Coastal Living

We have enjoyed living near the coast for several reasons. One is that we like going to the beach in the summer. Even though the water in the North Sea is rarely above 60 degrees Fahrenheit, Sidney and I will do a little wading (until we turn purple or numb). We also enjoy seeing ships and lighthouses. We added another item to our list yesterday - coastal hiking.



We went south to Egersund and then drove north along the coast until we reached a little town called Orre. We parked and hiked out to the shore, then around on some of the hills and beaches in the area. It wasn't much of a hike for distance or technical difficulty, but the beaches and coves were very nice. Sidney and I might take the train down and try the beaches there this summer, as there were several little "hidden" coves with nice sand and good surf.






We also explored some historical sights. There was a little cemetery and chapel which was quite scenic. It is located on the site of a previous church that dated back to the 1300's, and there are several victims of a famous Russian shipwreck in the 1800's buried here. Some of the crosses also showed signs of having been used for target practice during WWII.


The Germans had fortifications in the area during the war. These are anti-tank defenses, known as "Hitler Teeth". These, combined with ditches and artillery batteries were part of the German defenses in the area.




Another site of German defenses was at this lighthouse. The Germans had several bunkers as well as a coastal artillery battery at this location. And while we did not explore it completely, the area also is the location of several German tunnel complexes.

Part of the reason we didn't explore as much was that the weather is doing some crazy things right now. For example, today I went fishing with a few people from Kimber's office. One minute it would be nice and sunny, and the next we would be pelted with ice and snow. We didn't fish for very long. That is what we get for believing the weather forecast!







We had a visitor at the port beside the apartment the other night. It was a heavy lift and cargo ship known as the Tramper of Big Lift Shipping.. It is actually listed on a web site called uglyships.com because of its unusual appearance and lack of an aft deck.

Next weekend is our ski trip with Kimber's office. While we are happy to see the snow melting in Stavanger, we hope it is sticking around at least a little longer up in the mountains. Otherwise, we will all spend a lot of time at the hotel!

And finally, only two weeks until we depart for Dubrovnik, Croatia, for Easter. We are also going to try to make some side trips to Mostar, Bosnia, and somewhere in Montenegro as well. We will have lots of stuff for the blog then, I am sure.