2021 has come to an end and we look back at what we did last year.

After a pandemic-ridden 2020 we thought 2021 would be the year when everything would open up again, and we would get to travel to all sorts of places. Well, that’s certainly not how it turned out, and also why we haven’t posted so much in the last year. But we have still made some trips, both abroad and domestic, and for 2022 we have already booked our first big trip.

To the origins of the Statue of Liberty

In the first month of the year we travelled to the origin of the Statue of Liberty. Not the US, nor France, but a tiny place in Norway called Visnes. According to some, this was the location where the copper used in the Statue of Liberty was mined. And at Visnes there is a miniature Statue of Liberty, although ironically it’s not made out of copper, neither from Visnes nor anywhere else…

The night sky above the Pulpit Rock

At this point we’ve been to the Pulpit Rock so many times that we’ve lost count. But there is something special about coming back to the same place over and over again during different seasons, weather conditions, viewpoints and other variations to experience the same place in a new way. The trip in February was one of those times, when the skies were clear and we hiked up to the viewpoint during the evening rather than the morning to take a photo of the Milky Way arching across the Pulpit Rock. And we have to say we’re very pleased with the result.

Rail biking on Flekkefjordbanen

The railway at Flekkefjord in Norway has been discontinued and today its possible to ride along the tracks for 17 km (and all the way back) using a draisine, or a rail bike as it’s also called. We travelled to Flekkefjord in May and found the railway to be a true hidden gem. You ride away from traffic and noise, get to see areas normally hidden from view, and go through numerous historical and spectacular looking tunnels.

To the Pulpit Rock’s lookalike

As mentioned before we’ve been to the Pulpit Rock many times, but if you hike a bit further along the fjord you get to a place called Hengjanenibbå (yeah, that’s a mouthful). It looks like the Pulpit Rock, but you are almost guaranteed to have the place all to yourself. On this particular trip we also got to wash our drone in a lake along the path, definitively not on purpose… Check out the video above for the whole trip.

A weekend in Bodø

In May we also travelled to Bodø in Northern Norway where we got to meet Renate from the travel blog Renates Reiser. That was very nice, and we also got to be proper tourists, seing Saltstraumen, white-tailed eagles and a double beach.

Lårdalstigen at Dalen in Telemark

We spent less time hiking in 2021 than the year before, but we did get to do one hike with great views at Lårdalstigen in Telemark. The hike is about 14 km and very steep at times. It follows the lake Bandak which is the final part of the Telemark Canal.

Abandoned mines and spectacular waterfalls

While we were in the vicinity of Dalen we decided to stop at Åmdals Verk mines. The mining operation has been shut down, but a museum has been opened in its place and there are guided tours through the mines. There are also other relics of the mining operations in the surrounding area, including the remains of a power station at a double waterfall.

Sailing the Oslofjord

In 2020 we went on a roadtrip around Norway, but in 2021 the car was replaced by a sailboat. We spent a week in a sailboat all by ourselves, which was both exciting and a bit scary for two very inexperienced sailors. We started in the innermost part of the Oslofjord, sailed down the western side to Stavern, crossed the ocean towards the border to Sweden (but not into Sweden!) and then back up the eastside of the Oslofjord again.

Found a mine unexplored since World War II

In late August we drove to Ørsdalen, a placed filled with old and abandoned mines. We have been at the bottom of the valley before, but this time we decided to hike all the way to the top of the mountain, more than 700 vertical meters above on a very steep trail. Here we discovered a mine that hasn’t been visited since World War II. We’d love to explore it ourselves, but with a broken ladder along an 80 meter sheer drop as the only way in there was no way for us to do this. It’s not without reason that no-one has been visiting the mine for well over half a century. See the trip in the video above.

3 year wedding anniversary

The 7th of October 2021 marked the three year anniversary of our wedding on Mount Everest Base Camp. Time flies! It seemed a bit boring to celebrate this by simply dining at a restaurant, so we decided to pack our bags instead and go hiking. We brought our finest clothing, a table, two chairs and food and celebrated in style on a local hilltop.

Surprise trip to Dubai

It was September when a letter showed up in our mailbox, saying that we had to pack our bags and bring swimwear, because someone we knew was about to take us on a vacation to a warm place. Just show up at the airport, and we’ll be given more information there. That’s pretty much what it said. What Tora didn’t know was that my stepmother had planned to bring the whole family on a surprise trip to Dubai! I, Jørn, was taking part in the planning, but pretended that I didn’t know anything. Unfortunately Tora caught covid less than a week before departure and couldn’t go. That was very sad, but the rest of us were able to enjoy a very nice trip, not to mention the first trip abroad in almost two years!

Trips from 2020

Not all trips from 2020 were published that year. During the summer of 2020 we hiked along the longest log flume in Norway, a fantastic and historical place. See the video above for the whole trip.

The rest of the trips in 2020 can be found in 2020 Travel Year.

See also 2019 Travel Year, 2018 Travel Year and 2017 Travel Year.

2021 in numbers

Finally we have gathered some statistics related to our trips in 2021:

• 1 country visited (in addition to Norway).
• 11 flights have been undertaken.
• About 300 nautical miles travelled in a sailboat.
• 24 hours has been spent in the air.
• 14 359 km in the air.
• About 9000 photos taken.
• Countless good memories!

Next year

During the summer of 2021 it looked like the pandemic was retreating and we took our chances and booked a trip across the big pond to the US. Things are looking more uncertain now, but if all goes to plan, we’ll be flying to the US mid-west in June of 2022, then continue to Florida before embarking on a cruise with our family for a week and a half. We’ll finish by experiencing the 4th of July in the US before returning to Norway again.

How has you travel year been? Leave a comment below. 😊