Nidaros at last

We reached Trondheim yesterday afternoon, at 4:40 pm, under beautiful blue skies. Our first stop after the cathedral was the recently opened Pilgrim's Center, where we got our final passport stamps and a very cool certificate for having completed the entire route. We caught up with the Norwegian documentary makers again there, and we also met another American living in Glasgow (Ian) who had just completed the journey solo (so it turns out we were not the only American through-pilgrims on the trail so far this year).

We are glad not to be shouldering big backpacks any longer, but a bit wistful about the journey coming to an end. We have enjoyed being pilgrims, even during difficult times, and it has not sunk in yet that the "goal" has been accomplished.

Physically we are well, with no problems or impairments other than wildly overgrown hair and skinny frames. Between the two of us we've lost about 10 kilos (22 pounds), but we expect to put at least some of that back on over the next few days in Trondheim and Mandal.

A couple of last coordinate readings from the tail end of the trip for the geocachers:

N 62 50.883, E 9 52.985
N 63 25.605, E 10 24.009 (at Nidaros Cathedral)

We will sort through our trove of photos when we return to Portland next weekend and select a few to post on this blogpage with captions & stories.

Geo coordinates for geocachers

Here are some coordinate readings from the past 2+ weeks. After today we're not likely to be able to post anything until we reach the end in Trondheim in a week's time.

July 4: N 60 54.069, E 10 44.167
July 9: N 61 17.041, E 10 24.555
July 11: N 61 30.532, E 10 10.193
July 18: N 62 06.845, E 9 17.173
July 22: N 62 35.803, E 9 41.484

Grieg Lodge Pilgrims Have Crossed Dovre Fjell

We have walked up and over the Dovrefjell now, with approximately 160 km to go to reach Trondheim. We were very fortunate with the weather crossing the high tundra plateau, where conditions can become unpleasant very quickly. It began to rain in earnest on the last day of our ascent and beginning of the descent, but fortunately we had covered most of the 22 km we needed to do before getting truly wet. At the end of that day we arrived in the evening at the one and only pilgrim refuge in the area with a roof and 4 walls, a very desirable alternative to pitching our tent in a cold downpour after 8 hours of climbing. The cabin was full to capacity with a German pilgrim group from Hamburg that we had caught up with 2 days earlier. They made room for us, however, and gave us hot coffee and tomato soup when we straggled in.

We thought we were finished being celebrities after our encounter with some kids a week or so back who were thrilled to discover real live pilgrims, but as it turns out we have become known by others on the trail as the 2 Americans who are walking the entire route. We are apparently the only Americans on the Pilgrim's Way so far this year, and among only a handful of people of all nationalities attempting the whole 640 km. A German TV crew interviewed and filmed us the other day, and a Norwegian documentary team did the same yesterday. So apparently we will be on German and Norwegian TV and DVDs, and a couple of photo books to be published in Germany and Norway. We find it amusing, ironic and fun that after 3 weeks of seeing not another pilgrim soul on the trail save for one Irish trekker, all of a sudden in the high mountains we catch up with 15 Germans, 4 Norwegians and 2 film crews.

Some folks have asked about terrain. Every day is different, and usually a mix of walking on dirt roads, some paved roads every so often, forest paths, and open fields. Up in the tundra we did a lot of bog walking, which wasn't loads of fun because of mud from snow melt and mosquitos. But every day we have stunning scenery. Some days are harder than others, especially if the trail is not marked very well or we have steep ascents and descents with our full backpacks. But every day is a learning experience and fun. Especially when we get to take food breaks.

Moose burgers and medieval soup

We are in Otta today, a bit more than halfway through the total journey distance. Having resolved our foot issues thanks to the Lillehammer infusion of socks, insoles and bandages, we are now focusing on caloric intake since we decided our clothes are considerably looser. 2 nights ago we stayed at a 700-year-old pilgrim cabin that has been preserved basically intact since our predecessor pilgrims used it, and the proprietors served up a hearty soup with barley, vegetables and a bit of stewed meat based on a recipe from the Middle Ages. Today we had elgkarbonader, moose burgers, for lunch at a cafe named after Pillarguri, the heroine of Otta who staved off destruction of the town by Scottish mercenaries in the early 17th century. The cooked meals have been a very nice change from our simple camp diet.

Yesterday we entertained some children on our way down from a mountain. They were walking a bit ahead of their parents, and at the sight of us they came running up and asked in Norwegian if we were real pilgrims. Delighted with our positive response they ran back to their parents shouting that they had found pilgrims. So we've had our 5 minutes of celebrity status for this portion of the trip.

200 km down, 400 km to go...

The pilgrims are in Lillehammer, getting rested up and restocking. We arrived yesterday, July 7, and have stayed at the home of Steinar & Aaslaug Menkerud, parents of Grieg Lodge member and Norse Hall board member Stein Menkerud. Steinar & Aaslaug have been wonderful hosts, and we have very much enjoyed their gracious hospitality. Especially given what we must have looked like when Steinar picked us up in the middle of Lillehammer after a few days in the wild. Today we have invested a king's ransom in foot care products, given the sorry state of our lower extremities. Not to worry; we're still on our projected walking schedule. We thank everyone for their various sock suggestions.

We had a lovely time in Ringsaker, and visited the church there. Did not spot any of Julie's relatives by name, but we made some nice contacts there. Because we are pilgrims we were given special dispensation to climb the bell tower (without our backpacks, of course).

The other night we camped by Lake Mjosa next to a patch of wild strawberries. Nice addition to our breakfast porridge.

We might not be able to post photos until we get to Trondheim, but we will continue blogging whenever we can over the next 3 weeks. Thanks for all the greetings & words of support.

4th of July in Hamar

The pilgrims overnighted in Hamar, our first chance in 4 days to avail ourselves of a shower and access to a computer. (Our blog postings will happen whenever we pass through towns with things like public libraries and hostels that have computer terminals, which won't be more than once or twice a week.) The Hamar Vandrehjem has a superb buffet breakfast, a nice birthday treat for Julie. We are stuffing ourselves like shipwrecked sailors who've been rescued. Onward today towards Ringsaker, and then Lillehammer. Our feet are getting slightly better, and we look forward to getting a fresh supply of good socks in Lillehammer. We had one full day of pouring rain the past week and all the rain gear had to come out, but otherwise it has been sunny, very warm and sometimes a bit muggy. Our wildlife sightings so far include many, many sheep, cows, & horses; a huge red fox; lots of unidentified birds; and a snake.

For you geocachers, here are a couple of coordinate readings from my GPS taken en route so far: N 60.19.88 E 11.15.44 and N 60.38.99 E 11.11.52. Not much difference between those. Will take other readings and post next time.