Lofoten Islands - Sorvagen

We are off to the Lofoten Islands where Paul's grandfather fished cod decades ago.

Kirsten (our Airbnb host in Bodo) entrusts us with a package to deliver to the telecom museum in Sorvagen.  Her family worked there back in the day and she has a photo for the museum.

We are crossing open water but there are only light rolling seas.  My patch does the job.

Its time for lunch on the ferry.  I want French fries and Paul wants a hot dog.  We end up with a single order of a weiner on top of French fries!

We are staying in an authentic rorbu (fisherman's cottage).  This one has changed little since they rented it out to fishermen, except back then 10 to 12 fishermen and all their wet gear would be in this cabin that is comfortable for the two of us. There is moss chinking between the logs.

Info in the room welcome package.

The view from our porch and dining room window

There are bunk beds - 4 could sleep here.

Here is a photo from a museum with fishermen outside their rorbu.

Cod was fished Jan to April, but these rorbu are only open now for summer tourists.  We soon discover that eating meals or sipping an afternoon beer on the deck while watching people with their boats and fishing is a great way to pass the time.  Paul wanders to the wharf and chats up the old-timers.

People of Lofoten have always fished year-round while also running small farms.  It’s the seasonal fishing for Norwegian cod that migrate from the north to spawn here that is of the greatest importance.

There is evidence that stone age people fished Lofoten 6,000 years ago.  In the middle ages, 30,000 men would row and sail here from great distances in open boats for the Jan to April skrel (Norwegian arctic cod) fishing season.  This is an ancient livelihood that continues today.  The fish stock remains relatively intact.

Type of boats used by Norwegian fishermen.

The fishers discovered a way to dry fish in the absence of salt.  The fish is cleaned and the head removed.  Then heads and bodies are hung separately to dry.  

In June the fish is taken down and separated into 18 different grades for export with Italy, followed by Spain and then the rest of Europe as major markets for stockfish as its called when dried.  Today the heads are shipped to Africa to be turned into a nutritious broth for hungry people.

Our first night here we go to a restaurant … the catch of the day is halibut at $50 per plate (ow), but stockfish is pricier yet.  To prepare stockfish for eating the cooks must first soak it in water for several days then either boil it for 5 hours or heat treat it x 20 minutes before cooking it in a recipe.

Stockfish is a favourite protein snack here like we might eat jerky.  We buy a package in preparation for the day we get up the courage to try it.

On day one we go for a hike up into the hills.  Up and up the rocks we scramble, amongst waterfalls, lakes and wildflowers until we come to long lengths of chain to pull ourselves up a steep rock incline.  I quit, knowing my knee won't take the going down.  A girl of about 11 years with her parents easily pass me.   Paul carries on up more chain and even steeper terrain to yet another lake, finally coming to signage indicating the trail is much longer than we thought, so down he comes too.

 

After lunch, we walk a couple of km to A (pronounced O).

Here we actually see the fish and fish heads drying on racks.

Here too seagulls are nesting.

The weather here is 9 or 10 degrees with a cool wind coming from the north.  Its layers of clothing, jackets, gloves and hats for late June.

Today we head to Reine, another community on the coast.  We step off the bus and the smell of cod drying hangs heavy in the air.  It's even cooler here, so after a quick look around we hitchhike home as the bus runs infrequently.

We fulfill our promise to Kirsten and deliver the photo to the telecom museum.  We get a private tour from the museum volunteer who grew up in the house as his father was the manager of the telegraph office.

It's estimated that the telegraph increased fishing yields by 25%.

Collection of phones over the decades:

One of the first switchboards:

 

Worn to climb poles:

We go for a final walk around the harbour before leaving Sorvagen.  This little community is still authentic with people living here year-round, whereas with the decline of fishing many towns on Lofoten are there to serve tourists.  Our host is an example where the homes and robu were built in the 1850s and generations of the same family have lived and worked here.

Tomorrow back to Kirsten in Bodo, then a flight the next day to Gothenburg, Sweden to stay with people we met in Cuba in 2015.

Some random photos from Lofoten:

"The fishermen know that the sea is dangerous and the storms terrible, but they have never found these dangers sufficient reason for remaining ashore."

Vincent Van Gogh