Day 63 to 66 Jack and Katie join us - Champagne, Pulpit rock, mountain lake and fjord swimming - all with The' O'Briens' in Stavanger

Day 63 to 66 Luxury...beds, Chablis

We were off up the coast early again in uncharacteristically hot weather. An interesting fair and market at Farsund ( with poor bloke melting in bear suit) and then we were off up to Stavanger and to our friends; Eddie and Clare and their kids...Emer, Edward and Con.

We hadn't seen them since meeting them at Lake Tahoe in California in 2009 when Susan stayed at home being pregnant with Charlie. Eddie was my best man and now works for ConocoPhilips; I met him many years ago when he was on the reactor desk with me at Heysham 2.

We have spent 3 truly great days here.......08:00 am on Friday and with the sort of hangover you should have after not seeing your very best of mates for far too long, we carried his canoes down to the fjord ( Hafrsford) and we went out in the still of a perfect morning.

Mid morning we all took the bikes down to a fresh water lake( Stokkavatnet) and swam again and again in the warm water. Edward, E and C's lad misjudged a corner on the track back and almost killed himself by riding straight into a shed- sprained wrist, arm and legs bruised and the bike written off with bent front , he was properly lucky not to have been knocked out with more than a few broken bones...

on the ferry to Pulpit Rock

Charlie has no fear

Jack - mid front flip

Late Friday afternoon it was the great to pick Katie and Jack up at the Airport and within a couple of hours later we were down again at the fjord in front of their house on the diving board.

Saturday morning we were all up at 06:30 and off in the car and van to Pulpit Rock ( Prekistolen), a geological phenomena  - a 600m vertical rock cliff into the Fjord below. The drive to it has a ferry crossing to get to the car park and then a 90 minute walk to the 'rock'

Tombstoning in a lake on the way down

As we had lunch looking down on 'Pulpit Rock' a 30 strong choir of Lithuanians brought all
around to complete silence as they sang out...it was proper proper special.

Half way down we stopped off for a swim and jump in a lake - the lake is warm and we are as demented lemmings....leaping off again and again.

We continue down the now crowded route to the car park and have a drink before the drive home and another 'stunt' session on the dive board.

Pulpit rock - Truly awesome and properly scary

Eddie cracks the champagne on return which moves to Prosecco and then a nice red...a Bowmore before bed and it is about the best day you can have.

After the loss of the campervan roof I had managed to secure a marked ex-stock replacement. Having refused to pay the £170 courier costs to get it over to Norway I asked it to be sent to our home in Holme and Katie had crammed it into her luggage. Katie and Eddie took the screwdriver and 20 minutes later we had our roof back to contract state.

Edward, Clare, Emer, Kate, Jack, Charlie, Susan, Con, Eddie, Me

It is still warm Sunday morning and although overcast we head off to the beach for boules, crabbing, digging, rugby, dune jumping, frisby...

The 3 days have been all too short and we all know we have been so lucky to have been here in such perfect weather.

Tomorrow there will be 5 in the camper van and we will miss the 'O'Briens' King size spare bed.

Jack - mid flight

Heidi's

We strap the canoe and a rucksack of flippers and other beach stuff, that we don't think we will need in Iceland, to the bike rack to give some room for all the many many clothes that Katie has brought.

5 years has been way too long not to see the O'B's....thanks for our 5 star stay over......

Day 63     Farlund ( N)  to Stavanger ( N)        210 Km          Total    9534 Km

Day 64     Stavanger ( N) .......airport pick up    30 Km          Total    9564 Km

Day 65     Stavanger ( N) .......Pulpit rock        120 Km          Total    9684 Km

Day 66     Stavanger (N) ........Hellestostranden  40 Km        Total    9724 Km