Vitskärsudden – a short cycle tour with holiday feelings May 5 2020

Moving in into our house yesterday felt more like starting a holiday. More like having hired a cabin by the sea for a week. And so it still felt, when I made a short bicycle tour this morning. All motifs shown below lie max 1.5 km from our house.

I love the diversity of landscapes you can find here within a short distance. And I like all of them. The last image however is a bit special: It shows the shallow bay right behind our house. Here I’ll plan to have my kayak somewhere.

Obbola – moving in May 5 2020

I do not live in Skelleftehamn any longer. Yesterday Annika and I got the keys to our house in Obbola that we bought in March. And we directly moved in with three car loads filled with two mattresses, cloths, Annika’s guinea pigs Helene and Audrey, computer, camera, tools and kitchen stuff.

Our house is directly by the Baltic Sea that I can see through the window of my future office room when I look up from the screen of my laptop. Feels like starting a long term holiday.

Annika and I already had visitors. A woodpecker yesterday and two deer this morning. Not to mention the many water birds.

Now I’ll take my bike and the camera and check the surroundings.

See you soon.

Diezeborg Apr 29 2020

The cargo/container ship Diezeborg has been anchoring behind the island Gåsören for some days. This evening I took my telephoto lens and tripod to finally take a photo of the ship in the blue hour. The ship is approx. 8.5 km away.

A winter’s comment Apr 13 2020

Today I felt honoured. Winter himself commented on my previous article Farewell winter 2019/20. He did it not in the comment section but in real life by bringing cold wind and 10 cm of fresh snow to Skelleftehamn. Some photos of today.

Crossing the ice to the island Storgrundet

Farewell winter 2019/20 Apr 9 2020

Hej winter,

Nice of you to present a preview already in October, and got really started in early November, but in January you were much too warm. Fortunately I could realise two fantastic ski tours in February and March, but back home in Skelleftehamn I needed my rubber boots more than a winter jacket. So for my taste you – winter – was much too short!

Before spring takes over Annika and I decided to make a short trip to Solberget in Lapland. A good place to isolate oneself in the times of Corona, since we lived in a cozy construction trailer. It was only two full days we had there but we got cold sunny weather (almost -20 °C in the morning) and a lot of snow in the forests and on the bogs. Perfect skiing conditions.

The other day we skied to the old farmyard Slättberg that still has an owner but slowly goes to rack. A pity since the place is so nice. In 2013 I had dared to enter the main building, now the floor is partly gone and I kept outside.

In Skelleftehamn we had some warm days with +10 °C and almost all sea ice has gone. Only in sheltered parts as the boat harbour Tjuvkistan or the sound at Storgrundet some ice is left. But I do not dare to enter it any longer.

So I’ll thank you for the season, winter. But next year you’re welcome to send your (c)older brother.

A promenade by the coast Mar 29 2020

Meanwhile in Skelleftehamn Mar 18 2020

It has been already a week, since I returned from my winter journey. I already blogged about my first ski tour with two German friends, soon I’ll blog about my ski tour with Annika, too.

Today the weather was sunny and quite warm. Due to the corona virus I try to avoid crowded places. Fortunately such places are nearby. One of them is the island Storgrundet, less than 2km from home. The ice between island and coast is thick, but on the other side there’s open water because most of the sea ice has vanished.

This is a nice place to enjoy the sun, ice and water.

And since I had my drysuit with me I could take that photo of a small ice cave standing in the sea.

Total time: 90 minutes. Recreational value: high.

Do you have such lonely places nearby? When did you visit them the last time? I’m looking forward to your comments.

On the road III – Hemavan—Sneringsvika – 296 km Feb 11 2020

From the wintry fjäll to the rainy coast

It’s only one day of travelling, hardly 300 km, but today was filled with a lot of varying great experiences and feels like a complete holiday.

After breakfast I leave Hemavan behind and again I travel to Norway, this time taking the road 73 via Joesjö. It’s just below zero and it’s snowing. I cross Norway and now the snowfall intenes. It’s snowing handkerchiefs and the visibilty is poor. Within minutes the road is covered with a fresh layer of snow.

The heavy snowfall lasts only short and soon visibility is much better. Twice I pass an open barrier. This route section can be closed when the weather is severe. If this should happen to me I’d choose to wait on the western side. What a cozy shelter the Norwegians have built there.

Through the windscreen IX – snowy road 73

Through the windscreen X – snowy road 73

Now I’m really in Norway. It’s just impossible to describe the zillions of different impressions. It’s the endless combinations of different landscapes, different moods and different weather that makes travelling through Norway so interesting and inspiring.

An example image, from bottom to top: a river rushing through a canyon. Above that a hill with a green coniferous forest. Above that a mountain with a forest covered with fresh snow. Above that a high mountain over the timber line, completely encased with white snow. Above that clouds bringing snow or rain (depending on the altitude) and the sun trying to peek through a cloud gap. And that’s one of a thousand images.

I do not even try to photo all the different scenic moods because it would take ages. And by the way: there are hardly any parking opportunities by the roads.

So I publish just some travelogue photos, mostly taken through the windscreen.

Through the windscreen XI – it’s getting warmer

Through the windscreen XII – it’s getting warmer

Through the windscreen XIII – the road 76 is snowy again

Through the windscreen XIV – the road 76 is snowy again

Through the windscreen XV – approaching the fjords

Through the windscreen XVI – spring weather

Through the windscreen XVII – spring weather

At 14:25 I arrive in Vennesund. Here I have to take a ferry to continue my trip south. An hour later my car is in the belly of the ship and I am on deck. It’s windy, but warm with +4 °C. I’m the only one on deck. The journey takes only 20 minutes.

After leaving the ferry I continue my road trip and the landscape is as gorgeous as before.

Through the windscreen XVIII – along the Lysfjorden

Anyway I got quite tired and I’m longing for a cosy place to stay. I plan to take the first opportunity. At the branch, where the 802 leaves to Bogen I see some kind of camping kiosk. I leave the car and meet an elderly man, who gives me his cabin for a night. It costs 800 NOK, but first it’s Norway and then this cabin by the fjord is a welcome luxury after travelling by car for three days.

Now I have to check the weather forecast for tomorrow. I’m in a winter mood and long for snow!

The last winter photo of Skelleftehamn? Feb 3 2020

This may be my last winter photo of Skelleftehamn for this year.

Today I will pack all things together that are needed for a ski tour, visiting the winter market in Jokkmokk, wading in ice water, doing cross country ski tours, taking pictures on the Hurtigruten, sleeping in the car and so on. Tomorrow I will start my winter journey 2020.

How long I will travel is not determined yet. It depends among others on the weather. But six weeks it will be at least. Maybe longer.

So that’s way I put on the drysuit on this chilly February morning and made a photo of the “ice coast” of Skelleftehamn. It may be the last one this winter.

30 cm snow Jan 29 2020

This week finally it snows. There is 30 cm of snow in my backyard and if the forecasts are right, it’ll be 45–50 cm at the end of the week. At last it looks wintry, even though the open Baltic Sea is still free of ice.

After taking the photo above I took the car to Tjuvkiskan, another place by the sea. The gravel road was covered with snowdrifts that became higher when I approached the sea. I could easily drive through the first ones but finally I was stuck in a half-metre-high and several metre long snowdrift. My Subaru was grounded and even with the “X-Mode” program I could neither continue nor put back the car. Fortunately it took only some minutes to shovel away the snow round the tires and then I was able to back the car out of the snow drift. The last metres to Tjuvkistan I walked …

When I looked at the photo above I realised how big the tyres are. It’s really half a metre of snow around my car.

Enough about cars – I wanted to enjoy winter and be outdoors.

There’s a very nice cross-country ski run in Skelleftehamn. It hadn’t been prepared this year due to the warm and rainy weather. Now snow had come and the snow on the track will be compacted but not yet prepared for cross-country as long it continues snowing.

Yesterday I took my fjällski – my “mountain skis” and made a tour through 10-15 cm deep snow. I was really slow and it was quite exhausting.

Today I took my fjällski again and now the snow was packed. I was faster and although the tour was longer it was less exhausting. And the descents were more fun. The last kilometre the wind increased and it started snowing again.

Temperature -6 °C. Wind. Snow. Fur hood. Woollen mittens. Ski boots. Almost like winter.