Autumnal kayak trip to Grindøya
Kayaking around Håkøya
Yesterday I finally had time to join the Thursday paddling in Tromsø again. The weather was calm and the tour leaders suggested to take a tour to the island Håkøya. After the usual preparations I entered the club’s kayak that I’d reserved – a Valley Etain 17,5 – waited for the others to be ready and off we went. Fourteen paddlers we were, including the tour leaders.
First we head west over the sound Sandnessundet. After 3 km we reach the northern tip of the island Håkøya.
First I was a bit disappointed about the gathering clouds after the clear and sunny day. Then I realised again, what wonderful light the combination of clouds and the low sun can produce. The houses and farms on the island look extremely picturesque in this light.
We slow down a bit and go on land to take a break. While sitting, eating, chatting we decide to circumvent Håkøya. Great – a new tour for me!
We enter the kayaks and continue our counterclockwise circumvention. Since I’ve been on Håkøya before I’m looking forward to some of the attractions such as the red sail boat anchoring near the shore and especially the 330-metre-long bridge Håkøybrua, built 1961 with its prominent wooden construction.
What however comes completely unexpected are the three catamarans anchoring on the southern side of the bridge. Huge, modern and probably ridiculously expensive sailing catamarans. What a contrast to the other sailing boats and the wooden bridge.
It is half an hour to sunset. The clear sky in the southeast has turned red and the light on the mountains is spectacular. Alas, My only camera on the water is my iPhone, so no telephoto shots.
When we reach the east side of the island the sea is getting rougher and choppier. The next photo is probably my favourite shot from the tour showing the sea, the evening light and some of my kayaking mates.
With the waves comes the wind and of course it comes right from the front. Together with the waves I have to focus more on paddling than on taking pictures on the last 3½ kilometres. Just two snapshots. On the second one you may see the lights at the kayaks. We’re in navigable waters with commercial traffic and we have to be seen. I have a light on the kayak as well and a second one attached to my life vest. And by the way, the clouds are vanishing.
After 13.5 km we arrive at the boat houses of the Tromsø Sea Kayakers Club at half past nine and it is pretty dark. Soon the kayak season will be limited not by temperature but by available daylight. Until then I’ll hopefully can join some more “Thursday paddlings”.
Here is a map of our route (including some zigzagging when taking photos.
I want to thank my paddling mates for good company and our tour guides for guiding and guarding. Takk for turen!
Fremdriftstak
Monday 19 May
On Monday I joined a kayak training on fremdriftstak. That’s Norwegian for forward stroke, the most basic kayak stroke. We had two experienced trainers, one for the euro paddle, one for the Greenland paddle. I joined the euro paddle group and learned some new details that hopefully will help me kayaking a bit more effortlessly in the future. The weather was a mixture of sun and clouds and the last hour it rained. Doesn’t matter, we are fully waterproofed when on the sea anyhow.
Thursday 22 May
Yesterday was the regular Thursday paddling with eighteen eager kayakers and fantastic spring weather. I joined the group kayaking to the island Grindøya as the week before. While the tour leaders told us about their plans and checked, that we all know the basic communication signs, the colourful kayaks had already been brought to the shore.
My own kayak is in Sweden so I always rent a kayak from the kayak club. A good opportunity to finally test another model. I had used the same on Monday, now I checked it a bit again while waiting for the others to join.
We paddled to “Monsterbygget” – a large cuboid building that is one of the favourite orientation marks for kayakers. There we split and our group of eleven headed west to the island Grindøya.
It is round 2.5 kilometres to the southern tip of the island. A good opportunity to recap my learning from the Monday training. It went well but it will take time until it is in the muscle memory. At the small bay with the sandy beach we parked our kayaks. This is one of the two locations where you may enter the island during the bird breeding season. Time for a break, enjoying the sun, drinking water and eating chocolate.
On our way back we paddled along the western shore of the island. We saw a lot of eider ducks and other sea birds that I cannot name. After two kilometres we had passed the northern tip and were heading back to Tromsøya crossing the strait Sandnessundet.
This is a great season for paddling, especially on such a sunny day. The coast is green, the sea is blue (and very cold) and the mountains are still covered with snow.
In the south we could spot a ship. Where will it go? We decided to wait. The ship was sailing along the strait and since ships are not only much bigger than us but also much faster we decided to paddle back a bit and then to a sea mark north to wait for the ship to pass.
First the ship’s movements were hardly visible but when it approached it seemed to become faster and faster. While it was passing we spotted another ship in the distance, this time in the south and decided to cross the strait instantly. I took two photos, then I had to keep up and since we wanted to cross the strait quickly I didn’t make any further photos.
At half past nine we were back at the boat houses. Takk for turen – thanks for the tour!
Today
I’m proud. I paddled 11.3 km yesterday and I don’t have any pain in my right arm as occasionally after other tours. Just for that the training on fremdriftstak this Monday was a full success. Thanks, B. for your tipps and advice.
These are the two recorded tracks from kayaking to Grindøya. The first one from last week, the second one from yesterday.
The first Thursday paddling in Tromsø 2025
From Obbola to Tromsø – home home and work home
Thursday, 20 March – Obbola
Annika and I are in Obbola, my “home home”. In the morning we get visitors. Three deer stand in our garden – always alert. Are they happy, that much of the snow is gone?
In my lunch break I am kayaking round the island Bredskär. That’s just 3 km. There is still some ice round the rocks at the shore, but much snow and ice has melted away the last weeks. What a warm winter.
Friday, 21 March
Annika and I take the car to Tromsø. We will make a stopover in Jokkmokk, because the total distance is almost 1000 km. Hejdå home home!
In warm and sunny weather we head northwards to Piteå and then northwest to Jokkmokk. Now we are north of the Polar Circle.
In Jokkmokk we meet a good friend and take a walk round the lake Talvatissjön. Around the sun a halo appears .
Saturday, 22 March
After a good sleep in the hostel Åsgård Annika and I continue our car trip. Gällivare, Kiruna, Abisko. Torneträsk – the 6th largest lake in Sweden – is still completely frozen. Good for recreation such as skiing.
Parts of the road were closed some days ago. You can still see some remains of the snow storm.
Some weeks ago it would have been impossible to drive from Jokkmokk to Tromsø in daylight. Anyhow two days ago astronomical spring has started and the days are as long as everywhere. After hours of driving the sun is low but visible. It illuminates the beautiful clouds. And then we arrive at our apartment in Tromsø, my “work home”.
Sunday, 23 March
On Sunday the weather gets nasty. Max temperature: +9 °C and wind gusts up to 23.5 m/s. Annika and I take a promenade anyhow. With spiked shoes because some of the ways are just bare, wet ice and the friction is next to zero. We arrive at home before the rain. Good luck.
Monday, 24 March
On my way to work I spot the first spring flowers in front of the Tromsø Cathedral. I could believe in spring …
Tuesday, 25 March
… but do know the forecast and it is correct: Snow, snow, snow on the next day. So it looks like in the morning outside of the apartment …
… and so in the afternoon, when I walked home.
So we did not solely travelled between countries but also between seasons. Anyhow I hope for some more winter days (or weeks), before my seasonal clock will jump to spring mode. Perhaps in mid-May?
Kayak – 3rd try and success
It’s less the temperature than the wind who makes the sea ice on the Baltic Sea vanish. Although we had -10 °C this morning the sea was more or less open. Time for a slightly longer kayak tour in the afternoon under a blue sky enjoying the calm weather.
But still there is some ice shield attached to the coast. As the days before I push myself forward using ice spikes.
First the ice holds then I crash through. It takes me 10 minutes to cross 100 metres of ice until I reach open water. Yay!
I decide to paddle round the islands Obbolstenarna. There is hardly any ice left on the way there but at the eastern shore it still looks pretty wintry.
The western part of Obbolstenarna however looks like another season. Is winter over now? Anyhow, time to kayak home.
If you look carefully at the photo with the red bow of my kayak you see that the water is very smooth but with some crystal like structures. Let’s take a close look:
Despite of the sun air temperature is still below zero. Not only the sea water on the kayak freezes but new ice is also formed on the water surface. It is thin and fragile but so soft, that the smooth waves do not break it. An even closer photo (heavily edited):
Through this smooth though icy water I paddle back until I reach the ice edge again. I choose another place, take a run-up and paddle onto the ice. I’m lucky. This ice is more stable and I do not break through. I slide back to the shore. Meanwhile the sun is already low. I was slower than planned, because it took some time to take all these photos.
Kayak – 2nd try
Just one day later the situation has changed on the Baltic Sea with a lot of more open water than ice. So the kayak season was continued today.
No Kayaking, the ice is too thick
Three days ago I opened the kayak season in the open Baltic Sea. Since then the weather has become colder and the Baltic Sea has started to freeze over. I was in doubt, if I could find open water to paddle kayak or at least thin ice today, but at least I wanted to try.
I drag the kayak to the edge between old and new ice and then along the shore.
The ice between mainland and the islet Lillskär looks solid.
I push the kayak onto the ice and enter it. The ice holds.
I use ice spikes to push myself forward. Soon the ice is thinner and my kayak breaks into the ice. The paddle however is not made for chopping 2 cm of ice so I continue with the spikes.
A small patch of open water, then ice again. It is exhausting to push myself forward, especially when the ice breaks and there is nothing to push against. However there is another type of ice ahead, perhaps it is thinner.
No, it is not. For today I give up and return. Backwards, because in the small groove that I had cut into the ice with my kayak it is next to impossible to turn.
After some backing I reach the small open patch of water again. Now I can turn. It takes some momentum to “jump” onto the stable ice. After some more sliding on the stable ice I arrive home. On the weekend it probably gets warmer and, more important, windier. Maybe the wind will break the ice. Until that the paddle season is paused.
Back in Obbola – opening the kayak season
Friday
Two days ago Annika and I returned from our Finnmark and Finland journey. Just north of Umeå there was a low layer of strange clouds. Any of you who knows what kind of clouds this is?
Saturday
We are back home in Obbola in Sweden. The sky is clear and blue. In wintertime this often means that it can be pretty cold outside. Instead we had up to +8 or +9 °C. What a strange winter.
The wind is strong. The waves have already crushed the ice floes. In the afternoon the floating ice has been blown away into the open sea.
There is still some snow around but parts of the ground is free of snow. That‘s early for the season. And so is the arrival of the first whooper swans.
Sunday
The wind has calmed down and so have the waves. Time to fetch the kayak from the garage and open the kayak season. While there was not much of ice left at the shores of Obbola and the island Bredskär there was another highlight today: A 360°C halo round the sun.
Next week?
It looks like we expect colder temperatures, sun and calm weather. I hope, I have more opportunities to do some kayaking.
Short days in Obbola
17 December
Clouds are moving eastwards where they block the low hanging sun, but here and there the sun peeks through holes giving the whole thing a dramatic touch.
18 December
It is chilly and ice fog hovers over the sea. I take a promenade by the icy coast.
20 December
It is quite clear and not too windy at temperatures round -12 °C. Yesterday I dug out the kayak from the snow, today it is time to take a tour. It’s a short but a beautiful one.
After the tour the line for the kayak rudder was frozen. The kayak is a bit too large for taking it in so I had to improvise a bit. Well, it worked.
21 December (a.k.a. today)
Today is the day of winter solstice. We could see the sun rise at 09:25 while having a comfortable Sunday morning breakfast. Today’s motive: the rowan tree under which Annika and I got married in 2020, taken through the windows of our living room.
