Norway - Camping at Kvalvika Beach

August 25, 2014

After camping on top of Reinebringen, I was excited for our next night, heading up over a ridge to camp at Kvalvika Beach for the second night.  Parking on the inside of the fjord, we left the car and hiked 1-1.5 hours up over the ridge and back down to the expansive golden beach below.  Kvalvika is a beautiful beach backed by grassy ridges with a bit of an end of the world type vibe.  The massive peaks all around the beach lend to its isolated feeling, backed by large boulders and the occasional sheep wandering the paths.  While there were probably 5 or 10 other people camping on the beach that night, it was large enough to spread out and have an entire area to yourself, so it was perfect for us.

Despite being tired, I convinced myself that I needed to climb Ryten, the adjacent 1,100 foot mountain, and I was glad I did.  Climbing up the steep slopes around 7 pm, I first discovered a high mountain lake that feeds the small cascade down the hillside, and then followed the ridge up to the top of Ryten for spectacular views down to the beaches below and out to the vast Norwegian Sea.  As the cool wind blew in, the sun dipped low behind the clouds, creating an unbelievable view as the deep orange reflected off the endless water below.  Though I was tired, I couldn't believe the beautiful scene unfolding in every direction around me.  As I sat on the edge of the cliff, I took in the expansive views before heading back down to the beach to find my tent and get some rest.

In the morning, we tried to hike around a series of huge boulders to get to the second beach, but the rocks were extremely slippery, so we decided to be safe/smart and instead packed up and headed out in the late morning.

(Craig hiking along the boards that help get through some of the sludge along the trail as it passes through some boggy areas.  We hiked up to the saddle in the middle of the ridge and then steeply down to the beach below.)

(Craig can be seen in the bottom of this picture, hiking down to the beach below as we scouted out our camp site for the evening.)

(Craig and his tent, with the 1,100 foot mountian, Ryten, in the background.  I climbed to the top of that ridge later that evening, in spite of deciding against it earlier on the hike to the beach, mostly because I was tired/lazy.)

(Craig goes for a quick wade in the water.  As inviting as it looks, the water is absolutely freezing, which makes sense.  At 68 degrees North, this is as far North as parts of the Antarctic Peninsula are South.)

(Climbing up Ryten, I stopped for a view of Craig strolling the vast beach below.)

(The hidden lake halfway up to Ryten, high above the beach just below the edge of this picture.)

(We camped on the first beach in the picture, and a large series of boulders blocks most from getting to the second beach.)

(While enjoying the view atop Ryten, the sun fell behind this long cloud for a spectacular sunset.  Though I was tired and didn't want to make the steep climb, I was definitely happy that I made myself do it.)

(Another view of Kvalvika Beach from Ryten.)

 

(A panorama from the top of the mountain.  The climb up from the beach was about 1.5 hours and about 1 hour to make it back down.)

(My campsite the following morning.)

 

(The morning light illuminates Kvalvika Beach.)

(One last view of Kvalvika before heading back over the ridge the next morning.)

(Hiking back from the beach towards our car.)

(Craig heading back along the boards to our car at the water level in the bottom right of the picture.)

(Fog began to pour into the fjord as we got back to the car and headed up the coast to check out more of the beautiful scenery.)

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Norway - The Beaches of Lofoten

August 25, 2014

Leaving Reine, we drove up the coast, in and out of numerous fjords and left marvelling at the scenery around every bend.  In addition to some of the hikes and camping, I had wanted to visit a few of the picturesque beaches.  While you don't think of beaches when you think of places above the Arctic Circle, the Lofoten Islands actually have a string of perfect beaches with white sand and clear green water.  If not for the numbing cold water, you could be fooled into thinking it was a far more tropical location.

(A spiky ridge along the main road, just a little North of Reine.)

(Apart from tourism, the villages are mostly dedicated to fishing, so fish drying racks sit on the edge of all the villages, and boats line the harbors.)

(The bridge from the Ramberg area heading over towards Klalvika beach and Yttersand.)

(A far off view of Ramberg, with a white sand beach in the foreground and rocky ridges in the background.)

(After our night on the top of the mountains, we spent a few minutes walking the soft beach at Ramberg.)

(The clear green water of Ramberg with a huge mountain just behind.)

(One more shot of Ramberg, from the rocks on the South side of the beach.)

(This small beach, backed by high grass, is just outside of Flakstad.  I had seen this beach on a satellite image and knew it would be nice, otherwise we would have had no idea it even existed, hidden behind an old, abandoned farm house.)

(Another great beach near Flakstad.)

(And one more beach at the edge of Flakstad.)

(An afternoon view of Ramberg beach, as we headed back to the next island over for our next long hike.)

(Turf roofs on a few of the houses near Yttersand.  I had originally thought we might be able to camp around the beach, but it would've been a little difficult, so we continued on to Klalvika for the afternoon/evening.)

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A Day at the Beach - Pigeon Point, Tobago (Trinidad & Tobago)

February 8, 2014

A great deal from Atlanta to Trinidad served as the impetus for our trip, so a one day stop in Trinidad was the first leg of our journey heading down to Trinidad & Tobago, Suriname and Guyana.  Opting for some relaxing beach time to start the journey, Kristina and I headed straight from the airport to Tobago and a quick taxi ride to Pigeon Point, one of the island's best beaches.  The trip almost started off badly with a camera left in the taxi, but fortunately we found the driver back at the airport, and the camera was untouched, waiting for us in the backseat.

The beach was spectacular, and a brief storm cooled things off a bit as we lounged in the sand and watched the people and kite surfers pass us by.  In the evening, we headed back to Port of Spain, Trinidad, again just seeing the airport and getting ready for our late-night flight down to Suriname.

(Doubles.  This is a classic Trinidadian food, and it was amazing.  We found a small stall just behind the airport and gorged ourselves on these for breakfast and dinner...and again for breakfast on the way home with another brief stopover there.  "Slight peppa?"  Yes, please!) 

(The beautiful beach at Pigeon Point, just about 10 minutes away from the airport by taxi.)

(The life guard stand and a scenic palm tree in the warm Caribbean sun.)

(At the far end of the beach, glass bottom boat tours wait their turn.  As an obvious tourist, many people tried to sell me this tour; however, we opted for lounging on the beach instead.  FYI - if anyone is looking for a tour, it's half the price for the same tour in the same locations if you catch the boat at Store Bay near the airport, and you could probably also have them drop you off at Pigeon Point pier afterwards to save on a taxi.)

(The ominous storm clouds.  A heavy rain passed through, but it dissipated as quickly as it came, and we were back out on the beach 15 minutes later.) 

(Our view laying under the palms.)

(Clear green water, white sand and blue skies are hard to beat.)

(At the far end of the beach, strong winds fuel lots of kite and wind surfers.)

(Bake and shark.  Not to be confused with bacon shark, which would be something totally different.  This is simply fried shark and some bread, along with some sauce that you can add to the meal.)

(Just around the corner from Pigeon Point.)

(The Pigeon Point pier, jutting out into the Caribbean, as piers tend to do.) 

(The main section of the beach, somewhat crowded, as it was a Saturday afternoon, though there was still plenty of room to find a nice spot in the sand.)

(We opted to walk back to the airport in the afternoon, enjoying the palm gardens along the road as we went.)

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Motorcyling Through Northern Palawan - Duli and Maremegmeg Beaches

For my last day in Northern Palawan, I cruised the countryside on a tiny motorcycle, dodging water buffalo, dogs, big rocks and little children along the gravel roads on my way to a few secluded beaches. A friendly Australian that I had met earlier in El Nido let me borrow his rented motorcycle for a day, so I headed up the coast, eventually making a very steep, slippery descent to Duli Beach where I spent a few hours enjoying the magnificent scenery and solitude. I finished up the day just South of El Nido at Maremegmeg Beach, recommended to me by one of the locals as his favorite spot in the area.

(Duli Beach - not all that easy to find or get to, but I had the huge beach to myself for almost four hours.)

(As I sat in the sand underneath the palm trees, the waves crashed in front of me, and the clouds passed overhead. At one point, there were three other visitors on the expansive beach, but they came and went quickly, and a stray dog was my only other guest.)

(Riding a tiny motorcycle on loose sand isn't as easy as it looks.)

(After leaving the bumpy gravel and dirt road, I followed a tiny footpath down to the beach on my motorcycle, stopping at a house or two on the way to ask for directions.)

(Some of the scenery on the way back to El Nido from Duli Beach. I came very close to running over a big black snake coiled up in the middle of the gravel road, but with a nearby water buffalo, dog and large rocks that I was trying to avoid, I didn't have much time to get a good look at it.)

(Getting out of El Nido, you quickly get back into the rural parts of Palawan with tiny farmers' huts along the side of the road.)

(Maremegmeg Beach - from Corong-Corong, about 3 km South of El Nido, this beach is a 30-45 minute walk further South, but it's definitely worth it.)

(Rows and rows of palm trees at Maremegmeg make for some pretty decent pictures. I just had to wait for one oblivious French guy to move out of the shot.)

(Maremegmeg Beach looking out towards Cadlao Island.)

(Fish curry and rice.)

(A traditional Filipino soup with random vegetables, some pork and a tamarind base - sinigang. Not at all like synagogue, particularly the pork part. Sorry for the confusion.)

(Another version of halo-halo with taro flavored ice cream, random gelatin, rice krispies, ice shavings and some random pieces tucked in the bottom. This was back in Puerto Princesa on my last day before heading back to Manila.)

(I also made a quick stop by the vegetarian restaurant in Puerto Princesa, along with my obligatory visit to the bakeries and kid along the side of the road that sells something like fried plantains for 15 cents each. Mmmm.)

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