Visit to Trøndelag Summer 2023

Trip to Trøndelag Summer 2023

Finally, I have gotten around to writing a report from our (i.e. Chomsky and myself) trip to Trøndelag 30.06 – 12-07.

No spectacular mountain treks this time, both because of bad weather and declining health. The photos I show are both from this and last year. My dwindling enthusiasm for taking pictures have entailed that I have no photos to show from my stay with my friend Tor Jentoft in Verdal.

The trip started with the drive from Oslo to Trondheim, with my friend Katharina Vassaas who lives at Tonsethagen three/four kilometers closer to downtown Oslo, but who has her family in Trondheim. They have previously had three bouviers des Flandres and have now become fond of Chomsky. It is a pleasure to travel with Katharina, both because she is a good driver and enjoys driving and who takes along good food that we eat at certain rest areas along the road. Katharina drives most of the time, while I doze in the passenger seat. We also make sure to find some stops where Chomsky can swim, which makes him relax better in the car. When we arrived in Trondheim, I deposited Chomsky with Katharina and her family, while I continued to my friend Ole Brønmo who lives in the residential suburb Lade a little north of the town center.

Nearly every time I visit Trondheim I stay with Ole and his wife Turid at Lade. Ole is a classmate from the Trondheim Økonomiske Gymnas in the period 1958-61. They lease the upper floor of their beautiful house to the American Tim Redfield, who is a geologist at the Trondheim University. When I show up, they show great hospitality and always serve delicious dinners. However, it’s a challenge to limit the consumption of alcohol, because they serve good drinks. Ole plays the piano and Tim the violin. When they play together, they create beautiful music.

Ole and myself visited the Neanderthal exposition at the Trondheim Science Museum and the exposition Weathering the Storm at KUK (The Kjøpmannsgata Young Art). Both were enjoyable and educational experiences.

After two nights in Trondheim, I continued northwards to Verdal to see my classmate from the Strinda primary school, Tor Jentoft with his wife Mari. A pleasant dinner with a few walks with Tor and Chomsky near the beautiful house they have outside the center of Verdal.

The next day we drove a couple of hours to Sandviksberget in the Osen municipality. I have visited my sister Turid and brother-in-law Øystein there a lot of times. Earlier the lived a little higher up, close the the mountain side, but a couple of years they moved to a newly built residential area, suited for the elderly, very close to the water, with a beautiful view to islands and ships passing near their house. The daily coastal line Hurtigruten passes by outside their house, where people often waive their Norwegian flags and the ships respond by honking their powerful horns. A lot of tasty meals. Øystein is particularly skilled in preparing fish.

I usually walk Chomsky morning and evening to the Ramsøysundet lighthouse, partly along a rough path and we often sit near the lighthouse and contemplate the world.

Apart from the splendid view there was not so much to see but a few jumping sea trout and a few huge ravens living in the mountain side.

Vingsand is a harbor a few kilometers north of Sandviksberget. Øystein grew up there and his family house is still there. It has a garden with the worlds most tasty gooseberries. A lot of them wind up on my table in Oslo stirred with sugar.

Sandviksberget is a good place of departure for trips in the area. One is the Vettantrappa at Bessaker, where they have built a wooden staircase with 951 steps to the top of a mountain. A trip up gives you a healthy exercise and spectacular view.

Øystein and I took a drive the windmill park at Roan. After a climb of three kilometers, we reached Møllebua, a new and nice cabin with large glass windows on three sides. We had a view on a controversial windmill park where the authorities are in conflict with the local Sami people. We could see a reindeer grazing under a windmill, so it is clear the not all the reindeer are scared away.

Another trip goes the shelter (gapahuk) in Håmannsvika at Vingsand. Large and well designed.

We took an express boat from Sandviksberget to Setervika. A pleasant walk towards Buholmråsa lighthouse, where tourists can book a stay. You should really consider this!

At the community house Kongo there were blues concerts arranged for several years, where a lot of famous international artists were attracted by the unique landscape. Local people informed us that there were ongoing efforts to have these concerts revived.

On 11.07 we headed south again. I placed Chomsky with Katharina and her family in Trondheim and then continues to Ole's place at Lade. Ole and Turid were in Binndalen, but I was received by their daughter Kristel and Tim. Kristel made us a delicious dinner, and Tim showed us his violin workshop.

The next day we headed for Oslo. I stopped at the Lade graveyard to check if the grave had been cared for as it should. I have plans to make my own urn placed here.

Pleasant drive with Katharina. She drove most of the time, while I relaxed in the passenger seat. Chomsky managed with one bath and Katharina served good food at a few rest areas.

This is more text than I normally write. I hope at least you can be pleased by the photos.