Our first trip with summer activities such as Canoeing or Cycling was the Mountain to Fjord field trip from the beach of Bygland at the Byglandsfjord to Evje. Luckily, our big backpacks were brought from the company Troll Aktiv on the days of cycling so that we could carry only a daypack on our 80 km way back from Evje to Kristiansand. Our teacher Len splitted up our class in two groups. I decided to go in the first group to get the possibility to go Canoeing on our self-organised trip the week afterwards.
Execution of the field trip:
Day 1 (Monday, 20th of April):
On Monday morning, all of our group members took the punctual bus at 08:30 a.m. from Kristiansand to Byglandsfjord, where Len and another guy from the university was waiting for us with the canoes. After unloading the canoes and the equipment (paddles, life vests and dry-bags) from the trailer, we started the day with some basic paddling techniques. In pairs we learned how to paddle and turn the boat into different directions. With beautiful sunshine and less wind, we started our trip paddling southwards on the fjord. Len set the rule, that we are allowed to fish during the day, but we had to stay together in a group and not further than 15 m. away from the shore. On our way to our sleeping spot on a lonesome island in the middle of the Byglandsfjord, we were alternately responsible for the navigation with one map per group. Moreover we stopped two times at sandy beaches for lunch breaks. When we arrived on our island for the night, everbody helped each other to get the canoes out of the water and check the island for a good spot for our campside. After some helpful advices from Len, how to build an improvised shelter also with a canoe, we went around looking for a perfect sleeping spot. I decided, to sleep togehter with Wytse and Petr below a nice shelter on the beach, built out of three canoes, two tarps, one paddle and some ropes. In the evening we gathered around the campfire or went out on the Fjord for fishing.
Day 2 (Tuesday, 21st of April):
On Tuesday we wanted to canoe til the end of the Fjord to Trollaktiv nearby Evje. After setting down the shelters and having breakfast, we started around 10 o’ clock canoeing again. This sunny day, Len wanted to go island hopping with us, so that each pair sitting in a canoe had to navigate and lead the group to a certain island on the map. In the afternoon we finally reached the river and practised some turns in a stronger current. Without expecting any troubles, I suddenly capsized together with Jais. Probably, it was my fault by leaning to much on one side of the canoe. Now it was a great opportunity for the others to practise, how to help someone who capsized. Forunately, we did not lose any equipment, but everything including Jais and me were completely soaked. After we calm down from this shock, we finished our daytrip at the Syrtveit dam. and portage the canoes and our backbags to Trollaktiv. In the evening, some of us went Rafting for 2 hours with two trainers from Trollaktiv in the lively river. It was a lot of fun, althogh everybody got wet in the boat. Beacuse everybody was quite tired from paddling and the great sunshine during the day, we went to bed in small cabins earlier than other days.
Day 3 (Wednesday, 22nd of April):
Our third day started with some practising on the Mountainbikes of Trollaktiv, among other things, on the brandnew ramps of the bike park at Trollaktiv. After that we started cycling 20 km. along Evje towards our climping crag for the afternoon activity. On site, we did some rock climbing and Len teached us, how to do Abseiling with a group. In between, we had time for lunch and some of us went swimming in the Kilfjord. In the evening, I made a cycling trip with Roman and Steven back to Evje. When we came back, we saw, that the others already prepared their sleeping areas mostly on top of the hill. This was actually my first night in Norway sleeping without any kind of protection above me.
Day 4 (Monday, 23th of April):
On our last day, we broke off our camp in the morning and started the last 70 km. of cycling back to Kristiansand. We stored our equipment next to the roadside, which Len wanted to pick up in the evening, when we had to bring back the bikes to Trollaktiv. We rode in a pleasant pace and stopped at several places next to the river, where Len could tell us something about the buildings. We also got the possibility, to have a look inside a still used water-power plant. Around 15:00 hrs. we arrived at the University of Agder in Kristiansand after four days of beaming sunshine.
Reflection:
This was a trip, that I enjoyed most of the time. Only my capsize while canoeing made me sad, beacuse I broke my camera lense. However, it learned many different techniques in Canoeing and how to do Abseiling, which was really impressive for me. Furthermore I was surprised, that we had no accidents while cylcling and that we arrived quite early in Kristiansand, what made me happy due to the fact, that I did not like the sitting position while cycling. To put it in a nutshell, this field trip was great and I enjoyed the time with my classmates. Nevertheless, there is something, that makes me quite angry afterwards. It is the fact, that we had to pay a lot of money for renting the mountainbikes, although I could have used my own bike, but I expected, that we would not ride so much on tarred ways.