Safe Return Doubtful

Leaving the island of Bjarkøya I continued on the long way round to get to the island of Senja, by way of the islands of Grytøya, Rolla and Andørja.

Small as Grytøya is, it is a mountaineer’s paradise, but the hiking is at a low level, above 300 metres, and the peaks rise to more than 1,000 metres, it is the realm of the climber.

Between Grytøya and Rolla is Harstad town, that serves the little communities and villages across a wide radius. A ferry runs to Rolla after which I immediately broke the journey, and took on a coastal hike with Roja to two beaches, Omnsand, a rocky beach, and the splendidly isolated Dyngenesstranda. By the time we returned to the van it was late afternoon. I had Test Match Special on throughout, from Lords; it seems such a long time that I listened to test cricket from England, a sign of changing times within the game.

We drove for thirty minutes or so, through a sea tunnel to the neighbouring island of Andørja, specifically the village of Ånstad, which lies at the foot of (yet another) spectacular mountain range. Nestled above the village is their school and sports facilities, including as usual here this far north, a floodlit hiking, running or cross country ski loop of about 3 kilometres, and outdoor gym equipment. It was a fine place to stop for the night.

This morning we walked in towards the mountains, though it was a wet morning with the sort of light rain that one gets wet in before realising one has done so. I had aimed to be out for an hour, but we got sort of intentionally lost, trying to find a trail that didn’t exist, and ended up being out for double that.

From Ånstad it was a 130 kilometre drive to my next destination, the first of the five fingers of the north of Senja island.

Senja is one of the larger Norwegian islands with an area of 1,500 square kilometres, connected to the mainland by a two kilometre bridge. Its is often known as ‘Norway in miniature’ as the landscapes encompass everything Norway offers, but it is its wild and rugged Arctic coast that appeals most to the visitor. The northern side of this coast extends like a hand into the Norwegian Sea, it is these five fingers I want to explore in the next week or so.

I’m on the southwest most of them, the little finger if you will, at Skaland, where I have found a good place to stop, next to a hike I hope to do tomorrow. Today has been wet, but tomorrow looks drier, important when the trails above about 150 metres are mainly on rock, as it can be slippery.

The island does attract a lot of tourists, and is just off that main route that I wrote of in the last post, but I think on the fingers their density is diluted, as most people, I find from chatting with them, have limited time, and choose one of perhaps two of the fingers, rather than all five.

Roja has got on particularly well with a Vizla over the last hour, owned by an Austrian couple, so we have been chatting, after his introduction also, over a green tea and a chocolate digestive. They are at a campsite a bit further down the road, and just here to walk their hound. They were of course, quite mystified by the Lords cricket on the TV in the background.