Just some photos from Obbola in the last days.
A flock of fieldfares in our rowan tree ❦ an icy morning by the coast ❦ sunlit ice fog hovering above the bay Vitskärsudden ❦ three roe deers eating rowan berries, leftovers of the fieldfares’ meal.
| English | German | Swedish | Norwegian |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fieldfare | Wacholderdrossel | Björktrask | Gråtrost |
Annika and I were in Norddeich, the coastal district of Norden (“north”) in East Friesland, Germany the last days. The word “Norden” definitely qualifies that place for getting an article in my blog way-up-north.
Many streets of Norddeich have the theme “north” in their names. Am Nordkap (At the North Cape), Nordlandstraße (Northland street), Nordlichtstraße (Northern Light Street). Guess what, I like the names! Partly from my Scandinavian point of view, partly because I am from Northern Germany and therefore a “Nordlicht” (a nickname for people from Northern Germany) by myself.
Some photos from Tuesday, 10 September, the day of our arrival:
Yesterday on Wednesday, 11 September Annika and I rented e-bikes and took a cycle tour to Greetsiel. The weather was quite nasty for early September: strong gusty winds, hailstorms, cloudbursts and even a thunderstorm. And all that at temperatures around 10–11 °C. Kudos for the e-bikes! Without electrical motor support we wouldn’t have managed it against the wind.
It’s a long way to travel to Norden from our places. Round about 2800 km from Tromsø, my “work home” and still 1900 km from Obbola, my “home home”. But I think, I’ll visit Norddeich again some other time.
This article is part of the series “2024-08: Fram Strait cruise KPH”.
It is the 14th day of our Fram Strait cruise. We are on our way back to Longyearbyen on Svalbard. After many grey and foggy days we finally have got nicer weather since yesterday and so I am standing on the “heli deck” looking for animals to take pictures of. I cannot see any whales and the few puffins that I spot are too fast and too far away. So I take photos of the seagulls that effortlessly accompany the ship.
Since today it is possible to see land again in the distance. Not Greenland like a week ago but Prins Karls Forland, an elongated island which is the westernmost island of the Svalbard archipelago.
I have gone inside again until I see a message popping on our WhatsApp group:
Dolphins just in front of the ship now
I grab my photo bag, hurry to the heli deck again and see a school of dolphins on the starboard side. Most of them swim underwater but again and again a group of these beautiful sea mammals come out of the water. With my big telephoto lens I try to take pictures of the dolphins. The result: a lot of pictures of sea water. They are just too fast for me and my lens. But I’m lucky. Once I manage to guess correctly and get a photo of two dolphins (and a third one immersed).
Originally we wanted to reach Svalbard one day later but a lot of things have been done faster without the presence of sea ice. Mooring recoveries are simpler, CTD casts are easier and so is the ship’s navigation – no search for leads needed. Therefore we will arrive one day earlier, which is today. While I’m having breakfast we are already in the fjord Isfjorden. At 9 o’clock we have arrived in the city port of Longyearbyen.
After lunch I leave the ship and stand on land again. I walk into town and go to Svalbardbutikken, the local supermarket. We still live on board and get our meals there, but I want to have chocolate! And I get it.
We all have stayed on board overnight as well. The cabins are free (and paid) and so there is no need to find some expensive last-minute accommodation in Longyearbyen.
My plane to Tromsø will depart at 14:40. I interrupt my work and leave the ship once more to take some pictures. It is sunny again but Svalbard looks pretty brown and dirty in summer.
Then it was time to say good bye to the crew and the other participants. Car to the airport – checking in the baggage – security. And some hours later I sat in the airplane to Tromsø now leaving also Svalbard and the research ice breaker Kronprins Haakon behind.
When shall we three meet again?
In thunder, lightning, or in rain?
When the data work is done,
When the budget’s lost or won …
This article is part of the series “2024-08: Fram Strait cruise KPH”.
For days we wondered, will we ever have an ice station on this Fram Strait cruise in open water? But then at 14° 21′ W, 79° 02′ N we found a large ice floe to work on. Shortly after nine o’clock I finally was on the ice again!
But I wasn’t here to take snapshots but to fly drone and to take a lot of photos from above.
I had issues with the drone from the Polar Institute, so I fetched my private one. First I had to calibrate some sensors, especially the compass and then I put the drone into the air and made some photos to check the image exposure. Ok, looks pretty good.
Now I flew the drone in a rectangular zig-zag pattern. That’s a bit tricky, because the drone is positioned by GPS while the ice flow is drifting. Since I wasn’t sure if I covered every part of the ice station I flew a second round. The single photos look like these:
Before going on board I took a couple of photos on the ice.
On board I uploaded the photos first into my laptop and then into the program OpenDroneMap that would stitch the photos together and add geographical information. And then it was 11:30, lunch time!
After lunch I went up on the bridge on deck 8. Together with two others I was observing my segment checking for polar bears, cracks in the ice and weather. There were several polar bears around but all were further away. I also had a VHF to keep track on the people on the ice. I had two shifts, 12:30–13:15 and 14:00–14:45.
After my second shift I got to know that we had a polar bear in front of the ship. So one of the bears that we had observed for hours had finally decided to pay us a visit. That meant of course that all people had to leave the ice. On the helicopter deck many people were around to watch the bear.
And there it was – a surprisingly white curious fellow that examined our ship. Did it smell the cake?
In the meanwhile OpenDroneMap finally created a properly rendered orthophoto. I was relieved because I was not sure if my drone photos were sufficient. This is an excerpt:
In the afternoon I had fixed the issue with the other drone. At 19:00 I would have another opportunity to go onto the ice to re-calibrate and test it. Our ice visit was however postponed because another polar bear was paying a visit. It looked much thinner than the other one, but on the other side the fur was wet. So photo shooting again. It surrounded the ship and then stopped, laid down onto its stomach, pushed itself forward with its furry feet and then rolled in the snow before it continued its walk.
We had to wait some time but then the ice was clear and I had time to test the drone on the ice. It worked. Hopefully I would be able to use it on the second ice station on the next day but the forecast does not look promising. Too much wind.
I shot a drone selfie and then I was ready to go on board. I just had to put my hand into one of the polar bear paw prints for size comparison.
The bear won!
This article is part of the series “2024-08: Fram Strait cruise KPH”.
I am sitting in a plane heading north. Tromsø lies behind, the plane goes to Longyearbyen, the largest settlement on Svalbard. If everything goes according to plan I’ll be on board of the Norwegian research icebreaker Kronprins Haakon two days from now to join a scientific cruise to the Fram Strait between Svalbard and Greenland.
Eight other participants are in the same plane, there are not so many flights to Longyearbyen. The rest will arrive tomorrow or has been joining already the previous cruise. We wait for the luggage and then for the “Maxitaxi“ that brings us to our different accommodations. I check in at Gjestehuset 102 and start a photo tour back to the center.
In August the town looks brown. It’s brown water, brown mountains and brown dust everywhere. As a photographer I prefer winter. Longyearbyen lies by the fjord Adventfjorden and there lies the German research icebreaker Polarstern that I visited in Tromsø three days ago.
It is windy but surprisingly warm with temperatures round 19 °C. Later I learn that the maximum was 20.3 °Con this day, the warmest August temperature measurement ever. I stroll around and go to the huge supermarket to buy some goodies. Then I head to the beach again to take some more photos. At 18:30: dinner time with nine of the cruise participants. After that I walk the 2.3 km back to the guesthouse. And take some more photos in the evening light.
Before the cruise many things are on hold. When will the ship arrive? When are the first scientists allowed on board? Is my help needed? When is the flare gun training for the ice people? And so on. Let’s wait and see.
KPH has arrived in the morning but only a few selected scientists were supposed to go on board to get a handover. So I have time to stroll around again – it is still warm and sunny – and take some more photos while constantly checking our WhatsApp group for plans being updated. And I meet some of my colleagues that joined the previous cruise.
In the evening we have another dinner, this time with all 19 participants. That is quite a small team this time, there are 35 berths on the vessel. We have pizza and the first opportunity to get to know each other. What a nice and interesting team I am allowed to work with for the next two and a half weeks :-) !
Today is the day. I was already in town and bought a woollen sweater that I wanted to buy for years. Then at 13:00 the first group of people gets a ride to our swimming research platform – Kronprins Haakon. Welcome back. At 13:15 I have boarded, at 15:00 I have checked in. I have got the very same room as on the first cruise two years ago. It’s on deck 3 in the bow and when there is ice, it is shaky, loud and noisy. I love it! Arctic lullabies. This time I have it eben for me alone. That’s luxury!
At 16:00 we get a safety briefing. After that I fetch my safety boots and my survival suit. Will I ever wear it on the ice on this cruise? At 17:00 we have our first dinner. Salmon and rice – delicious. Ice cream as dessert. And at 18:19 I realise that we have left port. Now we will be on our way west.
I will work with a software project and I want to join the sea ice team. The ice situation however is doubtful. Last year there was so much ice, that navigation was a real issue, not its the absence of ice that can lead to problems for the ice people. But as on each cruise – let’s wait and see.
Anyhow I’m lucky and happy to be on tokt – on cruise – again!
I decided not to blog regularly while being on the cruise. There is just too much going on and too much work to do. Anyhow I may show some photos in a few days. Let’s wait and see.
It is the morning of 5th of August, the third day of Annika’s and my four day hiking tour in the fjell of Tromsø’s mainland. (Part I)
We are at the small and cosy cabin Blåkollkoia and will hike to the next and last cabin Trollvassbu. With round 13 km it is the longest stage, which is actually not so long after all.
The weather is still calm, sunny and pretty warm. We leave round 9 o’clock. The way leads up through sparse birch forests with wet ground. The air is humid and feels hot in the sun. We are sweating and walk quite slowly. After a good km we leave the forested valley behind. Now we have an easy path to walk on over the vidda – the mountain plateau.
But still we are pretty slow. Why? Because of the many berries to pick and to eat. It’s not only the omnipresent blueberries but a lot of multe, Norwegian for cloudberries. They prefer boggy ground with normally zillions of mosquitoes around. This year however the summer was dry and so was most of the ground. Too dry for the mosquitoes. Yeah! I don’t think I ever ate so many cloudberries on a single day as today.
This part of the trail is very easy to hike and it is a pleasure to follow the small path. We really liked it. Some birds – long-tailed-jaegers – however don’t want to have us around. They are flying mock attacks. Soon they realise that we’re just passing and leave us alone. Beautiful birds nevertheless.
We continue walking through the mellow landscape and meet only a single person – a hiker we already met two days before.
The terrain is undulating and the views are constantly changing. So the question is: when will we see the cabin for the first time? Oh – there it is, less than a kilometre away. It lies on an idyllic place by the river Trollvasselva. We are lucky, the river carries water. Most of the smaller streams have been dried out and it was not so easy to find water to drink.
We arrive at the cabin in early afternoon. There are two hikers in the cabin but they do not stay overnight. So we will have the cabin completely for ourselves. We unpack our things, take a snack and wash ourselves in the river. In the evening it is spaghetti time. „Pasta pesto.“
Today it is only five kilometres to the bus stop by the road. We have to leave early to catch the bus at 9:55.
I was awake early and took the opportunity to fly my drone. I need some training for the cruise I’ll join next week. Again the vastness of the landscape is impressive. Then we take breakfast, pack our stuff, tidy up and are ready to lock the cabin with the DNT-key.
And off we go. Some hundred metres in open terrain before we enter a dense birch forest that will surround us for the next kilometres. To the right, down in the valley we can hear and sometimes see the river.
The last hundred metres are more open terrain again. There is even a short boardwalk we follow. Minutes (and a bunch of blueberries) later we arrive at the parking place where the busstop is. Time to drop the backpacks and wait for the bus.
At ten o’clock we climb into the bus. We have reliable internet again and are back in civilisation. I’m glad that we did the tour. It is pure luxury to have such tour opportunities right on the doorstep.
Change of subject while sitting in the bus: where is the Polarstern actually? I will visit this German research ice breaker two days later. Oh it already arrived in Grøtsund. And there it is, we can see it from the bus.
Thanks Annika for the wonderful tour. Takk for turen!
I really want to thank the people from the Troms section of the Norwegian Trekking Association (DNT). The cabins are great, in great shape and you all do a fantastic job. Now we are looking to visit the place again in wintertime which according to the guestbooks seems to be the preferred season of many locals.
I am sitting in the bus number 24, the bus that usually brings me to work.
But not today. It is Saturday, my wife Annika is with me and we will not leave the bus in the center but at the last stop „Kroken“. We have backpacks with us and are about to start a four-day hiking trip through the mountains on Tromsø’s mainland. We leave the bus stop behind, follow the street to the parking place above, pass the graffitis on the “trykkbassenget” and then …
… we are on the hiking trail. Between the following two photos lie six minutes.
We are following the broad trail slowly gaining altitude and it doesn’t take long till we reach the tree line, which is between 300 and 400 metres in Tromsø. When we look back we can see the northern tipp of the island Tromsøya, but soon the city disappears behind the mountains.
At the lake Krokvatnet the path gets steeper and rockier. We celebrate every cloud because it is a warm summer day with temperatures above 20 °C.
With every hundred metres of altitude the landscape is changing. Soon rocks dominate the landscape, being a perfect habitat for the lichens growing on them.Here we are at an altitude of 700 metres – the highest of our whole trip.
Now we are descending again. Larger lakes have come into view: Čazajávrrit (or Storskarvatnan) and Storskarvatnet. Yes, the Norwegian names are almost alike.+
Between the lakes the cabin Skarvassbu is supposed to be – and there it is. A couple of black-roofed buildings, perhaps a kilometre away. We cross some more boulder fields and then arrive at the cabin. We have a DNT-key with us. That key fits to all but a few cabins of the DNT (the Norwegian Trekking Association), We unlock the door and enter the “hytte”. As many in Norway it is very cozy.
We have pre-booked two beds – probably quite unnecessary, since we will be alone in the night. Since it has been a dry summer the river usually being used to fetch water is dried up completely.
Luckily the small lake nearby has clear water and I fill one of the cabin’s buckets. A bit later I return to the lake to take photos from the cottongrass.
One of the things I love being out in the mountains for several days is watching the changes of light. It still does not get dark but still the sky shows evening colours.
When I wake up at 5 o’clock it is broad daylight. It is Sunday, the 4th of August and sunrise was already at 2:45. No reasons for a photo session, I continue sleeping. At 8 o’clock I take some photos with my drone. It’s the first time I have it with me while hiking. Some aerial photos can be pretty boring but the extent of the landscape is often impressive. The mountain in the background is Tromsdalstinden (1238 m).
We have Müsli for breakfast. For milk we mix our milk powder with water. Perhaps not our favourite meal, bit it easy to carry and provides energy for our long trip. Wait, did I write “long”? Today it is only 5–6 km to go.
The first part takes a bit of time because the hiking trail crosses a large boulder field. The marks of red paint – sometimes a dot, sometimes a “T” – are guiding us.
We have left the worst rock fields behind and are looking at a lovely, grassy mountain valley from the escarpment we are standing on. That looks nice! But first we have to follow the winding path that leads down. We pass one of the rare and small snow fields. It has been a warm year and even many higher mountains are free of snow.
And then we reach the alpine meadows that present us a treasure: Blueberries!
According to some tour description Annika found in the net there are rivers to cross. Wading however was not required, all rivers and brooks had very low water levels and were easy to cross and so was the river Goahtevuomieatnu (or Norwegian: Tønsvikelva). We are walking along the river and soon the small cabin Blåkollkoia comes into view where we arrive round noon.
In the afternoon Annika and I go to the river again. We want to check how to cross it the next day, we want to fetch water, we want to clean some clothes and we want to bath. Four times success: There is a bridge, there are nice places to refill our water bottles and to do some cleaning and most important: there is a deeper spot perfect for taking a refreshing bath on an even warmer day. We dry ourselves in the sun and then are sitting by the river for an eternity. This is definitely a highlight of the tour that I will remember for a long time!
And we still have plenty of time. For reading, for taking photos of birds …
… for flying my drone again …
… for preparing dinner (Pancakes with blueberries), for enjoying sun and seeking shadow and for enjoying life.
Note to ourselves: if you want to make pancakes, bring butter or oil …
The next day we will continue to Trollvassbu, with 13+ km it will be the longest day of our four day hiking trip which on the one hand is far, far away from everything and on the other part of the neighbourhood of my work town Tromsø. What a special place in many ways!
Yesterday my wife Annika, my colleague Marika and I made a trip to Grøtfjorden on the island Kvaløya. I parked the car by the lake Storvatnet and we started our mountain hike. First the trail led up through a birch forest with some steeper passage and we quickly gained altitude.
The tree line in Northern Norway is low and soon we left the birches behind and had wonderful views on the fjord, the mountains and the open sea.
We passed the lake Smørstabbvatnet– time to cool the feet, but it was too shallow for a bath.
We were pretty slow – for good reasons: The blueberries had ripened and were sweet and delicious. Anyhow the top of the small mountain Smørstabben was not far away. There we took a break in the sun and went round to take some photos.
While the landscape around us was very idyllic some mountain chains in the distance looked dark and forbidding.
Down we went the same way but before arriving at the parked car we took a bath in the lake Storvatnet.
We took the car in direction Tromvik and passed some sandy beaches. Time to take some more photos.
Now we were ready to head back to Tromsø which is round about an hour’s drive. I spontaneously changed plans when we spotted the small flock of reindeers by the beach of Grøtfjorden. Apparently they liked the place. Perhaps it’s a bit less warm by the sea or there are less mosquitoes? First they stood around watching the bathers and other people around. But since no one seemed to be a serious thread one by one went on its knees and lay down in the sand until the whole flock sat there.
We sat there for a while watching the animals. Then it was time to drive back.
I thought: what a great place Tromsø is, that you can do day trips to Norway. Yes, guys, I know, that Tromsø is Norway. I’m just so glad that you can do trips like these from here in a single day. I do not have holidays but a day like this felt like being in the middle of a summer vacation.
Takk for turen – thanks for the trip – Marika and Annika.
I am sitting in the airplane. Soon I’ll be back “home home” in Obbola for three weeks. Here we are crossing the river Umeälven.
A low rainbow has appeared above the trees. In the inside it shows supernumerary bands.
Midsummer in Sweden has several traditions. Probably the most famous one is the dancing round the midsummer pole. Annika and I are in Gammlia, a park with outdoor museum in Umeå. Here we are doing “raketen” – the rocket.
In the evening Annika and I are watching a roe passing by with her two young fawns. They are crossing the shallow bay. Since the water level is higher than normal the water is quite deep for the fawns.
Excursion to a coast we do not know yet – Järnäsklubb. There are several trails you can follow, only the bathing place we do not find.
While I pluck lupins (an invasive species) I realise how many beautiful flowers we have in the small patch of wilderness between our house and the sea. Here: a Siberian iris.
Annika and I are in Gammlia again, this time for the Mullin Mallin Band that plays folk music from Balkan to Sápmi.
We are in Åsele in the Swedish inland where we visit friends of us together with their farm animals. (Photo: Annika Kramer)
For lunch break I paddle to the beach at Byviken where I eat Ćevapčići. Total distance – round 6.7 km both ways. After that I have to continue working. Home office.
I am sitting in the train to Narvik. I read, I eat, I play with my mobile, I doze and I look out of the window.
The train was in time in Umeå and in Narvik as well. From there the bus 100 brings me to Tromsø where I will work for the more or less next five weeks. Hej då Sverige – hei Norge!
Two weeks ago I took the plane from Tromsø to Bergen. From there I would travel back to Tromsø by Hurtigruten together with my sister, my brother-in-law and my mother. My wife Annika would join us in Trondheim two days later.
There is still a lot of snow in the mountains on Tromsøya, Kvaløya, Senja and other islands I do not recognise from the plane. But in the lowland it is springtime.
I travelled with the Hurtigruten several times, but never south from Trondheim. We were not the only one’s boarding in Bergen. A lot of people use the Hurtigruten as a cruise ship, not as a possibility to travel from A to B. And there it lies, the vessel Kong Harald.
We have boarded round 18:00. At 20:30 we are departing and leave the town Bergen behind.
We are in sheltered waters and you hardly notice the ship moving beside of the motor’s vibrations. Even though Bergen is nine degrees south from Tromsø is does not get dark anymore.
The weather is cloudy but when the sun peeks through a holes in the clouds it looks beautiful.
One breakfast later: We arrive in Ålesund where the Hurtigruten will stay for ten hours. Time to explore this town which looks so different from the towns in the north. Ålesund has many Art Nouveau houses and “exotic” plants like azaleas are blooming everywhere. Together with my sister I climb the four hundred and something steps up the Aksla where we have an awesome view on the town.
We have also a view on the cruise ship AIDA prima. And beside of that – our Hurtigruten ship Kong Harald. It looks so tiny in comparison. I definitely prefer the small one.
I take a short stroll through town before I meet the others. First I admire all the small Art Nouveau details on the houses, then I almost get a culture shock when I find this tunnel:
In the evening we circumnavigate the island Hessa, because the ship is “reparked” on the other side of Ålesund. After a very warm and sunny day clouds have been gathering. But the sun manages to send beams through the clouds.
Is this one of the life boats? I mean – a photo of one of the life boats? No, it is a photo of a reflection of one of the life boats. It is reflected in the glass facade of an office building by the port.
Where are we? In Trondheim. Yay! I was so looking forward to meet Annika there. She checks in, then we take a short stroll in town along the channel with the groundbreaking name Kanalen – the channel.
As in Tromsø there are Kittiwakes in Trondheim. They use to screech a lot – often to each other – but these two fellows seem to be a bit shy, at least in the minute where I took the photo.
At lunchtime we leave Trondheim behind. The shimmering sunlight is reflected by zillions of tiny waves. We meet commercial ships, fishing boats, two kayaks and sometimes a sailing boat.
On the port side there is the open sea. Blue sky, blue sea, a small skerry and a house. Wait, a house? Yes, it is erected on a floating raft. What you cannot see – it is part of one of the countless salmon farms located in coastal Norway.
I have moved into Annika’s cabin. It has no regular window but two portholes. It is five to eleven in the evening and the sun peeks into our small but practical cabin.
And that’s the night where I get sick. That really wouldn’t have been necessary at all.
I am feeling ill and I sleep, I sleep and I sleep. I do not leave the cabin before 17:45 to take some photos while we are approaching the Lofoten islands. They look like mirages at the hazy horizon.
Round half past seven we are approaching Stamsund, passing rocky skerries and rocky mountains. Northern Norway, here we come!
At the harbour a graffito was sprayed or painted on the outer wall of the waiting room. Free high fives! For me however it was time to continue sleeping …
… but I got up at 23:15 again to see more from the Lofoten islands. Some of the mountains look like not being from this world.
The light got dim but it didn’t get dark. It’s the first day of midnight sun on the Lofoten. And it is almost midnight.
The reason for being up so late is that Kong Harald sails into the quite famous and very narrow fjord Trollfjorden. The landscape is impressive because the Hurtigruten is so near to land. – especially the mighty dark rock face in the north.
On our way back I spot a beautiful wave pattern. I really wonder how it was created.
Then it is time for me to sleep. And I sleep long. At lunch time I take some more photos. Now the landscape looks very familiar. No wonder, in an hour we will be in Tromsø, where I’ve been working for three years now. To my relief there is still snow on the mountain tops. It looks so nice.
The sky is still blue and the sea has been calm more or less the whole journey. There is hardly any wind but the flag is flattering in the airstream.
Round two o’clock we pass the southern tip of the island Tromsøya and then the new buildings on the eastern sea side.
After round 93 hours we are leaving the ship. My family checks into their hotel, Annika and I take the bus to my apartment which has become on of my two homes.