BJØREIØ The Norwegian Paradox

It took David Sodomka six years to see Norway’s Bjoreio River for himself. It wasn’t for lack of trying, nor because the Bjoreio, located less than two hours from Voss, is inaccessible or rarely has water. Instead, the river was waiting for the kayaker motivated enough to pay attention to all it has to offer. The Bjoreio might not be the next classic, but it is a reminder of just how rewarding putting in a little bit of extra effort can be.

Words & photography: David Sodomka

It took me almost six years to paddle the Bjoreio from top to bottom. Not because it is a crazy difficult run—there are some portages over the 35 km section, which drops 1300 meters in gradient. Most of it is beautiful class IV/V. Not because it's a very remote river —most of the river is roadside. Not because it has no water all year long—it has water more frequently than many of classic runs in Norway. Then, why had it barely been run it before, and why did it take me such a long time? "It was nothing major, just easy, small waves, but they were big enough to break up the large iceberg I was standing on into a thousand smaller pieces." For a better explanation, I need to…

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Kayak Session (Digital) - 1 Issue, Fall 2021

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