Oslo on a winter night.
#OperationOslo

The real #MountainMetro is not in Zürich 🇨🇭 but in Oslo 🇳🇴. Of course, I absolutely had to ride it.
#OperationOslo

Good evening from Oslo S! It was an exciting two days in Oslo. But it's now sadly already time to resume #OperationOslo, which becomes more like Operation Zürich as I now have to head back to the south.

Oslo S is in many ways a fascinating station. But it's neither particularly beautiful, nor very interesting rolling stock wise. Most of the trains are worked by the smart looking Vy Flirts.
#OperationOslo

The brand new big departure board in the main hall has not only a very clear layout, it also features an additional «next train to» indicator for the most important destinations. A very good example of a departure board!
#OperationOslo

Today it's only a «short» two hours hop with a Vy Flirt (RE version) to Larvik in the South of Oslo.

It was another Vy RE Flirt as a 10-car double unit working the hourly RE11 to Skien. And that capacity was necessary, apparently rail in the Oslo region is widely used.
#OperationOslo

Larvik station, 19:30. The trains cross here, clockface timetable approved! ✅
With that, my rail experience in Norway sadly already ends for this time.
#OperationOslo

Larvik, a lovely little town, a regional centre with a few shops and restaurants, looks marvellous, all lit in Christmas lights.
#OperationOslo

Morning from sleepy Larvik station. It's 06:30, time for the ferry! ⛴️
The terminal is 2.5 km away and there is no public transport. I was reliably informed that this is gonna change, but we need a bit of patience. There is a taxi waiting at the station, but I'm opting for a little early morning walk.
#OperationOslo

The walk leads along the main road, under the railway bridge, through a quiet residential street and along the footpath next to the port access road.
#OperationOslo

The Color Line terminal comes into view. The walk from the main station took exactly 35 minutes, according to Google it's 2.5 km.
Color Line tells you that you need to check in until 1 hour prior to departure, but sources told me that 45 minutes is more than enough. 😉
#OperationOslo

It's a standard modern terminal. I get my boarding pass in no time at the counter and can then proceed through the glass doors to the waiting area. After about 5 minutes, at 07:20, boarding starts.
#OperationOslo

Boarding the Super Speed ferry, together with about 50 other foot passengers. Departure is planned for 08:00.
#OperationOslo

Departure from Larvik, 15 minutes early at 7:45. The Super Speed 2 offers a luggage storage room (very handy for foot passengers as me), a restaurant, a café and seating areas, for some of which you'll have to pay separately which was definitely not necessary today. There was more than enough space in the café. The sky turned from black to grey outside, as we crossed the sea.
#OperationOslo

Arrival at Hirtshals at 11:45. Wow, this faint yellow sphere in the sky, I haven't seen it for a long time! ☀️
#OperationOslo

Smooth disembarking at about 11:50. From the about 50 foot passengers having boarded with me, only three left the boat by foot. No customs dogs, no passport controls, that's how I like Europe.
#OperationOslo

A long, slightly worn down foot bridge leads to the station and the town of Hirtshals. I'm the only one to go this way. No wonder, the train has left only minutes after the ship's arrival, the next one is in one hour.
#OperationOslo

The foot bridge ends at a small path leading towards the station.
#OperationOslo

I thought I could spend the hour in the waiting room of the station and - with a bit of luck - even get a coffee from a vending machine. Well, that was way too optimistic. Welcome to Denmark 🇩🇰 with its rather ascetic railway infrastructure. Hirtshals is a good example: No roof, no vending machine, no waiting room. The former station building is rented out to a company. At least there is a small supermarket nearby, without a coffee machine although...
#OperationOslo

Luckily, you can nearly always count on inefficient railway operations. As I guessed, the train from Hjørring arrived already at 12:10 for the 12:50 departure. So at least I can wait in the warm train. Despite the sign at the station entrance promising a LINT, it's a Desiro in the blue livery of Nordjyske Jernbaner.
#OperationOslo

Sum up: Larvik–Hirtshals isn't the best ferry for rail travellers. On the 🇧🇻 Norwegian side, the future bus connection will improve things greatly. On the 🇩🇰 Danish side, the terminal is perfectly located. But the uncoordinated timetable on the railway side and the non-existing station infrastructure make it rather unattractive. If the trains would run half-hourly (as they do in most other hours, but not around noon when the ferry arrives), the experience would be much better!
#OperationOslo

The train brings me to Hjørring and would continue to Aalborg. I'll get off there to get something to eat and some more fresh air.
#OperationOslo

The ferry already left again when we depart Hirtshals. Through the rural Danish landscape, it's a 30 minute hop to Hjørring. We stop quite often and the train gets surprisingly full. Another argument for half hourly services.
#OperationOslo

Hjørring station later in the afternoon. A Lint from Hirtshals, a Desiro from Aalborg and another Desiro from Skagen meet for Nordjyske Jernbaner's takt node. The line is apparently operated on ETCS L2 without signals, even though it's only a small branch line!
A lot of people queue in front of the doors of my train to Aalborg. This will get crowded... 😬
#OperationOslo

Aalborg station. Finally a civilised station with a roof and a shop! The model railway is a plus. 🙂
The train was crowded indeed, even though it was in the middle of the afternoon. NJ should think of running double units and split them in Hjørring to Hirtshals and Skagen.
Anyway, my next train is a DSB ICL service and it's worked by everybody's favourite here, the insanely comfortable IC3 or class MF. 🥰
#OperationOslo

Thanks to my staff travel tickets, this is my first ride in first class on a DSB IC3. The seats are very similar in standard class, so there's normally no need to buy a first class ticket here. But there's complimentary snacks and self-service tea/coffee in first. Only the Kanelsnegle you have to bring yourself. 😉
#OperationOslo

Arrival at Fredericia, the city which was built in the wrong location railway-wise. 😉
The train couples to another unit here while I alight. Luckily, I'm not using the local service to Odense, which would be one of these horrible Ansaldo units.
#OperationOslo

Oh...
#OperationOslo

The electric rubber noses (god, we rail people have a really strange vocabulary!) class ER apparently get a new red livery. Could this mean they're staying a bit longer than the diesel ones?
#OperationOslo

I first planned to stay in Denmark a day longer, but due to work-related circumstances, I scrapped this plan, Midtjyske Jernbaner has to wait. Instead, I'm boarding another IC3 towards Germany.
#OperationOslo

More IC3 cosiness and then a short cross plattform connection to the RE 7 in Flensburg. Including a short chat with @niklas_net travelling in the opposite direction - thanks for saying hello! 🙂
Germany, third country for today. 🇧🇻 🇩🇰 🇩🇪
#OperationOslo

Rendsburg, terminus for today. The RE continues to Hamburg without me. I've only seen Rendsburg from above so far, it's about time to see it from ground level. 😉
Good Night!
#OperationOslo

Good Morning from beautifully quiet Rendsburg. I slept like a stone and ate way too much from the excellent breakfast buffet, which I'll regret soon. Off for the last leg of #OperationOslo.

Not only the railway line, also the city has a very interesting layout here. I'll have to look this up later. All in all, Rendsburg is a lovely place for the overnight stop to Scandinavia. Way cheaper and quieter than Hamburg or København and more Hotels than Flensburg. I need to come back with more time to explore the old town and the Schwebefähre.
#OperationOslo

The lovely but a bit neglected Rendsburg station. But it seems that some kind of renewal is carried out.
Oh, and yes, that's a train up in the air there.
#OperationOslo

Well, that was rather obvious, wasn't it?
Now I'm regretting having no stomach capacity left for a second breakfast. Well, I can at least get something to drink.
#OperationOslo

Across the high level bridge.
#OperationOslo

The third rail is a very clear sign that we're approaching Hamburg. After the usual stops on the Verbindungsbahn just before the main station, we collect the mandatory delay to enter Hamburg Hbf. This could be such a beautiful station, but it's operated in a really "ugly" way.
#OperationOslo