In the past, such an undertaking would have been life-threatening. A little more than a hundred years ago, fishing boats with men and mice regularly disappeared without a trace in this strongest tidal current in the world - a whirlpool between the fjords near Bodø in northern Norway. Legends and myths about sea monsters and evil spirits have grown up around this natural phenomenon.
400 million cubic meters of water
This is "only" a current caused by the tides through the narrow fjord near Bodø. "Only," we still thought, but as our boat guide Meike Zylmann, wearing a fur hat, speeds directly toward a spinning, gurgling vortex of water, the forces at work here twice a day become visible and palpable: 400 million cubic meters of water flow back and forth between the Saltfjord at sea and the Skjerstadfjord inland as the tides change: they have to pass through a 2.5-kilometer-long, approximately 100-meter-wide sound. It looks as if someone has pulled a plug at the bottom of the fjord and all the water disappears into the depths, gyrating.
Behind the bright green whirlpool, the water surface is suddenly smooth as glass. Now the boat gets fast, really fast. We whiz past colorful rock formations. Only through our goggles can we make out the rugged Norwegian coastal landscape. Cold and water bite our faces. Back at the jetty, we all shakily get off the speedboat, but have many new insights and impressions about the forces of nature.
"Do you know Friluftsliv?"
"Do you know Friluftsliv?" asks German electoral Norwegian Maike Zylmann. Now I do. Outdoor life in Norway is all about sailing, hiking, jogging, camping or simply sitting outside and waiting for the northern lights, even in the freezing cold. The aurora borealis, that flickering flicker in the winter night sky, is the second major attraction of the former NATO base in Bodø. Patient chauffeurs drive excited tourists from Central Europe out of town and up to the local mountain night after night. There, other outdoor enthusiasts are already waiting in a tent dome, called Arctic Dome, with hot tea and cookies. Always on the move out into the cold polar air - if the cloud cover breaks and the magical spectacle is offered.
The city fathers of the provincial capital, which lies 200 kilometers north of the Arctic Circle, have set their sights high: The airport, which made for agent stories during the Cold War, is to disappear from the urban area. Instead, a smart city will be created, with self-driving electric buses and cars and all kinds of digital bells and whistles.
Cold wind often whistles here
A population of 50,000 is to become 70,000. And you can see that: A new cultural center with a library with the significant name Stormen and new hotels already adorn the harbor area. A cold wind often whistles here. Even in summer, the temperature on the coast does not rise above 15 degrees. In the nearby mountains, however, it can get nice and warm in summer under the midnight sun. Snow is scarce in Bodø. But the villages, which lie only one hundred kilometers further east in the mountains, have all the more of it.
For example, the former copper mining town of Sulitjelma. The small town lies abandoned at an altitude of 600 meters in an idyllic snowy landscape. Silos and winding towers rise from the untroubled white. The mine was closed in 1991. Street artists have decorated building fronts with graffiti. Tourists, however, mostly come for the ski slopes and cross-country ski trails - Friluftsliv. Snow sometimes falls until June. "We want to revitalize the places," promises Erik Jensen Liland, who grew up here. His family has bought up some of the colorful workers' houses a few hundred meters away in the village of Jakobsbakken and turned them into so-called lodges - with cozy parquet floors and tiled stoves.
Friluftsliv in its purest form
In the middle of an arctic winter, you can strap on your cross-country skis right outside your front door or let a small pack of enthusiastic sled dogs pull you through the landscape while you stand. The air is as clear and cold as the colors that surround this scenery. And the silence - Friluftsliv in its purest form.
More info about the trip
- Getting there: Norwegian regional airline Widerøe flies twice a week in winter directly from Hamburg or Munich (three times from March 30) to Bergen. From there, there are connections to Bodø. From July 1 to August 31, an Explorer ticket is offered for unlimited flights in two weeks (www.widerøe.no).
- Accommodation: at Hotel Scandic Bodø: from 127 euros/night. An apartment at Jakobsbakken Mountain Resort for eight people costs about 600 euros/night.
- Tidal stream and northern lights: winter RIB safaris on Saltstraumen with Stella Polaris, from 36 euros/person; northern lights tours with Polar Tours from 90 euros/person.
Note on our own behalf: This article was partly supported by tour operators, restaurants, hotels, airlines and/or tourism agencies. We attach great importance to independent and neutral reporting; therefore, the opinions, impressions and experiences of the respective authors correspond to their personal views.
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