The World's Most Beautiful Voyage - The Hurtigruten Norwegian Coastal voyage 6

Day 10

We crossed the Arctic Circle once more at 9.15am and much of the day was spent at sea there were stops but only for very short periods so we could not go ashore. Natasa gave a  talk on Mythical Creatures of the Sea which was fascinating.

Wild Weather in Bronnoysund

We arrived at Brønnøysund at 3.45pm and as there is a stop of one and a quarter hours we decided to go ashore to go to a small shopping centre that had a branch of a cheap Christmas shop we'd been in at Hammerfest as we wanted to buy something. Quite a few people got off with us and headed the same way. The weather was atrocious, howling wind and driving rain, but the centre was not far away and it was a relief to stumble into the shelter and warmth of the shops. We bought a few things in the Christmas shop and looked around some others before heading back to the Nordnorge. We tried to do a selfie with the ship in the background but it was so windy I couldn't hold the camera straight and, as my mother used to say, every picture tells a story!

The evening meal this evening was billed as the farewell meal as lots of German tourists were leaving the ship in Trondheim tomorrow. We had some free prosecco and representatives of all the departments of the ship's staff all lined up and sang a funny song about the trip and then went around the restaurant to toast "skol" with passengers. It was

The Staff all Lined Up For the Farewell Meal

really lovely, very warm and friendly as the staff had been throughout our voyage. The meal, as ever, was delicious and we had the best dessert of the trip, "success tart" which was absolutely gorgeous - everyone was loving it! 

That evening we just relaxed in the panoramic lounge, chatting and drinking the expensive wine very slowly. 

Day 11

Our last full day onboard the Nordnorge and I felt  sad that the trip was coming to an end. We had a stop for a few hours in Trondheim, but it started at 6.30am and finished at 10am  so we didn't go ashore, we had been on a tour of the city on our way north anyway.

We had our last meeting with Bjorn and David where they told us a bit about the shifts the staff work (22 days on then 22 days off) and arrangements for our departure the following day.  They also told us that it would get very choppy later in the night.

That evening Bjorn held a quiz about Norway in the panoramic lounge and Marian and I won it!  Considering some of the teams were six people strong I think we did very well! Our prize was one of the smart Scandinavian design water carafes each they used in the restaurant which we were both  very happy with. 

We went back to our cabin but had barely got in bed when the ship started to go through the storm and there was no way we could sleep then!  The ship was tossed around by the storm until about 4am when things calmed down and we were able to get a bit of sleep, luckily neither of us got seasick.

Day 12

A Last Photo of us on the Nordnorge

We had to be out of our cabin by 10am but there were plenty of areas we could sit in, the ship was much quieter since the Germans had left yesterday. We had our last buffet lunch, I was starting to get used to having all this great food made for me.

I went out on deck to watch us head in towards Bergen and soon we were docked at the Hurtigruten Terminal.  We arrived late due to the storm in the early hours. We left the ship and got the bus to the airport. Bergen Airport is a strange place. It's not very big and has no proper place to eat or drink. Everything is self service and the shops are few and not very interesting, I remembered Bjorn had said there wasn't much at the airport in the meeting the previous day, he wasn't joking!

So that was it, the end of a fantastic experience, I absolutely loved it all. Norway is a stunningly beautiful country with lovely people, I felt very at home there. The Nordnorge was just the right size of ship for me, and it's staff were wonderful. Apparently Hurtigruten staff are well paid and there is a no tipping policy, though if you wanted you could leave something when you left. Nothing was ever too much bother for them and they went out of their way to talk to passengers. The food was amazing and some very seasoned cruise travellers we talked to were very impressed by the food and voyage in general.

I loved the fact the ship was a working ship and we were on a journey not a cruise. There is always something to see and I loved how you could just hop off the ship at the ports if you wanted. Sometimes we'd stop at some tiny place where, as well as goods and post, people, sometimes just one person, would get on or off, sometimes a car waiting to pick them up. Marian said it would make a good storyline for a book, the stories of these people where they had been, where they were going, what they had done.

Favourite events/places? I loved the tour I went on way up north to the winter/Christmas house in Skarsvag and the gallery in Kamovaer. The Midnight Concert in the Arctic Cathedral in Tromso was so beautiful.  And I'll never forget travelling along Vestfjord balancing against the window so I didn't have to test out my survival suit in the icy water, looking up at the vivid green ribbon of northern lights as they danced above the fjord.  The only disappointment being that there was not enough snow to be able to go husky sledding in Kirkenes. Winning the quiz was a perfect ending to our trip.

I would highly recommend sailing with Hurtigruten, especially if you want a trip that is a bit different. I will be doing another voyage with them, maybe in the spring to see another side of Norway.

The World's Most Beautiful Voyage in the World - the Hurtiguten Coastal Voyage Part 3

Day 5

The morning was spent relaxing and admiring the beautiful views of snowy mountains as they passed by, I love the relaxed way of life of the ship that by now we were well into.  In the afternoon I went to a lecture about Norwegian explorers of the Arctic and Antarctic. It was dark by time the ship docked in Tromsø. Tromsø is a place I have always wanted to visit, the setting is so beautiful. But unfortunately as it was dark I couldn't see that.

Kitted up for Whale Watching

Marian and I were booked on a whale watching trip in nearby Vestfjord - yes I know that sounds weird to do at night, but the boats are fitted with spotlights so you can see the whales if they are around. We got a bus to a small village and went into a small place where we changed into survival suits all ready for the trip. We got on the small boat and off we went. There were drinks provided plus lovely cinnamon cakes and biscuits.

After a while I went to join some others who had gone onto the viewing deck. To do so I had to squeeze up a steep flights of steps and onto the deck which didn't really have anything to hold onto! The rails were very low and there were no seats, scary! Like a few others in order to feel stable and safe, I leaned back on a window and stayed there as the boat flew along the fjord at quite a pace, I hoped that I wouldn't need the survival suit lol!. Unfortunately there were no shoals of herring showing on the radar which meant there were no whales. But while we were on deck we saw a beautiful aurora. It was vivid green and was directly overhead and stretched like a ribbon above the fjord and snow covered mountain tops, twisting and twirling along itself.  For me it made up for not seeing the whales. I was relieved to squeeze down the steep steps and back into the warmth and safety of the cabin.

Later as the Nordnorge left Tromsø I stood on deck, the city swith it's sparkling light looked beautiful.  Snow started to fall as the lights slipped away and I thought how lucky I was to be able to come on a trip like this.

Day 6

Ever north we go, I loved seeing all the new places we stopped at, and watching locals getting on and off.  Supplies were loaded and unloaded. Cars waiting in tiny Arctic villages to pick up a loved one, I wondered what their stories were. 

Near the North Cape

The Hurtigruten ships are especially vital to this part of the country, where roads are not a viable transport system in the winter. Even small places have airports, again vital for these areas, but they too can fall prey to the Arctic winter. There are 12 Hurtigruten ships that sail up and down the coast 365 days of the year.

Today our main stop was Honningsvåg on the island of Magerøya which is almost the most northerly point Europe. Marian had opted to go on a trip to the northernmost place in Europe, the North Cape while I went on a trip to two fishing villages. It was very cold here but it was bright and sunny. 

The Winter and Christmas House

We drove for about 20 minutes along narrow icy roads, hairpin bends and over a mountain before arriving at a small village called Skarsvåg where we visited the Winter and Christmas House. The small shop and cafe is run by a lady called Heidi who was born and raised in Skarsvåg. First we sat in the cafe area where she had traditional Norwegian Christmas fayre, mulled wine, coffee, waffles, Christmas cake and cinnamon biscuits, it was very snug and cosy. She talked about the changing fortunes of the area, a lot of the young are leaving. Her husband is a king crab fisherman and you can make a good living doing that. She and a few other ladies from the village get together once a week and knit various items in the traditional style which she sells in her shop. She was very passionate about her village and its traditions.  The sun will not rise above the horizon here from November 21st to January 21st, but there is a winter blue light for a while each day. She also said that you have to have plenty of firewood in stock for when the electricity goes off in the winter.

The East of the Sun Gallery

You also need to be well stocked up on food as they are often snowed in as well. I bought some mittens knitted by the ladies and she thanked me for supporting their work.

We left the snug Christmas House and the Arctic cold hit me, onto the bus and off to the next visit which is the village of Kamoyvaer where we visited the East of the Sun Gallery. This is the gallery of Eva Schmutterer from Germany who came to Kamoyvaer many years ago after meeting and marrying a Norwegian from the area. She was inspired by the amazing landscape and wildlife of the region and produces amazing paper collages. I loved her work and it was very reasonably priced so I bought three prints. I had a little wander around the village afterwards, it was very isolated and it felt really Arctic. Places like Tromso didn't feel really Arctic to me but here it did, as fascinating as I found it I couldn't live here.

Fishing Boats at Kamoyvaer

The trip back to the Nordnorge was in the dark and once again it was lovely to feel the warmth of the ship again. 

Later that day we had a talk on the Sami culture which was enlightening. Many of the Sami people live a nomadic life across the northern areas of Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia and at this time of year are in the east so we wouldn't be seeing any Sami or reindeer. We had the usual talk from Bjorn and David and learned that gulls drink seawater and filter the salt out through glands in the head and the salt is excreted through their noses - nature is amazing!

That evening we relaxed in the lounge on deck seven, my favourite place on the ship. It was quite stormy, after all we were now well into the Arctic on the Barents Sea, 742 miles north of the Arctic Circle. The easy going life on a ship is deceptive, you are travelling in wild waters and further than you realise.