Greetings from Norway

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The Nav, marker is back in place at “Korsfluda”:

Then the marker is in place. Hopefully it won’t be long before it’s broken down again,
Text & Photo: Liv-Marie Auning 5 days ago
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PS> You may need to zoom in to see it (if you don’t have local knowledge)

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It is that time of the year:

482K views · 13K reactions | Cute Ice Fishing in Norway | Cute Ice Fishing in...

“Skit fiske” as we say in Norway

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“The Gorge” coming to a TV screen near you soon:

A Giant Monster Hides In The Fog - THE GORGE Trailer (2025) Miles Teller, Anya Taylor-Joy

Partly filmed in Norway.

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Today is winter solstice and thanks heaven for that.
Here in Ålesund (at 62.5N Lat.) the day is short and the night long:
Sunrise: 10:05 hrs. Sunset: 15:02 hrs.

Since it is cloudy there today there are no sun to be seen, just dawn turning to dusk, with no real daylight in between.

But we will get it back in the summer when dusk turns to dawn without any real darkness between, although the sun is just below horizon for a few hours at night.

PS> Not sure if I will ever get used to winter darkness again. Or acclimatized to the winter weather here, either.

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It’s that time of the year again, the time for Lutefisk:

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Lutefisk with plenty of bacon fat is on our menu today, known as “little X-Mas Eve”
PS> With “Juleøl” (Special X-mas brew):

And Aquavit:

To go with it, the lutefisk goes down Merrily.
(Just don’t overcook it to where it becomes jelly)

“GOD JUL”

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Doesn’t look like there will be any snow during X-Mas, at least not here in Ålesund:

Long term weather forecast for Ålesund

1. Wednesday 25 Dec.

• Expected: Debris avalanches, debris flows and slush slides: Yellow severity

1. Night: heavy rain|
2. Morning: heavy rain
3. Afternoon: heavy rain
4. Evening: rain
   **Maximum minimum temperature:13°/10°C/ **
   Precipitation: 30mm
   Wind:12m/s / Gusts: 19 m/s
   Open hourly forecast

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The Lutefisk is ready:

With a LOT of bacon fat.

The X-Mas tree tree has been decorated by you sons as per tradition:

Unfortunatley our youngest son is not here yet. He is his sending his in-laws off to Australia, but is looking forward to introduce his first son to the family traditions when he gets here in a few days time.

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X-Mas in a tent?:

Winter wonderland: No wonder people are queuing up to spend a winter night here. Photo: Daniel Rustøen

On the Rustøen farm in Oldedalen, a solitary tent reigns supreme. A dome tent, a “dome”. Here, Tone Rustøen and her sons offer exclusive accommodation. And the guests are coming. Now it’s time for the Christmas celebration.
The white tent of Olden Glamping is located all alone. The nearest neighbour is Oldevatnet Lake.

This is what tourists want to experience. Last summer it was completely booked, and now in winter there are still requests. Some come from far away to experience this.

It is not exactly “primitive camping” they are offering:

Bedroom with “in-situ” bathroom:

Sitting area:

The tent, or dome, is equipped like a hotel room. with a toilet, shower and also a refrigerator, kettle and microwave.
– Simply a hotel room out in nature, says Tone Rustøen.
Photos: Gunnhild Sindre
Source: Her blir det feira jul i telt - smp.no

PS> Too late for this X-Mas, but booking is open for next year.

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Ålesund today 26/12 2024:

Photo: Thorbjørn T. Bugge
My oldest son (49) walked up the 420 steps, took this picture and walked the same steps down again.
PS> He challenge you to come here and do the same. (Even in summer)

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New Year Greetings from Norway:

With a realistic New Year’s Resolution:

Oddbjorn Mauritz Bugge added a... - Oddbjorn Mauritz Bugge

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Here on the North West coast of Norway New Year’s Eve was a competition between Fireworks and Northern Lights:

Northern Lights and fireworks at Lillevannet in Spjelkavik. Photo: Monica J

In many cases the Northern Lights go the upper hand:

New Year’s Eve at Longva. Photo: Knut Ola Rekdal

Northern Lights and fireworks over Giske. Photo: Alexander DGL

Source: Send oss dine nyttårsbilder - smp.no

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Hurtigruten’s ship of the future?

Inside the 443ft long Green cruise ship of the future

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First cruise ship of the year is in port today 02. Jan. 2025:

Source: Ålesund Havn webcam

Balmoral Cruise Ship | Fred. Olsen Cruises

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That Polar Lows hit the coast in Northern Norway is not unusual, but to get as far south as 60N is not a common occurrence,
The second one in about a week is forecast to hit us this early tomorrow morning:

[quote]
It is expected to drop 30-50 cm. of snow on us, even here at the coast.
Wind is expected to reach 26 m/s (52 kts.)
Not a nice way to start a New Year:

Kystvarsel for 62.868, 6.229 time for time

Some have got in trouble already:

A fishing boat receives assistance from the rescue boat “Idar Ulstein” southwest of Fosnavåg on Thursday afternoon.

Photo: From the Rescue Company at X.

This is what the Rescue Company wrote:
According to the report, the 38-meter-long fishing boat had something stuck in its propeller. The rescue boat will tow the boat to Eggesbønes in Herøy.
Sleper fiskebåt - smp.no (Video)

We have had a taste of it already here in Ålesund:

From Ålesund on Thursday. Photo: Staale Wattø

Update just now:

16:07 todayKristian Klemetzen

Upgrading hazard warning for Sunnmøre and Nordfjord

– A polar low pressure will hit the coast of Trøndelag and Møre og Romsdal late Thursday evening and into Friday night. Along the coast, southwest or west light storms are expected ahead of the low pressure before the wind turns northwest with light to full storms. Heavy snow showers with wind gusts of between 35–40 m/s on the coast and 27–33 m/s further inland, it is stated in a warning from meteorologists.

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CRIME WAVE IN ÅLSUND!!!:

Robbery attempt: Knife seized

A man has been charged with two attempted robberies of a store in Ålesund. Police have seized a knife and a Finnish cap.

Twice in two days, Bunnpris Torghallen was subjected to attempted robbery. Photo: Marius Simensen

Updated: 4 hours ago
On Saturday and Sunday during Christmas holiday, Bunnpris Torghallen in Ålesund was attempted robbed. It is also said that people were threatened with a knife.
Merchant Knut Lislegaard said that the robber had asked for cash, but that the employees could not give him anything. The store has a completely closed cash system, which means that employees do not have access without scales.
– There were a few scary minutes, then the robber eventually retreated, explained Lislegaard.

The police went out and asked for tips, and shared both a description of the man and a photo from the robbery attempts. The store had both attempts on camera surveillance.

The police released this photo from the events.Photo: Police

A couple of days later, on the morning of New Year’s Eve, Sunnmørsposten reported that a man in his 30s had been arrested and charged with the two attempted robberies. The police chose not to imprison the man, and released him a short time later.

Knife confiscated

– We have not questioned him yet, but want to have him in for questioning, says police lawyer and prosecutor in the case, Mathias Häber.
He adds that the man has denied being behind the robbery attempts to the police.

The police searched the area around the store on Sunday evening. Photo: Marius Simensen

During the attempted robbery on Sunday, a knife was allegedly used to threaten the victim.
– We have seized the knife we ​​believe was used. We have also seized a Finnish cap that we believe was used, Häber tells Sunnmørsposten.

Recognized

The man who has now been arrested has not been charged with anything other than the two attempted robberies.
– How did you track him down?
– It was a police officer who recognized him from the surveillance footage, says the police attorney.
Two attempted robberies in two days are not everyday occurrences in Ålesund.
– We take it seriously. Fortunately, we experience this very rarely, says Häber.

Source: Ransforsøk: Har beslaglagt kniv - smp.no (Behind paywall)
Google translation

PS> Nice when that is major news. We like to keep it like that.

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After the storm; Winter wonderland:

My son sent this message after finish work today; “my car is under there somewhere”:

It’s not over yet:

22:06 todayKarl-Petter Løvoll

– There will be more snow showers

The snowy weather in Western Norway and Central Norway will continue through the weekend.
– There will be a new round tomorrow in Trøndelag and Møre og Romsdal, but the warning has been downgraded to yellow level, says meteorologist on duty Ingvild Villa to NTB.
She says that there will be significantly less wind throughout the weekend, but that there will be large amounts of snow. According to the forecast, there could be 20 to 30 centimeters of snow in these areas and even more in the mountains.
– There will be more snow showers all day tomorrow, but on Sunday it will be a little lighter in the Northwest, says the meteorologist.

Unfortunately it will all turn to slush next week, when the wind direction change SW’ly, with correspondently higher temperature and rain. (+6C by end of the week)

A good time to NOT be on the road:

This is a new one; Ferry crew couldn’t manage to keep the deck snow free enough for normal service. Snow plow to the rescue:

Her må brøytebilen rydde ferga for snø

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Northern Lights peak in 2025: – It’s just absolutely fantastic

2025 will be a good year for the northern lights in southern parts of Norway as well. Read the photographer’s tips for taking pictures of the fascinating light phenomenon.
Everything is set for a good year for the northern lights in 2025, according to experts.
Already at the beginning of the new year, the northern lights could be observed in large parts of the country.

Northern lights over Ålesund and Godøya, photographed on Wednesday, January 1, 2025. Photo: Iver H. Skrede

On Wednesday this week, the northern lights were unusually strong. And there’s more to come.
The Northern Lights will occur more frequently and be more powerful this year and the two following years.
– There is a cycle of aurora activity, which controls how often and how strong the aurora is. 2025, 2026 and 2027 will be very good years to see the aurora also in the south, says aurora expert Pål Brekke at the Norwegian Space Center to NRK.
Every eleven years, the Sun undergoes a period of high activity, called a solar maximum. We are now heading towards a new solar maximum, which will peak in early 2025.

The previous peak was not as strong, it has been around 22 years since we had a period of such high activity as now. That is why many people have probably not seen so many northern lights before, NTB reports.

Source: Nordlys-topp i 2025: – Det er bare helt fantastisk - smp.no

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[Hogsnort]

At least it’s winter in your neck of the woods. We are having the whole basket of weather including snow and it supposed to be summer. This mornings headline in a major newspaper "Where has summer gone…and will it ever return?

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If you have the time, watch this video:

You won't believe what Norway just found!

No it is not sponsored by the Norwegian Government, or Equinor (ex Statoil) AFAIK.

PS> Read the comments.