Making it to Nordkapp or the North Cape:
| Day 6: Øksfjord – Hammerfest – Havøysund – Honningsvåg – Kjøllefjord – Mehamn – Berlevåg. In Finnmark, icebergs, wind and weather have created a harsher, more dramatic landscape. You will see both abandoned fishing stations and lively fishing ports bustling with activity.Havøysund is the next port of call before arriving in Honningsvåg in the late morning. To many people the visit to North Cape, the mountain with the peculiar horn, is the highlight of the round voyage. (B, L, D) |
 The North Cape Road in Winter From 02:00 – 06:45 The Richard With made stops at Øksfjord and Hammerfest early this morning. We will get to see Hammerfest on our return journey. 11:45 – We arrived at Honningsvåg and departed for the North Cape excursion as soon as we docked. This was the highlight of the voyage for many passengers and most took the excursion to Nordkapp or the North Cape, including Barbara. A bus was waiting for us for the 34 km ride to the North Cape. The North Cape Road was snowed over and not accessible by car in the winter season. Hurtigruten had arranged for a snow tractor to clear the passage for us. Through the bright headlights of the snow tractor we could see thick snow spraying away from the road. It was quite a sight. Barbara closed her eyes for most of this road journey, which surprised me. Having lived her whole life in the U.K., I would have thought that she would be used to travelling in snowy conditions. We arrived at the Nordkapphallen (the North Cape Hall) which had a cafe, gift and souvenir shop and offered panoramic views of the coast. We also watched a wide screen video presentation on Finnmark’s changing season. But most important of all was the walk to the famous globe monument, the symbol for the northernmost point in Europe, and to take some pictures of the North Cape. It was freezing and getting the camera to fire and avoiding frozen fingers was a challenge. See our sightseeing post on the North Cape. 15:15 – Hurtigruten cruise ship left Honningsvåg. 15:40 – A presentation on Sami history. 17:15 – We’re in Finnmark and the scenery took on a change – icebergs, wind and weather have created a harsher, more dramatic landscape. The big surprise we’ve been told to look out for is Finnkirka, the special mountain formation down by the water. 17:40 – A quick 5-minute stop at Kjøllefjord. 19:40 – We arrived at Mehamn, the northernmost community on the European mainland. This was another quick 20 minute stop. 22:40 – Another quick 5-minute stop at Berlevåg. |
Take Better Digital Photos eBook
Guerrilla Travel Photography eBook
Leave a Reply