Hike to find Barb's Grandmother's House.

Friday, August 1

Midmorning Haakon drove us a few kilometers from their home to a trailhead.  The street at the trailhead is named Tarlebo, Barb’s grandmother’s maiden name.  The narrow road, once leading to the farms up the valley is now a wide trail used only by hikers, runners, and bikers.  In 1907 a dam was built to block the valley’s stream leading from 2 small lakes.  Now the valley is full of water, a reservoir for Bergen’s drinking water.  Since the area was designated as a water shed, all the valley’s farms were then purchased by the city of Bergen and all farming and animal raising was stopped to protect the quality of the water supply.  One of the farms that were sold to the city was the Tarlebo farm, Barb’s ancestors.

 

Hiking trail sign indicating Barb's family name Tarlebo

Haakon and Inger Helene noting starting and ending points.

The first part of the trail, the old road.

The stream and two small lakes now a large reservoir.

As we began to walk up the trail one could readily see that over the 100 years since the valley was abandoned, it had returned to a natural forest state. 

An abandoned structure along the way.

 

The wide trail turned into a narrow one and signs announced that we were nearing the Tarlebo farm.  Many other signs designated the other farms that had been abandoned, a historical record for the interested hiker and the visiting ancestor. 

The larger trail breaks off toward Barb's family farm.

An explanation on a sign indicating Tarlebo

 

Haakon guided us to the remains of the farm.  The characteristic tall rock foundations were standing but the rest of the structure had gone back to nature.  Barb and Haakon knocked on the imaginary door waiting for Barb’s grandmother and her sister, Haakon’s mother to answer. 

The farm

The home and connected barn.

Knocking on Grandma's door.

A picture of that home circa 1900.

The rich carpet of moss in the area.  Rainfall average over 80 inches a year.

 

The hike was 9 km (5.4 miles) long, the longest I had attempted since 2003.  It was an impressive hike, noting family history and lore.  I was in pain for 3 days but I would never give up the experience of that day.  The walk with Haakon and Inger was so rewarding and informative.  To visit the home of a long ago but not forgotten ancestor was so fulfilling.  Big day.  Fun.   Barb's grandmother immigrated to the U.S. in 1912

Picking wild berries on way down.

Near the end of the hike.



 



Bergen again with Haaken and Inger Helene Laegdene

July 31, Thursday

We awoke comfortably in a family home and after coffee and conversation sat down to another wonderful breakfast spread.  However, this time, we were pleased to partake of Haakon’s own recipe of pickled herring in a sauce of carrots, onions, raisins, and a host of other accomplements.  Spread over bread and cheese, it was delectable. 

We left midmorning and Haakon drove us down to the local Stave Church.  Once located in Sogn, it was burned down on 6/6/06 at 6 a.m. by Satanists.  Several Stave churches were burned in the 2000-2007 years by such groups.  The church was acquired by a Bergen billionaire and moved to Bergen, refitted and rebuilt.  It now sits in a Bergen park and serves as a tourist destination and wedding chapel and continues to be funded by that local family. 

In the afternoon we traveled to the Edward Grieg site and attended a solo concert by Tor Espen Aspass, a noted Norwegian pianist, and a recent soloist at Carnegie Hall.  His one hour concert, set in a beautiful hall overlooking the lake where Greig composed much of his work, was a stunning setting and classical musical experience.

Grieg home.

Concert venue at Grieg home.

It began raining in the afternoon (Bergen averages 87 inches of rainfall a year, almost 3 times the rainfall of Seattle) but we braved the weather to walk the Old Hill (Gamlegaugen) Castle, the former home of the first Prime Minister, 1905, who is buried on the site.  Now the castle is the official home of the King and Queen as the visit Bergen.

Gamlegaugen

A rain break at the castle.  King Haakon and his subjects.

Haakon's namesake.

Burial place of Norway's first prime minister, 1905.

We then retired to Laegdene home.  A dinner followed of salmon and Austrian wine.  More stories and many more laughs.

Trondheim to Bergen via Ship

Wednesday, July 30

We awoke refreshed after a good night’s sleep perhaps aided by the constant but low hum of the ship’s passage.  The day before, we relaxed in the sun on the stern deck as we left Trondheim.  Coastal Norway passed by, sometimes on both sides, as if playing a travelogue before us.  Beautiful farms and fishing villages dotted the coast line, so clean, so fresh, so orderly.  By midafternoon clouds filled the sky and the coolness drove us indoors. 

 

Leaving Trondheim

Gorgeous farms and landscape

Express passenger ferry

Farms and fish farms

 

Dinner was in the formal dining room and we chose a four course meal with three different wine servings.  We sat with a couple who live in London.  The male was born in Pennsylvania, she in France.  He is an international banker and this couple was so typical of so many continental professionals.  They come with varied background and roots and they readily change from English to French to German and perhaps Spanish and Italian.  They had been on board for 12 days and had taken the round trip voyage from Bergen to Kirkenes, which is located on the northeastern border of Norway, above Finland and next to Russia.

Wednesday morning offered clouds, cool weather, and spells of rain.  The ship stopped in 5 cities.  At each stop, the locals would come out of their homes or apartments and waive their Norwegian flags, Captain Jensen blowing the ship’s horn in recognition.  The Norwegians are proud of their infrastructure and they celebrate their accomplishments.

Entering Kristiansund

Condos with residence waving at us

Lobby in front of ship

Getting close to Bergen

 

We arrived in Bergen at 2:30 p.m. and Haakon and Inger Helene were waiting for us.  We spent the evening in their home, discussing family history and taking a short walk through their neighborhood.  They prepared an evening meal of lamb, potatoes and cabbage.  Again, we rest in a Norwegian cousin’s home and it feels so comfortable.

 

Family history

Dinner

A walk about the neighborhood.  Edward Grieg's summer home.

Their church



The Laegdene Gard (farm) plaque.  The entire area was once the Laegdene farm.

Evening treats

Departure from Trondheim

June 29, Tuesday

Departure day is here.  We had another delicious smorgasbord breakfast and left for the Hurtigruten ferry terminal at 10 a.m.  We said our heartfelt goodbyes and we boarded the MS Richard With, our eyes glistening.  After finding and moving into our cabin we walked to the bow of the ship.  Looking below to the dock, we saw Torgeir and Heidi standing awaiting our departure.  They stood there, more than an hour, until our ship left, waving goodbye until we disappeared from view.

Goodbye

Our cabin

On our walk about, we spot Torgeir and Heidi waiting for ship departure.

Goodbye good friends and beautiful Trondheim

I do not have the words to describe our feellings for Heidi and Torgeir.  They played such a pivotal and supportive role in the success and rich experiences of this trip, not only for Barb and me, but for our whole family.  Unselfish, giving, loving, hardworking, friendly, fun, interesting, and continuing to live, strive and learn are some of the descriptions that come to mind.

Before Kari’s wedding in 2012, we had not met Heidi and we had met Torgeir only once, for a short time at his father’s home in 1973.  Torgeir and I sat on the Vollset patio and drank a beer, discussing in his fluent English, music (Dylan and the Beatles) and politics (Watergate and the Viet Nam War).  On our return to the US, we sent a Christmas card every year to his wonderful parents, Gunnar and Anny, who had been so welcoming to us during our stay in Trondheim/Selbu.  We regularly received a card from Gunnar during those years.  On our Christmas card in 2006 I wrote a letter to Gunnar again thanking him for his hospitality in 1973 that made our visit so memorable and for his friendship over the years.  I wished him well in his declining health and I including my email address at the bottom of the letter in case any of his family wants to keep in touch via that manner.  It is amazing how the incidental inclusion of that email address has enriched our lives.  A month later I received an email from Torgeir, our first communication since 1973, stating that his father had died and that Torgeir hoped that we would stay in touch.  Thus, through the email, a new and lasting friendship was reborn.  Torgeir and I emailed often.  I find him to be a person who is very open and approachable.  We went on to discuss books read and recommended, music enjoyed, trips undertaken, a bit of politics, religion and spirituality.  I found myself able and willing to communicate with him open and freely and Torgeir’s response was usually soon and detailed.  We both enjoy reading a wide range of genre, music, plays, and concerts, and studying the variety of practices of spirituality.

So, in January 2012, I encouraged Kari to send a  wedding “Save the Date” card to Torgeir and Heidi.  I followed it up a week or so later with an email stating that it is now an American custom to send out these cards and that we would be overjoyed if they could attend, but that he and Heidi were under no obligation to come.  Within a few days we received an email back from Torgeir that they would like to come.  They were wonderful guests, staying in a hotel in Tacoma until after the wedding, then staying at our home four days.  We traveled to the mountain, spent a day in Seattle, but mostly talked, ate, and shared. 

And now they have enriched our lives again.  Torgeir and Heidi readily assisted in the trip’s planning, coordinated the activities in Selbu, and hosted our family for several days.  All was done with grace, warmth, and kindness.  They are such special people and they have been so good to us and for us.  I only wished they lived just down the street.

Return to Trondheim

June 28, Monday

We awoke early but refreshed from our good night’s rest.  We drove to the Selbu Kirche and went through the graveyard one more time, noting the family names.  There were at least 20 gravesites marked Aune, but some grave sites were unmarked, indicating very old sites where the stones had deteriorated and been taken away.   

An Aune area.  My great uncle Nils's family.  Nils had farmed the Aune land.

I wonder who this may be.  Many similar stones with familiar names but no connection other than ancestry.

The drive back to Trondheim

We drove uneventfully back to Trondheim and Torgeir met us at the rental business.  He took us to their home and Michael was there.  We said our goodbyes to him as he was leaving.  Hopefully we will reconnect when he comes to study at the law school at Cal Berkley next spring. 

The four of us then sat and talked a bit, noting our last day together.  Torgeir, in his perception and eloquence, looked at me and asked, “You want some time to write, don’t you?”  Yes, I was yearning to get these thoughts down and much that has been blogged in the last few days was written that afternoon, sitting on their deck in the warm sun.  The words flew out of my pen quickly on that day.  There were abundant experiences, memorable and heartfelt,  most of which I was able to share with family.

At 6:30 the four of us met Kari and Rolf for dinner.  Again, many stories and memories were shared and this time pictures from oh so long ago.  Different times, different station of life, but very fond memories of quality times shared with some very loving and generous people.

Dinner. Torgeir, Kari, Rolf, Norm, Barb, Heidi

Norm and Barb at Vollset home in August, 1973

On the patio that same day.  Torgeir 3rd from left.  His mother  Anny second from right, Kari at right.

Back to Selbu

July 27, Sunday

Mid-morning, Torgeir and Heidi dropped us off at the car rental center downtown and Barb and I were off to revisit Selbu.  I have many questions and still so many details to discover.  Our first stop is to visit Bjorn and Anne again.  They greet us with coffee and lemsa and this time, just the four of us, sitting on their deck overlooking beautiful Lake Selbu, we discuss more common genealogy. 

More lemsa with Bjorn

Anne calls a local resource and soon we are in our cars traveling to that resource, the Granby Gard.  An old farm, converted to a museum, the Gard serves as a center of documentation for all those who have immigrated from Selbu to America.  The museums owners and curators, Inger and Age, (Garberg family lineage) greet us eagerly, and talk warmly of my family, of my hometown Lacrosse, and of my home church Selbu. 

Inger and Age, inside the museum.  Look how modern the inside of the "barn" is.

With Anne and Bjorn outside of the barn, the museum.

The walls of the old barn, preserved for heritage, have been preserved on the exterior, while the interior projects a modern and stylish look.  One end of the barn is glass, looking out onto the beautiful valley.  The museum has meeting rooms for up to 20 and it can serve as a pilgrimage center, offering space for sleep, reflection, and research.  The interior walls are filled with posters, pictures, maps and other documentation that describe the immigration from Selbu to areas in North America.  My families’ destinations in which they lived before moving to Lacrosse are all noted on the wall.  They include St. Paul, Marietta, and Kasson, MN, Ryder and Minot SD, and finally Lacrosse, WA.

I wanted to find the “Wigen” connection, my mother’s maiden name.  Her grandfather and his two brothers were some of the four cofounders of my home church.  It bears the name Selbu because of their roots in Selbu Norway.  Yet, on walking through the Selbu Kirche graveyard, I found no Wigen headstones or anything close such as Vigen or Wiggen.  On inquiring to Inger as to why this is so, she remarked that perhaps they lived in Norway under the name of Nervig or Norbye.  Families in Norway, in the early 1900’s and beyond, usually took the name of the area in which they lived.  Some, when immigrating to the US, then took back their family name which could be the case for my Wigen ancestors.  Inger than brought out a picture and noted that it was of the Wigens, but she asked if I knew their names.  There in the picture was my great-grandfather Peder Wigen, my great-grandmother Betsy (Beret), my grandfather Jurgen and his brother John, and their twin sisters, Rae and Ragna, Ragna being my Godmother, carried me in baptism in 1947.  The picture, I think, would be circa 1905?

My great grandparents, my grandfather and his siblings, circa 1905

Are these my great-great grandparents?

I could have stayed there for days, talking to Inger and Age, and studying their massive collection, but we needed to move on.  We said goodbye to Anne and Bjorn.  Such wonderful people again had crossed our paths and have been so willing to help us on our journey of discovery.  We will stay in touch and I hope we see each other again soon.

Barb and I drove around the valley and the lake for a couple of hours, driving by the Mobost residence, another distant cousin, who was building a large barn on his formidable farm. 

Toward the Aune farm from across Lake Selbu.

Barely field in the Selbu area

We ate pizza at a local restaurant and checked into the Selbusjoen around 6 p.m.    Barb and I sat on the deck, me drinking beer, she sipping a wine.  All at once I felt very complete and very tired.  Yes, there are new questions but there are answers to old ones.  One segment of the trip, the Aune/Wigen side is done.  I am so pleased, so fulfilled and all at once so tired.  We went to bed at 7:30 and slept soundly and comfortably for 10 hours.