Starting Location: Byglands Fjord

This canoe trip would take us down Byglandsfjord to Evje where we’ll stay overnight at Trollaktiv, the next day we’d cycle 20km to a nearby climbing crag gaining experience in a range different climbing disciplines and sleep overnight. The following day we’d finish off our 4 day camp by cycling a further 55km to Kristiansand. The morning of the camp began by riding to the bus station awkwardly carrying my drys sacks. As a big group with caught the bus past Evje and met our guide and instructor Evan at Byglands Fjord.

Before we started Evan gave us the general outlook for the canoe trip we’ll be undertaking like distance, weather, time and safety aspects. Additionally before we got on the water Evan was curious of all our experiences in a Canoe which then followed with general techniques and details about canoeing. He covered t-grip handle holds, sweep strokes, rudders, ‘connectivity’ to the canoe (parts of you touching the canoe) and mentioned it’s what works for you and where you feel comfortable. Additionally before we set of Evan showed us a Canoe rescue which is very similar to a kayaking rescue. Sam and I teamed up as canoeing partners, I decided to be in the back first as I’ve had experience tandem canoes and I know the rear person has more control. This first day we made paddled 8 km south in cloudy conditions, navigation on a Fjord is very easy as we were heading south and all features could be seen and were large. Evan had us navigate to a particular spot, Sam and I used time, average speed, distance and hand-railing features to paddle us to a small cove. We arrived at the island we were camping on that night, to our surprise it didn’t have a cabin on it. I decided not to hammock and instead help the guys create an improvised shelter with 2 tarps; a Gapahuk (using a fallen tree as a frame). To took a while to keep the tarp tight enough whilst not letting rain as it didn’t stop raining for 12 hours once we arrived on the island. The moss on this island was super comfortable to sleep on and soaked up a lot of the rain, it was also a bonus not to use a head torch as it was 9pm and still light although it did make it more difficult to fall asleep.

The following day I woke up to half my bivy soaked as Tom had spooned me out of the tarps protection, although I was still dry and warm. We woke up at 8 and decided to leave at 10, a relaxed time frame however it still took so of the girl till 10:40 to be ready whilst the rest of us were ready at 9:55. This related to the group dynamic of girls and guys hanging around each other. This dynamic was obvious through the entire camp a distinct boys and girls camp, however this didn’t stop us as a group to function as a ‘performing’ level effectively. Sam and I switched canoe positions and took turns in leading the group to positions along the Byglandsfjord. Evan gave us some tips of connecting 2 or more canoes together in case of an emergency or to assist slow groups to stay together. This is why if you are leading it’s important to always have spare rope of some kind for situations like this. We canoed a total of 14km today before arriving at Trollaktiv and then had the opportunity to raft. Sam, Brad, Tom, Zoe and I jumped into some wet suits and had a great time being frozen for an hour and half. Talking to Matt our rafting guide he suggested the internship at Trollatkiv; this would be an awesome opportunity if I had more time in Europe and didn’t have a degree to finish back home. Having an internship a Trollaktiv would provide me with a lot of practical experience that I do desire; it will be something I consider in the future.

Began the 3rd morning in a warm kitchen cooking the normal breakfast; oats, melted chocolate, mandarine slices and nuts. We prepared and checked over our bikes for the last time, I had complete confidence in the bike I had been riding around Norway all semester. Zoe and Linda were leading us to the climbing crag 20 km away on the National cycle route 3. The route was well marked and consisted of tarmac and easy gravel sections that all our bikes could handle. I had no issues with my bike other than the mud guarding becoming loose however I just removed it. Group management on group bike tour is something I didn’t really consider before, as if someone has an issue the whole group must know very quickly or else the group becomes far to spread apart. We arrived just as Tim and Evan were hauling gear to our climbing crag. Today’s climbing session was really good as we worked on different elements of climbing. We covered safety briefs around climbing crags (ABCDE’s), group management, learnt the italian hitch belay system, ascending by myself with an assisted back up belayed, climbed and belayed a top rope system from the top and below whilst also learning different methods of tying knots like the Alpine butterfly and clove hitch. I did a total of 4 climbs today with ‘Agression’ pushing my climbing abilities; even tearing my pants all worth it though. Sam and I hammocked together again as our last sleeping system in Tangen Project was successful although we had to swap trees a couple time as they were rather thin. Evan showed us a cool technique with a rock that allowed us to tie around it as our tarp tie in loop was ripped apart. That evening a couple of us found an old night-line ropes course at the base of a cliff, we all gave it a shot even though the rope was obviously worn and the carabiners were beyond rusty. Unfortunately my feet slid out from under me when there was no more rope for my hands to grasp, so there I was falling in the water before hitting a rock I could stand on….lucky my bottom half only got wet saving my phone from destruction. It was beyond funny and lucky I had a spare change of pants, socks and shoes.

Day 4 we woke up to rain again, our tarp kept us dry however our gear not so much (lucky everything was waterproofed). The whole group was one the same page and packed up on time and together met Len by the road awaiting to take our spare gear. We all set off continuing down the National Cycling Route 3. closely following highway 9 south to Kristiansand. We got to see a Norway I hadn’t really seen, it was beautiful seeing the back roads and suburbs. We rode as a group similar to a Peloton taking it turns in the front allowing others to work 25% less. Occasionally down the descent us guys would make a lead out train and race each other to a point. We rode 30km before stopping for lunch by a lake, literally 15 metres from lunch we had our first and only puncture. Szofie’s reasonably new bike’s rear wheel had burst and none of us had a spare, we knew this was going to be a risk as we carried limited repairs kit. Szofie didn’t seem happy that day nor at this point either so she just insisted to have us ride on while she caught a bus back. We rode another 25km before arriving in Kristiansand after a total of 55km and 4 hours with a group full of happy but exhausted outdoor students.

This trip has been a great learning experience in a number of outdoor disciplines. I’ve improved my canoeing ability, learnt out to connect multiple canoes together and created an improvised tarp shelter. During the climbing session I was commended on my climbing brief, I learnt a number of rope skills I hadn’t tried before and was pushed to my limits on a climb. This was one of the few times where I felt motivated afterwards to keep climbing as normal I get quite frustrated but everything that day clicked. I ride a lot back home however this trip as motivated me even more to build up my old steel frame commuter into a bike tourer and take it instate on long haul trip similar to Thomas.