Safe Return Doubtful

The island of Frøya actually has a relatively large population, of 5,500, but it is concentrated on the more sheltered east side. Titran was remote and depopulated, much more my sort of place than the rest of the island.

On Thursday I headed to the north where there are many islets and took on a short hike I had put together which worked well. My exploits in the last week or so would be much more testing in wind and rain, and the west coast of Norway will get plenty of that, just not at the moment.

I then had my eye on an island called Uttian, off the east coast and reachable by a kilometre long bridge. Not only did it look a good like there was a good trail around the coast, but also there was a brewery, actually on an even smaller island off the south coast.

We stayed the night at the marina in Dyrvik. It’s possible to stay at most marinas, some of which charge, as they offer showers, toilets, a sitting room. They use the GoMarina app for payments as on Shetland, and usually cost between £10 and £20. If I’m unsure as to whether there is a charge, I will ask, as I did here, and there was no charge, and no facilities other than a water tap, which suits me.

This morning we walked the island circuit on a clear morning cooled by a brisk northerly wind. The coastal section was excellent, with the return through sheep farms.

The Slik brewery visit was interesting; Norway has an upper limit of 4.7% strength alcohol on anything sold anywhere except the Vinmonopolet, the State Liquor Store. Their strange rules mean that the brewery can serve any stronger beers to drink on the premises, or not at all. Slik brew very many different styles of beer, with the emphasis on the traditional, my sort of place. Most of what they produce is exactly 4.7%. They also do a barley wine, a porter and an imperial stout, at 12.5%, 7%, and 12% respectively, all of which I was keen on.

I hoped that with a friendly chat, and lots of compliments, they would sell me the strong stuff, but that’s didn’t work. They were very friendly, but law abiding, sadly. They open only until 4pm for sales to drink on the premises, a bit too early for me.

Prices are about £5 for a 500ml bottle, and £9 for the very strong beers. Those prices are a lot more affordable for international tourists this year as the Kroner is not strong. I resorted to the Vinmonopolet in the next town to purchase the Robust Porter and the Imperial Stout for later.

I then drove back through the two seven kilometre tunnels to the mainland and on a rough road around the coast for an hour or so to the Seterneset peninsula. There are a lot of park ups on the Park4Night app around here, so I avoided those areas, as here in Norway they are mostly used by large motorhomes. That the rough road had no StreetView pictures was encouraging further, and I was duly rewarded. There are a few small communities, mainly of holiday homes that are currently unoccupied, though that may change later tonight. It’s perfectly peaceful, very scenic and has a good signal for the rugby finals..