Dear all,

Lofton Islands is really a special place.  If you want to get away from the crowd, Lofton Islands would be your best choice.  From the part I passed by, it's quiet and nothing but farm, fishing village and sea.  I barely saw people in this season.  However, it's probably also because I went there during their public holiday which was not really a good timing if I knew how the Norwegian public holiday was like.  

 The small harbor beside the YH Stamsund.

There were three days of public holiday since June 3rd, Saturday.  Not much difference on June 3rd.  The shops are open and supermarkets are running.  Just like the normal Saturday.  I didn't realize it can be so quiet in the next two days.  

Sunday, I flew from Tromso to Bodo and then took the coastal steamer to Stamsund in Lofton Islands.  To spend three nights in Lofton Islands, I decided to leave my big luggage in the locker at Bodo train station becasue I would take an overnight train from here later and only went with my backpack.  In order to lose the weight of my backpack, I finished the rest of the pasta sause and food on the last dinner in Tromso even I wasn't hungry.  That was a bad decision.  

First, the airport bus wasn't running because of the public holiday.  I had to take two trips of taxi to Tromso airport and from Bodo airport.  That cost me three times then taking the airport bus.  

Second, all the shops including supermarket were close for two days because of the public holiday.  The only food I had was the rest of the pasta without sause (can't cook it!), a pack of cookies I bought in the gas station shop which was the only open one and three packs of instant soup from Taiwan.  I would have brought the instant noodles with me if I knew everything was close.  I almost starved there.  

 The only real food I had on the biking day in Viking Measum. (Kr 35)

Then, the bus on the islands was not running, neither.  Only one bus each day.  The best way to get around was to rent a car or a bike.  There was a place rent out second hand car for Kr 300 a day, but only manual car which I can't drive.  So, I rent a bike (Kr 100 one day) from the hostel on Monday.  I went to the Viking Measun in Brog, and it was about 30km one way.  I thought it would be okay since there was no dark night here.  (The Lofton Islands are in the acrtic circle.)  I could ride easy and slow all day.  Indead, I rode the bike all day.  It took me four hours to get to Brog and four hours to come back.  The problem was not the distance but the seat of the bike.  Probably also because this bike was a little too big for me, I couldn't sit on the right position.  It caused lots of pain on my ass.  I couldn't bear to sit on that on the way back.  The way home seemed no end, and I kept wondering I should have stayed in Stamsund and did nothing.  

 my bike and backpack~

 The freezing picnic ground

 
 The scenery on the way~

So as to the midnight sun, I still didn't see it.  The two nights in Tromso were too clouded.  The two nights in Stamsund was good weather, but Stamsund wasn't in the right position to observe the midnight sun.  It's in the south of the island.  I did find a good place to watch the midnight sun on my way back from Brog.  It's a picnic ground on the hill between Stamsund and Laknes.  But it was too early while I got there.  I had to wait 5 hours for midnight.  I did consider to wait, but it was freezing there.  Can't stand the cold wind blowing up the hill so I gave up.

Looks like I will need to go back to Norway in a better season.

Best regards,

Judy 
in Stockholm

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