Sarah Pedersen 19th June 2023
After our night out in Svolvær we were ready to leave this very touristy town, but first we had to visit North Norwegian Artist centre, which had a really nice exhibition and a great shop with local art.
We had heard the Trollfjell was worth a visit and it definitely was. It is a quite narrow channel with steep cliffs on both side and with waterfalls and possibility of seeing sea eagles. We had planned to find another place to anchor but at the end of the fjord there was a small mooring pontoon, so we decided to call it a day and spend the night at this beautiful place where the mountain took our internet connection.
There was a hiking route by the pontoon, so we planned a morning hike. Looking at the sign it looked like a peace of cake to follow the route, but not long after starting we found ourself without markers. We tried our best to scout signs of other people having walked this trail by spotting broken branches and steps in the mud, but we’re getting a little sceptical about the project. We were following a stream and suddenly we saw the trail markers on the other side of the stream. Fortunately we were able to cross the stream and get on the right track again, which was a lot easier as it had wooden planks at the muddy areas and by the lakes we needed to cross.
We met another pair of hikers on the trail and watching them realised how little we had planned this trip; we hadn’t brought water or snacks or extra sunscreen. We decided to walk a bit further though but it was a quite warm and sunny day and we also wanted to sail a bit further so we were close to Tromsø if the weather became right for a crossing to Bear Island, so we decided to head back.
On the way back we passed a cold little water pond perfect for a quick dip to cool down. This was just was we needed to get back to the boat as we hadn’t been successful at drinking water from a small waterfall.
Our original plan was to sail south around Lofoten, but being at Trollfjell made it just as easy to go around north, so we decided to do that. The mountains around this area was so fantastic and the weather made it possible to work on our tans.
We ended up mooring at little harbour and because of the windstill weather the mountains and houses were reflected in the water and we could eat dinner in the cockpit again