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Scandinavia
  • Miel Degang
  • Laura Debyser
  • Miel Degang
  • Laura Debyser

Scandinavia

A 86-day adventure by Miel & Laura Read more
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  • Trip start
    July 31, 2021
    Scandinavia
    1

    Skagen

    August 2, 2021 in Denmark ⋅ ☀️ 16 °C

    Since we plan on becoming English teachers in Spain (that is if we pass the course), we might as well post our footprints in English to practice :). Be warned: grammar and spelling mistakes will be made!

    We started our new adventure in Skagen, the top of Denmark. We strolled around this peaceful village and enjoyed our last cheap meal 🙈. In nearby Grenen, we stood with one foot in the Skagerrak sea and with the other in the Kattegat sea (a name not unknown to those who watch Vikings).

    Side note: we also spent our first night in our van, named 'Otto'. He will be our home for the next months.    Read more

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    Kristiansand

    August 3, 2021 in Norway ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    We took the ferry from Hirtshals in Denmark to Kristiansand in the south of Norway. After a short drive, we found a cozy spot on a beach near Mandal, one of white cities of the Norwegian coast. We spent our first night in 🇳🇴 at a beautiful spot on the edge of a fjord!Read more

  • Scandinavia
    1Kjeragbolten
    1PreikestolenWe spent the night on Preikestolen to avoid the crowdsAs two inexperienced drivers, our skills are put to the test regularly on Norway's curvy roads 😅

    Lysefjord

    August 5, 2021 in Norway ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C

    We spent three days around Lysefjord and made two beautiful hikes: one to Kjeragbolten (a giant boulder wedged in a mountain crevasse) and one to Preikestolen (named as the most iconic natural landmark in Norway). The high cliffs caused some fear of heights (for Laura), but the views of the fjord were breathtaking!Read more

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    Hardangerfjord

    August 9, 2021 in Norway ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    We made an overnight hike to Hardangervidda national park (where we stood on the famous Trolltunga), used our SUP for the first time, visited some of the many waterfalls cascading down and took a dip in the freezing water of the fjord!Read more

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    Bergen

    August 10, 2021 in Norway ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    We stayed at a hostel so we could enjoy a hot shower, access WiFi and do our laundry. For once, Miel had a bed that was long enough! We strolled around in the city center, visited the impressive Bryggen wharf and bought an extra layer of clothes (we slightly underestimated the weather in Norway 😅). After experiencing what Norway's nature has to offer the past week, we were a bit underwhelmed by this previous capital of 🇳🇴 and stayed only one day.

    FYI: on the way to Bergen, we took the longest suspension bridge in Norway and passed an underground roundabout.    Read more

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    Næroyfjord

    August 13, 2021 in Norway ⋅ 🌧 15 °C

    The Næroyfjord (a narrow arm of the Sognefjord) is on the UNESCO World Heritage list and we can see why. We made an amazing hike to a viewpoint (Mount Bakkanosi) and had our first two-day SUP adventure in this beautiful fjord! While paddling, we met porpoises (small whales that look like dolphins) and some very sweet goats. We put up our tent on the edge of the fjord and enjoyed the wonderful view all by ourselves!Read more

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    The people at the bottom right give an impression of how big the glacier is.
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    Jostedalsbreen

    August 16, 2021 in Norway ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

    Jostedalsbreen is the largest glacier in mainland Europe. We made a glacier hike on Nigardsbreen, one of the most accessible branches of the glacier. Our first time on a glacier :)! We had to wait a day for some sunshine (we relaxed at a cool camp site), but it was worth it!Read more

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    Galdhøppigen

    August 17, 2021 in Norway ⋅ ⛅ 8 °C

    Galdhøpiggen is the highest mountain in Scandinavia (2469m) and located in Jotunheimen National Park. It was a strenuous climb of 1,400 m, clambering over the rocks and slogging through the snow. However, the views on the way up were amazing and at the summit we were rewarded with a 360 degree panorama of Jotunheimens mountains and lakes! After the exhausting hike, we parked Otto on a secluded spot to spend the night and we spotted some wild reindeer! 🦌🦌🦌Read more

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    1We were at the front of the raft so we got really wet 💦

    Skjåk

    August 20, 2021 in Norway ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C

    We stayed a few days in Skjåk, a small village with lots to do. We made a beautiful walk in Reinheimen National Park, Miel went canyoning and Laura thought she was going to die during our rafting trip on the Otta River.Read more

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    Geirangerfjord

    August 22, 2021 in Norway ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    On our way to Geiranger, we made an overnight stop at Mt. Dalsnibba, a mountain top that 'offers stunning views across the area'. When we woke up, all we saw was a lot of fog (classic 🙄), but after waiting a few hours we could enjoy the nice views!

    Another UNESCO World Heritage fjord = a new SUP adventure! It was pretty impressive, as the surrounding mountains towered +- 1700 metres above us. While paddling, we admired spectacular waterfalls and deserted summer farms. We had lunch on our SUP in the middle of the fjord :).    Read more

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    Atlantic Road

    August 23, 2021 in Norway ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    The route between Geiranger and Trondheim included two 'National Tourist Routes': Geiranger – Trollstigen and the Atlantic Road. In Belgium, we both hate driving but Norway's roads make it fun to drive :)! We also saw the sea for the first time since we took the ferry 🌊Read more

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    Trondheim

    August 24, 2021 in Norway ⋅ 🌧 13 °C

    The weather in the third largest city of Norway was quite bad (it rained all day), but we still liked Trondheim! We walked around the main highlights (including the Nidaros Cathedral and the charming Solsiden Neighborhood full of restaurants and bars) and went to a restaurant for the first time (and the second time, njom njom)!Read more

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    We walked through the tunnel of Torghatten (the light in the middle of the mountain)
    12View from Skjæringen, the highest of the Seven Sisters2Svartisen GlacierSaltstraumen2

    National Turistveg Helgeland

    August 28, 2021 in Norway ⋅ ☀️ 11 °C

    The 'Nasjonal Turistveg Helgeland' (Road 17/ Coastal Highway) runs from Steinkjer to Bodø, is 630 kilometres long and includes six ferry crossings (= a lot of waiting for the ferry 🙈). The road runs along the coast and offers AMAZING views. We made a few stops along the way: Torghatten (a granite dome known for its tunnel through its center), Sju Søstre (Miel climbed one of the seven peaks), Svartisen glacier (we enjoyed the view of the glacier from our SUP) and Saltstraumen (one of the strongest tidal currents in the world). Oh, and we crossed the Arctic Circle :)!Read more

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    11

    Lofoten

    September 2, 2021 in Norway ⋅ 🌧 9 °C

    In Bødo, we took the ferry to Lofoten. This archipelo is known for its dramatic mountains, white-sand beaches and small fishing villages. As the weather was quite bad (rain, rain, rain), we booked a hostel for two nights and enjoyed a hot shower 🤗 (after two weeks this can become rather necessary 🙈). We hiked to the secluded Kvalvika Beach, admired the beaches from mount Mannen and explored cozy Henningsvaer! We are definitely coming back to explore the islands further when the sun is less angry with us!Read more

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    Toilet with sea view!1A baby moose, professionally photographed with a smartphone camera through binoculars 😅

    Vesterålen

    September 3, 2021 in Norway ⋅ 🌧 7 °C

    Vesterålen is the group of islands above Lofoten. The mountains have a more rounded shape compared to the ones in Lofoten. Because of the weather, we only stayed one day but it was - again - very beautiful! We drove the Andøya Tourist Route, stopped at a viewpoint with an epic toilet, came across a baby moose and made an attempt to spot whales from the coast (and failed...).Read more

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    1As a reference; the yellow spot is me!1As a reference; the yellow spot is me!Cozy dinner in Otto

    Senja

    September 4, 2021 in Norway ⋅ ☁️ 8 °C

    Another 24h-stop, this time in Senja! After a very nauseating ferry ride, we arrived at Norway's second largest island. The landscape here is as impressive as in Lofoten, but there are less people. We hiked to Hesten to admire Segla - the most famous mountain on this island - during a rare moment without rain :).Read more

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    Trømso

    September 8, 2021 in Norway ⋅ 🌧 7 °C

    After yet another ferry ride we could start exploring the neighborhood of the 'Arctic capital'. We hiked to the aptly named Blåisvatnet (Blue Lake), crossed another mountain top of our list and in the city itself we enjoyed some good food. We also tried chasing the Northern Lights a few times - without success 😞. We left our last stop in Norway via the famous Hurtigruten. On to Sweden!Read more

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    Kungsleden

    September 12, 2021 in Sweden ⋅ ☁️ 9 °C

    We hiked a (small) part of Kungsleden, Sweden’s most famous hiking trail through Lapland. Our plan was to hike from Abisko to Nikkaluokta, a six-day trip. However, after the first night, we changed our plan as it was freezing cold at night (including ice on the tent 🥶). During our three days on the trail, we saw beautiful landscapes, met a lot of reindeer and made a cosy campfire!Read more

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    Jokkmokk

    September 14, 2021 in Sweden ⋅ ⛅ 8 °C

    Jokkmokk is a meeting place for Sámi people (indigenous people of the North) from all over Sápmi (which encompasses large northern parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia). In the Ajtte Museum we learned more about Sámi culture.

    In nearby Arvidsjaur we visited the church town of Lappstaden. A bit of history: in the early 17th century the first churches were built in Lapland. The church was to bring Christianity to the Sámi . A 'church attendance law' stipulated a minimum level of attendance, but this was difficult for the nomadic Sámi to fulfil. Since the road to church was long, overnight Sámi huts were built all over Lapland.    Read more

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    Vildmarksvågen

    September 16, 2021 in Sweden ⋅ ☁️ 10 °C

    The 'Vildmarksvägen' is one of Sweden’s highest roads and connects Lapland with Jämtland. We admired the Hällingsåfallet (Swedens 'Grand Canyon'), visited another church town, saw some beautiful waterfalls and drove on the high (never good news for our nights in Otto 🥶) plateau of Stekenjokk. Apart from that, we experienced Sweden's typical landscape; lakes (there are 100.000 of them) and pine forest as far as the eye can see.Read more

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    12One of Sweden's many open-air museumsSkinny dipping in one of Sweden's 100.000 freezing lakes is our way of taking a shower

    Falun

    September 18, 2021 in Sweden ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C

    We visited the UNESCO World Heritage mine in Falun. The mine is a thousand years old and was the world’s major producer of copper in the 17th century. Even the Palace of Versailles was roofed with Falun copper :). It was really cool to descend into the underground tunnels, even though it was with an ugly orange raincoat and helmet.Read more

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    Uppsala

    September 19, 2021 in Sweden ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C

    We stopped in Uppsala on our way to Stockholm. A cool university city with lots of cosy restaurants and the biggest cathedral of 🇸🇪. It was also here that a miracle unfolded; Miel visited a museum (the Linnaean Garden, a botanic garden with the former home of the famous botanist Carl Linnaeus) while Laura decided to visit a café. We also visited an old Viking site.Read more

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    1Fika = coffee + pastry (mmm)Vasa museum, housing an impressive 17th century ship that was restored after laying on the bottom of the harbo

    Stockholm

    September 22, 2021 in Sweden ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C

    We switched Otto for a comfy hotel room to explore this popular capital. After two months of living in our car, this was a welcome change. We didn't have to search for a bush to go to the toilet, were able to dress standing up, doubled our amount of showers in just 4 days and didn't freeze to death during the night.

    Our daily activities also looked quite different. From strolling around the old city centre and window shopping to enjoying a vegan lunch buffet or typical Swedish 'fika' to visiting some great museums.

    We also wandered around in stockholms tunnelbana, a network of underground metro stations covered with street art and couldn't stay away from the biggest IKEA of the world and it's delicious plantboller 🤤    Read more

  • Scandinavia
    Westerplatte: first battle of WWII!Solidarnosc: trade union founded in Gdansk (leader: Lech Walesa). Played a central role in the end of communis1

    Gdansk

    October 3, 2021 in Poland ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    Gdansk turned out to be more interesting than we thought, so we stayed for 10 days! 😇. We visited two great museums (one about WWII and one about Solidarnosc, since they both started here), strolled around the beautiful old city centre, biked to nearby Sopot with its white beaches and enjoyed some delicious food. Apart from that we also studied English grammar a few hours a day (and yes we also binged Squid Game).Read more

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    Torún

    October 5, 2021 in Poland ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    This beautiful medieval city once functioned as the capital of Poland, of Prussia and even of the German Empire. It was spared destruction during the Second World War and is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It's also the birthplace of Copernicus! We enjoyed the local delicasy pierniki (some kind of gingerbread), strolled around the old centre with its many churches and studied some English grammar 🤓Read more

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