Greetings from Norway

[ombugge]

In Trondheim, Norway, cyclists glide uphill with ease using a unique pedal-powered lift called the Trampe/CycloCable—a hidden, foot-rest system embedded in the pavement that propels riders up steep hills at around 4 mph. Free to use and widely loved, it’s turned urban cycling into something effortless and inclusive.

Source: General knowledge

[ombugge]

12K views · 868 reactions | See why Norwegians are totally hooked on Cod (pun...

[ombugge]

From the top of Dalsnibba you get one of the most breathtaking views in Norway – all the way down to Geirangerfjord. The road up is Europe’s highest fjord road and costs 320 NOK per car.

Spectacular Norway

[WAFI]

Not really a new phenomenon. Since prehistoric times, people who could afford it went to cooler places to escape hot weather, and vice versa.

I didn’t like Southern Europe even before the record breaking heat waves of the last few years. In cold weather you can always put on more clothes, but in hot weather once you’re naked all you can do is sweat. I grew up in a hot place and hate it now. I lived in Finland for some years; ideal climate in my opinion. Other than the sea freezing which means you can’t do any sailing.

[ombugge]

Recently there was a Dutchman that went missing in the mountains near Trollstigen, but was found alive after two days intensive search:

Dutch tourist rescued near Trollstigen - Norway's News in English —...

Now there is a demanding and extensive search underway for American hiker Alec Luhn. He has not shown any signs of life since Thursday:

Search continues for missing American journalist in Norway after solo hike

The search operation has end on Tuesday evening.

Volunteer rescuers from the Red Cross have been involved in the search on Tuesday.
Shortly before 5:30 p.m., the search operation was scaled back due to demanding search conditions. There is heavy rainfall, high water levels in the rivers, and dangerous terrain.
– Now we pulled people out of the area because the rivers were so big that it was not very safe for the rescue crew, says police chief in Hardanger, Øystein Torsnes.
The police drones have also ended the search for the evening, and there are no flying conditions for helicopters either.
– The police are continuing to work on gathering intelligence and other information that may be helpful in the search, says operations manager Eirik Loftesnes in the police.

The search team will resume the search with full force from Wednesday at 09:00.
Resources from the Red Cross and Norwegian Rescue Dogs, drones and police officers contributed to the operation on Tuesday.

The search area is very large, and bad weather makes the work difficult.
The man started the trip near Buerbreen in Ullensvang, and was going to visit several DNT-cabins around Folgefonna National Park on the route: Front page – Folgefonna National Park
– We must have an open mind for the entire area, but initially we are concentrating on the Buer area, says Torsnes.

Source: Søk etter amerikansk turist på Folgefonna – NRK Vestland

UPDATE:

LAST PHOTO. This is the last known photo of Alec Luhn, which he sent to his wife on Thursday. She wonders if it could have been taken by someone else.

The search for Alec Luhn (38) is being stepped up at the Folgefonna glacier .
– He still hasn’t been found, says Red Cross Corps Leader Jan Åge Stengardsbakken to VG on Wednesday morning.

The American tourist was supposed to go on a four-day trip alone at Folgefonna and return to the UK, where he and his wife live, on Monday evening.
American Alec Luhn (38) is missing after a four-day solo trip to Folgefonna.

SUMMARY:

• The last sign of life was Thursday, July 31st.
• The wife shares the contents of her husband’s diary notes, which show that Luhn was given a ride by a French family.
• The relatives now wish to contact this family.
• The wife wonders if the last photo the man took might have been taken by someone he met.

Source: Alec Luhn savnet ved Folgefonna: Dagboknotater skal avsløre nye spor

[ombugge]

Unusually early “autumn storm” has hit parts of Norway:

Storm Floris lashes Norway: Transport hit as public warned to avoid travel

The weather was forecast well in advance, yet has resulted in “Multiple rescue operations”. Two men found dead in Jotunheimen:

To menn funne omkomne i Jotun­heimen

A Norwegian and a Danish citizen in their 60s have been found dead in Øvre Mjølkedalen in Jotunheimen.
A rescue operation was launched on Tuesday evening. Red Cross crews found the two men in Øvre Mjølkedalen in Luster just before midnight.
Crews had to return from the site due to extremely bad weather, and the survivors will be picked up as soon as possible.
– The weather conditions up there are very, very demanding. So they probably won’t be brought down until the weather gets better, says operations manager Steinar Hausvik in the Western Police District.
– There is very strong wind and snow at the top. Visibility was poor and the temperature was around 0 degrees. There is also poor telephone coverage and poor emergency network coverage inland in Jotunheimen. That makes it difficult.

Crews from the Red Cross in Grindheim and Lærdal, Norwegian People’s Aid in Årdal and rescue dogs from Indre Sogn participated in the search, which was conducted on foot.

Many people get lost or have problems in the mountains.

So far this summer, the Red Cross has participated in 357 rescue operations.
This is an increase of 67 from the same period last year, and the highest number recorded since 2021.

According to the Red Cross, the increase cannot be attributed to a specific cause.
– It is uncertain whether it is related to the weather or whether there are other factors at play, the Red Cross writes to NRK.

[ombugge]

Alec Luhn (38) found alive on Folgefonna

American Alec Luhn has been found alive after he was reported missing on Folgefonna Monday. – This is the best moment of my life, his wife tells NRK.
Source: Søk etter amerikansk turist på Folgefonna – NRK Vestland

Amazing story:

• He started the trip Thursday 31. July near Buerbreen in Ullensvang.
• Planned 4 days hiking trip around Folgefonna National Park.
• Was going to visit several DNT cabins on the route.
• Last seen or had contact with family on Thursday,
• Reported missing Monday, when he didn’t report for his flight from Bergen
• Search by helicopter and on foot started immediately
• Bad weather made search impossible for helicopter and difficult on foot Tuesday
• At 11:34 a.m. Wednesday, a rescue helicopter found Alec Luhn north of Nedre Buarbreen, east of Folgefonna. He waved to the helicopter from the ground, and contact was made:
  
  
• A rescuer and doctor were lowered to the man, and confirmed that it was the missing American.
• Alec Luhn landed at Haukeland University Hospital by rescue helicopter at 1:50 p.m.
  Luhn is described as awake but shaken. He is said to have an injured foot.

Seriously, but not critically injured

Luhn was reportedly injured on Thursday evening, according to department head at the regional trauma center, Geir Arne Sunde.
He says Luhn is seriously injured, but not critically.
The injuries were so extensive that he couldn’t get away from there.
He will not go into specifics about Luhn’s injuries, but says he is receiving good intensive care at Haukeland Hospital, Bergen.

[ombugge]

Beach life in Finnmark this summer:

PS> At times it has been hotter in Hammerfest than in Paris.

[ombugge]

He grateful for the is still in hospital in Bergen and grateful for the effort by his rescuers:

– Alec Luhn has undergone surgery for a broken femur and pelvic fracture. These injuries left him unable to move for over six days on a mountain near Buarbreen, writes Vigander.
Luhn is also receiving treatment for injuries to his feet caused by the cold and humidity.
– Alec Luhn would like to emphasize how persistent and selfless 330 Squadron and all others involved were in the work of finding him and keeping him warm until he could be transported down from the mountain. He would also like to thank the medical team at Haukeland University Hospital for the fantastic treatment and care they have provided in a complex medical situation.

On Friday morning, his mother said in an interview with the American television station WISN 12 News that the fracture was caused by a fall from a cliff.
– This happened Thursday night. He couldn’t move. It’s unbelievable, the mother says in the interview.

Source: Alec Luhn falt fra klippe - klarte ikke å røre seg
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8UML5XLQsOM

Further reporting by NRK (No paywall):

Alec Luhn funnet i live på fjellet: Brudd i lårbein og bekken

[Hogsnort]

The news made our local paper

[ombugge]

A safer way to see mountains and glaciers:

Kayaking & Glacier Walking, Austdalsbreen - Visit Sognefjord

Even if you are an experienced mountain hiker it is safer to be in a group.
If something goes wrong there are somebody who can get help and inform the rescuers of your location.
Beats spending nearly a week laying alone and injured in the mountains in bad weather, with only a chocolate bar for sustenance.

I know he was supposed to spend the nights in DNT cabins,
where there are provision available, even when you are driving on remote mountain roads.
It is good advice to “plan for the worst and hope for the best”, not the go unprepared for adverse events.

[ombugge]

For years Norwegians have flocked to “Syden” (the South) for “the sun, the sand and the cheep booze”. even during their summer vacation.
Now the trend has turned, not that the Norwegians don’t go south, but that people from the south come to Norway for what has got the name “Coolcation”.
The cooler climate is attractive to people who are suffering in frequent heatwaves in more southern parts of Europe and beyond:

When heat waves at home develop into long-term extreme conditions, northbound moving loads become crowded, writes the columnist.
The photo is from Trollfjorden in Lofoten. Foto: imageBROKER

Coolcation without a return ticket

We complain about the influx of tourists to Norway – but soon they will arrive with moving trucks instead of vacation suitcases.

Cool nights in July are becoming increasingly difficult to find. The world is getting brutally hot, with temperatures in Spain and Greece increasingly creeping towards the 50s.
In New York, public cooling centers have been established in museums, cinemas and shopping malls in recent summers, while tarpaulins hang over sidewalks to provide shade.
Not everyone can afford indoor winters in the summer. More and more people are fleeing the explosive heat, and the Norwegian tourism industry is rejoicing.

We have been working on this for too long. Not just through shiny campaigns to lure tourists to cold rivers, cool expanses and glaciers that sing their last verse.
But what does that do? Because incredibly, we are in the process of turning the tourist flow north. Not many people believed that before the turn of the millennium.

Unfortunately, it is not free for everyone. The increase in the number of cold-hungry SAS passengers from Italy, Spain and France has been dramatic since last year, something that drives prices up and excludes people who have less to travel with. They have to sweat, or jump into a local lake.

We are proud to see foreign celebrities and the world’s richest people vacationing in the Sognefjord or Lofoten. They ensure that international magazines with a high gloss factor publish both boastful selfies and paparazzi photos of beautiful, made-up people - in even more beautiful, unmade-up nature.

LOFOTEN: The top of Festvågtinden near Henningsvær. Photo: Rune Stoltz Bertinussen / NTB

Ironically, it is coolcation that is making Norway hot. Suddenly, tourism is also overheating. The potential for mass tourism is great, and we should consider containment measures.
Don’t think that tourists will be satisfied with a vacation week or two under the midnight sun in the long term, when the heat waves at home develop into long-term extreme conditions.
It is only a matter of time before northbound moving loads become congested, with enormous pressure on space, resources and infrastructure.

Our nature is wild, beautiful and relatively cool. The monopoly on living in it will not last forever. The threat is unlikely to go away because we are not addressing the underlying causes of climate change. It simply does not hurt enough for us to understand, or want to understand, the seriousness of it.

Chronicler Gunnar Garfors.

Gunnar Garfors in Greenland. Ocean and snow-capped mountains.
Photo: Gunnar Garfors

Source: Coolcation utan returbillett – Ytring

[ombugge]

Whiskey produced in the arctic part of Norway? Never heard of it:

At the entrance to the distillery. Photo: Elizaveta Vereykina

Inside the world’s northernmost distillery

Established nine years ago, the Aurora Spirit company positions itself as the world’s northernmost distillery. Located in the stunning Lyngen Alps near Tromsø, the Arctic capital of Norway, the company produces 50,000 litres of whisky each year.
They also produce gin, vodka and other handcrafted spirits.

“We have found ways to grow particular types of Arctic barley here in cooperation with two local farmers in northern Norway for some of our whisky,” says Tor Christensen, adding that the barley also comes from southern Norway, Finland and Scotland.
“The Arctic barley is grown in extremely harsh conditions. So the taste is completely different. The terroir is much more pronounced. It’s much more grassy. But you have to try it to understand!” says Tor.

“We use a lot of Arctic berries, as well as herbs and plants, in our gin. For example, blueberries, lingonberries, cloudberries and raspberries. We also use leaves of birch - all of which are grown in this area”, Tor Christensen said.

As part of the whisky project, his team used a special device to capture yeast from the air in the Arctic wilderness. After maturing it for a year, they used it to make whisky.

However, as Tor emphasises, profitability would not be possible without incorporating tourism services into their work, as well as state and community support. When the Barents Observer visited, around 50 tourists were exploring the distillery on an alcohol tasting tour.

Most Aurora Spirit products are exported to 16 different countries, mainly in Europe, but also as far afield as Japan and New Zealand. They now even produce a special branded whisky exclusively for a hotel in Scotland.

Aurora Spirit | - the Arctic Whisky Experience

[Hogsnort]

Lots of tourist traps seem to try and have spirits sourced from as many exotic places as possible. Gin in particular lends itself to all sorts of different botanicals. Only a matter time before someone sets up in Svalbard so they can be the most Northerly in the world.

[ombugge]

Video from the rescue of Alec Luhn:

Her blir amerikanske Alec Luhn funnet i live ved Folgefonna

[ombugge]

Norwegian - A stunning blend of Nordic minimalism and national pride. | Facebook

[ombugge]

“The blue hour” is getting earlier and earlier as we march towards autumn:

Ålesund cruise centre at 22:30 hrs. tonight. Todays cruise ships have long move on.

[tengineer1]

Another interesting fact about Norway.

Norway is number one in natural breast size while maintaining a lower BMI.

Global breast size averages, and the findings are intriguing and diverse. Norway takes the lead, with women reportedly having an average cup size between C and D, followed closely by the United States and the United Kingdom averaging a C cup.

The study points to several contributing factors, including genetics, lifestyle and regional differences in BMI (body mass index). While countries with higher BMIs often report larger cup sizes, Norway bucks the trend, maintaining a lower average BMI yet topping the list.

[ombugge]

Source: https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1162483839253041&set=a.593447219490042

[ombugge]

Can’t remember it this has be posted before:

488K views · 11K reactions | Learn more about this Adrenaline-filled event in...

If jumping off this cliff is not exciting enough:

PS> The socks MAY tell you the nationality of this jumper.

If anybody is interesting in trying, here is a link:

HOME - SBK BASE