East of central Trondheim, between Nedre Charlottenlund and Ranheim, is Grilstad. Originally this was only a farm belonging to the Archbishop of Nidaros, named after an old river name: Grýtla. The name comes from ‘gruvla’ which means to dig or mess up. A sausage factory, Grilstad factories, was built on the farm in 1957, which is still in full operation. Below Grilstad farm there was a fine shore which has been planned to be developed since the 1960’s. However, the plans were put on hold due to high costs and a lack of filling material.
The construction finally started in 2005, with filling material from the Strindheim tunnel project. Grilstad Park is planned with 1,000 residential units, 110,000 m2 commercial buildings, and in addition Grilstad Marina, a harbor/pier with 800 boat berths.
This must be like paradise, you are probably thinking, with a beautiful and peaceful sea panorama. A quay has been built close to the filled-in islands. On the land side there is a sand volleyball court, barbecue grills, benches, lawn and plantings. Great!
Oh no, it’s not that simple. The bathing area has become too popular. Young people come there to have a bath. They make noise. They jump into the water from the bridge. Ugh! That’s not how we like it!
We visited Grilstad in July, and there were no young people there. None! Had they all gone on vacation? Or did it really work to mount a 100 meter long fence along the quayside to prevent bathing in the canal? The matter has, following complaints from the residents, been up for debate in the City Council repeatedly. The argument for a bathing ban has been the safety of bathers. Of course, you have to bring up safety, you can’t argue against that. Or can you? The debate concerns 100-150 meters where there could be a conflict between boats and bathers. There are about 20 boats that have their parking place there. What speed do you need to drive your yacht this distance?
We took a test bath. There was no fuzz, but we didn’t make much noise either. The water was nice and crystal clear, but it was low tide, we couldn’t see the bottom, and we didn’t jump. A great bath!
Swimming in Grilstad Marina is perfect, even though the ladder down from the quay was a little wobbly at the bottom.
After a bath, food is always right. We ate at Flipper Kafe, on Fullriggerøya (Sailboat island). The sandwiches aren’t the cheapest, but that’s no wonder, because the portions are huge. And after the meal, to play shuffle board might be just right. That can be quite fun, at least for some of us.