DAY 2 - 5
Day 2 - Off the road
What a beautiful day! I took a shortcut over the mountains instead of following the E69. It felt so good leaving the road, even though I felt a little insecure because of all the snow. My map skills were tested, and I did brilliantly!
I had no problem getting to the other side of the mountains, but it took me a while because I was constantly stopping to take photos. The view was breathtaking. I don’t think I’ve ever seen something like this before.
I always thought landscape photography was a bit dull, but when I look at my pictures now, I realize that they mean something to me.
So if you’re not a fan of landscape photos, try to imagine how it is to be on top of those mountains on a sunny afternoon when you look at my images, and maybe they can mean something to you too. It was quite magical, and I want to share that feeling with everyone :D
When I got to the other side, I found myself once again walking on asphalt. My feet weren’t too happy about that, and it did nothing to lift my spirit either. Especially because I knew that the next challenge would be a 7 km-long tunnel. I was wondering if I wanted to hitchhike or not.
This 63-year-old man had been biking from the Netherlands to The North Cape and now he was heading back to Amsterdam. "Chapeau!"
I decided not to. It was very challenging, both for my lungs and my slightly claustrophobic head. The last two kilometers were the worst, I had to bend down to breathe every 100 meters.
When I came out, I was on the mainland. It felt awesome! What was even better, was that I could leave the main road again, and head for the forest. Before I could put up my tent, however, I had to take off my shoes to cross a small river… COLD!
Yikes! 1 km to go!
I see the light at the end of the tunnel
Steps: 33830
Day 3 – Climbing mountains and crossing rivers
The sun kept shining for me today, and I was very grateful for it, because it was an emotional day.
I started the day by walking in the wrong direction, so I had to turn back and try again. I had to cross a river, which I found quite challenging. After that, it was a steep climb up the mountain side. The view on top was breathtaking!
I had to cross four more rivers and climb another mountain before I came to Auster Lafjorden. A beautiful place, but the huge river in my path, made me forget everything else.
I suddenly felt very afraid and I started to cry. I think it was because I was so exhausted that it became very overwhelming. But I got across quite safely and the hike could continue.
I’m pushing myself out of my comfort zone and it’s interesting to see how I react when I know the option is to carry on or go back.
I had spent almost six hours on 10 km. Living in Denmark has taken its toll on me because I was struggling with every hill. I kept walking for another three hours until I ended up on a little beach by Austerbotnen in Kobbefjorden.
A hard day, but a nice day.
Steps: 31779
Day 4 - Up, up, up we go
I got up at 6 A.M. to a beautiful sunny morning. I packed up my gear and went down to the beach to wash my cooking gear. While I was sitting there scrubbing, a friendly and curious man in a boat approached me. I told him that I thought the surroundings were extremely beautiful. His reply was “ka som e så vakkert her da, det e nå bare steina” (what’s so beautiful about this place, it’s only rock and stone)
Before he left, he gave me a weather report. Supposedly, I was going to have warm and nice weather today and tomorrow, but it was going to get colder after that.
The path I’m walking on is marked up by the Norwegian Trekking Association (DNT) with stones painted with a red T along the way, so it’s quite easy to follow. Up the mountain, however, there was a reindeer fence blocking the path. So for a while, I had to use the map to orientate myself in the right direction. I felt lost without the beautiful red T’s I’d really started to love and rely upon, so when I saw them again, I was both relieved and happy I had managed to find the way on my own.
After 10 hours of walking, I found a cosy spot to put my tent up, and I slept like a baby!
Steps: 32761
Day 5 - Dramatic Afternoon
The rivers I have crossed so far, have only gotten stronger (probably because the snow is melting. And today, it got too strong for me.
I was standing in the water, taking one step at a time, thinking that I was going to make it. But when I turned to look upstream, I saw three pieces of ice floating toward me. The two smaller pieces I was able to push aside, the third one, I underestimated, and just like Titanic, I went down. It hit me hard behind my legs and I tumbled down the river.
That was the first time in my life I thought I was going to die. Maybe I'm being very dramatic, but I was terrified. But at the same time, I knew: not now, not like this.
I was able to grab onto a rock and turn around so that I was standing on all four. I shouted to myself “GET UP!” and with the greatest effort, I managed to straighten up. And with that heavy backpack on, I'm sure there were shitloads of adrenaline pumping through my veins at that time.
I could no longer feel the cold, even though I was drenched in ice-cold water. I stood there for a while, contemplating my next move.
Bruised, wet, and tired I arrived at the other side of the river. I was screaming and crying, realizing what had just happened. With no chance of help or rescue, it was truly terrifying.
After rinsing my legs and checking that everything was ok in my backpack (almost everything was miraculously dry!) I walked up the hill, and on top was the cabin I was longing to get to. What a welcoming sight.
Here I could make myself some food and dry of my wet things in the sun.
After the dramatic episode, I walked for another 7 hours, so the total amount of hours that day was 13. Too much, man.
I arrived Olderfjord Camping at 11 pm. Finally I had signal on my phone, so I could call my boyfriend, my family and answer everyone who had been worried since they couldn’t reach me.
Swollen and beat up, I could finally sleep.
Steps: 46207
