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Where's Mike? Section One: Departure through Scandinavia
1/July/05
Cle Elum WA, USA--Radio Shack: Whew! After almost six years of living in, and loving, Seattle...I'm outta here! Yesterday, June 30th, 2005, I packed up what remained in my Capital Hill apartment and drove away. I shall remain in couch surfing mode for about ten days prior to my flight into Copenhagen and beyond.
After several one to three week trips, I had been contemplating an extended European road trip for quite a while, and this summer everything has lined up perfectly. For the past month I had been selling, loaning, storing or tossing every possession I would not need for a European car camping trip.
Initially, I had only considered some sort of VW Bus, or other small motor home, for a trip of this anticipated length. Unfortunately, I found it incredibly difficult to register and insure a vehicle in Europe if you are not living in an EU-member country. There are a couple (literally only two that I found!) rental agencies that have a buy-back program where you buy the motor home, keep it registered in their name, insure it under their policy, and they will then buy your MoHo back for about 50-60% of the initial cost. Costly, but at least this was a way around the dilemma. The one other option available to me was to have my friend, and owner of Flight Design, Matthias, insure it under his company name. Leasing or renting was not an option for me, since driving the vehicle into many of the Central/Eastern European countries I need to explore, was forbidden.
So, yesterday afternoon, I packed up my old suburban (I had just sold my
Expedition a couple days earlier
When I left Portland, heading east up the Gorge, I chose to take the scenic route of the original road instead of just plodding down I-84. Along the way I managed to see some GREAT views of the Gorge, change a flat for a couple of college co-ed's from Spain, and also transport three hitch hikers from the bridge at Biggs to Ellensburg...which got them well on their way to on the way to a concert at George. Needless to say, what should have been a four hour drive, turned into many more than that, so I am off to crash at Veronica and Mark's (my niece and her hubby) tonight.
03/July/05 Cle Elum WA, USA--Radio Shack: The Past few days have been pretty fun. On the night of the first, after my initial posting above, I made it into Cle Elum and bee-lined it for Veronica and Mark's place where, with the help of Mark, I off-loaded six, two-drawer, file cabinets of office files, photos, slides, and miscellaneous memorabilia I felt inclined to keep a while longer. Lots of kids and adults were there and excited for for the big annual bbq taking place the next day. Some stayed up a bit past midnight, but April and I were silly enough to wind up feeding the backyard campfire till four in the morning...which would normally make for a slow start the next day...but not with kids around! I awoke to my great niece, Virginia, sternly telling the rest of the girls to be quiet because Uncle Mike is sleeping. It's funny now, but not as, then. :-) Both Virginia, and her sister Kristine were playing in a 3-on-3 hoops tournament that day, so I needed to get up to watch anyway. They both did really well, with Kristine's team wining their division, and Virginia's team, coming in 2nd or 3rd (?) behind some tough out of town competition. Between games I was able to see my ten year old great nephew entertain the crowds with his band. Virginia is dribbling on the left, Kristine is in the center, with her elbow high, and Nick is the dark haired young man in the center of the right photo.
After the games, we all headed back to Mark and Veronica's for their annual 4th of July bbq and celebration that lasted all all afternoon, and, for some, well into the evening. My evening plans were a bit different, in that I headed over to Barbara and Roy's place where my niece, Royanne, and her husband Junior, were barbequing thin cut, marinated, beef, and preparing pica de gallo, for some tacos that could not be beat. A cold night sleeping under the stars of the Kittitas Valley topped it all off.
My second night in town, after more basketball and other festivities, my niece Claudia, her husband Ivan, and I, all decided to meet up with Joyce and go out on the town. Slideshow was playing at the Diamondback and it was fun while it lasted. My late night the evening prior, and the fact that Ivan and Claudia had to get up at 3am to make donuts for their bakery, meant we were in by 11pm.
After another day of basketball, street fair fun, and WAY too much wind to fly paragliders, I was on my way back to my sister's place when I ran into Perry & Sandi from the Mustard Seed. They used to own and operate the Mustard Seed book store in Ellensburg, and were my neighbors, when I had my old shop on fourth avenue. Actually, they were there first, so it would be better said that I was their neighbor. Regardless, they were the best, and always there to lend a helping hand. It was great to bump into them again and catch up.
Later that night, Royanne, Junior, and I went up to the classic Roslyn Theatre to see The Longest Yard. Not sure I like this remake as much as the original, actually I AM sure...I don't, but the theatre is always great. Organic butter on fresh popped corn, high back rocking chairs, and a small & friendly atmosphere, all blend to make catching a movie in this old funeral home worthwhile.
5/July/05
Cle Elum WA, USA--Barbara and Roy's Place: Woke up on the 4th to some
mellow wind and a ringing phone. Denton
was calling about flying, so I headed to Watt Canyon to meet up
with Keena and him for a
few training hill flights. We got there mid-day and the wind was light
from the NE...splitting the ridge so not good for either side.
Denton managed a half a sledder, and sweaty hike back up the hill,
but after
an hour, or so, of
I plan on a short hike near Snoqualmie Pass today on the way back over to the Seattle area.
Seattle WA, USA--Victrola On Capital Hill: I was driving out of Cle Elum when Rich M., who was heading up to the Chelan Classic with his wife Karen, and their two kids, Kelly and Richard, called my cell and offered to buy me lunch. Who was I to refuse? It was great to visit with them before my departure...he always cracks me up with stories of the crazy things he's done. I could only hope to be alive after being so nuts. After lunch I headed for the hills and a few miles of hiking up Denny Creek to Franklin Falls, back down on the Old Wagon Trail, and then around the Denny Creek campground. The falls are a great place for a swim on a hot day, and I was not the only one splashing around, relaxing, and catching some rays.
7/July/05
Seattle WA, USA--Capital Hill Cafe: The past couple of days I have been hanging out with Don in the evenings for some great wine at Impromptu one night, and some terrific Ahi at 22 Doors the next. Impromptu is a small wine bar down near the end of Madison...and a very comfortable venue. Dan, who used to be the assistant chef at Cassis, is now the head chef at Impromptu.
22 Doors is on 15th Ave E where Jack's used to be. They have a great little outdoor/covered patio area, and two of the ugliest chandeliers you will ever see. Really, it is worth a trip in just to ponder why someone would take the time to hang such hideousness in a freshly remodeled space with such an outstanding location. Regardless of the chandeliers, the rest of the place looks pretty sharp, and Patrick, the manager, ensured that both the food and service was very good.
Various errands and a dump run (Don is selling his rental, I have a suburban, and, in a wine induced state, I must offered to help haul junk away) are planned for the rest of the day, followed by a shower and the First Thursday Art Walk in Pioneer Square.
10/July/05
Medina WA, USA--Rich and Barb's WiFi: Over the years, I have
been to several of The First Thursday Art Walk's in Pioneer Square,
but this past one, on July 8th, was more fun than ever. Joanne, Rich's sister,
I didn't have my camera Thursday night, but got this shot of Rich, at SeaTac, in front of a piece Joanne designed, on our way to Copenhagen.
Friday the 9th--yet another dump run for Don, administered the FOI exam for Denton's tandem rating (he passed! Yea!), a dinner party/bbq at Marty, Leslie's, and Sydney's place (Leslie made it through the evening without falling asleep on the couch!), back asleep at Don's by 2:30, phone ringing at 5:30!!, Don's dad tearing up a deck at 8 Sat morning. Yikes, I need to get more sleep, but I guess I can do that on the plane tomorrow. Enough time today for one last dump run with Don, lunch, some packing at Rich's place, steak bbq at Rich's mom's place, more packing, and then finally collapsing from lack of sleep.
The aroma of fresh ground, and brewed, coffee, grilled sausages, crisp toasted raison bread and scrambled eggs is what woke me up this last morning in the USA. YUM, A Sunday morning with Barb cooking is not to be missed. :-) Will finish packing and head off to the airport for a late afternoon departure.
11/July/05
Gotteborg, Sweden--Radisson Hotel: After Barb dropped
us at the airport with our five LARGE bags to check, in
A shower, a walk around town, a fairly lame-ass dinner, a quick bit of computer time, and now off to bed.
Wednesday July 13th
Oslo, Norway--Cafe Neff WiFi: It is Wed morning and Rich is tearing down the tent. Yesterday we woke up early, despite taking an Ambian our first night in Scandinavia. Our hotel had an incredible spread of smoked mackerel, lime cured herring, and herring in a yogurt sauce...in addition to the standard fruits, meats, cheeses, and breads typical of a European breakfast. It was great, and I tried all the fish while Rich stuck to more familiar fare.
Just before 9am, our driver showed up to collect us and our baggage. It was only a 15 min drive to the factory, and on the way we drove through some terrific tree-lined streets of much nicer neighborhoods than we saw as we arrived in this, mainly, industrial city the night prior. Hana met us in the lobby and went over the paperwork needed for me to pick up the car. Never even checked ID or my receipt, both of which Seattle Volvo stressed that I should not forget. After about ten minutes we were done, so Hana went to get my car. She gave me a briefing and we loaded up our bags....the moment of truth. Would it all fit? It did, but just barely!
By now it was time for our scheduled Volvo Lunch and factory tour, so we headed back for the most incredible Swedish meat balls I have ever had, and a nice salad as well. Screw the tour, we decided, after lunch, and headed North in search of a few more supplies (food, white gas for the MSR Whisperlite, extension cord for the Coleman Cooler in the campground, etc.). The weather was warm (80F), windy (15-20SW), and sporting a very blue sky in contrast to the incredibly green fields and forests. ABBA playing on the Volvo CD player as I drive north on E6 through Sweden. Beautiful.
We were both Jet-lagged, and dragging, so we set up camp at Fjordcamp, in southern Oslo, after only about 2 hours in the car. All the gear seemed to work well...the tent, the table, the mattresses...everything. Rich made a salad, which we both needed after the too hearty breakfast and lunch, and then, around 10:30 pm I went for a swim in the North Sea. It was incredibly warm. Even at depth it was comfortable enough to stay in for a long time. Hope to go swimming every day.
By mid-afternoon we decided to head west of Oslo, to Kongsberg, with the plan being to fly on Thursday if the wind mellowed out a bit. Kongsberg is a ski town that also has a paragliding distance record made from a site near it, as Rich researched on the net the week earlier. As both Rich and I found out first hand, the town dies in the summer, no one we spoke with had heard of paragliding, and the campground situation is sparse. The city, like many other European cites, does open up their recreation fields for camping at night. This one even supplied power, which is nice for the Coleman cooler (the only refrigeration I will have for a while), locker rooms for showers, a floating dock...complete with picnic table & bbq, and a nice clean river for swimming. By 6pm it was looking pretty good to me, but, since the town was a bit sleepy and flying looked marginal, we decided to head off to another lakeside campground Rich located with the help of our trusty map, and not-so trusty GPS. It was only about a 30 min drive, so why not? 30 min later we drove by a campsite next to an airport, next to a lake. We didn't think that it could be the only campground, so we kept going, and going, and going, and then going on dirt roads so we could break in the AWD, and then we went some more. Wrong campground, wrong lake, wrong road, or whatever else it was...an hour and half later we pulled into the Sommaland campground and poured a well deserved glass of beer.
One other note...Whitespirit is NOT white gas as we hoped, and assumed, when we bought it. It is Kerosene. Damn. Glad I brought the Whisperlite International instead of the straight Whisperlite. Took a bit of extra time swapping out the jets and adding the wick to make the stove work, but, other than the added soot, it should be fine till we can get some white or unleaded gas.
Thursday July 14th
We rolled into Odda, voted the ugliest city in
Norway, as claimed by Rich's Lonely Planet Guide, and absolutely
marveled at the sheer rock walls descending straight to the waters of
Sorfjorden, the clean/tidy streets & houses, and general attractiveness
of the Odda. I guess there is, or used to be, a couple of working iron
smelters that contributed to the poor vote, and some foul air, but on
this
Friday July 15th
Voss , Norway--Public Library WiFi: More rain. The forecast was supposed to be for rain all day and, while I was debating whether to sleep in, or try and beat the rush on the showers, prior to the whole camp waking up, Rich decided to test the car's alarm system. So much for beating the rest of camp to the showers. After getting cleaned up, a bowl of chicken soup with fresh crushed garlic (I am happy I brought my garlic crusher!), and slice of bread made for a quick breakfast. Since we both wanted to ck email, and the forecast on-line...and I wanted to upload some of photos and text I had been typing, we headed off to the library where we found they had free WiFi for the asking. Great!
I answered a few emails till my battery died, and then,
since the rain seemed to be letting up, I took a walk
around town while it charged, and while Rich continued working on some
real estate proposal he
needed to get done for his job. After a few minutes I
We did up some garlic-butter mushrooms, red sauce over pasta, a salad, and a great bottle of '03 Cab from Mendoza. Damned if I can remember the name of it though.... Since we pulled out of the library before Rich finished up, I cooked while Rich avoided the intermittent sprinkles by sitting in the tent on our inflatable couch, the one he devised by stacking two inflatable mattresses on top of each other, and finished up work. I am sure the rest of the campers think we are nuts to bring a laptop, let alone two, on vacation.
After dinner, it stopped raining, for the most part, and we were out chatting with our neighbors when some sort of a critter appeared. Hmmmm. What the heck is this? The five of us contemplated for a while, until another two neighbors, on vacation from Spain, showed up to see what the commotion was. Swine, he said. Well, that ain't no pig I ever seen! However, after about 30 sec, my Spanish, and his English, blended enough for me to realize he was talking about a porcupine. I had only seen two others in my life, one on the ridge above Fish Lake, on the hike into Peggy's Pond, for a climb of Daniel's, and the other, climbing a tree on Crab Creek Road on the way to the LZ at Saddle Mtn. Both were WAY larger than this little thing, and looked like they had sharper quills. Just in case, I decided to keep my distance...until this Spanish guy went up and touched it. Yikes, that sucks, because now I will have to try the same. I did, and sure enough, it is a porcupine. Rough, stubbly, or, I am not sure what else, but I was just happy he did not have his quills up when I got friendly!
Saturday July 16th
Voss Campground, Norway: Finally got a flight today. At first we thought it was going to be blown out, but the wind started to ease and we then saw a couple pilots coming off the main gondola launch. Shit! I still have to organize my gear after the airplane flight. We rushed around to get all the right gear in the right bag and then hiked from campground, through the LZ, at the mini-golf center, and up through town to the Gondola. About 15 min total.
We chose to wait for the sun to come out. We waited
for about an hour and it started to
The gondola runs every 15 min, and one had just come
in, so we rushed over to catch it. We got there in time to wait for
several minutes before loading, and then a few extra minutes while they
got everything organized with the bottom station. As that was happening,
the sun came out, cycles started blowing up, and we bailed on the gondola for a little more para-waiting.
It did not take long. Ten minutes later we were laid out and waiting for
a cycle. A couple other pilots, including another
Happily, the LZ is only about three minutes from our campsite. I flew over our campground while making my landing approach, and you can see a blurry left boot, the V-50, complete with black rocket box, and, in front of the car, the REI Base Camp IV tent in the photo above on the right.
A walk into the grocery store, a hike around the local estuary, chicken salad, more sautéed mushrooms, and a nice bottle of Argentinean Sauvignon Blanc ended a great day in Voss.
An interesting note is that we have barely seen any bothersome bugs, thus far, in an area we both thought would be thick with them.
Sunday July 17th
As we continued on, we were watching out for a small road that goes up and over a pass, verses through a tunnel, and drops into a valley that is rumored to be spectacular. Being as our Norwegian is not up to par, and the directions given by Olga, our bubbly Voss Campground host the two nights prior, were sketchy, we missed the road. However, as soon as we exited the tunnel, we realized our mistake. Stunning rock faces, abundant water falls, and a lush green valley that combined in a landscape reminiscent of Yosemite made that point clear. We saw a small road, the one we should have been coming down, stood on the brakes, cranked a hard right, and up we went.
Daylight was burning, as it does for about 23 hours a day at this time of year, so we headed off to catch the ferry in Grudvangen. We arrived about 90 minutes prior to the next anticipated departure time and found out that we needed to be back at our car, and ready to board, at least 30 min prior. That left about an hour to have a beer on the restaurant patio, type up some info on the day so far, and admire Aurlandsfjorden from the shore, before catching it from the ferry. Oh, we managed to be the last car to make the ferry! Gotta love that, but it did take a bit of maneuvering, and collapsing both my mirrors, to squeeze me in.
So far we have not had much flying, but the scenery has been spectacular, and it is always good to relax from time to time and just watch how the pros do it.
Monday July 18th
This morning, Monday the 18th, we packed up and drove out of Sogndalsfjora. On the advice of a friendly camping neighbor, we headed toward Jostendalsbreen park to see some incredible blue ice and travel the highest Norwegian road, up to Styggevatnet, an ice covered reservoir used for making a small amount of power for the valley below. We were able to drive to within ten meters of the road's end, when a parked chopper blocked the way. Some of the snow fields, on our way up, dwarfed our car, and made us happy for snow blowers.
After a bit of glissading on the snow fields above
the lake, and coming a little too close to for
comfort on my last one, which may well have put a
quick
end to this photo journal, had I gone further, we headed down to see the
some idiot climbing around either on the ice, or cold glacial stream, or have in an unstable ice cave. Hard to get a good shot on such a flat-light day, but the inside of this cave, I accidentally wandered into, gives a fair idea of the ice color.
The ice was great, but so was the hike around the lake...and it was much appreciated after not getting much exercise the week prior. For those too tired, old, or haggard to make the walk, the park service runs a shuttle boat from the parking lot to the other side of the lake.
After a quick picnic lunch, we continued our drive toward Vagamo through, up, and over, the Sognefjell fjord and pass filled with as many tarns as there were Belgian tourists and mosquitoes. The tough mountain grass, along with a couple withered willows, were about the only plant life we saw until we dropped into the Borve river valley leading to lake Vagavatnet and Vagamo...our main flying destination which is currently hosting the Norwegian HG championships.
Tuesday July 19th
The launch area they choose for today's task, if there was to be one, is a relatively shallow slope with a tarn-filled shelf a few hundred feet below. Tough to make it on a glide, with a paraglider, if there was any head wind at all. One paraglider pilot flew as a wind dummy and raced down/cross wind in strong (18mph) conditions until the slope got a bit steeper and the ridge forked out to catch the wind for better lift. He did get higher at that stage, but his forward penetration by now was minimal. After being parked for about 15 min, he made it beyond the ridge and went out to the valley to land. We waited around a bit more, caught the pilots meeting (day cancelled on account of rain, thunder, lightning, and wind), watched a couple hangs free fly, talked to the three man Austrian team and then headed down for a walk around town.
Got
a few interesting photos of the local stave church, complete with a fence
made of ~4X6 foot slate, and an
Norway's stave churches are famed for being some of the, if not the, oldest wooden buildings on Earth. Most are are quite ornate inside, with arches, carvings, and fixtures that wow the visitor. Although this church in Vamamo was open for visitors, I was unable to get any inside photos.
Over a late lunch, we talked about either heading to Copenhagen in the morning or taking a rafting trip down the Sjoa River, supposedly a very famous, and popular, European river for rafting and kayaking. The Sjoa beat out Copenhagen, and we are scheduled for a float in the morning. With this rain they have been having lately, the river is running class 3-4 right now. More rain is predicted for Wednesday as well, so it should be an exciting time. Cost for this day adventure (five hours), including lunch, is running about US$110, so a bargain by Scandinavian standards. We are planning a light dinner and early bed time.
Oh, my confusion at the lack of bugs may have been just that. Confusion. I have about 15 sand fly bites on my torso, and about five on my left arm. Damn they itch! They must have come from our stay in Voss a few days ago. My first encounter with sand flies was on the South Island of NZ back in 1990. You cant really feel it when they bite, but 2-3 days later you get these inflamed sores that then break into an oozing mess of clear/yellowish goo. Sound like fun? It is not, and they leave long lasting marks that will have me avoiding wearing a Speedo for a while. Yea, that is probably a good thing. :-)
Wednesday July 20th
Vagamo, Norway: We left our campground by 9am, the earliest we have budged since our first morning, in order to make the 10 am meeting time about 20 clicks to the SE as the crow flies...assuming he is flying straight. 85 clicks by car on a small and winding road. Great chance to wake up and get the blood flowing! The weather was looking a bit better than forecast, and both Rich and I were wondering if we may have made a mistake in booking a raft trip verses holding out for flying. The day soon proved we made the right decision, both on account of the rain, and the fun factor.
They have dorms, cabins, and hotel beds for up to 50 people, a well laid out gear and orientation area, and a terrific media room for viewing, and ideally buying, your photos, after the trip. They even have a sweat lodge or two...but we were there for rafting!
Kindly, Jan was periodically pointing out the rain to Rich and I...just so we could have an even better time knowing we were not missing out on any great flying on this day.
To this point, no one from our raft had taken an
unwanted swim, but the rapid Bye Bye Baby was about to change
that. Jan mentioned something to the other guides regarding both of them
playing safety for this next rapid we were going to try and surf,
Having been the only one skilled (ok, maybe scared is a better word) enough to not fall out of the raft so far, Jan dedicated his afternoon to making me swim. I was now in the starboard bow position and Jan continually tried to feed me to the surf. After holding on, and paddling, through numerous nose-in surfs, he finally dumped me on the third attempt of Roller Coaster Rapid. Initially, my raft mates are shocked, and almost concerned about my well being, but they quickly turn to the task at hand...saving their own ass, as I float on down stream with my paddle and
lack of pride. I was happy to have Nina there to grab me, but absolutely too whipped, after paddling all day long, in addition to hauling floaters into our raft, to drag myself out of the water. A French woman, in her early fifties, demonstrated the proper technique of grabbing my vest and yanking me out of the Scandinavian river while Nina welcomed me aboard.
Nina handily delivered me back to my own raft, and, as I was still catching my breath, took her raft into the rapid and flipped it! Her, and her entire crew, are swimming now, and our raft, along with Hans' boat, are plucking people out of the river left and right. Just too much fun for one day.
A hot shower, dinner, and then off to the annual Pimp and Ho party, kicking off the annual kayak race, that Nina, and Kristina the photographer, told us about. We had no choice but to go since we had not been in a bar or pub for the past ten days of being in Norway. Drinking laws are strict, drinking establishments are few, and this one pub (the closest to Vagamo) was just under an hours drive. Will leave details to the imagination, but, suffice it to say, the girls ensured a correct prediction in their fun factor forecast. Rich drove home.
Thursday July 21st
Dokka, Norway:
Well, my car finally has a ding in it. After more forecasted rain, we
packed and left for Lillehammer, where Rich
backed into a no parking sign!!! You can't even see it if
you are not looking,
hard, for it, but Rich sure felt bad. It is just
t
Guess what? Rain, and no flying, in Lillehammer, so we head off to Dokka to try our luck with another site Rich has researched. Guess what? Rain and no flying in Dokka! Nice campground, nice drive up the ridge to the cemetery launch (just on the other side of the white picket fence), and another Pizza for dinner.
Friday July 22nd
Grena, Denmark: We decide to leave Norway, and hopefully some inclement weather, behind as we wake up this morning and head on a fast drive to Copenhagen. This plan will give us a couple nights, and one full day, to explore before Rich needs to head out. On the way I get nailed by a speed camera right after passing a car. I am now beyond the 1500 mile break-in period for the V-50 so I am able to, and do, take it past the 4K RPM limit suggested by the factory for initial driving. We see it coming so I give two big thumbs up, and a smile, as it flashes. This is the third, we know of, since our trip began. Rich got one as well. Once we hit the main two lane highway (E6 south) there were a bunch of slow pokes in the left lane so I do what I would typically do in Western WA, and pass on the right. Opps, that is not legal in Norway, nor most of Europe (nor the US, for that matter). We stop for gas, gather up the last of our Norwegian money...and spend it...we then hit a toll station a few clicks down the highway. Opps, we are in the wrong line to pay by card, and people are backing up, so we finally have to move on w/out paying. By my count, we broke at least three laws just trying to get the hell out of Norway. Doubt if we will be welcomed back any time soon.
As we are driving through Gottborg, Sweden, Rich gets
this wild hair to take a ferry over to Northern Denmark
Saturday July 23rd
Interesting town at night, very interesting, and Rich and I manage to hit a couple of little places for appetizers and drinks. When I go out for dinner, I enjoy doing it that way so I can see, and sample more. Our last place wound up being a place called Papas which is an Italian/Mexican restaurant. Rich went for the Nachos, but, being from Eastern Washington, I stuck to the Cubra Libra. Our waitress, Jintare, from Lithuania, was absolutely great! Fun, spunky, and did not mind that we could not speak the local tongue. She, like many other young Europeans, speaks four languages fluently.
Sunday July 24th
Instead of heading into town today, I get some laundry done, cook a good meal, and hit the rack so I can catch the early train into town, and still be back to the campground by the Noon check out time.
Monday July 25th
Bliesdorf, Germany: Welcome to the mainland.
Am enjoying my first few steps on German soil...well at least my first few step in 2005...at about 17:30, with a glass of dry '04 Riesling, sitting in my folding chair, and contemplating what to cook for dinner. I am cashless, and don't feel like driving around for an ATM, so will certainly have to dig through the dregs of the cooler and dry-bag. Shortly after arriving via ferry into Puttgarden, Germany, from Rodby, Denmark, I saw a sign for a campground in Bliesdorf. A few minutes later, I was struggling with the German language as I checked into Camping Walkyrien located on the Mecklenburger inlet, on the Baltic Sea, of Northern Germany. The language problem is an abrupt shock after traveling with an English speaking friend, in Scandinavia, where everyone we ran into spoke English well.
This morning, back in Denmark, I was fed and showered by seven, and in
the process of packing my bags in the tent when I looked up and saw a
little Korean boy standing at the door. I had smiled, and said hello,
earlier, and he took that as an
Once packed, I left my car and headed over to the metro for a trip into Copenhagen. I figured wandering around a bit during the light of day was in order, and this trip also gave me chance to check my email in the square...before a shower sent me running for cover. I jumped on the blue train that was heading my way back to the campground, and found out that the B+ train does not stop at my station. In fact it skips a lot of stations, as I learned riding the B train back. The extra 15 minutes, gave the rain a chance to start in earnest, and I was soaked through by the time I made the five minute walk back to the campground.
I made a quick drive south to Rodby, where I caught a ferry into Northern Germany and headed to the campground in Bliesdorf.
Managed to get the owner of Camping Walkyrien to point me in the direction of the tent sites, after showing me the cabin I must have expressed my desire for in my badly broken German. I did not manage to pay, however. Something appeared to be wrong with the machine, and I have no Euro, so I am supposed to come back after 18:00 when his daughter would be available to work the card scanner. I decided to go with no power (typically an additional 2-4Euro) and see how the Coleman works with just the V-50's 12 volts. The manual said not to go longer than four hours without having the car running, so I will have to remember to unplug it.
Starting to rain, so I am closing down to burn up some dinner.
Click here to see Section Two: Scandinavia to the Alps
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As I
was contemplating the vehicle dilemma, another friend, Rich H.,
suggested I look into the
,
adding some much needed financing for my little adventure!) with all the
stuff I needed for my trip, and everything else I needed to store with
friends and family who have been kind enough to offer the space, and
headed for my first stop in Olympia, where I stayed with my sister
Elizabeth and her two sons, Carson and Dylan. It was fun to visit for a
bit, and then, this morning, I headed down to Portland to see Fred,
Becky, and Andrew.
watching
wind and kicking rocks, we decided to hit the Yakima River for a
quick swim and a nap. It was a scorcher. Later that evening Denton
and I managed to get Keena get off
four times, and that, according to Keena, is always a good day. She did
great! Nice control on launch, and in the air, good turns, and super
landings! She will take the P1 exam later this week and is sure to do
well. A bbq at a friend of Keena's in Kittitas, followed by the
Pioneer Days fireworks display in Cle Elum and it was off to Barbara and
Roy's back
yard to camp under the stars yet again.
had her
opening at 
addition to three smaller
carry-on bags, we proceeded to start the check in process. After 45 min of
watching the TSC go through our camping gear, we headed off to the International
Business Lounge
(Another perk from Volvo) to relax. The flight was pretty uneventful,
and direct, from SeaTac to Copenhagen...as was the puddle-jump into Gotteborg. We
were happy to see all of our bags made it unscathed, but other travelers
were sort of bewildered by why just two people had so much crap. Everyone in
baggage claim got a good laugh when Rich's cart dumped over as he was
stacking the last bag high on top. Maybe I should sort of feel guilty
being as I am the one that brought three bags to his two. He dumped it one more time crossing the road to
our waiting shuttle. Everyone, but Rich, chuckles again. There was a
family of five doing the same
We took a bit of a test drive and the car felt
great. Rich wanted to look into getting a rocket box, and I wanted to
find some sun visor clips for my sunglasses, so we pulled into Volvo Bil's, near
the delivery center, to see what they may have. We found a nice sized box, that will hold all of
our camping gear, for only about US$300. A great deal, so he got it and
the guys & gals there helped us install it.
Sommaland Norway--Sommaland campground w/no
connection:
This morning we broke camp and headed into Oslo for a
$90 pair of swim trunks (things are pricey here in Scandinavia) and some
site seeing at, and around, the Oslo harbor.
It was practically
deserted which gave us a good chance to wander
around and see what we wanted, while avoiding the lines that are sure to form on
a weekend. The main square is very clean and attractive, with statues and
fountains everywhere. There are also several large, old, wooden boats
moored below the old fortified palace and WWII memorial museum. The
boats are fairly well kept, and are now used to give tourists a day sail,
dinner trip, or booze cruise around the fjord. After wandering around
the fortifications above the harbor, we had a picnic lunch of salami,
cheese, crunchy bread, and fruit, (which will probably turn into the norm) on
the steps above the harbor prior to tackling the museum.
Sommaland is actually a pretty nice place with
grassy & level sites, power outlets all over the place, a wake
boarding
& water ski park, grocery store, lots of dogs,
even more kids, and ONE remaining
tent campsite, at the far edge of the park, next to the lake. We'll take it!
Crowded as it is, the place is
a hoot. Young kids were all having a great time playing
kick ball or splashing around in the warm lake, the older kids were wake
boarding and
playing volley ball till after eleven, and
everyone was socializing in
French, German, English, Norwegian, Spanish, and more...A
late dinner
of pan seared steak, sautéed veggies, salad, chocolate for
dessert and a bit of computer time made for a great end to the day. It
is now almost midnight and still light. Time to crawl into the tent.
Voss Campground, Norway:
Today we decided to make a bit of a drive from Sommaland to Voss. After only one wrong turn leaving the campground, we
got back on track and headed into the mountains. We took Route 36 NW and
connected up with E134 that took us over some high, but rolling
mountains, through boulder fields, past many lakes & tarns, rivers, and pine
stands...scraggly and stunted from the harsh winters. The forecasted rain
started coming down in sheets, but at least we had a few long tunnels
for periodic protection. Despite the rain, it was
really a spectacular drive with all the deep canyons, fjords, and
waterfalls. 
rainy day, it sure seemed to wring out well. A short while
later we hopped a quick ferry (about US$15) across the Eidfjorden and
continued on to a very soggy Voss. Rich hinted
around at getting a Hotel, and going out for dinner, but I sort of wanted
to test the gear in the rain. We compromised by camping and getting a
take-out pizza from Dolly Dimples. We were lucky enough to have about a 15 minute window
where it was only raining, instead of pouring, to set up the tent. It
then poured all night long, and not having to cook dinner in that was a
welcome relief. The tent stayed perfectly dry and comfortable.
found
We hopped the gondola and, when we arrived
on top, walked the 50 meters east to the obvious, large, cow pie
filled launch. The wind was OTB. Over the Back. Not great conditions for
flying and even worse for launching, as the sole tandem pilot laid
out was finding. He was having a hard time keeping his wing in proper
launch order and taking
care of his passenger as well. Could we help?
Sure. After about 20 minutes of holding his leading edge down to keep it
from wrapping around both pilot and passenger, he took a calmish cycle
and made it. The crowd loved it from the sound of their applause. Lots
of sink, a few wiggles, but no deflations. It could best be
characterized as an accelerated sled ride.
spit. It was cold, blowing stronger OTB than anything we had seen in the past 90 min and virga was appearing
all around the valley. Time to bail.
tandem pilot, joined
us as well. The tandem pilot asked Rich if he could lay out in front of
him, and that forced Rich to wait out a couple of launchable
cycles...but that was ok. They were getting better. The tandem, and
boyfriend of the passenger, soon launched and left the best cycles to
another Norwegian solo pilot, Rich, and me. We all punched out at about
the same time, were
able to make a couple of turns in very marginal lift, and enjoy a nice
sledder for our first flight in Norway.
I
was on the red 
then the tow went vertical for the first 300 feet. Once above that,
he got a bit of forward penetration over the lake. His landing was also impressive, and vertical, from about 200 feet, as the wind picked up even
more.
Vagamo, Norway: Shortly
after leaving Voss, as we headed NE on E16 toward the ferry at Grudvangen,
we came across a beautifully terraced waterfall right near the side of the road. It has a
small campground next to it, and, initially, we both thought it would
have been nice to stay here instead of in Voss. After a bit of
consideration though, we realized the noise from the pounding water
would keep us awake at night and the noise from the numerous diesel tour
buses during the day would be even worse. Definitely worth a photo stop
though.
It
was one lane, incredibly steep, had sheer drops & wildly tight figure
eight turns. It was well worth the detour. We had a small lunch at a
the top and then started down, taking photos along the way. Rich jumped
out to take a photo of a particular waterfall and a car came around the
corner making me move our car. Then a bus came, then more cars, and I
was several switch backs down the
road before I was able to stop again.
Rich enjoyed the opportunity to snap a few shots as he walked down, and I enjoyed the walk
back up doing the same.
Vagamo, Norway:
Yesterday afternoon on the ferry, Rich and I were having a great time chatting to a couple of
fellow travelers from the Netherlands and sort of forgot to get down to
the car before the ferry docked. When we finally made it through the
throngs of people, we saw that our car was the only one left, and the
deck hands were scratching their heads. We jumped in, and then had to
maneuver through the exiting crowds of people. Once on the road, we
headed a short distance to Sogndalsfjora to set up camp and chat with
the other campers.
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glacier.
The glacier is over 1000 meters thick in places, as blue & hard
as I have ever seen, and as spectacular, & beautiful, as our Norwegian
camp neighbor stated. "It is VERY impressive... even for a Norwegian!",
he kept saying again and again with his impeccable
English ala thick accent. You can just barely make out a group of climbers on the left
quarter of the glacier, mid way up the visible height. Of course actual access, for the
common tourist who makes the two click hike to the base, was roped off
for safety. It would not be good to have a 
piece of ice break off and smash someone, have
someone slip into the ice
Vagamo, Norway:
Windy and cloudy as we woke up this morning. We went out to the LZ,
at the Vagamo flight park,
to catch the weather report and pilot briefing. Pilots were busy
stacking on
the shuttle vans, but it does not look
good for the next three days. The meet organizers called for a noon
pilots meeting on launch, so we decided to get a better look from up
top.
out building roof made of ~1X1 slate.
This roof, and also grass topped roofs, are common here, but I would
hate to price either out in the states.
The
facility at 
After a late start, we got
our wet suits (just in time for our first rain shower), life jackets, and helmets, and then jumped on a bus for
an 11 click drive up the river. We unloaded, got a general safety
briefing, and then divided up into three groups for our rafts. Rich and
I wound up in Jan's raft and others joined Nina or Hans in their rafts.
We jumped in and headed downstream to a little practice area where we
learned the common float commands, learned the techniques for
pulling people into the boat, and got to jump overboard for a cooling
swim. Getting back in was actually easy for me to do, during the
practice session...when I was fresh, and that allowed me
to practice pulling others onboard as well...something that came in
handy all day long.
We
started with about a one click stretch of fairly mellow class two water, with
the rare class three rapid,
where two of the Harley-Danes, from the group of four, very fun, Danes
touring Norway on their Harleys, fell out of Hans' boat. The rapid
drawing first blood was the mellow Golf Stream...which got its name when
a German photographer failed to set his parking break on his VW Golf,
and tragically watched as it rolled into the river.
and,
although I made note of the fact that typically just one boat was on
point for picking up floaters in the past, I never put together that
this surf was going to be a bit more interesting. About three seconds
into our attempt to surf Bye Bye Baby, our three starboard paddlers,
Rich included, were gonzo...followed instantaneously by the
launching of our port/bow man into the froth that just devoured the three. The only ones remaining, from our original seven, in addition to a
boat full of water, was Jan, our guide, Mishala, in the blue helmet, and
me. It was an F'ing riot! I could not stop laughing, and Mishala could
not stop screaming...while smiling ear to ear. It was a wild ride, and I
still don't know How I kept from taking a swim that time around. About
100 meters down stream we managed to collect our soggy crew from the
safety boats and continue our trip down stream to an incredible lunch of
Norwegian Stew (What I have always called glop), consisting of browned
mince (hamburger), corn, tomatoes, diced veggies, spices, and some heavy
cream added at the end. Serve a ladle full of this glop over steaming rice, accompany it with buttered bread, and a fresh salad, complete with dressing of choice AND catsup,
and you have a memorable lunch that
tasted great!
he tiniest bow in the rubber on the bumper, that will probably work
itself out when the sun heats it up a bit. I am sort of happy to be done
with it so now I don't have to baby it so much.
for
one last attempt at some paragliding. The ferry from Gottborg to Frederikshaven
is fully booked so
we head south and are able to catch the last Vorberg-Grena ferry ($125)
of the night. We made the dock with 20 min to spare...plenty of time by WA ferry standards,
but not so by Swedish standards for a four hour crossing, with minimal runs, and ticket
agents asking why we were not here earlier, why we don't have a
reservation, and telling us the ferry is full. Rich must have worked his
charm, or pulled out the ignorant tourist card, because we were lucky to,
once again,
be the last
car on, able to
enjoy some great views of the harbor on departure, and also able to
feast on a pretty good food & wine buffet during the sailing. We land just after ten pm and it is
starting to get dark!!! A strange thing for us, after two weeks of
twilight...at best. Most campgrounds lock their gates by nine or ten, but
we find the closest one to let us in. It gets really dark shortly thereafter!
Copenhagen, Denmark:
We are in Denmark giving flying one last shot...again. We heard
about a site up on the north coast, so this morning we head that
way...instead of going to Copenhagen for Rich's drop off Sunday morning.
About half way to the north coast, we accept the fact that the wind is blowing WAY too
strong, and
the country is WAY too flat, to fly. We make the inevitable turn south, get a couple nice views of come cool bridges, get frustrated in
amazing traffic, find a great little campground (right at a transit
stop), make camp, and then head into town for a look-see.
Copenhagen, Denmark:
A lazy day of packing up Rich and getting him to the airport. I decide
to spend another day in Copenhagen in order to see a bit more and also
clean up the car. It is now reorganized for travel for one, and I have
my paragliding gear stuffed under the rear cover for security. If I ever
wind up in a hotel, I can probably just leave them in the car, and leave
all the camping gear in the rocket box. I am left with two smallish, and
easily carried, bags in the back seat, along with the old Coleman
cooler, which is really working well.
invitation
to be friends. Fine by me! In addition to a nice scrap book, Junho
showed me a self portrait finger painting he did the day before, complete
with birds, clouds, the sun, and a worm. He is six or seven years
old, he forgot which, is on a camping trip with is older sister and
parents, and, although he does not know exactly where he lives, he is
pretty sure it is Korea, and the door number is 28. He was a good kid,
and he kept me company while I packed up my stuff, and his parents
packed up their stuff. They too were headed for Germany today today.