The Arctic Circle

The Nordnorge & Leigh

After enjoying beautiful Bergen, we walked across town to the Hurtigruten terminal and boarded the “Nordnorge” for a 4 day cruise.

We were headed up the western coast of Norway, through the skerries (islands) and fjords, to the Arctic Circle and beyond.

Our aim was to do the cruise then finish at Tromsø, one of the leading places in the world in which to see the Northern Lights – the object of our Northern Norway adventure.

Cruise scenery, Marg

Upon boarding the Nordnorge, we went straight to our cabin on deck 3 to unpack. However, our cabin was in the bow of the ship and because of the bow shape, the portholes were like torpedo tubes! 

We felt claustrophobic in it so asked for another cabin. 

We were grateful that the crew was so good about it and we ended up on deck 5 mid-ship, in a cabin with a nice big rectangular window through which we could see the world going by. 

Hjørundfjord settlement

Twenty-hundred hours and dark, and we were off, headed out of Bergen harbour. 

The ship, providing a sort of mail run, made several stops at small fishing villages in the night. Some of these were for only 15 minutes and of course if you were asleep, you didn’t see them! 

However, whenever we could, we went out on deck to check out the spectacular scenery and colourful houses in these very isolated places.

Hjørundfjord settlement

It wasn’t a full ship which was rather nice as it was not too crowded. There were a lot of people from the UK, some Danish and German people, some Aussies and us. The average age of our fellow passengers was probably 70+ and we felt positively young!!

We were told to leave the cabin intercom on if we wanted a call so see the Northern Lights. As we were at the very beginning of the “Lights” season, we didn’t think that we would get a call on the cruise.
 

Downtown Urke

Then at 11.30 pm a call came. A rush to cram into warm gear in the -2 degrees cold, and we raced outside to the front of the ship. 

There in the distance were the amazing green lights! Wow!

Not a huge display but still impressive, as this is what Leigh really, really wanted to see! Back to bed and trying to get used to the ship engine noise and the movement. 

Ålesund Art Nouveau architecture

The next morning, we sailed into the Hjørundfjord and really enjoyed the beautiful scenery of small fishing villages, and isolated little farms and houses in the middle of nowhere. Eventually, we docked at a village called Urke, and disembarked for a walk around.

It’s such a quaint little place of approximately 53 people plus cabin owners who come and go. The folks there seem to have a great sense of humour as we found our way to the 4 shops in the centre of Urke by following hand-written signs to “Urke Downtown”! The place was absolutely peaceful, pretty and precious.

Nidaros Cathedral, Trondheim

A few hours later we docked Ålesund where we disembarked again. Sitting amid a cluster of small islands at the entrance to the Geirangerfjord, Ålesund has been called Norway’s most beautiful city.

Trondheim old warehouses

It is a pretty fishing and ferry port with lots of pastel-coloured Art Nouveau buildings that were all built in the early 1900’s after the town was destroyed by fire.

We loved our walk around here as it is so pretty.

Back on-board that night, we got another Northern Lights call, this time it was earlier. So we wrapped up warmly to head out to see a much brighter display, which was fantastic.

We felt that, if we didn’t see any more displays, it would be ok as this one was great!

Trondheim Old Bridge, Marg

Early the next morning, we docked at Trondheim, where we disembarked and walked into town.

Trondheim has a history of over 1000 years, and we saw some of this in places like the magnificent Niadaros Cathedral (1070), along with some very attractive stone buildings. 

But the highlight was the lovely old character wooden warehouse buildings sitting on each side of the river. They are ancient but well preserved and colourful.

We crossed the old city bridge with its red gateway known by the locals as “the portal of happiness”.

Kjeungskjær lighthouse, Marg

On the other side of the bridge we found an old town area called Bakklandet which is lovely with its old wooden structures now housing people, shops and cafes. 

In the next stage of the cruise we came out of the skerries into the open sea and found it to be extraordinarily rock-n-rolly!

Lofoten settlement

It had the effect of clearing the decks and there was a noticeable drop in the lounge population!

We had booked for dinner (reindeer steak!), and considered cancelling it in case it went to waste through the night. 

However, after a while we got used to the motion and in fact, it rocked us to sleep that night.

Onwards, and the ship passed a very cute little lighthouse at Kjeungskjær before heading into a very narrow sound.

This was Stokksundet which is surrounded by huge rocky outcrops and tiny villages with quaint-looking houses.

The landscape was becoming increasingly bleak by this stage, with the scarce vegetation looking like stunted scrub clinging to the rocks. 

Arctic Circle ceremony-Leigh and King Neptune

There was some farming and lots of fishing, but it must be a tough place to live as people are just so isolated.

However, it is also presents a stunning picture, seen in autumn. We stayed above decks watching it for some time as we sailed through some beautiful areas.

The ship stopped at several tiny villages, but only for half an hour which was not time enough to get off.

We then came into the Lofoten Islands, which are renowned for their small fishing villages surrounded by amazing granite cliffs and white sandy beaches.

We saw plenty of these, with each one seemingly more remote and beautiful than the previous. 

En-route, we passed the Svartisen Glacier, Norway’s 2nd largest glacier.

Marg and polar bears, at Svolvær Magic Ice Gallery

The following day bought great excitement as we crossed the Arctic Circle.

The Captain announced a special ceremony to mark the event and everyone rugged up and went out on deck. There we saw King Neptune!

The ceremony involved getting icy water plus ice cubes poured down the back of one’s neck before receiving a shot of alcohol! 

Leigh choose King Neptune to receive her dipping. She got heaps of water and ice down her back and ended up rather wet.

Marg cleverly chose the Captain and only got a little water down her back. He was much kinder!

The ships searchlights on the walls of Trollfjord

All good fun and most people joined in. We received a certificate to say we have crossed the Arctic Circle.

A little later we arrived in Bodø where we walked into the village to stretch our legs.

After dinner we stopped briefly at Svolvær where we visited the Magic Ice Gallery. The gallery uses sculptures made out of ice, to tell the story of the local fishermen and Vikings. Apparently, its the first and only permanent Ice Gallery in the world.

We needed very warm clothes with lots of layers, and then they also provided us with fur-lined capes to put on over what we already had on.

We looked like real fatties but we needed it as it was absolutely freezing inside.

It was hard to take photos because your hands froze being out of your gloves for only a few seconds - but a great experience!

Later that night the ship made a detour to the beautiful Trollfjord. What an amazing experience as the fjord was incredibly narrow and it was dark.

Finnsnes area settlement

We crept along nearly touching the huge walls of rock, and with searchlights picking out waterfalls and autumn colours in an eerie, magical sort of way.

We were treated with a special “Trollfjorfknert”; a drink which tasted suspiciously like a hot toddy with chocolate in it. And, we got to keep the cup that has Trollfjord written on it. It was a wonderful night and the best on board so far.

The next day we stopped at small places like Harstad and Finnsnes for thirty minutes to deliver and pick up, before moving on.

Finnsnes area settlement

The landscape was becoming even more rocky, isolated and desolate. The autumn colours and red houses give it a lift, but it must be a hard place to live in.

Fishing is the main occupation here and we have passed many salmon farms on the way.

The weather was turning a little grey and threatening rain when we docked in Tromsø, the capital of the Arctic.

We had originally planned to leave the ship and stay 5 nights here in order to make the most out being in the Northern Lights Zone.

North Cape view

However, as we'd already had a couple of northern light viewings from the ship, we decided to extend our ship experience. Luckily, the ship was able to accommodate us. This meant that we could stay with the ship for the rest of its northward journey to Kirkenes, where it turns around to sail south again. We would then disembark at Tromsø on the southward beat.

Leigh with some Skarsvåg fishing boats

That night, we crossed an open stretch of sea called Loppa. Again, there was a lot of rocking and rolling, but we have now become quite seasoned to it!

Next morning, we crossed the 71st parallel to the sub-Arctic landscape of the North Cape, the northernmost point of mainland Europe. 

It is populated by the Sámi people who are indigenous to this part of the world. 

We disembarked at Honningsvåg, then boarded a bus for a land trip, to the North Cape. We rugged up with polyprops top and bottom, merino tops, puffer jackets, wet weather trousers, scarves and gloves. We felt quite snug but very rotund!

Heidi and stock fish in Skarsvåg

It was hard to digest the enormity of this place, as it was so ice-cold and windy, but we were awed!

Leaving the North Cape, we drove along a twisting hilly road to the very small and isolated fishing village of Skarsvåg (population 45).

There we met Heidi, a local woman who had lived in the village all her life. She was passionate about her village despite the fact that the population was steadily decreasing.

Skarsvåg people fish for king crabs and cod, but prices are dropping so much that the village is experiencing a financial crisis and there are fears for its ongoing existence. 

Leigh with a huge Skarsvåg King crab

The king crabs they sell to the East, and the cod they catch for food.

They showed us how they dry cod to store it for winter, calling it stock fish – we could see it on the drying racks.

It is eaten as a snack and we thought it tasted good, a little salty and not very fishy. 

A local fisherman bought out a huge crate of king crabs to show us and they were massive. You only eat the legs and the rest is shell and sinew.

Later on, Heidi took us back to her gift shop and prepared an afternoon tea for us.

At the end of it she bought out a tray of king crab legs - cooked and split open. The meat was so juicy and sweet and we really enjoyed it. 

Leigh at Vardø Fortress

We thought it was a very interesting tour as we got to see an authentic fishing village, and a passionate woman trying to improve the local economy with her various tourism ventures.

The next day we docked at Vardø, which had a very interesting and old fortress.

It has been beautifully preserved and was last used in the 2nd world war to defend Norway.

Sámi singer

There we saw the famous Enigma machine that decoded German messages and ended up helping to end the war. 

Later we docked at Kirkenes located on the Bøkfjorden right over the top of Norway in the extreme north-eastern part.

It’s near the Russian border, but miles from anywhere else.

It has a population of around 3,500 and is a modern town, with petroleum-drilling activity now as its main occupation. 

The ship turned around in Kirkenes – it’s as far north as it goes.

That night on board, we were entertained by a Sámi person singing traditional songs.

The songs were interesting as they were about everyday life, such as catching a fish (or so he explained as it was all sung in Sámi language), but the melody was hard to listen to!

Northern Lights

Suddenly that evening, the cabin intercom buzzed, telling us that the Northern Lights could be seen off the stern of the ship.

Same drill – rug up hurriedly, fly to the promenade deck outside and find a good viewing spot.

And Wow!

They were absolutely amazing and by far the best we had seen, and on our last night too! 

The colours and shifting masses were wonderful and very magical.

They lessened and we retired inside to defrost when the call came again to go to the front of the ship, and the show was renewed.

Hammerfest, Leigh

The lights were everywhere and we kept going between the back and front of the ship until they started to fade. We felt we had really seen some wonderful sights.

It was an experience we would never forget and we were so glad we had decided to extend our cruise.

We couldn’t take photos as our cameras are not sophisticated enough, but we have included a photo in the blog that was taken by someone else.

Still sailing south, we arrived in Hammerfest, the polar bear capital.

That afternoon, we were provided with a taste of the Arctic, being dried reindeer meat and cloudberries. The meat was delicious and the cloudberries were yellow berries that were slightly sour. They are a delicacy here and hard to come by, so this was a bit of a special treat.

Tromsø, Leigh

We eventually arrived back in Tromsø and this is where we left the ship. It was at 11.45 pm so we taxied straight to our hotel, slept, and missed a distant Northern Lights showing. Aah well!

After a couple of days in Tromsø, we caught the local bus to the airport, flew back to Oslo and were reunited with Vanni. She was feeling a little chilly after being alone in a car park for 10 days.

What a fabulous experience we had in Norway. It is such a picturesque country. We were glad we spent our time and funds on this part of the world.

Now it’s time to move on further south as it is very cold, and our time in Europe is running out.