Sunny Strömstad

Driving to the Jarlsberg airport, Flemming drew my attention to the rapeseed fields, that were just beginning to bloom. In Denmark, they looked like that for about 2-4 weeks ago…

Flemming and I were leaving Tønsberg, overwhelmed with experiences. We definetely didn’t expect that much from a small town, and wished we could stay longer.

There was fog in Jarlsberg, and it stayed one-two hours longer than predicted. I had to delay our flight plan twice. This time I was using the Norwegian flight planning tool, and everything went fine.

When the skies cleared, there were airplanes landing – we waited for them.

And we managed to take off before the skydivers got ready for the departure.

Flemming and I left Norway, very happy about our visit.

We landed in Strömstad, Sweden, where we had planned to stay over. This time, landing was easy – I knew the terrain. The weather was excellent, and pilots from the flying club were going to fly their Skylane:

After a coffee break, we also got airborne – to see the area from air.

Our first waypoint was Dynekilen – a small fjord north of Strömstad:

This place is known for the naval Battle of Dynekilen which took place in July 1716. The light Danish-Norwegian force of 7 ships under Peter Tordenskjold trapped and defeated a Swedish transport fleet of 44 ships. Peter Tordenskjold won a name for himself through bravery and courage, with unusually rapid rank rise to vice-admiral. He was killed in a duel at the age of 30.

Flemming and I flew over Strömstad – the town looked so pretty from air:

And then – to the Koster islands, South and North Koster of 12 km2 together:

There are approx. 350 residents. During 1600s, Koster exported lobster to Holland. Today, they serve it for visitors. Koster islands is a popular destination by ferry from Strömstad.

We returned back to the airfield. Our flight looked like that:

Johannes helped us with the refuelling, and kindly offered a lift to Strömstad.

I had noticed the Näsinge church from air several times, and asked Johannes whether we could stop by:

It was aslo an important historical place. In 1718, the Swedish King Karl XII moved 12 vessels over land (!) from Strömstad to Idefjorden, in preparing for the attack of the Frederiksten Fortress in Norway. The project employed 800 soldiers, and took two and a half months. Several hundreds grenadiers, infantry, artillery, guns, ammunition, food – all were brought by horses. The King was good friend with the priest of the church, Pehr Lomberg. They often had dinner together or went riding. King Karl XII dedicated most of his life to either protecting his country from enemies, or to conquer other territories. He didn’t get married, and didn’t have any children. Karl XII was killed on that siege of Frederiksten, whilst inspecting his troops. The Norwegians held the fortress.

We reached Strömstad, with its charming old town:

The 3-room apartment we rented in Strömstad, was spacious and sparkling clean!

People-watching on Strandpromenaden with coffee and a big ice-cream – that was what we needed!

Going for a walk in the town, we saw several interesting sculptures. One of them, Kostervalsen, shows David Hellström and Göran Svenning (both from Strömstad), writing Kostervalsen, a very popular song in the beginning of 20th century:

Flemming and I had dinner in Skagerack restaurant:

A lazy stroll around the marina in the evening was also very pleasant.

It was a warm day, with +23C, and it was nice to finish it by the water.