Heading into Nordland

23/08/2025

The next few days were forecast to continue to be drizzly, but we had a destination in mind for Sunday when the weather was due to improve, so we decided on driving and sight seeing for a couple of days to get us further north.

USB Shopping

Our first task was to find a lead for my camera. Somehow we’d forgotten to pack the mini USB to USB-A lead that is used to download camera photos to the computer and I wanted to buy one. Trondheim, being Norway’s third largest city, seemed the ideal opportunity.

A mini USB is a little old fashioned now and we drew a blank in the first two electronics stores that we went into. However in the second store the assistant suggested I try the nearby ‘Clas Ohlson’ store. This is a general purpose home maintenance store and he thought it would be more likely to stock something that wasn’t bang up to date. Paul had to pull up outside as the store was in a mall that only had underground parking. I dashed in and found the lead and then ventured outside to find Paul parked up in a street nearby. I did a little dance to let him know I had been successful.

Driving North

We then drove north, following the good old E6 trunk road as we have been doing for most of the time we’ve been in Norway. First we stopped in a rest area for some brunch and then in Grong (great name, also seemed like a really nice village) where we topped up the fuel tank and our food cupboards. Paul was very taken by the fishing shops here, it seems to be quite a popular salmon fishing spot. We also finally got some Norwegian cash – 1000 NOK, I’d been researching stopovers for the evening and our preferred stop required cash.

Just after Grong we passed through the portal to Nordland.

Storsvenningvatnet

Storsvenningvatnet is a lake not far from the E6 where there is an ‘official’ parking area. This was an odd stopover. Lovely, but odd.

We drove down a dirt track to the lake and stopped at the noticeboard to see how things worked. There were two options for staying, either we could just park up for 100 NOK, or we could have a spot with decking for 200 NOK. Many of the spots with decking were already taken, and one appeared to be under construction with some new decking, railings and a seating area all taking shape. These decked areas seemed to be a little like beach huts, they can be rented for the long term, but if the ‘owners’ are not using their spot that evening then any passing person can pay. Each decked area had a notice with a contact phone number so that the owner can be contacted to check out the situation. Many had boats or kayaks, wood stores and firepits.

We didn’t need decking though because we had found a little spot by the lake with a bench. We parked up and made ourselves comfortable, taking a cuppa to the bench to enjoy in the improving weather. To pay we had to take an envelope from a box by the noticeboard, write our number plate on the front, insert a 100 NOK note and post it into another box. Later that evening someone came around and made sure that everyone had paid their dues. She was definitely on the case.

Parked by the lake

This was a lovely spot, I went for a swim in the lake, much to the amusement of our neighbour. Then we watched England’s opening game in the Womens Rugby World Cup while our neighbours ventured out onto the lake in their fishing boat, they didn’t return with any fish.

A little glimpse of a sunset while our neighbours were out in their boat

Laksforsen

We had such a peaceful night’s sleep that we didn’t wake up until 9am when our neighbours left. A lazy hour was spent, enjoying the lakeside, having some breakfast and planning the next stage of the journey.

First more E6 driving, forests and rivers beside us and behind them, peeking out over the trees, mountains. We stopped off at Laksforsen to see the wide and powerful waterfall. This is the same river that passes through Grong, and salmon need to jump these turbulent waters to make it upstream. There is a salmon ladder at the far side to help them these days, the salmon stocks need all the help they can get.

Wide and powerful Lakforsen

Laksforsen seems to be a popular stopoff for coach tours with a nice cafe with picture windows providing views of the falls. The attached gift shop was very tempting, especially the rain ponchos which looked ideal for the type of wet weather we’d been experiencing for the last couple of days. 

Mosjøen   

Mosjøen is a town I had pinned on my planning map. It’s a beautiful town on a fjord with towering mountains for hiking, a lovely beach for swimming and even a via ferrata for a bit of adrenaline. Sadly the mountains were hidden in the mist. We have already decided that this is somewhere we will added to the future visit list.

For now, we parked up and had a wander through the historic Sjøgata area at the end of the Fjord. The timber industry was a major factor in developing the town back in the 19th century and the majority of wooden buildings are from this era, but there are also buildings dating back to the late18th century as well as some more modern pre-war buildings. It’s a lovely area to walk around, with art studios, cafes and shops. In the 1970s it was proposed to demolish the area, which had fallen into disrepair. Thankfully someone had the foresight to campaign against the demolition and now this is a thriving cultural area as well as a tourist attraction.

In the mist, with the mountains an almost invisible presence and the super still water of the fjord, it was magical. The hooting call of a red throated loon (as recognised by the Merlin app) from the mist just added to the atmosphere.