Northward bound

The thought of a long flight should fill me with dread but all I can think of is" will it be clear during the flight to get pictures". We are on the 2nd flight and don't have to be at the check in desk till 10:30 but seen as we had eaten breakfast, been back to the room to pick up bags, checked out of the hotel and were standing outside of the airport greeting people who were on the 1st flight who had to be at check in at 9:30. The reason being that we were dressed in some of our arctic layers to save on baggage weight and they are a bit warm, people are trudging past looking like they are working in industrial freezers and I'm standing in a T-shirt! We have checked the time stamps on pictures and it shows we were outside the airport at 8am but were in the queue for check-in at 09:45 and were still ahead of the Muppet's who should have checked in by 09:30. Security and passport control are a breeze for seasoned travellers like us, so we headed off for a cup of tea and some juice to get hydrated before we boarding at 12:30. We are joined eventually by the Scouselets who tell us of passengers from the first flight who are just turning up now. While sitting watching the departures board both myself and Mrs Scouselet did a double-take and stood up abruptly. The reason being that a cancellation of a flight to Svalbard had just appeared in the middle of the board exactly where our flight was positioned. I scrambled out and across the concourse to get a better look as I wasn't wearing my glasses. Phew, someone had entered an errant flight number and the system showed it as cancelled but our flight was still running. Time was getting on so we headed flight-side to look for restrooms before boarding. We found our gate at the far end of the airport and went through passport control again and headed downstairs to get on the bus. After we all got on the plane it was announced than one passenger was missing or had slipped through without her details being recorded properly. Its the policy of Oslo airport not to make announcements over the PA system for missing passengers so we must wait and see if she turns up at the gate. Its now thirty minutes past our departure time and the ground crew are removing the staircase and the chief purser is closing and locking the door. Travel Quest has chartered two Boeing 737 800's from a sister company of KLM called Transavia to take us North to Svalbard. Our plane has the fancy drop down video screens so we know exactly where we are in relation to interesting places on the ground and yes the clod cover below us is broken-ish. My face seemed to be squashed against the window for most of the flight trying to make sense of the weird and wonderful topography thirty seven thousand feet below us. The video screen showed when we had left the north Norwegian coastline behind us with the cold Arctic ocean between us and Svalbard. We knew when we were nearing the Svalbard archipelago as the sea ice  started appearing looking like drifting snow on bare dark rock and also the video screen just showed sea below us. Air pressure changes alerted me that descent had started and land would be sighted soon as the ice flows were getting larger and the bergy bits becoming more defined in shape. The plane banked and land appeared through the broken cloud as we lined up for the approach and entered the glide path. The airfield flashed by and we caught sight of the World Seed Bank up on the hillside, bump, clang, thump and we are down on tarmac or more precisely "a thick layer of  ice on tarmac"! Low cloud scudded across the sky bringing billions of wind driven ice crystals across the  airport apron as we descended the steps. Some people wanted pictures of the grey ice blasted airport but all we wanted was to escape the -25 wind tunnel and get into the warmth of the terminal. The journey to the Hotel didn't take long and soon we were inside and taking of our boots in the changing room for the first time. After a very quick check-in we had our keys and headed for our room to see if it was as good as the Oslo Radisson, its not as large or as new but it is lovely and warm and  is a great base for our 5 days here. We couldn't find the Wi-Fi code so headed for reception only to find the bags had been delivered, but had been left out in the car park! Its at this point that the rule of taking your boots off every time you enter the building reared its ugly head and I spat my dummy out of the pram along with my teddy and rattle. I had my little rant and stormed off with the two bags and my boots on my feet back to the room. The Boss found my dummy, teddy and rattle and told me I was a prat, She was right as usual and I still don't know what really sent me off the deep end, ah well.
As we had booked extra excursions for while we were here our trip to Camp Barentz would be rearranged for another night and after dinner we were going Aurora hunting. The buffet dinner was interesting in its content and very well presented and what we had was delicious but eating late and then having to get dressed up like a burst pipe in a warm room is not a very pleasant experience. It would be an experience that would be repeated every time we had to leave the Hotel and it wouldn't get any easier. As we waited outside for the bus the sky didn't look very promising but then again we didn't know where they were taking us. We drove to the two other hotels then headed out of the town into the darkness where cabins could be seen off the side of the road. I don't know at which point on our journey that I realised I knew where we were headed but it did make sense when we turned off the road onto a track with a few huts and a car park at its end. The bus reversed into its parking space and our armed guard approached and informed us where we would be going and if anyone wished to stay outside would they please stay near him. We made our way towards the biggest hut passing a sign for"Camp Barentz", security and access to toilets being a must there wasn't really anywhere we could have been going. We were there for 3 hours listening to stories and historical tidbits from the guides, all the while people were in and out to check on the sky conditions. We headed outside around 11pm into the wind tunnel and to test the effectiveness of the Arctic clothing we had which worked as long ad you didn't want to hear what people were saying or reply in any comprehensible language known to man! We thought we could see streamers through the thin cloud but weren't convinced so headed down to the car park as the bus had just returned. We said goodnight and thank you to our guard and climbed onto the bus to begin the unzipping of layers for our ride back to the hotel. All the photography equipment was stowed away and people were settling into their seats as the doors opened and our guide popped his head in and said" I think You might want to see this".
Everyone is off the bus and trying to zip up all the open layers, the cold was soon forgotten as everyone stared up and went very quiet. Directly above us green streamers were pulsating across a starry background. We watched them for about twenty minutes and some even went back on the bus and retrieved camera gear to get some images. Our quest for the night was to observe the Aurora and observe the Aurora, we have clearly achieved this so we can mark it down as a resounding success and headed back to the hotel. We have all morning and part of the afternoon to ourselves tomorrow so who knows what mischief we will be getting up to.

Cooling off outside Gardemoen

Selfie

Raring to go

Northern Norway

Northern Norway

First ice flows

Landfall Svalbard

Lining up for approach

Landed at last

Oslo day 2

We had arranged the night before to meet our friends the Scouselets at the pickup point for our city tour so after breakfast we made our way to the pick up point with plenty of time to spare. Rather than sit and wait outside we headed for a cafe we noticed yesterday which just turned out to be a vegetarian cafe, well we know where we are going for our tea. We were met by our tour guide and told to give the driver our booking form and take a seat. We were going to the Holmenkolbakken ski jump first but we would go there via the city centre and see all the sights to be seen. Oslo is quite a big place and has so very interesting historical architecture as well as some very new and up to date  designer buildings.. The ski jump park is very well laid out and gives impressive views of the city centre and Oslo Fjord. Our next stop would be at the Vigeland sculpture park where we would have to walk to the other end and the bus would be waiting. Our guide gave us a very comprehensive history of the park and the sculptor Gustav Vigeland who cast all the original models life size and then had artisans craft the granite figures and bronze statues to his exacting specifications. He also did the layout of the park and all the trees were planted according to his wishes. The Norwegians especially the ones in Oslo seem to have a thing for naked sculptures, they are literally in every open space controlled by the city council. This park seems to have a naked form of all age and gender in all differing proportions which chart life's journey from conception through to death and whatever is beyond! Next a museum we had been hoping to visit, the Viking Ship museum on the Bygdoy headland which has on display artifacts and ships dug up from the Oseberg site which have been dated at over a 1000 years old and are the best preserved wooden viking objects found anywhere in the world. Very interesting and loads of pictures taken we are now heading for the Fram and Kon-tiki  museums on the same headland. They both contain the afor mentioned ships and are housed in purpose built buildings which are well laid out with a pictorial and video history of their journeys successful or not. Our time on the tour was soon over and we were now heading back into the city centre where the guide said if we had the time the town hall was well worth a visit to see the public spaces where the Nobel peace prize is awarded every year. We entered the building through massive oak doors and walked into the main auditorium, it was so big and picturesque I started taking pano shots on my phone. Not realising that the phone makes horrendous noises as it composes said panos, I was asked politely by a film crew from the national broadcaster to stop forthwith as they were recording an interview with the Mayor of Oslo, oops! Me bad tempered, never. The fresco's and artwork within the rooms are very good so to is the display room with all the gifts from foreign governments. So after a visit to the Vegetarian cafe for a fantastic tea we headed to the Akershus fort which has protected the citizens of  present day Oslo since 1624. Because of the time we went in we seemed to have the place to ourselves for most of the time. It really is a commanding position with views over the harbour and all water approaches. Soon we found ourselves exiting the fort and heading towards the opera house which is on the way back to the station anyway. When we visited yesterday the light wasn't that good but today its much better. We walked up and round the outside of the building taking in the views and vistas of the early evening. Unfortunately the staff were preparing the building for an evening performance so there was no public access to the interior so we used the facilities and headed for the station. As we are off on our travels again tomorrow the plan is to take out the heavy boots and coats and repack the bags so they can be weighed again. This being accomplished quite successfully we headed for the land of nod.

Day of Departure

Its Monday morning at 3am I think as the alarm is quickly silenced. The bags are already downstairs waiting to be loaded into the big yellow bus so its into the shower and get dressed and on our way. The long stay car park seems deserted as we drive in following the directions we were sent when we booked the ticket. There's the airport bus we chorus as we go round a roundabout for the third time and realise we should have taken a left and not a right as the signs told us. Oh dear, the long stay car park is as vast as it is full, this is going to be fun! We pull into the first section an find a space near the bus stop, result. Just "lift the phone and dial for the bus" it says on the sign, no dial tone and none answering the phone. Nothing for it, we will have to walk to the terminal. I ask for the bosses bag to balance the loads out and she heads off to find a trolley which are all outside the chuffing terminal building! Into the terminal and baggage check-in, straight through and well inside the luggage limits for this leg of the journey. Up the stairs to security which will be a first for me as I haven't flown for quite a few years. I have heard all the complaints and wasn't looking forward to it. Take off your coat and empty your bag into a tray then walk through the scanner, three times in my case. Into the cubicle for a full body scan, no problems sir pick you coat and bag up and have a pleasant flight. Breakfast next and its only 4:40am, we sit around for a while and then the flight is called and its game on.
The flight was a lot better than I had expected and in what seemed like a very short time we were landing at Schipol. This flying malarkey doesn't seem as bad as I remembered. The gate for our next flight is at the other end of the airport. Schipol is a very big airport its also a very busy airport but very well sign posted. The time sitting at the gate seemed to pass very quickly as everything seems very new to me. Soon our flight was called and we boarded and headed for our upgraded seats to see if they really did have more legroom. They did and right next to the window which was handy as I had my camera out for most of the flight. Soon land appeared in out of the windows and the announcement came that we would be landing in 10 minutes. Gardemoen isn't as big as Schipol but they are doing a lot of work to double the size of the terminal which is already very modern. Passport control done and we are heading out of the terminal at 12:30 for our hotel for the next two days. The staff are very efficient and within minutes we are in the lift up to the 3rd floor to room 3402 which is lovely. We opted for the extra day so we had more time in Oslo to explore. Down to the airport train station and 20 minutes later we are in the centre of the city looking for our Tuesday morning departure point near the Town Hall. We exit the train station and head for the new Opera huset, it is a very new building and is covered with Carrera Marble and glass to look like an Iceberg. After taking a few pictures we got our bearings and headed for Kronprinsesse Marthas plass which is just to the side of the impressive town hall building that dominates the harbour. We spent a few pleasant hours wandering round the city center marvelling at the architecture and trying to locate a vegetarian restaurant we had seen in a guide book. Having struck out on the restaurant we headed back to the hotel and decided to have dinner there and plan our next days trip.

Getting Close Now

After the savage cuts we made to our main luggage to get them down to the meagre allowances the hand luggage was going to be fun. We are allowed 6.5kg to carry on to the plane in hand luggage and not a Gram extra. Looking at the list of small but expensive bits that I’m putting in my bag I’m thinking I might just get away with it. First up is the main camera bag which normally weighs just under 5kg with a camera, memory cards, spare batteries, remote and assorted bits and pieces. After sorting out the various bits and pieces the all up weight is now a staggering 3.3kg! I’m on a roll so the other cameras and electronics related bits of kit get packed into the bag along with my Kindle and then all the bits and pieces from the packing list that I laid out earlier are carefully placed in the bag leaving enough space surprisingly to fit the main camera bag in. Without the main camera bag in the weight comes in at a very respectable 3.8kg, which is a very pleasant surprise. Some of the heavier bits like the GPS and the G16 will if needed go in My coat pockets to get the weight down at check-in!

The Boss has been in touch with TQ and queried the weight restrictions on the flight to Longyearbyen and to ask about the costs of excess baggage allowances.  Their response was there is no excess baggage allowed so if you are over then something has to stay behind, no arguments. With that in mind we have been having a look at what we can do without to get the combined weights down inside the allowances we have been set. I have worked out that once we leave Oslo I will not need two pairs of boots, so my main Scarpa hiking boots are staying behind to be replaced by a new pair of Scarpa shoes which are much lighter. Also having just come back from Kielder we also realised that the amount of long and short sleeved T-shirts that were on the list can be slashed by 2/3rds and similarly the amount of trousers in the bag will be halved. We realised that once we are in Longyearbyen and go outside we will be wearing one set of kit and it will be the same thing every time we have to go outside. That being the case while we are inside the hotel we don’t need a different outfit for every night.

I’m sure we will at some point in the next 15 days have another go at packing the main luggage bags to find out just how much below the limit we can get them.

How much is not enough

After having done a test pack to evaluate how well we could cope with a miserly luggage allowance of just 16.5kg the cold hard facts have to be faced up to. We are using two Mountain Equipment duffle bags of 100 litres and 120 litres which have starting weights of 2.2kg and 2.5kg respectively. So straight away we are cut to 14kg of clothing and kit before the 2.6kg of boots leaves me with 11.4kg. The tripods we specially purchased for pack ability and weight feel awfully heavy at 1.4kg each. The list of clothing we have already prepared is starting to look a bit optimistic but we can but try. The first attempts at packing come in at a hefty 20.1kg and 23kg which even I admit is a lot better than I thought it would be. With two further rethinks and discarding what seems to me to be an awful lot of warm clothing and our only pairs of shoes the totals are down to 14.2kg and 15.87kg. These weights are well within the 16.5kg limit but we still need to fit the coats in at 1.5kg and 1.7kg each, mine will definitely have to go in but the Boss might just wear hers. Knowing what airports are like temperature wise I couldn’t wear mine without melting and there’s no way I would want to carry it around. We unpacked the bags and wrote down the revised inventory and realised we hadn’t taken any pictures of the piles of clothing we had to somehow get into the bags. So everything was laid out on the bed and the photos were taken, then everything was hung up and put back into draws and pods till it is used again. After updating the relevant spread sheet and much shaking of heads about the pared to the bone list of clothing thoughts of tackling the hand luggage were put on hold for another time.

Its now very real

Monday 8^th December and up pops an e-mail from Travelquest informing us the final instalment for the trip is due before the 17^th. This should be easy we thought, wrong! The Boss tried two cards and they were both declined with a misleading message about payments made. So the Boss fired off an e-mail to Jay at Travelquest about the possibility of a double payment. In the meantime she also contacted the CC Company to check that the cards were ok which they were. Jay did reply eventually to say that no payment had been made but to try again and if that failed just ring up and pay over the phone. So Monday evening the following week the payment was refused again so the Boss gave them a ring and it transpired that they were having a problem with the secure payment software and it would be quicker and easier to manually input the payment into their system. Bingo, job done and payment accepted. Later the same evening the final invoice arrived with a detailed packing list. As we are travelling on a scheduled flight from Newcastle to Amsterdam and onto Oslo we assumed our baggage allowance to be around 23kg which would be a struggle but it would stop Me from packing a load of stuff we might need, just in case! Upon reading the list of essential kit we would need we started to feel very smug as we had just about all that was on the list and the bits we were missing were very small and light so wouldn’t really add much weight. We read through the list again and noticed a section near the top which mentioned Charter flights (When packing, please bear in mind that baggage restrictions on our charter flights is limited to 36 pounds (16.5 kg’s) for checked bags and 13 pounds (6 kg’s) per person for carryon baggage.)  So that’s a 1/3 of our baggage allowance wiped out in a stroke. We needed a set of baggage scales as soon as possible. Upshot is the boots I’m taking weigh in at 2.6kg and the Boss’s are 1.6kg so this packing lark is going to be very difficult. The hand luggage isn’t going to be any easier as we had already decided to leave the computers at home and just take extra cards for the cameras. We had already ruled out any sort of telescope because of weight as well as size and the fact that we would need a sturdy tripod to carry a scope which is even more weight. Airline suitable tripods were purchased which will go in the hold luggage adding another 1.5kg each. Speaking of cameras raises another interesting dilemma, does a camera in its own case add into my carryon luggage allowance or will it be separate. As it is I’m probably taking three cameras with the separate batteries and chargers for each of them and the Boss is taking two but with an extra lens for her main camera along with batteries and chargers. These will have to go in the carryon luggage just for safety.  I imagine we will both struggle with these limits as we are taking a very scaled down kit list so as to be able to take the specialist clothing we will definitely need while up there. The next post will have to deal with what is and isn’t going to be in the bags and why.

Oslo flights booked.

We finally got the word from Travel Quest that it was safe to book our flights to Oslo at the end of May, but seeing as we had more pressing matters to deal with it was put on the “things to do” list! Next up was the honeymoon trip and all the photos that entails so we really had forgotten about booking until we received an e-mail from Scousey about said images which ended with a ps. about being booked for Oslo on the 16^th March. Google page fired up and flights to Oslo on screen. To my twisted mind a direct flight to Oslo had to be better than an indirect flight with a four hour stopover in Paris. So Newcastle to Oslo it was to be or so I thought! Yes you can fly direct from Newcastle to Oslo via Manchester, Heathrow, Birmingham, Gatwick, Stanstead, Glasgow or East Midlands. What part of direct do these eejits not get, after much cursing and gnashing of teeth a direct flight from Newcastle to Oslo was found via Schiphol with a two hour layover. So we set off with KLM at 05:55 from Newcastle and land at Schiphol at 08:20 with two hours to look round the transit lounge then leave there at 10:20 and arrive in Oslo at 12:10. Not being much of a flyer I didn’t realise at first that big cities have more than one airport so the codes after the destination names actually refer to specific sites. The Radisson hotel we are booked into in Oslo (OSL) is right next to Gardermoen airport, so it is a five minute walk from arrivals which is fantastic; it is then a three minute walk to a train station that goes into the heart of Oslo in less than twenty minutes. We booked the extra day in Oslo so that we would have time to visit the City without it ending up a galloping visit, so as it stands at the moment we have Monday afternoon/evening and all day Tuesday to look round the City. Having a look at the Oslo Tourism web page shows lots of interesting places to see, museums, art galleries and parks to name a few but a lot of our itinerary will depend on the weather in March.