Down the Rabbit Hole

A very cold looking rabbit hole.  I was trying to remember the name of Telemark skiing. Tavistock, Tuckahoe, termagent... I was on the recliner with the dog on my lap so I couldn't get up.  Transiberian. Tullamore. Twilight of the Gods. I finally gave up and looked up "hybrid skiing," which did not help at all. "Norwegian skiing styles" finally brought it to earth.  The Grokipedia entry is good, but suffers from lack of illustration or photos. I found videos on YouTube - it's very pretty when done right, though it looks clumsy at first. I got to the part that said "For safety in avalanche-prone areas, telemark practitioners carry the "big three" essentials: an avalanche transceiver (beacon) that transmits a signal for location during burial, a collapsible probe to pinpoint depth, and a lightweight shovel for rapid excavation, enabling group rescues within critical minutes" and decided to read up on the part of Norway where it was invented, Rjukan, halfway between Oslo and Bergen. The tallest mountain in Norway, and it has an internal funicular in the mountain.

So now I'm into googlemaps wondering if this is close enough for my son to go from Tromso - not likely - and it occurs to me, as I'm sure it would all of you, whether it was easier to drive from Rjukan to Murmansk by going up Norway or going through Sweden and Finland. That's the beautiful thing about maps versus terrain. "Easier to drive to Murmansk" takes on an actual meaning.  It may be that no one has ever driven from Rjukan to Murmansk, and googlemaps just assembles the shorter segments. So now I am wondering why someone might drive from Rjukan to Murmansk, whether the easy way (29 hours) through Sweden and Finland, or the long way (37 hours) through Trondheim and Alta. A Russian ski bum, maybe. I imagine the Russian ski bum for a couple of minutes. Norway is about 1500 miles long, and about half of that it is less than 100 miles wide, including the many islands. For perspective, New Hampshire is about 100 miles wide at its widest point. So now I'm trying to look up exactly how long and how wide it is, and I remember Svalbard.

Does Svalbard count as part of Norway? Yes, but you have to cross 500 miles of ocean to get to it, and then it's another 300 miles long. They share it with the Russians. Were there fish there?  It was discovered before 1700 (actually well before, 1596) but why did they stay? It's less than 1,000 people and the primary employment is coal mining. Then tourism, then research. Tourism. Cruises are $8K, flights are $500 RT in summer.* I see the point of going someplace really far north, just to do it, but one you have landed and said "There! That ought to shut my cousin Richie up!" what do you see? Tripadvisor says there are private tours focusing on spectacular views or the coal mines. They run over $1000 per person. There is one tour that is only $10, so I had to check that out.  I mean, who is hunting for a bargain at that point? Longyearbyen’s Downtown GPS Self Guided Walking Tour. 60-90 minutes, currently only $9.75 No reviews yet. I recommend the photos at the link. Sums it all up nicely. 

All this took a little more than an hour.  Very satisfying. 

*Less that $225 RT in January.  Seems impossible. But I'm finished and am not going to research it further.