Part 12: Arriving at Vesterålen
The time had come, I left Henningsvaer and the Lofoten Islands and made my way to Vesterålen, an archipelago just north of the Lofoten. My destination was Nygard on the island Andoya. There, I had booked a room on a husky farm (my 3rd AirBnb experience).
Travelling to Vesterålen was awesome.
Great weather, beautiful landscapes and less traffic and tourists.
There were some French tourists standing next to me.
All I could understand was that they said that this scenery is proof that god exists! :-D
I almost became a believer... ;-)
Risoyhamn
Then, out of nowhere, the weather changed and huge clouds were making their way down the mountains into the valley. Amazing, how very different the weather can be on one side of the mountain compared to the other. When arriving at the husky farm, I could see nothing but the road in front of me... I had no idea, whether the farm would be surrounded by mountains or be located in a very flat environment. That gave me an idea of how very different my Lofoten experience would have been, if the weather would have been different...
road to heaven
With the boys I explored the sea close-by.
The low-tide had left many souvenirs for me to take home (shells and sea urchin). :)
Already in the evening, the clouds retreated,
and to my relieve I could see that we were still surrounded by mountains! ;)
Andoy-Husky, the husky farm of Katrin and Uwe
I really enjoyed my stay at the husky farm! It was run by two Germans, Katrin and Uwe, who were super nice and welcoming people! From the first minute, I had the feeling that I would visit some old friends. Every evening, we were sitting together, eating, drinking their self-made wine and beer, chatting and laughing... It was so great! Of course they also told a lot about their dogs, how they ended up running a husky farm in Norway, and what it takes to take care of 22 Alaskan huskies and 1 cat. :-) It was very interesting, and I certainly learned that there are dogs and there are dogs... ;) My two fluffy ones were certainly not comparable with their huskies. :-D
I also really liked how Katrin and Uwe care for their dogs! Despite the number of dogs, and some dogs living with them in the house, while others live in kennels outside, they care for each and every dog, and they make sure that each dog gets the same attention. I think that is pretty amazing - especially given that many husky farms keep their dogs on chains, separated from each other and from their owners. And that huskies are easily disposed of, if they can't pull a sledge any more... I heard that especially Norwegians still have a very "practical view" on dogs - which might explain, why it was so hard to find accommodation for me and my boys...
Another inspiration on the farm was "Moody", a policeman from Bavaria, who had left his job, took his dog and started travelling around in his car. My personal hero! :-) He was working on the farm as a helper only for food and lodging, not knowing how long he would want to stay and where he would go next. So cool! Because "Moody" is my age, so no 20 no more, and it takes bigger balls to leave the "secure known" behind and to do what makes you happy - despite the uncertainty.
I'm still working on my balls.... ;-) But I think, I am getting there... :)
Katrin and Uwe's Alaskan huskies
(It was lesson number one that there are Alaskan and Siberian huskies, and the huskies you see in movies are the Siberian ones. Alaskan huskies are more diverse, and I'd say they are more "wild" and less bred. And they certainly like to pull, pull, pull... there is no stopping them.)
Only when it's feeding time, the dogs are chained, so that they don't start fighting over the food.
Also each dog got their individual food depending on their needs!
They got raw food - not only pellets and stuff.
I was really impressed of how well Katrin and Uwe take care of their dogs!
That's a Siberian husky from a visiting friend.
This one looks like you want a husky to look like, but it doesn't like to pull a sledge any more... :-D
The huskies howled like wolves quite often - my boys were scared to death.
practising the kill... ;-)
This buddy had a little crush on me.
He followed me around, whenever I came to his kennel... :)
after eating :)
As awesome as the stay on the husky farm had been for me, as terrifying it was for Charlie and Stöpsel. The constant barking and howling scared them a lot. They were quite tense all the time - they probably sensed that they wouldn't survive an encounter with these dogs... Up until this point, Charlie and Stöpsel had been quite relaxed and they were also OK to stay alone. But after this stay, they were a lot more nervous and didn't like to be left alone. It took Charlie weeks, until he had forgotten the husky experience...
First night: Charlie and Stöpsel slept in their very own bed.
First morning: they had crawled into my bed during the night,
and that's where they slept every following night, too. :)
The next day, we took it easy and just went exploring the beautiful surroundings. At first, I had wanted to hike up a nearby mountain, but there was no marked trail, only a vague description of what cardinal direction to take in order to get to the summit - and I knew my skills. ;)
Mama-Moose and Baby-Moose! :-)
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