RSKE Year 3 day 12, 25 July.

Bodø to Femris. 36 km, 6.2 km/hr average speed. Start 1050, arrive 1800.

The rain did pour down, good to be inside for breakfast. In the end we couldn’t postpone any more and we went out to pack the boats and get going.

On the outside a happy bunch were gathering for a kayak course. The instructor’s name was Sigurd, he is (you guessed it) another acquaintance of Stein’s…So time for a few more wise words about all things kayak, but in the end we really couldn’t postpone anymore and we got going

Just getting out of Bodø harbor was a long 6 km slog, but finally we had a good view of Saltfjorden. We made an exception to prove the rule and chose a shorter crossing (and a longer total) todivide they day up in more comfortable chunks. Almost without discussion. Conditions were perfect, calm seas an a bit of following current.

Next we followed Sandhornøy to Leksnger where we took one last break before we paddled over to Femris. Karianne’s family has roots here at Gildeskål, and As we paddled along the Sandhornøy Karianne tried to recognize places from her childhood. But too much had changed. For every house there were 10 cabins.

We found ourselves a nice beach at Femris. It was still raining, but Stein the “tarp master “ set things up so we had an early and comfortable dinner.

We didn’t linger. Tomorrow we hope to catch some following current from the falling tide. So lights out at 2100 and alarm at 0500. All set for a long days paddle tomorrow. WP. ( and the forecast is good)