Our Nordic Expedition, Part 12 -- Ornes and Bodo

At first it seemed that life north of the Arctic Circle wasn't much different from that to the south. We cruised for hours past isolated homesteads and tiny villages.

As you can see the leaves were turning and infusing the landscape with a golden haze. A lot like home.

You seldom saw a home without a boathouse. Up here there are few roads and nearly all travel is by water.

The small fishing village of Ornes. About 1,500 residents. We stopped briefly to unload supplies and take on passengers heading farther north.

Ornes may be small, but it sure is pretty.

Heading north.

And here we are in the late afternoon approaching Bodo, the second largest city in northern Norway and home to nearly 50,000 people. Bodo's claim to fame is that a nearby fjord has the strongest tidal current in the world. No, we didn't check it out.

As the sun was setting we departed Bodo and headed north into the open waters of the Vestfjorden.

Moonrise over the mountains. The little lighthouse marks our entry into the Vestfjorden.

Our Nordic Expedition, Part 27 -- Visiting Villages

After leaving the Trollfjord we made a series of stops at small fishing villages. The first of these was Ornes, a town of about 1,500 people.

Then the even smaller village of Nesna.

Arriving in the early afternoon at Sandnessjoen, a somewhat larger community that serves as the trade and communications center of Ytre Helgeland.

Sandnessjoen stands hard against a series of mountain peaks, called the "Seven Sisters".

Late in the afternoon we pulled into Bronnoysund, a lovely little port. While "She" and others of our group headed for the local grocery store, I wandered around with my camera taking pictures of whatever caught my eye.

Our ship at the dock with a gathering storm in the distance.

Then we re-embarked and headed out to see the hole in the hill.