Lofoten – Å – Oh!
Road nr.10 ends in Å on the southernmost part of Lofoten. An old fishing village with rorbuer and – fish.
And charm…
Many galleries, and flowers in the small gardens.
We had a great view from our hostel Salteriet.
Down the road we felt almost Chinese… I half expected an artist standing there, painting.
When we left in the early morning, the whole landscape felt dreamy and unreal.
Almost supernatural.
But that is what Lofoten does to people…
Lofoten – Going South, to Å
It takes a whole day to drive down from Narvik to Å, 380 kilometres, and you have to stop several times just to walk out in all that beauty…
Not far from Svolvær, we reached Kabelvåg, and stopped to admire the grand Lofoten Cathedral (1898) – all in wood – that takes impressive 1200 visitors. Very beautifully built, but in need of restoration and painting now.
Lofotr Viking Museum in Borg is the place where the grandest house ever from the Viking Era was found, and a copy of it was built in natural size.
As the roads grew more narrow and winding, the sun went behind the clouds and was mostly veiled in the soft fog. This, of course, sometimes made the landscape even more interesting.
Looking behind us, the clear skies were still there though.
Winding roads among the small islands, and
grass clad roofs everywhere. A landscape reminding of a Tolkien story.
Finally, after being mistaken several times – we reached Å, where we were going to spend the night. Meet more of Å in the next post!
Silent Sunday
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge: Blue
This week’s Lens-Artists host is Patti, and she challenges us to share our interpretation of blue—the color, the mood, or the time of day.”
My choices are from Kosta Boda Art Hotel in Sweden and in the header, the village Å in Lofoten, Norway.
Last year we spent a night here at the SPA-hotel, and marveled at the world famous artworks in every room. All of them for sale. No doubt my favorite was the glass bar, where Kjell Engman has designed and finished everything in blue glass.
Even the chairs…
For more information about participating in the lens-artists challenge, click here.
To see Patti’s BLUE challenge, click here.
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lens-artists. Be sure to include the hyphen and the final S !
Welcome!
Svolvær – Lofoten
Svolvær is the main town in Lofoten, and Northern Atlantic Cod fisheries, particularly during winter months, have remained one of the most important economical foundations for the town. Just west of Svolvær is Vågar – mentioned in the book Heimskringla, and might have been established as early as the year 800 AD.
We arrived rather late, and thunder was in the air the whole evening. This also made for an interesting walk in beautiful light and no winds.
The little town has about 5000 inhabitants, and many people were strolling the streets in the soft evening. The special light made all colours stand out – no need for enhancing anything. Natural beauty only.
The old – and new – little houses are called rorbuer. Rorbu is a traditional type of seasonal house used by fishermen. The buildings are built on land, but with the one end on poles in the water, allowing easy access to vessels. Today they are mostly used for tourist renting.
After sorting by quality, most of the stockfish is exported to Italy, Croatia and Nigeria. In Norway and Iceland, the stockfish is mostly used as a snack and for lutefisk production. In Italy, the fish (called stoccafisso) is soaked and used in various courses, and is viewed as a delicacy. The man working where we parked the car, told us that in Nigeria it has become the national dish!
When the clouds occasionally lifted, or there opened a rift in the skies, we could capture some very picturesque views.
Unfortunately, after this lovely walk, we had to say goodbye to Svolvær – still bathing in that special light that attracts many artists and galleries – and us – to Lofoten.
Thursday Thoughts – From Narvik to Svolvær
Narvik was developed as an all-year ice free port for the Swedish Kiruna and Gällivare iron mines. In my youth I was here once, but did not go further out to Lofoten. This time we also took the train to Riksgränsen and back again. We got an interesting view of the new bridge connecting islands – not finished yet.
Riksgränsen (the border to Sweden) – and as you can see there is no activity during summer – it seems. Abandoned cafées and all lifts still waiting for passengers.
Back in Narvik again I marvelled at the abundance of red clover overlooking the harbour. Flowers everywhere along the roads in Sweden and Norway – a wonder for me used to the brownish yellow burnt landscape at home.
We spent only a day here – then left for Lofoten and its beautiful, varied landscapes.
For the Swedish ”Fika” this first day, we found a lovely place with the sound of running water and a soothing mountain view.
Milo would have loved this place. Low water and easy to splash around and play.
The common butterwort grew on the banks of this little river – did you know this is a carnivorous plant? I didn’t before I looked it up in the flora.
Just before darkness, we arrived in Svolvaer – the main town in Lofoten – which will be in the next post!
Wordless Wednesday
CFFC: Pick a Topic From This Photo – Vintage Car
Leaving Abisko – for Norway and Lofoten
In the header is Lapporten (Swedish: ”The Lapponian Gate”) or Tjuonavagge (Northern Sami: Čuonjávággi, ”Goose Valley”). This is a U-shaped valley in Lapland in northern Sweden, and one of the most familiar and famous natural sights of the mountains there.
Driving towards the Norwegian border, we left lake Torne Träsk behind us heading for the coast and Narvik, Norway.
This is a rough, high mountain area with not that much vegetation. The Norwegians seem to love it and their cottages (No. ”Hytter”) are everywhere perched on the flat rocks.
Staying in your own hytte is in the Norwegian national soul just as our cottages are in the Swedish soul. They vary in standard from no water or electricity (the ”real thing”, according to many) to luxury houses.
The view was tightening, but we relished every minute of the chilly fog and the fresh air. Three months in a sauna is not my cup of tea.
Leya 
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