On this trip we went canoeing from Bygland to Troll aktiv and then mountainbiking to kristiansand with one stop at a climbing wall.
Mountain to fjors fiels trip, Canoeing and mountainbiking.
Location: Bygland to Kristiansand
Tuesday the 22th til Friday the 25th of April
Tuesday:
Erwan and I started our day at 5AM so we could try to hitchhike to Bygland. At first we didn’t get a ride at all but when we moved ourselves to the grim school we had a ride after 10 seconds. The guy was a poet and brought us to Mosby. Here we met Tina and Nina, we split up in two teams and wanted to try for 5 min. and then switch. We actually got a ride for the four of us, from an accountant on his way to haegeland. After this with just a few minutes to spare till the bus would catch up with us we got another ride again for the four of us to Bygland by a young man working in the oil industry.
A couple of minutes after we arrived the class arrived as well. We were devided into pairs and started our canoe journey. On our way to the island we wanted to sleep on we experienced some strong winds while on the open water. You really have to work against the wind in a canadian canoe. Once we arrived at the island I looked for a nice flat spot and put my tarp over it in a simple A-frame fly. In the evening I did some fishing and enjoyed the evening and company.
Wednesday:
The next day we canoed to Troll aktiv. On the way I had a lot of fun because you could feel that the canoe was going faster and faster because of the current. I would’ve loved to do some canoeing on the rivers! In the evening I cooked my diner on the campfire and slept in one of the lavvu’s on the terrain.
Thursday:
The next day we continued our journey mountainbiking on the old railway, also known as route nr. 3, to a climbing area near Kilefjord. On our way I got a flat tire, the switching was smooth and fast but was no use since the pump itself was leaking. Once we arrived at the climbing area, we did some climbing, rappeling and fishing. I cought one beautifull trout and prepared it with some spices wrapped in allu foil on the campfire. I spend the night in my bivybag.
Friday:
On the last day we set out heading for kristiansand. The road way beautfull and had great scenery! Still my heart longed for some singletrack mountainbiking.. Arriving at Skrastadheia our group split and the four of us went offroad with major navigational faults before arriving at UIA in Kristiansand. When we went mountainbiking in Skrastadheia we lost the track at one point. We made the major fault to continue instead of going back to our last known location. We were carrying a handheld GPS and saw that there was a small path 300 meters away from us. This sounds close but going trhought closed forest, a swamp and a steep hill makes it into a long journey while carrying your mountainbike. On our last downhill Erwan also got a flat tire and this one was switched within a minute. Again not much use since the new pump had the same problem. So erwan ended up riding his bike back on a half full tire.
Canoeing
Rocker shape:
– Higher manouverabillity but less stable. For rivers and rapids.
Straight keel line:
– more stable, hold a straight line more easy but not as manouverable as a rocker. For flat water, long distance travel and cruising.
Choosing a paddle:
The general rule to choosing a paddle is that, when the paddle is standing on the ground, it should be just a little bit shorter than your chin.
Holding a paddle:
Place one hand on top of the grip and the other on the throut of the paddle. If you have your right hand on top of the grip than you paddle on the left side of the canoe.
Front or back?:
To know which side of the canoe is the stern and which is the bow you can look at the seats. The seat with the most space between it and the point of the canoe is the front. The reason is that this seat has more leg space than the other one. Sitting the other way around would be uncomfortable.
Getting in the canoe:
Keep your body center of gravity low and hold on to the gunwhale. Only get in your canoe when it is afloat and not laying on any rocks.
Sitting in the canoe:
If your just on a relaxed tour you can sit on the seats as you want but going downstream on a river it is a good choice to lower your center point of gravity. This way the canoe turns over less quickly and you are more stable. To do this you can put your knees on the bottom of the canoe and sitting on the seat with your behind.
Using a paddle:
If you paddle with a partner and your aim is to go forward you paddle at the opposite sides of the canoe.
– Forward stroke
By rotating with your shoulders you get a movement that takes little energy. You turn your upper body in the direction of your lower hand. You start out with your lower arm straight forward and pull the blade of the paddel backwards throught the water. When you reach your hip you take the blade out of the water and make your next stroke. While doing the stroke your paddle stays vertical.
Because the person paddling on the stern generates more sideways power, the bow will turn out of course. To prevent this there are some techniques that keep you on track.
– Head and switch paddling
To keep your canoe straight you can get in a rhythm and switch sides simultaneously before the bow is turning out of direction.
– J stroke
If your doing a normal forward stroke, the stern paddler can turn the paddle in the end of the stroke to correct the turning of the boat. At the end of your stroke the thumb of your griphand turns outward and down.
Feathering:
To reduce resistance when pulling your blade forward throught the air you can turn your blade 90 degrees. This is especially handy when your in a strong head wind.
Safety:
– Always wear a lifejacket
– Don’t have loose ropes laying in the canoe
– Never attache a person or animal to the canoe with a rope
– Look ahead for obstacles
– Know where you are on the map
– Make sure to stay clear of dams
– Stop and explore a rapid if needed
– If needed carry the canoe over land
– Carry a throw line
– Stay clear of rocks and overhanging trees/roots
What to do when capsized:
Make sure you and your partner are safe. If you are in a rapid lay on your back and have your feet pointing downstream. This way you can defend yourself against visible and non visible obstacles.
Swim to shore if possible and else rely on friends or wait till water slows down. NEVER STAND OR WALK WHEN IN THE CURRENT!!! Your foot can get stuck in a cavity or rock which results in the current pushing you under.
You start walking when the water is lower than knee height and less strong than you.
If you can keep hold of your canoe and paddle, in any case always have the canoe downstream of yourself and partner. When the rapid gets less strong swim to shore with your equipment and empty the canoe of water.
If you’re on open water and canoeing with several canoes, the other canoe can turn and lift the canoe on top of there own. This way you get rid of all the water.
Mountainbiking:
Daypack:
– Water
– Food
– Spare inner tyre
– (Working ^^) bicycle pump with right ventile
– Repair kit (glue, stickers, tyre lifters, sandpaper)
– Firs aid kit
– Jacket
– Sweater
– Map + compass (+GPS)
Always wear a helmet when mountainbiking! And depending on the terrain and type of biking wear aditional protection. If you bend forward with your head down, the helmet should stay on without straps.
Preparing your (rental) bike:
– Test your brakes, to test your front brake hold and push the bike forward and to test the back brack hold and push backwards. If it slips or worse take another bike or replace brakes.
– Look if the tires are straight and not bend
– Test all the gears. In the 1st front gear you can only use the 4 lightest back gears, in the 2nd front gear you can only use the 4 middle back gears, and in the 3th front gear you can only use the 4 highest back gears. If you want to get more or less resistance you should shift the front gears else you risk breaking your gears and chain.
– Adjust the sadle to the desired hight. For normal enduro mountainbiking you can stand next to your bike, put a thumb on your hip and make a fist under it. Then your sadle should be directly under you fist.
– Before going out now, and this is something almost nobody does
Tips for changing a tire:
– Put the tyre lifters on the opposite side of the ventile.
– If you are thinking of glueing a sticker on the hole, first roughten up the area where the sticker will come with some sandpaper. This way the glue will stick better.
– Before putting everything back together again make sure to check the inside of the outer tire for sharp things or debree that might have gotten in there while changing
– Before pumping the thing up check if the inner tire isn’t twisted or folded