Thursday, July 30

Finally, the day was here. We were heading north to visit my parents.

Traveling from Oslo to Northern Norway takes time. First, we took the Airport Express Train from Oslo to Gardermoen. Then came the usual waiting around at the airport before boarding our flight north, a journey of approximately one hour and forty-five minutes. Traveling to the north required patience and planning.

But what a beautiful flight it was.

As the plane carried us farther north, the landscape below slowly changed. Mountains rose from the ground, deep fjords cut through the land, and small islands appeared between stretches of blue water. I must say, Norway truly has one of the most beautiful landscapes in the world.

As J.R.R. Tolkien once wrote:
“Not all those who wander are lost.”

And on a journey like this, it feels especially true.

Landing in the Northern Sun

We landed at Evenes in sunshine.

Harstad/Narvik Airport, Evenes, feels wonderfully remote, surrounded by mountains, forests and open northern landscapes. It is also rather unusual because civilian flights operate beside an active military air station.

Evenes Air Station is the home base for Norway’s P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft and serves as a forward operating base for F-35 fighter jets. Photography of the military air station and protected military activity is strictly restricted, so this is one airport where the camera needs to stay safely tucked away whenever the base could be captured.

Fun fact:

Evenes is one of those rare places where ordinary travelers may arrive on a Norwegian or SAS passenger flight while some of Norway’s most advanced military aircraft are operating nearby. The civilian airport and military air station share the same small corner of Northern Norway, although the military side is naturally kept well protected.

Evenes may be beautiful, but it is not exactly a place where public transport appears every few minutes. We had to wait about an hour for the airport bus, which coordinates its departure with arriving Norwegian and SAS flights.

Eventually, the bus arrived, and the next part of our journey began.

Two Hours Beneath the Midnight Sky

From Evenes, we had a little over two hours on the airport bus.

Once again, the view outside was breathtaking. We traveled through beautiful northern nature beneath a clear sky, with sunshine and soft golden light lingering even in the middle of the night.

That is one of the things I love most about the north during summer. Time seems to disappear. Your body knows it is late, but the sky refuses to become properly dark. Mountains, lakes, fjords and small villages remain visible long after most of the country has gone to sleep.

It makes the long journey feel almost magical.

Almost.

Because by then, we were also very tired, very thirsty and beginning to dream about finally arriving.

Home at 2:45 in the Morning

At 2:45 a.m., we finally reached Sortland.

My parents’ car was parked in the town center, so we collected it and began the final drive up the mountain. We drove past Skibua and continued higher and higher, as far up as you can possibly live, before following the road all the way to its very end.

That is where my parents live.

The whole house was asleep when we arrived, so we quietly carried our things inside and tried not to wake anyone.

We tiptoed into the kitchen, where we discovered a bag of sweet buns waiting for us. That bag disappeared almost immediately, washed down with several glasses of cold water.

And oh my God, the water up here!

It is unbelievably good.

In my opinion, Northern Norway has the best drinking water in the world. It is cold, fresh and clean, as though it has come directly from the mountains. Compared with it, the water in Oslo almost tastes like iron.

Maybe it was the long journey. Maybe it was the late hour. Maybe we were simply exhausted and thirsty.

But standing in my parents’ quiet kitchen in the middle of the night, eating sweet buns and drinking glass after glass of fresh northern water, felt like the perfect homecoming.

After trains, airports, waiting, flying, more waiting, a two-hour bus journey and one final drive up the mountain, we had made it.

We were home in the north.

Motto from Nordè

The road home may be long, but the best places are always worth the journey.

Tonje