Last Days Among Fjords And Mountains

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Vanvikan, Trondheimsfjorden, Norway 23/3-2017

Enjoying my (for now) last days among the secret filled fjords, cozy forests and awesome mountains of Trøndelag in Mid-Norway.

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With weather and winds in our favour, we arrived Trondheimsfjorden a bit earlier than expected. Great timing as a longer lasting gale started the very next day after our arrival, and I am happy to have some extra days in a place I enjoy so much before my travels continues...

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Trondheimsfjorden is a fjord we have been to many times before.
This is the fjord where the world’s shallowest cold-water coral reef known is located, which was the reason to our first film expedition here 10 years ago.

Lophelia pertusa is the deep-water species of reef building coral, which normally lives at depths between 100-1000 meters or more. But here in Trondheimsfjorden it is found at a depth of approximately 40 meters.

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We have also been here to film cold-water sharks, such as the mythical Greenland shark (Somniosus microcephalus).

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As well as other deep-water living creatures. The cute fairy-tale looking Ghost shark (Chimaera monstrosa) being one of them :-)

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An awesome place for exciting underwater adventures with other words. And for the nature loving person I am I so enjoy the great combination of having both fjord and mountains in easy access.

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When observing the mountains getting a new cover of fresh snow, I eagerly get equipped for some snowfun in the wild surrounding.

In company of the great silence I so head out to take advantage of the last snow I will see for a while...

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From the cold exciting fjords and snow covered mountains of Norway, I will now soon be taking the wings, heading south towards an island in the Atlantic.

Time to say bye bye to the white, crispy snow, to instead say hello to the salty water of the blue Atlantic Ocean! :-)

Dressing For Cold Water

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Trøndelag, Mid-Norway 16/3-2017

To dress well is important. Well, when saying that I don't really mean keeping up with the latest fashion, or to dress fancy when going out in town. As you most likely know already, I'm not big in neither fashion nor clothing in general. Simply give me something that works and is comfy and I will happily wear it until it's in bits and pieces! ;-)

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What I mean with dressing well is to be proper equipped for the adventure you are about to face. If not having the appropriate clothing when out on an expedition, the most amazing experience could instead pass through as miserable suffering or even be dangerous.

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How to dress to stay warm and comfortable is very individual though. What is for sure is that cold waters do require some kind of thermal protection for us being able to enjoy the aquatic world longer than just a quick plunge! I know as I have tried and the bikini-fun-dive obviously didn´t last too long in the 5°C cold winter fjord ;-)

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I often get the question on how to dress when diving or snorkelling in cold waters. As said, this will depend on each individual, but below is a brief description on how I dress whether I'm diving in the fjords of Norway, or spending time among the stunning icebergs in Antarctica.

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Mostly, I dress in three layers. The first one is a normal thin base layer in either synthetic or merino wool.

My second layer is a thicker thermal underclothing. A cozy compressible fiber overall which is as comfortable to wear both before and after, as well as during the dive :-)

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Last but not the least, the drysuit!

Either a shell suit, or one in neoprene, both with their pros and cons. The shell suit is more flexible and easier to dry, while the neoprene is warmer due to its additional thermal protection.

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In addition to the drysuit, I wear a 10mm hood and 7mm gloves in neoprene. Voilà, we are ready for some cold water-fun! :-)

South Of The Arctic Circle

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Nesna, Nordland, Norway 4/3-2017

Since my last blogpost, we have been sailing further south and have just been reaching south of the Arctic Circle.

The days are now much longer, and the sun stronger, giving me so much more time to explore each place we visit!

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Below are pictures from our last weeks onboard, which have been very generous in variation of both weather and light. Everything from calm seas, clear skies and never ending sunsets...

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... to the totally opposite! What would life be without variation?! :-)

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Grey is very beautiful, but can be a bit cold, especially out at sea!

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Underneath the surface, however, in the 4°C cold fjords, there are plenty colourful marine life to observe, especially when having a closer look. There are many wrecks along the Norwegian coast, offering good shelter and living space for many different aquatic species.

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To live on a sailboat and take the time to visit new locations is both interesting and fun. You get to experience many places you normally never would get the idea of visiting otherwise.

Each place charms with its many faces due to the ever changing scenery in form of clouds, light, wind, tide level, precipitation, temperature, time of the day etc. etc.

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Even though I love grey with its many variations, it does feel wonderful each time the sun shows up with her warming smile, especially after many cold days onboard without her company :-)

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So the voyage continues to new places to explore and adore along the beautiful Norwegian coast that has so much fun and beauty to offer, above- and underneath the surface! :-)