Scandinavia

The waters of Bjurälven flows from Norway’s mountains and into the Swedish province of Jämtland where the river meanders its way past the peaks and through the valley of Bjurälv where it is engulfed by the earth and disappears underground. In a thunderous roar, the great mass of water is swallowed by what is known as the Bjurälven Grotto, only to reappear more than one and a half kilometres away.

Cold water diving will never be the same after a visit to Gulen situated north of Bergen on the Norwegian west coast. Here, history meets present day, the deep ocean meets kelp forest and the gargantuan meets the minuscule.

Whatever you want to see underwater, chances are good that you will find it at the Gulen Dive Resort.

Being the sole natural harbor between the Norwegian coastal towns of Hitra and Stavanger, Egersund has since times past been visited by ship traffic resulting in a very exciting area for wreck divers. But also those explorers who treasure the natural riches of the deep will find much to enthral even the most seasoned of divers here where the Gulf Stream nurtures the abundant plant and animal life.

The port of Narvik in north Norway was established around the export of iron-ore from Sweden. This was due to the very good harbour and its ice-free conditions. At the outbreak of World War II, Narvik was a strategically important harbour, and during the first few days of the war a very intense battle was fought out here between German, Norwegian and British naval forces.

The Norang valley is clothed in pale green birch leaves and sprouting grass, and the mountains rise majestically up in to the clouds. The mountain tops are completely snow covered, and at the foot of the mountains are large masses of stone from both new and older landslides. A small red car with four divers drives slowly down the valley stopping excitedly at each small lake to check the visibility and condition on the bottom.

The current grabs you as soon as you enter the water. Your first thought, this is going to be a wild one! The adrenalin is flowing as fast in your veins as the currents is flowing past kelp covered rocks. Diving the strongest malstroem on the planet is not for the fainthearted. It is extremely fun though!

Below some ragged pieces of wreckage lying on the bottom beside the hull, I see something a little out of place. It’s more polished and more regular in its outline. I carefully descend and remove the pieces of metal that hide it. My colleague, Marcus Runesson, is above me providing ample light, making my task much easier.

”They don’t eat people … do they?”

I can still remember the strain of uncertainty in the voice during the conversation. It is now several years ago since we sat together in the compartment of the train on its way north through Northern Sweden’s misty autumnal wilderness.