TF4

Starting our trip from Oslo, we drove 1738km through southern part of Norway. On our journey we were flabbergasted by the nature. Learned many things about our equipment, on how to conduct such a voyage and about ourselves.

We got to enjoy our freedom of choice, where to drive, what to watch, where to sleep. The Time was just numbers on a background, a 3 hour drive felt like minutes, such an indescribable feeling. Quite what we wanted – escape our everyday life.

Have a pleasent time, scrolling through the happiest time of my life, so far.

We started our journey on vienna airport. Norwegian Airways to Oslo. Upon arriving at the security check I had a suprise for my travel companion.
My hair was colored for the trip (for the first time in my life). Theme: Norway + extras.

Design by Katja Rab

Contrary to all my past flights (mostly RyanAir due to budget reasons), the flight was dispatched way faster then we were used to. 10 minutes before takeoff, we casually strolled towards the gate and saw the slightly nervious steward. We were the last guests entering the plane. Well thats quite a start.

Oslo

5 and a half years after our last visit, it was quite astonishing how different it looked like comparing to the city in winter. Wandering through the city, enjoying the sun and revisiting places. Calming start to what was lying ahead of us.

“Pro” tipp: enjoy “Thors hammer” coffee at Kaffeebrenneriet. Black coffee with 2 shots of espresso.

THE START

Fetching our rental car from Hertz and off we go on the road to our first stop – Biltema Baerum. Buying camping stuff – camping stove, etc. But no cutlery – we had none with us, just knifes. Next brillant idea while getting food at Rema 1000 – we bought wooden forks and spoons. More to that later…

No specific target in our mind, driving in direction of Kristiansand, playlist on shuffle, singing along as if it didn‘t sound awful.

Mølen

Spontaneous stop #1. Presenting my head to the world (more accurate instagram). Breathing the marine air for the first time and bothering my partner trying to jump 2 meters between some big rocks for a fine picture

Incredibly beautiful destination to spend the whole afternoon with friends or family playing games, snacking – having a good time.

Arendal

Ever heard of Arendelle? The Kingdom of the Disney movie Frozen, which I didn’t know. They took inspiration from norway and we were guests of the eponym. Charming modest port town with a neat view from Glassheisen.

After that, at about 5pm, we started our mission for Camp No.1. Target was Saltviga beach at Justøy.

CAMP No.1

Upon arriving at the destination, we unfortunately found exactly what we thought, but not what we hoped for. On the little parking space, only one spot was free, so we weren’t alone. Well not quite surprising for a saturday evening on a easy to locate camping spot. First of all we were exploring possible places to stay the night, because we didn’t want to camp next to 3 other groups at the beach. Thus we went down the shore. Since it wasn’t all too big we set a timelimit of 15 minutes to find the right space. 2 people, 2 different approaches. Seife found the first one, deemed “not that nice”. So we went further until we found it. Perfect. Only some already cut branches we had to get rid of, beneath some bushes, a bit protection from rain.

After getting back from our victorious hunt we packed our bags, food, water, sleeping bags and tent. Not to forget we had nearly every clothing piece with us in the backpack weighing about 20 kilograms. Yeah we didn’t know it better.

Setting our camp up the first time. At the beginning the tent, sleeping pad and bag, then food. Oh we were hungry. What we had? Spaghetti with pesto. Callback – we had wooden forks. Yes that was a big mistake. Learning. Oh and we had to cook a second portion of spaghetti because our pot was too small.

While the water was cooking, I gathered wood for fire, fortunately I could use the cut branches from before. I had a firestarter with me, but I was lazy and took the lighter we bought in the morning. Making a nice fire requires some work. With not enough collected wood, it was a small one just to celebrate our first day. It ended with a smooth whiskey under the light of the stars before getting in the tent.

Kristiansand

What to do on a rainy sunday morning in southern Norway? Visit Kristiansand, because it was close. The city was deserted, no cars, no people, so we just went and check out a, what we thought, small fortress. Although the cannons were still there, we noticed it was converted into a event site. Would be nice for a wedding with a honeymoon departure by a boat. Furthermore we saw some “Jesuspigeons” walking on water, as well as finally some life. There was a big spa. Everyone was there, except us, it was too luxurious. Mood was set on nature.

Mandal

Oh what an idea. Thats how you, ok at least me, expect a little norwegian town. everywhere is water, small wooden houses everywhere, everyone has boats.

Now we had to catch up on our breakfast. Oh what a meal is was, bread, a salami and a paprika for 2 people, delicious. Afterwards, we had to get those calories out again, so some push ups, pull ups and sit ups were our trainings regime. Where? At the beach of course, nearly “perfect” conditions. To be honest, on the long run, our challenge to do atleast 20 push and sit ups a day, was a really good idea. Physically and psychologically. Enjoy the images.

I will never forget what happend next, we took the most beautiful path I could’ve imagined for this whole trip. Foggy, rainy, windy. Usually not the attributes for a perfect day, but this time it was the ultimate experience.

Route 44

Starting from Mandal, it was cloudy but clear. Kilometer by kilometer the rain became heavier and fog started to intesify. We began to make stops along the way, because the nature was just too beautiful just to drive through. Keep in mind, we had no certain target.

It looked like this nearly the whole first part of the drive. I cannot stress how impressive the ride was. I was lucky Seife found on some random blog (probably bit of a reason why I also do this now) which road we should take. Route 44. Driving the E39 to Flekkefjord and then turning in on 44 through Åna-Sira. Best idea of the whole week. By far.

Flabbergasted. Astonished. Amazed. Stunned. Overwhelmed. Whatever adjectives you want, I was simply speechless. Looking out of the windows, mouth open, no clear thought in my mind. It was like being in a football stadium for the first time again, first time Champions League. I just couldn’t comprehend this situation.
If you are in this area sometime in your life – YOU HAVE TO TAKE ROUTE 44 FROM FLEKKEFJORD TO EGERSUND.

After the most scenic drive imaginable, F*CK, where should we camp? After about 570km in two days, we came further than we thought and started thinking about our big targets Preikestolen, Kjeragbolten and last but not least Trolltunga. The 3 major touristic attractions in this area. Since Stavanger was pretty near, we were already around Vigrestad, it became another option. So the requirements were clear. Next to lake or fjord. Near Stavanger and not to far away from preikestolen. Parking spot preferably in sight of the camp, because the next day will be exhausting.

After some misinterpretations of the landscape with Google Maps satellite images, we found a spot just by looking out of the window trying to reach another place.

Camp No. 2

Directly next to a parking area, but not too near that the feeling is gone, we found the perfect place for the night. Small lake, much space for our tent, also this space could perfectly be used for a bigger group. Since we had our camp 1,5 hours earlier than yesterday, we had more time to explore.

So we went straight up the hill, until I found a little climbing spot that I wanted to try. Seife went a different path and found something surprising. No climbing shoes, everything wet, not the best conditions. But it was fun, although there was a short point where I felt not that safe. Around 3 meters up.

Anecdote from the night: Packing all things together, preparing for the night, we snuggled ourselves in the sleeping bags. As the eyes got heavy and the heart slow, just when I was falling asleep. I heard it. Something’s there. In front our tent. Breathing, strolling, sniffing for food. At first I tried to ignore is and let it walk away. But it smelled us, tried to open our tent. I was shitscared and grabbed my knife. Sneaking a peak in our awning, there was a paw, a big one. Mouth and nose came close. I knew what was happening next, as I opened the insect net.
Haha just kidding. There was something, yet I didn’t see anything. The only proof we had was a fish that was lying on the beach the day before, which was missing after the night. Was still a bit frightening when you see nothing, but hear it.

So we had a cup of tea in the morning and went an to Stavanger.

Stavanger

Before entering the City center, breakfast was needed. Next to Hafrsfjord. Always rocking my Manchester United cap. Oh and yes, Bread with leverpostei and a paprika, plus blueberries as a snack. On the plus side, we accidently found Svert i Fjell. A gigantic monument of 3 swords.

Stavanger, third biggest city in norway, only behind Bergen and of course Oslo. As well as pretty old, emerging in the 12th centory. Yes I googled that. What was in the port of that city? A gigantic cruise ship. Nearly bigger than the city itself. Georgous narrow alleys. Everyone, everywhere paying by card. That’s the dream. How often was I frustrated in austria, in vienna (!) and you it was cash only. Even at the small market, everyone accepted cards. Refreshing.

Preikestolen

Time for the first big one. After the 24km tunnel after Stavanger we arrived at Preikestolen parking at half past 1. Standard procedure. Pack our bags, camping stuff, food and most important water. Target 604m above sea level.

500 meters after the start, Seife noticed he forgot the drone. A short wait and we went along. The opening part was next to the street until finally back in the woods. Around 300 000 visit Preikestolen every year. It was pretty obvious. The path was a maximum of 5% unchanged, big stones, small stones, even rocks were put there. Hiking boots, pants, merino shirts and big backpacks. That’s how we lucked. Next to us sneacker, jeans and branded shirts. Alright, it’s a difference if you want to camp there or just visit.

Every 50 meters a guide post had the distance in both directions on it. After 3,8km of magnificent nature and 2 hours of effort we finally reached our first big milestone. Weather was a dream. Nearly no clouds, no wind, but of course many people. Gathering to take pictures directly at the abyss. We were 2 of these.

Camp No. 3

After enjoying the view and the knowledge we are finally here. On our trip we planned and delayed for 3 years. What a feeling. We started searching for a camp on a big mountain ledge a bit down from the attraction. Since Seife was realllllly tired and I wasn’t pleased with our camping spot on the upper part – the camp expedition began. Running around the mountain, I felt like a 8 years old again. Living my dream. Luckily the network coverage was fine, so I sent my mate some spots and after 20 min we had our winner. Right after us there were one other group looking for a place to stay. My head immediatly switched to competition mode – we had to secure the place before them. No matter what. Finally there, setting camp up, eating, making ready for the evening. One big part of the day came up. Or down. Pooping. While trying to find a nice place, I saw the ideal spot for the camp, that I somehow overlook before. The poop had to wait, we were resettling first.

Now was the time to play with the drone. What a view up there. It felt like flying myself up there. All I wanted, it was here. Flying up and down, from left to right, suddenly the image got stuck, connection was lost between drone and the remote control. Did I just lose the drone? Seife thought it was a joke, but it wasn’t. I panicked. Is it down there a few hundred meters? Going down there, at this time, bad idea. Suddenly the remote blinked and the image was back up again. I nearly shat myself if I hadn’t got it back again. Those things are pretty idiot-proof.

What we really underestimated are those tons of f*cking bugs humming all over you. Autan where were you when we needed you the most. Due to the rainy weather the day before, fire was nearly impossible. Everything was drained with water. Last solution to get rid of them was pure ignorance of the situation. Which didn’t really work at all. Whining on a high level.

Change of plans. Kjeragbolten was out of reach. The day left its marks on our bodies, although not that of a bad shape. wearing 20 kilograms up a hill takes its toll. Furthermore we had a strict plan. Bergen was the target on day 7 and it was not worth the stress, getting earlier up as we wanted, to run down 2 hours, drive 3 more and hike another 6 on already tired legs, with another 5 hour hike on its way. Not to forget that we had to get down from Kjeragbolten as well. At least we have a cause to get back here and finish what we started in the next years.

As always a pretty cloudy morning at 6 am. Waking up before the first sun rays as usual. A bit sore, but we earned that. Since our worst enemies were flying all around us again. Yeah we were pretty stinky I get it. Breakfast was postponed again and we headed downwards. Surprising how many people were already on Preikestolen and on their way up. We met some nice people going down, some really loved the idea of camping up there, others were just stunned when we told them.

Back at the car, bags were tucked away and we had to clean ourselves a bit in the public bathroom. Pro tip, usually you buy your parking ticket when you arrive for the time you plan to park there. I simply forgot and bought it the next day in the morning, because you needed the QR-Code on the receipt to get out through the barriers. Saved 50 euros.

Next up the first ferry. It’s awesomely easy with a rental car, you have nothing to do, the ferry company passes the info that you were on it and the rental company charges you automatically. Considering the 2 hours diversion without the ferry, the costs didn’t really bother us, couldn’t be that high. For 20-40 mins about 15 to 20 euros. Worth it.

Breakfast on the way in Tau, at a small port. Again Leverpostei for the win.

Our only target of the day was a chill camp. Another unbelievable scenic ride and 5 hours after the drive started. We arrived our first potential stay. At the Åkrafjord, Parking spot Grønavika. The road we had to take to get there was rather old I’d say. It had a special flair, thousands of cracks, old tunnels, road markings nearly invisible. Recommendation.

Off to option 2. Target Rullestadvatnet. First we thought near the hydropower plant was an option. Beach, some boats we could borrow for some ours and enough water, unfortunately it was waaaayy to loud. Two waterfalls plus a creek delta made it impossible. Luckily we found a place straight across the lake. Parked our car and went up there. With some tiny little frustrations, due to my bad mood after being tired and hungry all day. Thank you Seife for finding the camping spot.

Camp No. 4

Socks? Wet. Did I have a second pair with me? No. Why, you ask? Lighter backpack after the hike yesterday. Essentials should be on us everytime? Yes absolutely. Learned. Food? Oh were we hungry. Our meal? Tomatosoup with a whole pack of crispbread and canned spaghetti with little sausages as well as meatballs. Not that of a fine dining experience, nonetheless it was all we needed.

Day 6

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Coldest. Night. Of. The. Whole. Trip. Additionally just wet socks. Sucks. Doesn’t help, we have a big plan today. Trolltunga. Short stop at Låtefoss.

The first target we had 4 years ago. A trolls tongue. Two hour drive to the parking area. It was packed at 9:30. Parking cost for 2 days 75€. 15€ pP Shuttle bus to save 400m altidude hike along 4 to 5 kilometers. Rest assured we had still 10 ahead.

The hike begins pretty steep, in the first 2 and a halb kilometers you climb about 350 meters up. It took us an hour, but from this point on it was way easier. So further 8 km, of enjoying the perfect weather on 1100m altitude. Looking down on Ringedalsvatnet.

What really got to me is that we could see the  three plateau glaciers of Folgefonna national-park which reach from 400m to 1662m over sea level. Breathtaking.

Luckily it wasn’t as crowded as Preikestolen, but we still got stopped by some strangers, because they needed help. One of them had some blisters and they asked us because they waited for people with “big backpacks”, since “surely have everything you need” with us. Frankly it was a big boost, getting to help someone. Also due to the fact that we didn’t any of the our patches and it felt useless to take them with us.

After postposing our lunch break we finally had to after nearly 3,5 hours. Surprise it was bread with leverpostei and a paprika. Standard meal. During our small feast, we noticed one guy taking a swift swim in 5 degree water. Chilly.

About 10 minutes walk after the break spot, we eventually arrived.

Did we plan to make a picture at the top? Maybe. Did we do it? No. Why? Not waiting 30 minutes for a stupid picture. Fortunately I could snap one without anyone standing on Trolltunga.

In the end we did it. We are at Trolltunga. Perfect weather. No wind. It was a dream day. I could have stayed there for weeks. It was a dream come true. Years of planning and waiting.

Soooo yeah, 4 hours up the hill, do we want to go down 4 hours the next day again? No. So we went back around 1,5 hours to find the best spot even possible.
Over 30 000 steps. Proud.

Camp No. 5

Look at this. Wow, just wow.

Day 7

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Oh and the morning wasn’t shabby as well.

From 18:00 to 8:00 in the morning. There was complete silence. We were alone. The nightsky was simply sublime. 2 hours hiking down, filling our empty bottles with fresh mountain water. Grasping a last second selfie. Shuttle down also costs about 10€ pP. Now it’s of to civilization again.

On the way down we drove past a artificial football pitch, I instantly had the urge to play, but my knees were done from descent. After the biggest planned parts, we were really exhausted, we really longed for a shower. Onto another ferry, passed further beautiful lakes, fjords, waterfalls and landscapes. For example the Fossen Bratte or the Samnangerfjorden.

4 hours after starting from Skjeggedal (Trolltunga parking spot), we finally arrived in Bergen. From a tent to the Hotel Norge by Scandic, the transition was hard. I felt so filthy walking in there, dirty, stinking like hell, next to me everyone suit up. Additionally there was som EY event, yeah felt “great”. Recepionist probably liked to talk some other clientele, helped and recommended me everything. Smiled at me, and frowned at everybody else, maybe she found my hair funny, but it was a pretty great encounter.

What to do for 1 hour waiting for the newest crew member to arrive? Correct, spa and sauna. 20€ pP for 1,5 hours, for a 10x3m pool and a small sauna was exorbitant, to say the least. Although it was worth it to welcome our friend in bathrobes.

After getting fresh for the first time in 5 days, we were chatting about the holiday until this day and what we want to do further on, now that we are 3. Strolling trough the beautiful Bergen, which is in fact the model for Arendelle from Frozen. Enjoying the beautiful smells of the fish market, getting some souvenirs for friends and family. Special tip: whale sausage! Paired with raindeer and elksausage. Locally produced and tastes surprisingly good. Especially whale was tremendous, way better than the whalesteak from day 1. Could probably be from the 50% pork, but who cares. It’s an awesome present.

After that we got in some pub for food and drinks. Beer obviously, altough 10€ per glass and how could it be otherwise: fish. Surprisingly they didn’t have salmon, but it was so delicious. I cannot remeber anymore, which fish it was, but get a grasp from those pictures.

Furthermore we sat down in another pub, drinking mojitos for 14€ a piece, which got us drink way too fast after that trip the last days, so we ended the night early to have enough energy for the next day.

Oh and thats our view from the hotel room:

Day 8

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Sleeping in a real bed instead of the sleeping mat, hotel room against a tent. Well it just felt strange, let’s say the wilderness called for me. But, there were still some things to explore in Bergen. For example the Fløyen. It’s a hill next to the city, with a staggering view. The Fløibahn (16€ pP) takes you up in 6 minutes, and also down if you’d like.

During our last stroll through the town, we made a great discovery. Outland Bergen. I don’t really know how to describe it, not exactly a Toy Store, but with much more. Toys, card games, board games, books and on and on. My special catch were Harry Potter themed playing cards as a present for my brother. Amazing store, if I am in Bergen again, it’s a safe stop.

After Bergen, the target was Undredal, because we wanted to rent kayaks and explore a fjord directly from the water. Since it was a 3 hour drive and we had to buy some stuff (food and fishing equipment), the decision was to have 2 camps before kayaking, one on the way and one within a walking distance to Undredal.

Along the way we could enjoy the astonishing nature of Norway. Since it was the first real day for Pierre, we were eager to show him how beautiful it really is here. We told him there is a waterfall every few minutes. After driving for about an hour and a half, we had seen top class bridges, unbelievable lakes and fjords, but funnily enough no waterfall, fortunately this changed the next days.

It was camptime again. Where? We needed space for our tent, and trees for Pierres hammock. Our new technique, searching for a camping site and looking for a nice place not to far from us worked. BUT it was not that easy, after looking for a few places, we decided our luck at Mestad Camping. There we met some people from Dresden, who were staying there. We exchanged tips where to drive and what to explore in Norway. And they thankfully kept an eye on our car, which we parked on the camping site, because there was no other place along this small street, called Teigdalsvegen.

Camp No. 6

It was really strange, everywhere you could to see what the storm and flood has caused. Fallen trees and mud everywhere. So we went directly next to a river, sure, good idea.

Left, our spot. Right, how I looked like while searching.

Time lapse of setting up our camp:

That’s the endproduct.

After setting up tent and hammock, it was time to eat and play a little bit with the drone as well as fishing, which went, how to say it nice, in need of improvement. Nevertheless for the first time, it went definitly disastrous.

Later we wanted to have a chill fire and started gathering wood. It was quite hard, because everything was wet as fuck. Holy. Basically we made a wild hunt on brushwood and dead wood which you couldn’t wring out just by looking at it. Furthermore to keep it lit, was a big task, I think the last piece of wood was picked at nearly 11pm, with near to none pause in between. Pierre keeping it alive, Seife and me collected like crazy. At least it worked in the end. Hard work pays off.

We could even make hot chocolate! Cocoa poweder, water and most important – milk powder. Oh man and how great it was. Haven’t stop thinking about it, even until now.

This night sky is presented to you by my phone and many special effects, because otherwise it would be just black.

Day 9

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What’s better: sleeping with wet socks or completely without socks? Yeah, both sucks real bad. Shit it cold. However it’s my own fault for believing I can walk on water. My shoes were still, or even more, soaked. Only solution was a new fire to dry them. Luckily we had still so much wood so we didn’t have to look for more. Next was a short drone session to show Pierre how it works and letting him try for himself and packing our stuff getting back to the car.

Without breakfest, just hot chocolate, we went along. Bought some food in the next small town and had a sit at the lake. Saw some guys on kanus or kayaks, still always forget what’s what, but who cares. Ate some delicious vanilla filled “cakes”, discussing where to camp next.

Cracking up about everything, we had a really good time and everything was just extremly funny. Look for yourself:

From funny to mindblown. Even after 9 days, every now kilometer had something else. I really fell in love with it. Sometimes 12 days felt way to short to even get a sniff of this nature.

Do you want to know what we did during the whole drive?
See for youself 😉

Arriving at Undredal, bagpacks being packed, a new friend was met (goat) and our tale to Stokko could begin.
2.5km along a fjord. Rough terrain. Grass, earth, stones, creeks. It had a bit of everything, some say it felt like lord of the rings. It was a bit mystical. GoPro on my head, walking through. 10 minutes in, it was annoying so I put it away in my pocket. 10 mins further I wanted to film again. No it was gone. I haven’t even noticed it. SHIT. Okay bagpack down and I started sprinting back. 2-3 spots were I can possibly lost it, there were big steps down, where I took a jump. Spot 1 – nothing. Spot 2 – same. Spot 3 – about 20-30 meters after I stopped filming I finally found it. It was half the way back. To keep up with the boys I had to run back, yes I filmed it again, to at least have a video if I lose it again.

Camp No. 7

Reaching the target, we saw, there are no trees, a cosy night in the tent layed ahead of us. Suddenly a man and a woman, who where here with their kayaks, gave us each of us a pancake with jam heartshaped on it. It was so unimaginably good.

After this delicious snack, we had our first feast of the day. We tried 3 camping food bags. Mashed potatos, chili and beef stew (biffgryte by turmat). Biffgryte smashed the other 2 by a mile. Oh it was really good, but for impatient guys, hot.

Not to forget, since Stokko was a public camping site, there was an outhouse or shithouse (tepends on how you like it best). Stinks horrible, nonetheless the view outshines it.

With this whole new energy, we finally wanted to start fishing. First throw, wobblers gone. Bye bye have a good life. Second throw, wobbler stuck in seaweed. Third throw? Wasn’t happening until the second wobbler was brought back. So we hopped into the water to, first swim in the fjord (milestone check) and second retrieve the wobbler, but without success. While trying to stretch the string to see where it was stuck, it broke and the wobbler was gone. That’s it for today – so we made fire.

What shouldn’t be forgotten, was our second dinner. We made a stew. Potatoes, sausages, paprika and so on. It was what I thought of the whole trip. Even though the guys weren’t really fond of the idea in the beginning, I think they really enjoyed it, since it was unsurpringly delicious. Well nurished, we could enjoy the fire by the fjord, have a little drink and just have a genuinely great time.

Good night!

Ahhhhh what a cozy night. Three guys in a tent for two. For the others it was hot as hell but for me it was perfect, maybe because somehow my sleeping pad slipped away and I slept on the chilly ground. So how’s the plan with kayaking you ask? Well the weather thwarted our plans. We got up really early to escape the strom, packed our bags, no breakfast. During the final touches on our stuff, it slowly started to drizzle. Here is a short clip of our thoughts.

Perfect timing, as we put all our stuff in the (now really revolting smelly) car hell went loose behind the lights. We just tried to escape and had an adventurous day, which we didn’t expect.

Steinbergdalshytta. Steinbergdalshytta. STEINBERGDALSHYTTA. One more time.
Steinbergdalshytta. (4 times the charm, if you know ;))

You will not believe it. Striving for a little café or some little hut where we could have cup of tea or coffee, have little snack and being honest, having a brutal shit. We found heaven, and it’s name was, yeah you guessed it, Steinbergdalshytta. Shoes off, breakfast only till 10am, it’s 11am, f*ck. To our disbelief the boss came and brought us waffles with jam and cream, also coffee/tea. She was everything we needed right now. Heaven on earth. We had to leave a note in the guestbook.

After this unspeekable beautiful experience, the first thing we saw was a cow. On the street, crossing it truly slow. Bastard did it on purpose.

Ten minutes later the road was finally free and we drove along. What happened next wasn’t planned. As we were still determined to show Pierre a big waterfall, we stopped at Thomas Meier Foss. Oh that was a good one. First we saw the big one.

Since it was just a few minutes away from our car, we thought “let’s go on further”. And we went, and went, didn’t stop, always further up the mountain to get to the route of this fall. Up a big plateau, along the river. It was starting to get really windy, in the meantime we forgot the time and were already two hours on the hike. Until our ultimate goal – snow. We saw snow and the kids inside us were screaming – GO TO THE SNOW, ME WANNA GO TO SNOW, NOW. We did. 😀

After the snowy adventure, we had to go back. I would’ve like to film more, but my GoPro battery was flat. I did not think about that this could be a longer walk. In the end, it was so f*cking worthy. Unbelievable nature, every 100-200 meters another waterfall. There was also a little hut on the plateau. No we didn’t enter it. Yes we tried, but didn’t want destroy it even in the slightest. If we had our stuff with us, I couldn’t have guaranteed that. It was called Spennhytta. Next time I would make a camp there. For sure. Oh and I finally got to take a picture of a moose warning sign. I love it. 😀

Over three hours later, back at the car the target was clear. Where do we sleep? It’s nearly 4 o’clock, there would be not much time to find one, but one thing really scared us. The weather forecast. We fled from the storm in Undredal and weren’t really looking forward for a wet morning. To be honest, the other guys had to convince me not to sleep in the tent, because of this. I wanted to sleep every given moment outdoors, somewhere at a river, in the woods, by a lake, whatever. In the end, we opted for a cottage. €240/night. Space up to 6 people. Whirlpool. Sauna. Or a shower. I even thought about sleeping outdoors in the tent. There are many such houses at Torsetlia.

While searching for a place to camp on google maps, I found something. But it took me a while to fully grasp it. It was Vikersund. The largest ski jumping hill of the world. The record held by a fellow austrian Stefan Kraft for 253,5 meters on 18th of march in 2017. Still standing today. I had to go there. Had we been a day earlier, we even could’ve used the zipline, if we were a day ealier. They even had a beachvolleyball field in the run out.

But we were able to eat our lunch on the hill. Can’t imagine flying done here.

Later the search for camp 8 continues. Although we knew the we were now in the area which was impacted the most from the severe weather in august, nature made us painfully clear what consequences this can cause. The next few attempts were cut short because of the high water level.

Trees, bushes, the whole coastline under water. Everything wet. It was really hard to find a good spot at Tyrifjorden.

On the half an our drive from Vikersund to our camp in the end. We stopped numerous times and had the same result as seen above. I nearly gave up hope that we have a nice last camp. But inbetween that we had another pretty nice encounter with a cow. Or should I say cows?

We were stuck at least ten minutes, because the black leader cow, was always drifting to the left and therefore the flock was blocking the whole road. After atleast five furthe cows passing us left and right, I finally had a short timeframe to overtake them and we could go on searching. Finally at a lake, we hopped over a fence and checked the tiny peninsula, which was really great.

Camp No. 7

Classic tasks, setting up the camp, eat, fly the drone, read a book and try to fish. This time it worked. We didn’t catch anything but we do you no what we also didn’t? Lose a wobbler, entangled the fishing rod, hurt ouselves while trying. Pierre even taught me how to do it. I’m proper ass, but at least I tried. Not to forget it took us too much time to find worms as fishing bait. As we found one worm we put it in a bag to look for further ones. Yeah it f*cking outclued us and fled. Hasn’t even got a brain and still got away.

Well without a fish we sat around the fire, from the wood we took away at the cottage in the morning and had a perfect last night in the woods.

The last fishing attempt. Again no fish. Next time.

It was the final time to pack the tent, clear our camp, leaving no trash behind, as always and getting back to Oslo. A short stop was needed.

Holmenkollen.
The first time I was in Oslo, I had no time to visit it in the end, but this time is was a checkpoint we hat to tick. Architectural masterpiece. No word else needed. Grateful.

Since it was pretty early we still had time to waste until we could check in the Airbnb for the last time. So we strolled through the city, as it was Pierres first time in Oslo. We ended at Burger King to complete the trip. Oh and a stop at the Oslo musuem was a must and the weather could’nt have been better.

After getting our things to the Airbnb we started the last evening in the north. First we started to have dinner at Kafé Celsius, recommended, then we tried to find nice bar and maybe have a good night out. But it’s tuesday, we asked many people our age but nearly impossible to find anything proper. So we sat in an Irish pub and watched Norway beat Georgia 2-1. Haaland and Odegaard. Good reminder that we drove through Haalands hometown and there a house with a big Manchester United flag waving through the wind. Nice. So after some beers and mojitos talking and joking about the last two weeks, realising what we experienced. Even planning what we want to do next.

I can’t stress what this 13 days meant to me. Finally after 3 years we did it. Thankfully with two great buddies, hopefully we’ll have a sequel.

Thank you guys, loved every second.