordeidet, Kvaløya, and the others are from Sommarøya. You can try to guess which drone took which photo. I couldn’t.

About half a year ago I had my drone with my as well, this time on the frozen Baltic Sea where I flew it several times. Publishing aerial photos taken in Sweden always takes a while, as you need to apply for publication permission for each photo. I have obtained permission to publish the following photo of the lighthouse Dynan and the island Bredskär. So, here it is:

If everything goes according to plan I will go on a three-week work cruise with the icebreaking vessel Kronprins Haakon between Svalbard and Greenland in October. Hopefully, we will have good conditions for ice stations. Then I’ll take orthophotos of and on the ice again.

A late summer overnight stay at Bjuröklubb Aug 22 2026

Thursday afternoon. It is just before the bus stop that I discover the first fly agarics of the year. I have walked about 3.3 km from our home in Obbola to the nearest bus stop. From here it’s half an hour’s bus journey to Norrlands universitetssjukhus, the hospital where I meet Annika.

We take her car, heading north to a well-known place: Bjuröklubb. The first time I went there was 25 April 2010, just three days after I moved to Sweden. The last time I was there was with Annika on 28 June 2024, when we rented the cabin Spanarstugan for an overnight stay.

Since we both have Friday off and the weather forecast looked promising, we have hired the cabin again at very short notice. Luckily it was free. After a 120-km drive, we arrive there, carry our things up the last 250 metres on foot and there we are again: at one of my favourite places, having the large cabin for ourselves and everything we need for a tasty outdoor dinner.

After dinner we go up the hill to the lighthouse Bjuröklubbs fyr which, despite its age, is still active. From here you have a unique view of the sea and, weather permitting, beautiful sunsets.

As the sun sinks lower and lower, the light gets warmer and warmer and it takes a while for the sun to set behind the distant, flat hills in the north.

An hour later it has become darker and the stars are out. The pine trees appear as black silhouettes and the lighthouse has started its work.

The next morning the weather is still clear. A small sailing boat is already out at 6 o’clock. Where does it come from, and where is it heading?

Today is Annika’s and my sixth wedding anniversary and I’m not only blessed to have Annika as my wife, but also glad that we are here together and the weather is nice and the hares are running and the birds are chirping and the butterflies are fluttering around and that we can even have breakfast outside in the sun. But before that: New day – new photos!

Stone field and pines – typical for Bjuröklubb

After lunch, Annika is picking berries while I am walking and climbing to the old lighthouse Bjuröklubb Nord Östra, an abandoned leading light situated by the sea.

I unscrew a hook that locks the metal door, open it and peek in. While the windows still retain their colours, the light source is long gone.

On my way back I meet Annika in the sun. She is still collecting blueberries. Although the warmth of the sun makes it feel like a summer day the bright red leaves on the blueberry bushes show that autumn is near.

Meanwhile, the café has opened. Time to buy some ice cream. After I have finished mine, I try to take photos of the many, many butterflies. Anyway, that’s not easy because I left my big Nikon camera at home and my small Sony camera is a bit picky when it comes to focussing on such subjects. These are the best shots: European peacock (Aglais io) – painted lady (Vanessa cardui) – small tortoiseshell (Aglais urticae) – red admiral (Vanessa atalanta).

< Newer articles