Brønnøya is an island not far from Oslo. It's connected to land by a pedestrian bridge in the winter season and by a pedestrian human-powered cable ferry in the summer season. It has 261 cabins and 16 residental houses according to official statistics - I bet there are quite many people living permanently on quite some of those 261 cabins - or at least throughout the summer season.
Driving is forbidden on the island - with some exceptions. I find it to be an idyllic place, fresh air, nice people - but, slightly impractical to get from there if one needs to commute to work somewhere. Well, if having a fast boat, perhaps it's possible to get from home to the train station in Sandvika in half an hour. My dhingy got stolen, so I don't have that option. I used a very cheap toy-dhingy to get in land Thursday morning previous week (I'm supposed to be in a harbour by now ... but that's another story, maybe another post). Totally it took me around two and a half hours to get to work (but half an hour was due to me walking the wrong way and hence I lost my bus).
position: geo:59.854202,10.543648 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 08:33:57 localtime - full quality
Sometimes I take photos of interessting things, but can't see the interessting things when I look through the photos later (other times there are interessting things on the photo that I didn't see when taking the photo ... here is one extreme example from nrk.no (Norwegian)). I considered discarding the series of photos below because they aren't much interessting - but wait, I was actually trying to capture a running deer. Can you see it?
position: geo:59.854202,10.543648 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 08:34:33 localtime - full quality
position: geo:59.854202,10.543648 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 08:34:33 localtime - full quality
position: geo:59.854202,10.543648 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 08:34:34 localtime - full quality
position: geo:59.854202,10.543648 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 08:34:34 localtime - full quality
position: geo:59.854438,10.54338 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 08:34:35 localtime - full quality
position: geo:59.854438,10.54338 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 08:34:36 localtime - full quality
This is what the typical roads look like on Brønnøya
position: geo:59.855724,10.539223 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 08:38:02 localtime - full quality
And this is what a typical small cottage looks like at Brønnøya, with a boat on a trailer, a play swing and a garbage bin.
position: geo:59.856014,10.539154 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 08:38:35 localtime - full quality
And a typical ... cow. That was a bit unexpected, actually. There was a poster saying that the municipality was renting sheeps to keep up some "traditional open landscape" on the island.
position: geo:59.856056,10.539178 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 08:38:49 localtime - full quality
position: geo:59.856056,10.539178 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 08:39:01 localtime - full quality
The island is a mix of private land and common land. I believe quite some of the common land is owned by the organization "Brønnøya Vel" - like, this tennis court. Also, the beach where I landed the boat - there was a sign there, "welcome to this private beach". Private, as in "owned by the organization", but common, as anyone has access to it.
position: geo:59.856704,10.539203 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 08:39:45 localtime - full quality
Most of the buildings on the island is modern, but some old-style buildings as well. This building looks quite new on the distance, but at least the style is typically traditionally Norwegian. Built on poles to keep the mice out (no, that doesn't always work).
2018-10-11 08:42:24 localtime - full quality
Medium nice weather, I think I got lucky with this photo.
position: geo:59.855941,10.537741 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 08:43:16 localtime - full quality
Now when looking through the photos, I got curious on the red building to the right. A public toilet? I should check it out next time I pass.
position: geo:59.857494,10.530827 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 08:57:01 localtime - full quality
position: geo:59.857719,10.530047 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 08:58:29 localtime - full quality
The zoom-feature does work quite well on my new Huawei considering that it doesn't have any mechanics. And I love stairs.
position: geo:59.857715,10.530043 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 08:58:38 localtime - full quality
Other boaters and kayakers out in the autumn morning. Ok, the zoom feature does have it's limits. This shot is crappy.
position: geo:59.857696,10.530052 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 08:59:13 localtime - full quality
I love benches, too
position: geo:59.857727,10.529489 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 08:59:56 localtime - full quality
And this is the view from the bench
position: geo:59.857727,10.529489 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 09:00:19 localtime - full quality
Summer season is over, now it's winter season, hence there is a bridge here. I've never tried that cable ferry - I will maybe explain the reason in another post :-)
Nesøya is at the other side. Most of the beach territority is private land, the stairs at the other side is a small "strip" of land that is either owned by Brønnøya Vel or by the municipiality. There are fences on each side.
position: geo:59.859664,10.528886 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 09:07:47 localtime - full quality
The strait is called Vendelsund. Here is the view towards north/east.
position: geo:59.859474,10.528463 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 09:09:22 localtime - full quality
Digital zoom. Properties at Nesøya is very expensive, I believe most of the land owners (and especially beach owners) are very rich people. Here is someone that has both an airplane, a big motor yacht (not present today), a small harbour facility and a sandy beach!
position: geo:59.85939,10.528421 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 09:09:28 localtime - full quality
The view towards south/west.
position: geo:59.85939,10.528421 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 09:09:39 localtime - full quality
Zoom again. Kayaking has become immensely popular during the last decade(s). I find it quite weird there are so many kayakers out, on a morning on a regular weekday so late in the autumn. But it's an extraordinary warm autumn!
position: geo:59.859474,10.528264 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 09:10:00 localtime - full quality
Yield for the cable ferry!
position: geo:59.859474,10.528264 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 09:10:24 localtime - full quality
This photo got quite nice I think. It's taken from Nesøya, the first island is Brønnøya. There is a long island behind Brønnøya, it's called Langåra - and then some smaller islets to the right and between. Behind to the right is Konglungen, Berkøya, and then the mainland towards Vollen/Slemmestad.
position: geo:59.859844,10.525264 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 09:15:28 localtime - full quality
Towards the bus stop at Nesøya. The island seems to be quite crowded with new, modern, ugly houses ... but those houses (except the one at the top) are at least nice. In my imagination, Nesøya is a very expensive area where very rich people are living ... but, that's maybe only true for the beach properties? What can possibly be nice with living in an ugly townhouse on a crowded island with (almost) no public beach area?
position: geo:59.859527,10.518151 (geohack) - 2018-10-11 09:20:51 localtime - full quality
Saturday, two days later, I returned. There is a quite big parking lot owned and regulated by "Brønnøya Vel", it was quite full this Saturday. It says maximum parking time is 24 hours (or over the weekend), meaning that it's not allowed for permanent residents to leave their cars at the parking - and there are also information pointing out that there are no public street parking in the area. I took a photo of the parking, but ... I guess you've seen enough parkings, so I'll skip it. Quite many have bikes and trolleys parked here. And, if I had bothered, I could probably have gone looking at some property for sale.
position: geo:59.860279,10.527708 (geohack) - 2018-10-13 11:39:04 localtime - full quality
So, the two ways to transport goods is by carrying them over by feet (using a trolley or not), once at the island, it's possible to get a permit for transporting it with a tractor - like the man at the photo. The other way is to transport it to one of the quays by boat.
- 2018-10-13 11:41:56 localtime - full quality
A nice tree cabin and a nice house. Possibly this house is from the early 1900s (though renovated later) and was the orginal residental house belonging to an old farm on the island.
position: geo:59.856994,10.532466 (geohack) - 2018-10-13 11:47:21 localtime - full quality
Below there are some old farm buildings, possibly from the late 1800s.
position: geo:59.855983,10.533343 (geohack) - 2018-10-13 11:49:08 localtime - full quality
And some old farmland ...
position: geo:59.855438,10.534005 (geohack) - 2018-10-13 11:52:41 localtime - full quality
... and a library! "give a good book, take a book you would like to read"
position: geo:59.854011,10.535241 (geohack) - 2018-10-13 11:55:44 localtime - full quality
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position: geo:59.853408,10.535497 (geohack) - 2018-10-13 11:57:28 localtime - full quality
A basket ball ring. And yet another boat. For many people, the boating season is over, and it's popular to store the boat on land throghout the winter. Also, when having a small open boat it's not that much work - much worse when having a big sail boat with a keel!
position: geo:59.819805,10.624681 (geohack) - 2018-10-13 11:59:39 localtime - full quality
This is right by one of the public quays (and with a ferry stopping here in the summer season)
position: geo:59.85181,10.538428 (geohack) - 2018-10-13 12:01:50 localtime - full quality
There is also a beach here. Once I moored up at the quay and sat down here eating yoghurt with the children.
position: geo:59.851856,10.538425 (geohack) - 2018-10-13 12:03:27 localtime - full quality
The strait is quite narrow here, and there is relatively much traffic passing by.
position: geo:59.857086,10.552206 (geohack) - 2018-10-13 12:13:31 localtime - full quality
Here is the place where I saw the deer.
position: geo:59.854511,10.542244 (geohack) - 2018-10-13 12:21:17 localtime - full quality
"Bålet er stengt", "The fireplace is closed".
position: geo:59.854511,10.542244 (geohack) - 2018-10-13 12:21:47 localtime - full quality
My dhingy ...
position: geo:59.854278,10.543642 (geohack) - 2018-10-13 12:22:49 localtime - full quality
... and the beach.
position: geo:59.854259,10.543647 (geohack) - 2018-10-13 12:22:55 localtime - full quality
Back again Sunday evening, the day after. It was getting dark - all of a sudden I was standing right in front of two deer. It feels like we were just standing there staring at each other for several seconds before I carefully took up my phone from the pocket - alas, I was not allowed to "aim" at it with my phone, then they ran away!
position: geo:59.855857,10.545948 (geohack) - 2018-10-14 18:24:33 localtime - full quality
position: geo:59.855857,10.545948 (geohack) - 2018-10-14 18:24:35 localtime - full quality
position: geo:59.855857,10.545948 (geohack) - 2018-10-14 18:24:36 localtime - full quality
position: geo:59.855857,10.545948 (geohack) - 2018-10-14 18:24:37 localtime - full quality
But they are apparently quite used to people - they didn't run long before they stopped again staring for a while ...
position: geo:59.855857,10.545948 (geohack) - 2018-10-14 18:24:38 localtime - full quality
position: geo:59.855857,10.545948 (geohack) - 2018-10-14 18:24:39 localtime - full quality
position: geo:59.855857,10.545948 (geohack) - 2018-10-14 18:24:42 localtime - full quality
I didn't notice the mooring bouy until now, when I look at the photo again ...
position: geo:59.855857,10.545948 (geohack) - 2018-10-14 18:24:54 localtime - full quality
I like this photo. The area behind is protected, "wetland" ...
position: geo:59.856098,10.545998 (geohack) - 2018-10-14 18:26:08 localtime - full quality
position: geo:59.856502,10.545644 (geohack) - 2018-10-14 18:26:43 localtime - full quality
position: geo:59.856502,10.545644 (geohack) - 2018-10-14 18:26:57 localtime - full quality
Property for sale - apparently without any buildings. No, it's not the same property as earlier in the post, different real estate companies.
position: geo:59.856563,10.542853 (geohack) - 2018-10-14 18:29:30 localtime - full quality
Another tidbit - "brønn" means well, so "Brønnøya" is literally "the island with (a) well(s)", probably ships were bunkering water here in earlier times. There is also Vassholmene (which I've written a post about in the winter) closer to Oslo, "Vass" is a (dialect) word for water, so it also had a good fresh water source despite the small size.
We have deer in our neighbourhood in Oslo as well. I saw two of them last time by the school a week or two ago, but it was considerably more stressed than this one, running forth and back, clearly finding itself trapped, until it jumped over the church fence and ran into the church yard. Probably they are living most of the time in the forest, and just visiting or transiting our residential areas from time to time.
Selected photos available in original quality on IPFS QmSoLGi8HcAdGt5kr3QwZmzNvQqGW43mBTCyVEkaYiduuW. All photos taken available in original quality on IPFS QmXoY5foywrqbGVYwqWHxmWnkchZydDUuLmetQfBGmkhF8. The CC BY-SA 4.0 license applies on both my photos and the article
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