Blogging at 22:30 on Sunday 28th July from intended overnighting spot N 62.46766°, E 07.02809° / http://maps.google.com/maps?q=loc:62.46766%2C07.02809
Last night's camp was nice and peaceful, disturbed only slightly by an invasion of free-range cattle just before we went to bed. These chaps really did have countless acres in which to wander-at-will and it was interesting to see they had GPS trackers hung around their necks instead of the traditional bells of old. Not sure quite how this free-range-bovine model of animal husbandry turns a profit but it seems, at least, to allow the stock something of a natural life. The herd looked very much at home.
After quitting the ranch we continued in a meandering bumble vaguely north, once again enjoying the humbling awesomeness of the fjordland landscapes. Added to the mix today were a few high-altitude glaciers. None of the vistas we encountered, even the least spectacular, were in any way disappointing. It's a spellbinding corner of the world.
Motorcaravans. There are lots in this area. Most of them are Norwegian registered but the German contingent isn't far behind. Thereafter the Dutch and Swedish feature quite heavily followed by a smattering of Czechs, Polish, Swiss, French and Austrian.
Maybe unsurprisingly then, there are lot of Camping Verboten signs in car parks, lay-bys and on random scraps of land adjacent to roads. Conversely, in places where there are no signs, it's not unusual to see multi-national clusters of motorcaravans, campervans, car-sleepers and tents.
Formal campsites themselves are not uncommon but they're often unprepossessing affairs with a crammed-tight combination of huts, caravans, campers, tents etc.
Fair to say, in fjordland at least, it's not that straightforward to find nice legal places to overnight and to retain some sense of solitude. The old dilemma writ large
In other news, today's more noteworthy casual wildlife sightings have included redpoll, siskin, a common crane and a couple of whimbrel.
Part of the journey today again included taking a cross-fjord ferry (pic). In our experience these things run like clockwork. They're clean, efficient, totally reliable and not too expensive. They really are an extension of the road network. Indeed if it weren't for them many current fjordland road trips would be extended by literally hundreds of miles. It seems to be a very efficient operation all round, even to the point where the onboard fare-collecting crew have a handheld device that is seemingly able to tell them the vehicle type just by punching in the registration number. Efficient, if a little Big Brother...
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