August 24, 2014
Far above the Arctic Circle, the jagged peaks and stunning fjords of the Lofoten Islands were one of the huge drawcards that brought me to Norway. In fact, one image of the spectacular view from the mountain, Reinebringen, made this my most eagerly anticipated part of the trip, so after taking a flight with some wonderful views of the coast from Oslo to Bodo, we boarded the 3.5 hour ferry to Moskenes, the Southern entry point to the Lofoten Islands. I couldn't wait to get out and see the landscapes, and I was immediately blown away.
I had arranged a rental car with a local guy with just a few older rental cars in his fleet, and he was supposed to meet me at the ferry terminal. He didn't show up, but the agency is just 400 meters from the terminal, so we walked over, found the car unlocked with the keys in the car (yes, it's that kind of place), heard from someone else that we should just take the car and work it out later, so we packed up and headed up the road. (We returned the next day when he was also away, so in the end, we just left the car where we found it three days later, put the keys in the drop box and left cash for the rental in the glove box.)
Just a few minutes up the road, we arrived at Reine, a small fishing village that has been fueling my dreams for the past couple of months. The city itself isn't particularly unique, but its natural setting is unbelievable. Huge, steep peaks rise directly out of the deep blue ocean, forming fjords and islands all over the small bay. We stopped for a few pictures, then parked the car on the side of the road and started the steep hike up to Reinebringen, the mountain ridge overlooking the village below.
Fortunately, we had perfect weather with clear skies and temperatures in the high 60s, so we packed our tents, sleeping bags and a bit of food. The trail was easy enough to follow, but it was very steep, with a few parts requiring us to use the ropes tied to a few strategic trees. Soon after, we were above the tree line and made it to the top after a strenuous 1.5 hour hike. The hike takes you to the very narrow ridge with wonderful views of Reine below. The marvelous view kept us occupied for a couple of hours before we scouted out the area and found two perfect spots for our tents. Fortunately, we were the only two campers for the night, as there are really only enough spots for 3 or 4 people total along the top, since the whole area is so steep. A few day hikers came and went, but we mostly had the place to ourselves.
The sun set around 10 pm, though at the high latitude, the sun set was very slow, and it never really got super dark, rising again around 5 am. Just as we had hoped, the campsite was absolutely incredible, and it was an unforgettable view from the top.
Far above the Arctic Circle, the jagged peaks and stunning fjords of the Lofoten Islands were one of the huge drawcards that brought me to Norway. In fact, one image of the spectacular view from the mountain, Reinebringen, made this my most eagerly anticipated part of the trip, so after taking a flight with some wonderful views of the coast from Oslo to Bodo, we boarded the 3.5 hour ferry to Moskenes, the Southern entry point to the Lofoten Islands. I couldn't wait to get out and see the landscapes, and I was immediately blown away.
I had arranged a rental car with a local guy with just a few older rental cars in his fleet, and he was supposed to meet me at the ferry terminal. He didn't show up, but the agency is just 400 meters from the terminal, so we walked over, found the car unlocked with the keys in the car (yes, it's that kind of place), heard from someone else that we should just take the car and work it out later, so we packed up and headed up the road. (We returned the next day when he was also away, so in the end, we just left the car where we found it three days later, put the keys in the drop box and left cash for the rental in the glove box.)
Just a few minutes up the road, we arrived at Reine, a small fishing village that has been fueling my dreams for the past couple of months. The city itself isn't particularly unique, but its natural setting is unbelievable. Huge, steep peaks rise directly out of the deep blue ocean, forming fjords and islands all over the small bay. We stopped for a few pictures, then parked the car on the side of the road and started the steep hike up to Reinebringen, the mountain ridge overlooking the village below.
Fortunately, we had perfect weather with clear skies and temperatures in the high 60s, so we packed our tents, sleeping bags and a bit of food. The trail was easy enough to follow, but it was very steep, with a few parts requiring us to use the ropes tied to a few strategic trees. Soon after, we were above the tree line and made it to the top after a strenuous 1.5 hour hike. The hike takes you to the very narrow ridge with wonderful views of Reine below. The marvelous view kept us occupied for a couple of hours before we scouted out the area and found two perfect spots for our tents. Fortunately, we were the only two campers for the night, as there are really only enough spots for 3 or 4 people total along the top, since the whole area is so steep. A few day hikers came and went, but we mostly had the place to ourselves.
The sun set around 10 pm, though at the high latitude, the sun set was very slow, and it never really got super dark, rising again around 5 am. Just as we had hoped, the campsite was absolutely incredible, and it was an unforgettable view from the top.
(The view leaving the small city of Bodo on the ferry, heading 3.5 hours out to the Lofoten Islands. The seas can be very rough around this area (the word maelstrom comes from this area due to high tides), but we had a clear, easy day.)
(A small sailboat cruising the rocky islands near Bodo. Bodo itself was a pleasant city, small enough that we could walk from the airport, through downtown, to the ferry terminal in about 30 minutes.)
(Approaching Lofoten Islands, it looked like a dragon's tail with a string of sharp peaks poking out of the ocean. Near the middle of this picture, you can see a steep U shape - that's Reine, and we camped on the top left side of that ridge.)
(The view of Reine, a small fishing village from the water level. I wanted to take a few pictures here, but we were both really anxious to start the hike up Reinebringen, right behind us while taking this picture.)
(A perfect day in Reine greeted us, which apparently isn't always the case.)
(Craig holds a bag of food in his mouth while climbing the steep sides of Reinebringen. Our car was actually parked down near the curve in the top left of this picture. The hike took us around 1.5 hours each way, and it certainly wasn't easy. It would be very treacherous if it were wet/rainy/muddy, but we were fortunate to have such a clear day.)
(Craig takes a break in what would become my campsite for the night. Not a bad view.)
(My classy dinner - peanut butter on bread with granola on top. I actually thought it was pretty good, though, as Craig pointed out, taking this picture did add a bit of dirt to the backside of the bread. Oh well - it's all natural.)
(Craig was clearly confused about which country we were in, with his viking hat sporting Swedish colors. Still, Vikings were a huge part of Norwegian history, so close enough.)
(The late evening light provided some great views of the spiky fjords surrounding the area.)
(Craig's tent, about 400 meters away from mine, along the steep ridge.)
(I posed for a couple of pictures with the last bits of light reflecting pink on the mountains behind me.)
(Looking straight down the steep drop, the village sits about 1,100 feet below us.)
(Self timer action of the Brace brothers.)
(In the middle of the picture, you can see Craig's tent, requiring a little rock climbing, but nothing too extreme.)
(Another picture of the wonderful view from my tent.)
(Changing colors added to the beauty of the fjords. This was literally the view to the left from the front door of my tent.)
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