It is always interesting to see how someone shows you around the place where they grew up :). Given that I've met a large number of my friends and/or acquaintances when travelling far away from home, mine and their's, this is not something I've experienced a lot. Regardless, it was great to spend a few days in Hildre, being shown around by one of our friends from Asker who grew up there!
It's not exactly a large place, Hildre. Had they not been in the car ahead of us, we might well have driven right past it without even realising! Partly this may be because we would have been staring wide-eyed at the amazing coastline unfolding only a few metres away from the road! While it is still on the mainland of Norway, this tiny village is on the outer reaches of one of the long fingers of rock that thrust out between deep fjords, surrounded by islands, big and small.
One of the first things we did upon arriving and having had a bit to eat, was to go fishing! For those who've grown up this close to the ocean I can imagine this is but natural. Not so for me :). But it was still great fun being out in a boat! Memories of small boat trips from my offshore days came flooding back! And while this wasn't completely open waters, there was enough space to get the sense of the enormity of the ocean, especially when you looked past the islands and out onto the Atlantic.
After another couple of days of boat trips, collecting berries up hillsides, trips to nearby islands and a birthday celebration only marginally marred by the World Cup final, we were on the road again! The plan was to skirt the western edge of the mainland and some islands to find our way eventually to Kristiansund, having experienced the famous Atlantic Road en route.
There were a couple of ferries and some island hopping to get up north, and along the way a most astonishing experience greeted us! We'd stopped at the edge of an island to admire the view inland across the fjord, take some photos, enjoy the sunshine, when suddenly I noticed a few distant splashes in the water. Looking closer, we realised that it was a dolphin! As I excitedly started clicking photos, there seemed to be many more! Over the next half hour or so we were treated to a great many pods of dolphins seemingly enjoying the warmer waters of the fjord :).
While the rest of the way wasn't nearly as exciting, there were several stretches of beautiful road, awesome weather and some very beautiful landscape. There were also many camper vans. Now, generally I don't mind them too much, but on a narrow winding road, which would ordinarily be a fantastic opportunity to drive, getting stuck behind something barely doing half the speed limit isn't exactly my idea of fun :|. So we did the next best thing, just pulled off the road and enjoyed the scenery :).
Eventually when we made our way to the succession of bridges between Hågå and Kårvåg that constitutes the most famous section of the Atlantic Road, I was somewhat taken aback by the sheer number of tourists! It was a good day to be out there though! Beautiful blue skies matching the blue ocean. But as far as tourist routes in Norway go, not the most spectacular :). So onward we went and finally arrived in Kristiansund. A town I had not been to in a decade.
For those not interested in the linked posts above, (or, having read them, too confused by their abruptness :D) between 2005 and 2008 I visited Kristiansund a few times. Over the course of those visits, I learned how to drive a boat and got certified so people would let me go do it in the middle of the ocean. Several oceans and seas as a matter of fact :). Some of the best times I've had offshore was driving boats, so this visit was kinda nostalgia loaded.
We went for a couple of long walks around town. Visited bits that I remembered, including the bridge overlooking what used to be the training centre. Reminisced about awful restaurants and interesting boat manoeuvring training tactics :). Some things had changed, but not too much, I was happy to see. In some ways that part of the trip was more about the scenery providing a backdrop for memories rather than exploring. But as with most visits, each one always ends up creating new and interesting memories.
Then we were off again, away from the coast and inland to the mountains! This would probably be another natural pause in the narrative. Now ordinarily, this would be the time to write about France! But somehow the memories of Vestlandet are still echoing loud in my mind :). And tomorrow we are off again! This time to Bangladesh! So in a week or so I might be tempted to write about what's been happening this month, and then more about the road-trip! We shall see.
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