Day 29
We made it to Skåtøy!!!
07.08.2024
God morgen og avgårde mot Skåtøy. Det var noe vind og urolig sjø som gjorde skjærene hvite. Jeg bestemte meg for å padle langt ute men etter full fart og vel høye bølger måtte vi sampadle til stor ergrelse for Ilene som dagen før hadde lagt en nydelig padlelinje innenskjærs hele turen ned Levangen. Da vi kom til Portø løyet både været og Ilene så overfarten til Stabbestadneset gikk strålende. Vi ser Skåtøy 😁vi er snart fremme 😁. Krysset Kragerøyfjorden mellom fiskeskøyter, seilbåter og småbåter. Opp langs Vestre Ødegården møtte vi en padler som var treningstur rundt Skåtøy. Nydelig padling resten av turen inn mot Buvike.
Hvilken mottakelse Merethe hadde arrangert ❤️flagg musikk og sang de siste metrene. På land var det ankerdram og klemmer, fantastisk borddekning på Mona sitt kajakkstativ med ost, kjeks og allverdens tilbehør. Tone og Ove holdt frem Ilene sin favoritt 😁sjokoladekake med kajakk pyntet på toppen. Journalisten fra Telemark avisen hadde de også klart å hente til velkomsten. Vi feiret vel og lenge før vi hoppet i det deilige varme sørlandsvannet.
Hjertelig takk for en utrolig fin og rørende mottakelse ❤️
For en fantastisk avslutning på padleturen Bergen til Skåtøy.
The kayaks were packed and we headed towards our final stop at 10:00 am. The conditions were quite good the first hour, then some hefty waves for an hour until we were back in more sheltered waters. We needed to be careful of the many motorboats as we crossed some larger fjords, but the final stretch to Merethe's exquisite part of the island was calm and gorgeous. Bergliot had told Merethe the day before that our ETA was 5:00 pm. We were very excited about getting there and paddled much quicker than expected. We called 1 1/2 hours before arrival to say that we were 2 hours ahead of schedule. Little did we know the challenges we caused! As we approached Merethe's neighbor's (Mona's) dock we were surprised to see a whole contingency of friends, neighbors, dogs with Norwegian flag ribbons, and even a journalist, waving flags and singing!!! Wow! What a welcome to signify the completion of our trip from Bergen to Skåtøy!!! We were served akevitt on the dock, Tone presented her amazing homemade chocolate kayak cake, and there was a feast awaiting us on the shore with delicious cheese and crackers, fruit, melon, etc. What a wonderful celebration!!! The walk to Merethe's cabin and "hen house" was pastoral and picturesque. The long kayak trip to visit Merethe's amazing summer dwelling was well worth the wait! Ove and Tone served a delicious asian chicken soup dinner and the evening was full of great conversation and cheer. Thank you everyone for the world's greatest dock celebration, and thank you Merethe for welcoming us to your special getaway in Skåtøy! We are looking forward to spending the rest of the week with you here!
Our expedition was varied, and we were very lucky to spend the first week with Rune and Bjørg and their fabulous sailboat "margarita," to visit Abby, Arne and family 2 times in Ågerøy, to stay at Aase and Elen's cozy summer house in Kilsund, to spend an afternoon with Runa's parents in Lyngør, and finally to land at Merethe's unique island paradise in Skåtøy. Thank you all for following along with our blog! That's all for this time 🙂