8,000 km around the Baltic Sea - A Journey Through Norway
By Bart - founder of Nadir Watches
We left without rushing. The ferry from Gdansk to Karlskrona is leaving in the evening. We had a full day for this short trip to the "Tri-City" to get ready. We even managed to visit the family for a quick coffee in my hometown.
Car packed without issue. There is more than enough room for everyone and everything. No fixed plans. No hotel bookings. Not a single reservation (besides the ferry ticket). Just a simple direction: north.
Three weeks later, we had crossed over 8,000 km - Poland → Sweden → Norway → Finland → Estonia → Latvia → Lithuania → home again. A full loop around the Baltic Sea, guided by the road more than itinerary.
The goal wasn’t to rush from point A to B. It was to experience everything in between and focus on Norway.
Drive. Discover. Sleep wherever it gets quiet enough to hear the wind. Repeat.
The Rhythm of Slow Travel
When you move slowly, time stretches. Days lose structure, clocks lose relevance - except one, on your wrist. Every morning started the same:
- open the door and smell the morning
- boil water for coffee
- look around and realise we woke up somewhere completely different again
Norway rewards this lack of planning. Wherever we stopped, there was always a small campsite tucked into jaw-dropping scenery.
In Norway, “good enough” spots don’t exist. Only spectacular ones. It’s like this country and landscape were created by an epic fantasy writer.
Norway is a playground for adventure
The landscape changes faster than you expect.
One morning, after a short hike, we stood at the foot of the Briksdal Glacier, surrounded by electric-blue ice and silence… We passed by a waterfall that turned the air into mist, granting us multiple rainbows.
And later that same day, we kayaked the turquoise waters of Oldevatnet, with mountains reflecting in the water like mirrors.
And everywhere - water, in every possible form.
A Country of Ice
Fjords climb into snowy plateaus, and these - dissolve into glaciers. Every turn reveals something bigger and wilder. There is always a waterfall present in eye-sight.
One single drive – a single day, from this 8000km trip, took us past:
- Langfoss
- Latefossen
- Vøringsfossen
Each waterfall is different. Each one unforgettable.
The next day, we were above the treeline, crossing the highest mountain pass. And another hour of slow trip took us to the ski resort... that was still operational under the Galdhøpiggen peak (in July). A while later... we had lunch sitting in the sun in Lom, watching people zipline over the Bovra River.
Norway makes you feel small - in a good way.
A Country of Water
Beyond waterfalls and fjords lies the famous Atlantic Road — a ribbon of asphalt stitched between islands. Then we reached Saltstraumen, where powerful tidal currents form whirlpools under the bridge.
Watching them felt like staring at the heartbeat of the ocean.
Rain was supposed to accompany half of our days. Instead, we got a 30°C heatwave for over 2 weeks. Even in Tromsø. A rare gift. A reminder: the best trips are the ones you don’t control.
A Country of Isolation
The further north we drove, the fewer people we saw. Mountains transformed - from gentle curves to jagged, alpine peaks and back to gentle curves.
Tromsø felt like the last outpost of civilisation. After that, just the road, waterfalls, reindeer, and midnight sun.
In July, the sun never sets. You lose the sense of time entirely. Only the watch keeps you anchored in the day–night cycle.
And by accident... while driving on another road less travelled. We managed to spot a family of dolphins in the little bay, near Havøysund. Something completely unexpected... to scratch off from the bucket list - seeing these creatures in the wild.
Reaching Nordkapp
Nordkapp isn’t a “conquer the summit” destination. It’s a quiet cliff and a horizon that doesn’t care you’ve travelled 4000km to reach it.
On our arrival:
- dense fog,
- cold wind,
- visibility: five to ten meters.
We waited. And then. The sky opened, and the iconic globe appeared out of nowhere. For a moment, it felt like the world revealed itself just for us. Except under the cliff - there was a different kind of sea: sea of clouds.
Why this family vacation matter for Nadir Watches
Nadir was not designed at a desk. It was designed on the road. It’s a personal project with adventure at its core. Any kind.
A reliable tool to be used:
- rain on the sapphire crystal
- a little mud on the case
- dust on the strap
- scratches that hold stories
A watch doesn’t earn character in a box. It earns character on a wrist.
And in a place where the sun never sets, a watch becomes more than a tool.
It becomes your sense of time.
Norway reminded me that adventure isn’t loud. Sometimes, it’s just: water boiling on a camp stove, fog lifting over a horizon, family laughing in the car.
My goal remains unchanged: create watches that live up to real journeys. Norway was the final test of the prototypes of the new GMT, released shortly after the trip.
And a watch quietly recording every second of it. And maybe… get inspired to name a next model, with one of Norways iconic peaks.
Thank you for taking the journey with me.
Bart
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