Helnessund, Norway
A Field Trip
Ya might think that living on a tiny, very rural island would get a bit dull after a while. Living anywhere, Arctic Circle or not, eventually turns into routine and routine is a funny thing. It can so quickly turn from comfort to stale.
However, one of the most wonderful parts of my time on this Arctic island was that no two days were the same. Somedays I worked in the morning, somedays the evening. Somedays I spent hours kayaking, or climbing, or hiking. Somedays I walked clockwise around the island, somedays counterclockwise. Somedays I walked along the beach looking at shells, somedays we went in the sauna. Somedays I made a lot of bread, somedays I ate a lot of bread. Somedays I made apple cakes. Somedays I watched the sunset, somedays I barely went outside.
Most mornings were similar: waking, looking out the window to see if it was sunny or stormy, breakfasting, crossword puzzling, all the while getting ready for whatever task I had been given that day. But at some point on this morning Astrid invited a few of us to join in on a little field trip.
Astrid and Jasper were heading to Helnessund, a village southeast of our island, to pick up a motor boat that had been in the shop for some engine troubles. We all bundled up for the ride there, piled into the boat, and took off.
Astrid. These scandi gals are way too cool.
After an epic boat ride across a shockingly flat sea, we reached Helnessund in all her glory. A teenie tiny town with a stunning mountain range backdrop. We had about an hour to enjoy the town before heading back, so while Astrid and Jasper dealt with the boat we headed out for a little hike, first through the village and then along a little trail that would end in a view.
we headed passed boat houses, fishing boats and some fishermen chatting away. Each little house was named & One was called “PENGUIN”, how sweet?!
out of focus, but the colors of this landscape and finishing culture are so beautiful. I especially love the electric colored buoys in the water and on the docks.
after the boat houses the main road traced through the town. We wandered along admiring the homes, calling the best ones as “the one I would have if I lived here”, until we ended at the town’s center, consisting of:
the main pier (brygge in norwegian), a gardening & fishing shop, a few offices, and a grocery store where we would meet astrid and jasper for ice cream after our hike.
After reaching the town center, we found a little side road that would turn into trail and take us around the bay. It was a very short hike, but the scenery along the way was, like all of northern Norway, one I find very challenging to describe in words.
But what I can say about it is that this type of landscape is my ideal: water, mountains, sweet little cabins and boats, beautiful colors, interesting textures, sea birds and on this clear, windless day everything was doubled in a near perfect reflection.
