Tuesday 4/7/09 On The Way Home

Per has been unable to find internet access until last night. After reading his email, I wrote back to ask what his final plans were for the last part of the trip. Last night's email:

Hi Tom,

I am now at the vessel and will soon be at the mid point of Norway, at the city: Bronnoysund. Don't know the exact latitude.

Did not find any floats for sale at my last jump off the vessel, just about two hours ago. Shot one picture of an interesting lighthouse.

We are now on the middle of Norway (Bronnoysund.) The vessel will arrive at 4.30 and departure is at 5 o'clock. I have been invited for a meal at the restaurant today, by a couple of friends that I met at Stamsund. They are very friendly people, and from my hometown Bergen.

Has anyone bid on that super rare float that I found in the beginning of the expedition? Maybe I can take a look into Ebay from the vessels internet connection? I don't have my own computer connected since there is no wireless connection in operation on this vessel.

No pictures added in this email, will try out the cellphone, and maybe send a few later on tonight

Take good care,

Per

Late this morning (Tues.) I received the following:


Hi Tom,

I am on the vessel now. Visited Trondheim for several hours, but didn't find any floats!

Will soon arrive at Kristiansund, but will only dock for 45 min. Maybe I can look for floats at the local Antique store...dont know!

Tomorrow, Wednesday at 2:30 P.M., will be the final destination-hometown Bergen.

Until then, see you!

P.S. Will write an email, and look thru my pictures to send you on Wednesday around midnight or so!

Per

As I write, it's about 2:45 A.M. aboard the vessel, and Per is most likely asleep. In 12-hours he should be getting off the ferry, and making the short trip home. His wife Tone, must be very excited and happy that Per has been able to make it home safely, and in time for their Easter plans.
It is such a good feeling to know that everything worked out well for Per. The ship must have been repaired, or other arrangements made to accommodate Per's return schedule. I know how happy he is because he will be able to keep his promise to Tone.
It's been fun following Per's trip, with all of it's ups and downs, the beautiful photos of Norway's western coast, the intial excitement of his first float finds, the disappointment during the very cold weather, the long 350-mile drive over ice-covered roads to visit the Russian sellers, the lack of good float-finding luck, then the sunny windless day when everything took a turn for the better, and his hopes for the expedition began to be fully realized.
I hope that all who followed the blog have enjoyed this expedition diary as much as I have enjoyed presenting it.

It's been a bit hectic between the business, and having no email from the server all day today. Finally, at 10:00 P.M., we got our email server back, and Per had written, and sent photos. There are two day's worth of photos here, including a beautiful shot of the ultra-rare long pin found at the beginning of the trip.

Hi Tom,

After a lot of research in abandoned areas at Ramberg area, and some interviews...wow! I tell you, looking thru 3000 floats that's a big job. From the huge number of floats approx. 10-15 had interesting embossing and quality.
Having some experience over the years with weight, size, shape and color has helped when looking for interesting floats.

Am very surprised about the huge numbers of unmarked floats in the far north, especially brown colors. I didn't find a single marked brown or amber 5", 4" or 3" float, except for the often-seen M mark.

Even got a lamp or candle stick or candelabrum made from a glass float and iron, by the owner of all those floats. Perhaps someone out there reading this blog would be interested in float art work too? Interesting float lamp and candles. Hope he uses only the unmarked ones. Please don't drill a hole in a Stranne & Oresten float LoL.

Float finds today:

Two huge boxes-approx. 70 glass floats, 7 of them interesting floats and marks. That's great and a higher percentage when compared to the 3000 find Tuesday/Wednesday.

I also have been digging among other floats in stores that sells old junk, and came up with 1 interesting float from approx 40 floats.

Tomorrow-Saturday, I have an appointment with a junk seller in Stamsund, who has a sack full. Hopefully that dig also will give 1 or 2 interesting floats.

I'm on the Internet again. Have moved, and am now situated at Lofoten Fjord Hotel, Stamsund.

Maybe tomorrow or Sunday will bring some interesting floats? Anyway as a close-to- the-finished expedition, I would say that the dividend has been fine. I had hoped for a couple more teardrops though.

Per

P.S. Stamsund view from my Hotel room.

Tomorrow is Sunday, Per's 3rd. Sunday of the expedition, and like all good things, the expedition must come to an end on the 7th. As the trip winds down, I'm hoping for a grand last Hurrah!
One of the photos shows a Cod drying rack. It's amazing that the old method of drying Cod is still in practice. It's hard to find the perfect spot to dry in the open air. Just the right amount of wind, sunshine, temperature and lack of flies does not occur everywhere. In the past there was a huge enterprise in Norway, Nova Scotia and Labrador drying Cod in the open air.

Thurs. 4/2/09

Happily, I can report that Per is just fine, that he has been looking at many floats, and has had problems finding an internet connection in his present location.
Per sent the following emails late last night, and today:

Hi Tom,
Several emails have been sent to your account and copied to my hotmail account. Everything is alright except for no internet, tv or radio... Just like year 1875.

Sorry no internet connection. Maybe I can try to drive around, and look for an unsecured wireless network. The cellphone line is no good either. Float finds today, look at the pictures!

Later, I received the following:

Hi Tom,

Found an unsecured wireless internet connection, and can stay here for a few minutes.

Did you got the history and pictures from the Andreassen house and boat house?
Pictures from the abandoned house and boathouse are added in this email. The
fisherman who owned it, died out at sea, approx. year 1947, and his wife died approx. year 1962. Since then the house has been abandoned.

Plenty of floats! One guy has collected floats for several years-making art and lamps from glass floats. I've never seen so many floats in my life, 1000 - 3000 glass floats + approx 15 teardrops in the attic, and several 8" floats with superb old nets. Another building from his collection has approx 100 8" glass floats, etc.
Traded plenty of floats, and found some interesting examples.

Today 02.04.2009

Have an appointment with a guy or two this afternoon. I got some help from 4 old retired fishermen this morning. They gave me interesting and valuable names and phone numbers.

Ps. Look at live pictures from where I'm standing in the middle of nowhere, on the road, writing this email!

Take good care,
Per

Next wireless find, don't know!

Per wrote last weekend with the wonderful news that his family has been following his exploits through reading the posts to this blog. I hope that they have read this latest post, and are assured that all is well. Wonder what tomorrow will bring?

Tuesday 3/31/09

I have not received an email from Per since Sunday morning. He was aboard a sea vessel sailing south, and was due to arrive about midnight yesterday. Probably so tired from carrying floats from boathouses to his vehicle, that he just had to crash. I have written Per. Maybe when I wake up tomorrow morning there will be an email waiting?

Sunday 3/29 On The Water

Hi Tom

SOS! Mayday! This is the Titantic...lol

Had a drill today, everything is alright, will arrive tomorrow midnight at å.

Per

Saturday, 3/28 In the North

On Saturday Per had a last day to look around the north country with it's abandoned fishing buildings.

Hi Tom,

I took a closer look into the abandoned area(I love danger and rotted piers).
Left behind was plenty of old fishing nets and polyform buoys, junk and a few glass floats of no interest.
In a part of the fishery district buildings I found old archives in bad shape. They were paperwork from old accounts. I did a fast research and found original glass float receipts dated 1962, from The Bergen fishery gear company, Campell Andersens.
Also found two old originals Polyform bouys with advertising paperwork from 1961.

Next year those old abandoned fishery district buildings will be leveled. The county plan is to possibly burn them down.

I'm leaving tomorrow morning, heading south, and will arrive on monday.

I found 8" Extra RG Made in Portugal floats, and a buoy that was used to find out sea water speed before fishing with a line with many baited hooks. If the water speed was fast, then it was not prudent to put the baited line down.

I had an interview with the owner of the cod liver oil business shown in the photos.
The company name was: H. Guldbrandsen A.S., and located in Snefjord.
The factory was built in 1948, and closed approximately 1970.

Cod livers filled the huge wood-barrels on the top floor. The Cod liver boiler was filled with water, wood and coal were used as fuel to heat the water like a steam boat or train. High pressure steam ran inside the iron tubes, as seen in the pictures, and down into the two huge wood barrels. The steam boiled the cod livers into oil. The finished cod liver product was stored in large tanks.

They have a similar cod liver oil factory at Å. I will look for a text when I visit there!

Have to hit the sack. The vessel arrives in approx. 10 hours, and I have to clean up the mess from my stay here.

Per

The email was sent to me on Saturday night.

The fish bottle photos are from the author's collection. The fish bottles were made in the United States after 1920, and filled with the finest Norwegian Cod Liver Oil. One of the bottles is partially filled with the oil. As far as I'm concerned, the oil can stay there forever! I'll continue my daily dose of extra virgin olive oil.

3/27/09 WHAT A DIFFERENCE A DAY MAKES

Per's Expedition started out on such a high note by finding a spectacular and rare shaped float. The great good fortune then turned into days of searching for floats, but aside from having wonderful traveling experiences, float finding took a nose dive.
In the last post's email, Per was bemoaning the bad luck that he was experiencing, and all I wanted to do was reasure him, and to tell him to just listen to his inner voice, and things would work out just fine. Here is Per's email from today:


Hi Tom,

Today, Friday 27.03.2009-a great day! Superb weather. The sun is shining from a blue heaven and no wind.
Absolutely a perfect day for float research, bird watching and maybe trying some fishing on a modern fishing machine(juksa).

Started this day with a local fisherman who has more than 30-years of experience fishing in Havøysund. This fisherman also has plenty of historical information from the district. He is a great fisherman, who is kind, a pleasure to meet and to be out fishing with. I was able to research, and shoot plenty pictures at sea during the 4 hours on his boat. Wonderful nature and plenty of old and abandoned houses and fishery districts.

We visited the famous bird island named Hjelmsøya and all the abandoned buildings. In the summertime there are as many as 40 sea eagles and other types of eagles living on this island, as well as other interesting sea birds.
People have lived on this island since approximately 1600.

Fishing:
In 5 minutes, two cod fish, great start!

Float finds today:

Had a great meeting with a fisherman. Would have liked to have met his brother, but he was on vacation. I did meet his son and uncle. Two chances for research-one before lunch and one after. The pictures tells more than 1000 words, so take a look below Tom.

Approximately 10 - 15 interesting floats from those two boat houses (looked thru plenty of floats). One three fish float, a few AAsnæs and a few others. Maybe I can shoot a few pictures of floats tomorrow? The floats are stored in my vehicle!

Had a great conversation with a young man, and he told me about plenty of glass floats lying on the top floor out on an abandoned fishery district. He has been out there working. There is a problem is though. I'll need a boat or snowmobile to get there!!

Enjoy the pictures. Sorry about the huge amber teardrop that was damaged.

Sea Eagles nest is on a rock named Hjelmsøystauren.

Per


I often open a file in my mind to a very special book,THE PROPHET by Kahlil Gibran. Gibran's character speaks so beautifully of the need to live with and accept the negative in order to appreciate the positive. After all that Per has been though on his quest, today his life was lifted to wonderful heights. The expedition is fulfilling itself, and will live within Per forever-the good and the bad.

3/26/09 As Luck Will Have It

Hi Tom,

My story for today is:

Kirkenes and the Russian sellers. Asked several Russian sellers about floats...nothing. It seems like rare glass floats are super rare all over the world and the Russian population in the far north does not know a thing about glass floats. This bad luck is funny! I have never had a bad luck like this before...

If something positive does not turn up tomorrow, I will produce a cross identical to the one I found in Ålesund and put in the front seat of my vehicle!
At the market there was a lot of Russian crystal cognac and wine glasses, carafes, eggs, hats, wooden dolls, huge hand made wool socks (bought 6 pair) only $12.00 USD, all kind of Russian-made things...but no floats. I gave away some floats and my cards.

I'm now situated in Havøysund, which is an outer island situated as far north as you can drive by a vehicle. The house I'm in was rented out as a Charity house for fishermen. No longer used by the fishermen, since a new Charity house was built down by the docks.
Very nice landlords here. It is a great place to stay.
I have also been in touch with a few contacts, and have straightened up some problems getting together. Hopefully, will meet with, interview and do some float research tomorrow.

I am a bit tired right now after driving 336 US miles on snow and crystal hard ice roads, with a command car in front of me on the worst parts.

Image is from an abandoned fishery district a few km from my stay here. The state county will do a demolition job on it because it is dangerous for people to walk on the docks etc.

Per

Wednesday 250309 Kirkenes

Hi Tom,

Good luck with the greenhouse re-covering today!

Been researching around on the docks in Kirkenes today after lunch time, and also neighborhood areas early in the morning.Still in a bad float-finding luck mode in the north, but interesting people and meetings will come very soon.

Anyway, I was visiting the fisherman club in Kirkenes, and did talk with 7 fishermen (Russian) and two guys from Finland. The two Finish men were translators between me and the fishermen. I don't speak a single word in the Russian language. When signs where made by hands and the looks on their faces, I sometimes understood the meaning. All the Russian fishermen have my card, and promised to make contact if something good shows up.

I also went out in my SUV to get a float sample so the Russians could see what I was looking for. Some said they never had seen a float like that before, and another guy (the oldest, a fisherman with a huge beard) just nodded as if he could confirm to have seen them before, but this man spoke no Russian, and also he was a little skeptical of interviewing and camera.

No floats today, but a great conversation over a coffee.

The temperature tonight is a freezing 3 degrees fahrenheit, or -16 celsius.

Pictures:

Two Finnish guys who did a great job translating;

Russian fishing vessels;

The Seamen's Club and

my SUV

Photos from the email sent earlier today:

the Russian border just a few 1000-meters from my stay here, and a few miles from the Kirkenes center.

Today, Per should be browsing through the offerings from the Russian sellers, who visit once a month. It would be terrific if he were to happen onto some of those rare Russian glass floats!

Tuesday, March 24,'09

Per is still headed north. He sent an interesting email from today's travels. I'll let him tell you about it:

Hi Tom,

Honningsvåg research. Sorry for my short emails. Have to be fast because of the internet connection. Have added some pictures from today, Honningsvåg and Havøysund area. Visited the fishery district, and was talking to young and old fishermen on the docks. I had a short interview with a retired fisherman. In the pictures you can see open doors at the fishery houses. Fishermen were drinking coffee and tea inside these old houses, and told me that all the floats from the old days were thrown away on the last cleaning a month ago. Bad luck!

A photo from the fishery museum is added showing teardrops...NOT for Sale...bad luck again! Lol

See You! Per

Some great photos of the north giving us a glimpse of Norway's spectacular beauty. The little boat below the dockside building, the one on the right, sure is a beauty. Her lines are wonderful, and remind me of the lobster boats used in Maine. I daydream of running her in those waters, close to those breathtakingly cold mountains. The photo of the helicopter and the ship, are titled, "Rescue Team." Wonder what will unfold in today's travels? I'm writing this at 7:00 A.M. Wednesday, and will be looking forward to hearing from Per at breaktime, at lunch, after the day is over...whenever.

Monday, March 23, '09

Only one email from Per today.

Hi Tom,

Great to hear about your float trade, and that the float was in beautiful condition. Always interesting and great when a good trade is accomplished. I hope to make some trades too when vessel arrives in Kirkenes on Thursday. There, I am visiting the Russian people at the sale later this week.

Weather in Tromsø now is cold, and there is a lot of snow. Only one interesting float from my research today. Looked through a half sack of floats-mostly + P.C.F.+.

The vessel is leaving for the Northcape area. Hopefully the weather will be better.

Take good care my friend! And look out for Polarbears.

Per

In earlier emails prior to Per's departure, Per described the upcoming day in Kirkenes with the Russian sellers:

I will spend 1 day in Kirkenes area, where the Russian people sell interesting Russian Antiques and other stuff... they are visiting Kirkenes on 26.03.2009. These Russian sellers visit the Kirkenes area every last Thursday almost every month. The sell everything from junk, souvenirs, gear, military, etc., you name it. The Russian sellers have Norwegian special visas for selling in Norway on those specific days.

The float that Per spoke of at the beginning of his email, is a beautiful Red Trovald with dark red or black swirls in the glass. My trading Pal and I phone almost weekly, to say "Hi!" swap stories, bemoan the long winter weather, etc. A few weeks ago, I was able to win a beautiful Japanese pre-1940 deep aqua marine 9-incher with green swirls. After sending the photos of the float to my friend, he quickly emailed me to ask if the float was trade material. I knew that he had the Red Trovald. Maybe lightening would strike both of us twice?

During the following Sunday morning's phone call, the urgency in my friend's voice caused me to promise to send the float to him for inspection right away. He took the bait...Maybe, I took the bait?

The following afternoon, I got the float to the post office before the late-day mail pickup. Sent Priority Mail, two days later, he received it. That evening I got the call saying, "Trade On!" On Saturday afternoon, the Torvald arrived. A good trade is really fun!