I now conclude the tale of Thor’s Journey to Utgard with the final seventeen stanzas, in which all is revealed about the strange happenings in the hall of Utgardaloki. Converting this to what I call “standard lines,” it was 264 lines long. My two longest poems are 729 and 983 lines, and, shorter than this, I think my Brisingamen poem came in at 96 lines. Next month will bring a new poem of some kind. Enjoy!

The crone then came,
cracking her knuckles,
ready for the match.
The wrestling began;
Ennilang strained hard,
yet Elli stood firm,
no matter the force
his might brought forth.

Then tricks she tried
and the True One slipped;
in pulling and pushing
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From last month, I continue the tale of Thor’s Journey to Utgard with another sixteen stanzas, and the poem is now three-quarters finished. Next month will bring the final 17 stanzas, in which you’ll see how Thor fares against Elli, and what’s been going on the whole time with these strange contests. Enjoy!

Out to the course,
Utgardaloki
and the troop then went
to test this feat.
A lad named Hugi
lined up for the race,
lean and lanky
was this little man.

The race started,
the running was fierce,
but ahead way far
did Hugi finish.
Time he still had
for turning around
to face Thjálfi
at the finish line.

The king urged Thjálfi
to increase his effort
on a second race,
though not seen at all
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From last month, I continue the tale of Thor’s Journey to Utgard with another sixteen stanzas, and the poem is halfway finished here with 33 stanzas so far. Next month will bring part 3, in which Thor finally takes part in the games in the hall. Enjoy!

The companions agreed
and pooled their food.
Long was that day,
with lengthy strides
by Skrýmir on the way;
they scored a night-stead
under an oak tree,
and got on to supper.

The etin slept
but the others tried
to open his knapsack
to eat their dinner.
But tricky it was:
untying the knots
proved impossible,
no piece would loosen.

Then rage-filled Thor
raised his hammer,
and smashed the head
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Wassail! For the first time in a long time, I have written a mythological story poem in stanzas of fornyrðislag. As the title indicates, it’s the one where Thor visits a mysterious king named Utgardaloki and attempts some challenges within his hall. It’s the longest mythological story in Snorri’s Edda, by far, which is why I had not rushed to turn it into a poem before! My whole poem is 66 stanzas, and I’ll run it over four months, either 16 or 17 stanzas at a time. Enjoy!

Thor is mightiest
as Thunderer of the Æsir,
yet the wicked work
he once had faced
of a cunning etin’s
crafty magic.
Give now a hearing
to my noble tale.

Once at one time,
the well-bearded Thor
went driving in his chariot,
drawn by two goats,
along with Loki
on his long journey.
They arrived at evening
at a rustic farm.

Its yeoman offered
the use of his lodgings,
and Sönnung then made
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