Hiking and Walking

Returned our little red car today and I’ll miss its maneuverability and amazing fuel economy (55 mpg.)

We’ve been hiking weekends – to the desolate gorges near Sandvatnet and Manafossen’s waterfall, Skomakarnibba high above the Josenfjord and even an idyllic small beach just down the way from the airport. The weather has been sunnier and warmer with just occasional showers and thunderstorms. Many folks are leaving Stavanger either for good or for much of the summer so it’s been a time of good-byes and fare-thee-wells. It’s difficult to realize that our sabbatic is nearing an end, though I will be glad to be living above ground soon.

Skomakarnibba is named from an old tale about a traveling shoemaker who has been sentenced to death. Some locals managed to get his death sentence annulled if he could sit on the outermost edge of the mountain precipice and sew a pair of shoes. The shoemaker was about to finish his work when he caught sight of a bridal procession rowing across the fjord, became dizzy, lost his balanc and fell down into the fjord.

Norway is rife with stories like this.