Norway

[Jules]

I have spent two and a half years in your lovely country but only during the periods of January to March. Firstly in 1986 staying in Gjendesheim and then Moving up towards Narvik for the final 2 weeks. I also spent 3 seasons at Lom which was warmer than up in the mountains. I had a weekend in Lillehammer which ended up in a walk from the town centre to Hunderfossen which was an experiance at 2am. Finaly got to Hunder's at 6.30am! But I was not in to the Koi bug that grips me today and my focus was elswhere. However your experiences in keeping fish in those hostile conditions is another branch to this hobby that I along with others from the board would enjoy hearing more of.

Jules

[Sanke56]

I am located at 59 N and 115 W as far as I can tell from the map so we are very similar North we are a long way from the ocean and have a large mountain range in between to the west so no modification from water. We often have just under a meter of snow on the ground during the winter. This is a naturallly forested area mixed deciduous and conifers

[Vogata]

Its just past midnight and we have +2°C and falling, snow down from 4” to ~2” in the last 12 hours. The wind is a bit up so to morrow we expect 0-2°C and more ice than snow. We all expect 0- -4° before sunrise. Water and ice all around.

Its on the same line but a bit different scenery. To get your condition we have to go at least 200-300 meters higher or about on hours drive in land, at the Swedish side. A large part off Norway is either above 800 m or costal. In the lower regions we either got golf stream winds and weather or the cold gush from north. In our specific part its more normal with –20° and no snow than more than it exceeding 3 feet’s and staying. Just two – three hours easy driving away we have stabilised cold weather and 6 feet is not unmoral. We on the other hand have over the last 14 days gone from +5°C to –16°C and up again to +2°C. Its been both snowing and raining heavy in this period, isn’t mother nature a nice and unpredictable lady. Well I’m off to work in five hours so ill take some closed eye.



To all off you have a nice day/night or what ever and keep on keeping!

[dick benbow]

Looking at your water parameters it looks like your water would lend itself to

Asagi, Shusui, Midori, Hariwake, kikiusui

you would have to add some hardness to have gosanke propser.

so what are your favorite koi types there?

[Sanke56]

I always think of Norway being a cold place like here but obviously we have a cold climate -35 C last night and we have about 25 cm of snow on the ground but now I can go for a ski everyday and that is great even in the cold as you have to enjoy what you have the days are nice and sunny and the koi are at about 15C inside the shop and eating nicely they seem happy. Lots of birds coming to the bird feeders. Winter is a time to relax.

[Vogata]

Sorry to disappoint all the Canadian out there, but Norway is a bit divers on the weather side. Weather is quit different when we take in costal area and North/East configuration. In the east at the coast (lowlands) it changes dramatically with wind direction. We are located in the end off the golf stream this keeps the eastern sea temperature relative high and when the winds follow the stream push up the temperature. Without the stream weather would bee like yours and like our highland or northern section. When the winds change it’s like getting your weather (would guess a bit warmer but with an moist cold spell to it). At 600 meters and higher 15-35° bellow is quit common. There we have dryer air and it’s easier to tolerate the cold.

NB! Due to all the greater “rolecoaster” roads her in Norway an awe rage 60 km/h is reckoned as good trawling speed.

The dividing line is for us Trondheim (7 hours drive north) further north above this there is a harder and colder winter climate each year. The daylight period will bee shorter the further north you get and be down down to about 30 minutes off twilight in Tromsø. (22houers drive) In Sarpsborg (our location) the night stretches from 16:00 to well past 07:00 The opposite come in the summer with no night at all in Tromsø and just a coupe off hours (2-3) for us her in Sarpsborg. Just to make things funnier its about 30 minutes by car from us for snow and ~5-7°C lower average temperature.

So far this year we have had two sets off snow up to 50cm and temperatures dow at –16°C weeks with –6 to –10°C and weeks with +5 to 10°C. The last days it we have had rain and windy conditions.

It’s not unmoral for some of us worrying abut flood while just hours away they cant keep the ways free of snow (drivable). Her normal to drive behind plows in columns just to cross higher passages or to get further north. In Norway more than 40% is higher than 600 above sea level.



Unfortunately for us normally water temperature in outdoor ponds drop below 10°C late September and often don’t get up again before the middle of April. Fresh water is currently at 3.5 to 4°C in our taps. Our small ones have bee inside for more than two months now and up at 20°C at the moment and still climbing.

[Sanke56]

Our son lives in Germany and he tells me it is above 0 there and they go to Hamburg and it is quite balmy. We visited him there last year in the winter and it was very mild we saw very little snow. The amazing thing about was the further north you go the warmer it gets. Here the further north you go the colder it gets all the way to the arctic. I talked to a lady from the actic last week and she said it was minus 40 there a couple of weeks ago. I explain to people Alberta has a low poplulation because of our climate but we do have a relativley strong economy but you have to make the best of the weather. I would definitley like to visit Sweden Finaland and Norway someday. We are going to Florida for 3 weeks next month it is 25 plus there these days according to my weather watch.

[B.Scott]

Much of it is due to water. In Hamburg the farther north you go the more the ocean tempers the climate. Water on both sides. It's when the wind comes from the NE or E that things get nasty and cold.
B.Scott

[Vogata]

Its in fact another side off what we get, the only difference is that we are further north so a swing from ~0° down to –20°C below is almost normal inside a week. When you travel just under two hours further north from Hamburg you will bee well inside Denmark. Denmark This region with Denmark lower part of Sweden and my part of Norway is all under the Golf streams mercy. This gives us some rather funny weather. With the ours swinging at the lowest end of the scale (temperature vice) Don’t get us wrong in a normal winter we will have more than 3 monts below-10°C and about a month with –20° or lower.



Q: Another word for “balmy”



Dead On Scott!

[Sanke56]

balmy = very nice weather something everyone would enjoy weather wise.
When we pass over the mountains to the West coast ie Vancouver the weather is much warmer but also wetter they live in a temperate rainforest many of the trees have been removed of course but it is still very beautiful. About a week ago we were on the west coast and the weather was balmy [by alberta standards] and we were lucky enough not to get much rain. We even went golfing but the people there don't golf much at this time of year as it is too cold for them 3-8C was the range. Balmy compared to -25-35 here. Not that most people here use the word a lot. The sun sets now at about 1630 and come up at 930 so the days are too short but summer has long days the longest on june 21 sunset 2200 and rise about 4 i like it a lot at that time