BRIAN REID PHOTOGRAPHER
Forde to Voss - A gentle meander along Sognefjord
After yesterday’s long time on the road I was happy to have a short day and in fact dropped a possible site from my plan and just let myself meander over the mountains to Sognefjord. With it being only a 200 km (125 miles) drive I had the freedom to make plenty of stops. For most of the time I had the road to myself so could just pull over when the fancy took me. I generally drive at or just below...
Molde to Forde via Alesund and Geiranger Fjord
Today was going to be a long day despite there only being two major visit locations but it turned out longer than expected. Google maps forgot about one of the two ferries, the roads were very twisty up and down mountains in places and there were plenty of coaches and camper vans to keep me company. That said it was an incredible drive after the loop out to Alesund. I can see why Alesund is popular...
Trondheim to Molde
Sometimes unexpected things occur along the way, often a surprise spectacle or wildife encounter but today it was my destination, the Scandic Alexandra Molde. I could see from my plan it was close to the Coast of Fannefjord but what I did not expect was a balcony with panoramic view of the ferries coming and going with a backdrop of fresh snow on the mountains opposite. After dinner I had a ferry...
Hurtigruten Day 2 - Svolvaer to Rorvik
The title is not strictly accurate again as it will be dark and I’ll have just finished dinner when we get to Rorvik and then it is overnight to Trondheim. As yesterday, I have provided a map to help orientate readers and to give a sense of scale to the journey today, about 560km as the crow flies and we were not in a straight line. When I woke up there was noticeable movement in the ship and opening...
Hurtigruten Day 1 - Tromso to Svolvaer
The title is not strictly accurate as we have just arrived at our final port for the day at Stamsund but it is dark and I am ready for bed so “Nothing to see here”. In fact we are actually pretty close to Leknes where I stayed so the terrain is known. I have added a simplified map of the stops along the way today and the photographs are grouped between ports, as it were. Getting on the ferry in Tromso...
Tromso - A Sunny Day in the Arctic
What a beautiful day to be out and about in Tromso. It is a compact city basically on an island which can be easily seen from the Fjellheisen, the cable car ride to a hill opposite the city and on the Eastern side so great light for photography. It was pleasingly quiet as most people seemed to walk over the bridge from the town whereas I took the lazy way and used the free parking under 10 minutes...
Leknes to Tromso
Today has been a driving day with 493 km to travel from Leknes on the Lofoten Islands to Tromso almost 70 degrees north and the furthest I will go on this trip. I generally avoid traveling along a road in both directions, at least for journeys of a decent length, but I had no option today. There is only one road on to the islands and therefore only one road back. In today’s case there was a silver...
The Lofoten Islands
Let me start by saying I now understand the attraction of the Lofoten Islands and I also feel I came here 40 years to late. I say this because much of the attraction is clearly hiking up some of the steep mountains opening up the dramatic views which draws people but on the short climb I took I saw no-one less than 30 years younger than me. It is also the case that these places are now “destinations”....
Narvik to Leknes (Lofoten)
I hear myself say that I will not complain about the weather and as a general rule I do not. Then it comes to visiting Lofoten which, I'm told, has some of the most spectacular scenery, not just in Norway but in the world. To enjoy scenery you actually need to see it. There were still vestiges of low cloud hanging around Narvik is I headed, essentially, west with a lot of wiggles around fjords. The...
Fauske to Narvik and the Rains Came
The forecast said “A chance of rain”. Really, a chance. How about all day although it stopped as I arrived in Narvik. Today was one of those gentle days with not too much distance and time to plan a few stops. Some were purely roadside or short detours and all were worth spending the effort. Following the main highway north, the E6, has become the norm. It is not a motorway but a well graded A road,...