Brighter days ahead
Here, on the southwest coast of Norway, the cold days of winter are relatively short. The sun struggles from about the end of October until the middle of January to make any kind of significant appearance. There are some hours of daylight as it lingers on the horizon, but it’s never able to reach its full potential. It will however, make up for its shortcomings by working overtime during the summer months. That doesn’t necessarily mean the weather will be nice. As always we still have the cold Northern wind and lots of rain clouds to deal with.
Sometimes it’s hard to believe a beach girl such as myself ended up here (it must have been love).
I was suppose to be in school yesterday, studying Norwegian (one can never be too fluent) but for some reason my class was cancelled, or rather postponed. It was a beautiful but cold day, the temperature was -4 degrees Celsius, that’s about 20 degrees Fahrenheit. I decided to join some friends who were going over to the mainland for a walk along the old railway track. The trail takes you from the little town of Egersund to an even smaller place called Hellvik. There are a lot of twists and turns through the mountains and along the shore.
In some places we could see the island where we live, across the ‘fjord’.
Can you see the small group of white houses in the top center of the picture? One of them is mine.
We also walked through an old train tunnel, where giant icicles hung like daggers above our heads.
There was a sign posted outside which read, Enter at your own risk.
You can hardly take fifty steps in Norway without walking uphill, which can be absolutely exhausting, but at least you don’t have to worry about freezing. We walked for quite some time before taking a break between the rocks, in the sun. I could barely feel the sun on my face, but it was there, trying, and that’s good enough for me. It seems brighter days now lie ahead.
Posted on January 22, 2013, in all things Norsk, Photos and tagged Egersund, Hellvik, Norway, photos, sunshine, walking, winter. Bookmark the permalink. 41 Comments.
Norge är ett vackert land!
Hälsningar från Sverige
Takk skal du har, nabo!
These pictures are stunning.
Thank you!
What a wonderful pathway…reminds me a lot of Canada. I agree you can never be too fluent. Norwegian must be a very interesting language.
Yes, Norwegian is an interesting and difficult language to learn. I’ve been here for over twenty years and still learn something new everyday!
Beautiful views. Norway is on my travel list but it should be in the summer time. Cold and I don’t get along well
.
I’m not a big fan of being cold either, which is bizarre when you think I’ve been living here for twenty years now. The thing is; you can’t always count on it being warm here in the summer either… But it is indeed beautiful.
Thank you for a great trip
Thank you for letting me tag along!
Breathtaking!
Thanks!
A lovely walk, Maggie! What a beautiful little perch your house was built on. What a view!
Yes, its a great place to live… even if the weather isn’t very nice
Thanks, Naomi.
Wow, lovely photos!
Thanks for stopping by Janneke!
You live is such a a beautiful and idyllic place, Maggie!
Yes, but there are no avocados or kiwis growing in the yard… We do however have some snakes in the summer
Well, that’s okay then!
Yes, it must be love, Maggie. I’m a sunshine girl too. But it IS very beautiful. That opening shot is stunning, and so lovely to see where you live. But those icicles- ferocious!
I made a deal with my husband a long time ago… I’ll live in Norway but he has to take we on a warm vacation EVERY year
Beautiful walk! Given your history, did you enter the train tunnel?
You know I did… some people never learn.
After reading your wonderful book, I had to ask!
Yes, you know me and dangerous tunnels. Thanks for remembering!
Lovely photos… and I wanted to know about whether you entered the tunnel too!
Yes, I did. It was so cold, those icicles weren’t going any place. If it were warmer and they were starting to melt I’d be more worried.
I love the view to your house, Maggie. I can only dream of living somewhere like that, and I think I will do that tonight. We live on a State Route, and over 2,000 semi trucks pass by our house daily. … Your pictures are beautiful. What a wonderful walk with your friends!
Thanks, Maddie. It is beautiful. But the weather can make it quite impossible to enjoy (a lot of the time). And well, its not America…
I understand. Do you get back to the states very often?
Every year!
Most of the time I go to New Jersey, that’s where most of my family is. Sometimes I go to West Virginia, my daughter lives there. In April we are going to Houston to visit friends.
For some reason your icy shots look far more attractive that the snowbound city that I’m living in!
I had to walk a mile in the freezing cold to get these shots… lol
That looks beautiful! And it reminds me of how much I miss winter in this Caribbean climate.
I want to say, “You’re so lucky” but… but nothing, I’m freezing! Enjoy the warmth.
Cheers
It is So beautiful where you live!
Beautiful and cold. Thanks for stopping by!
Fabulous post – I loved it all! Great pictures and you’re right, doesn’t it feel wonderful having the sun sneak its way back into our lives?
I was in the city centre of Glasgow today and there was this fantastic winter sun just adding this gorgeous yellowy orange light across the sky. Love it! 
Love the icicles/enter at own risk!
what a wonderful entry!! you’ve really captured the essense of norway, through both your words and very special images!! some would not appreciate the beauty of this amazing place you call home!!
I love the top photo especially, but altogether such a beautiful place. I am so glad that you live amidst such grandeur, Maggie. ~ Lily
beautiful pictures