08.07.2018
Today was our big Nordkapp day!
Alta – Skaidi – Nordkapp – Skaidi 435 km
It was still grey outside, but it was dry and looked somewhat friendlier when we woke up. After a hearty breakfast we checked out and were on our way to Nordkapp at 08:30.
En route to Skaidi, where our next hotel was, we stopped for a couple of secret boxes only and to get gasoline. We took the E 6 and here was for most of the way 90 km/h allowed. The road followed first the Altafjorden and then led through some mountains and along rivers northeast to Skaidi. It was only about 90 km to get there and on the way the sun came out. The road was very straight and the landscape seemed to become more and more Arctic, very barren.
Skaidi is a small settlement with the Skaidi Hotel, a gas station, a camp ground and a few houses only. It is situated on a crossroad. The E 6 leads northeast from here towards the Nordkapp and the #94 west to Hammerfest. We had originally planned to visit Hammerfest as well whilst we were up there, but had abandoned this plan in favour of taking another detour further up north.
In Skaidi we stopped at the hotel, but 10:00 was too early for check in. So I just made sure it was OK we would arrive very late … or early … They said, they are open 24 hrs and it would be fine. I guess, they have often guests that are here for the midnight sun at the Nordkapp.
From Skaidi it was only about 24 km to Olderfjord where the E 6 turned south and we took the E 69 north to the Nordkapp. The road from now on followed the Porsangerfjord, which is Norway’s fourth-longest fjord with 123 km. The views along were outstanding. The wildflowers were blooming, small settlements with colourful houses appeared now and again and we saw many bicycle tourists. They all had packed up their bicycles to the maximum and despite the relatively fresh weather were cycling steadily along.
Look, they want to go to the Nordkapp today as well! – I am pretty sure they will not make it to Nordkapp today! It is another like 120 km along this road to the cape. – Why not? They can cycle 100 or more kilometer a day. – But maybe they are here for the cycling and the nature and will take 2 or 3 days or so to go all the way. They have probably more time than us. – Or so close to the northernmost point of Europe they go all the way in one day… – Well, they all seem to have their camping gear with them and can camp anywhere anyway. And since it is light 24 hrs they can go on and on and on as long as they can, I guess. They can camp anywhere they want. Norway gives free access to the countryside – as long as everybody treads lightly. If you want to stay for more than two nights in the same place, you must ask the landowner’s permission, except in the mountains or very remote areas, however. But otherwise you are free to enjoy the great outdoors and breath in as much of the fresh air as you want – as long as you pick up your rubbish and show respect for nature. – So, if we had take the motorhome option, we could have just parked more or less anywhere and would not have to drive back to the hotel or find a campsite tonight? – Well, basically yes!
The road skirted the fjord on the right hand side and the steep coast line on the left. There was not much space for the road and therefore it was rather narrow and only 60 km/h allowed. No more trees were to be seen this far north, but wildflowers were everywhere along the road and we even saw some reindeers munching on them along the narrow shoreline below the road. Apart from the yellow, purple and white of the wildflowers and the blue of the sea and sky, the grey of the rocks and the asphalt was the main color up here.
Soon enough we reached the first tunnel. We would pass many tunnels on this road trip, but the first one is always special. The mountain called Skarvberg drops so steep directly into the sea, that the 2980 m long Skarvbertunnelen was built to pass it. This tunnel underpasses a mountain, so it is rather even. But it was very dark, even though there were lights.
After the tunnel the road followed the coast in some sharp corners and passed a few sheltered bays with park and picnic spots with beautiful views over the fjord. The next tunnel was the some 500 m long Sortviktunnelen. We wondered what they had done before the tunnels were built. They probably had to either take boat around or climb the mountains.
After that tunnel the road left the shoreline every now and again to cut short some small bays and climbed up the mountains as well. Eventually it led down to a small village called Kålfjord. Mom said, when she was here on a bus tour in maybe 1994 they had to take the ferry from here to Honnigsvåg.
Nordkapptunnelen is one of the longest subsea road tunnels in Norway. The tunnel takes the E69 under the Magerøysundet between the mainland and the island of Magerøya. The tunnel was built between 1993 and 1999, along with the Honningsvåg Tunnel. The tunnels were built to connect the mainland of Norway with the town of Honningsvåg and the tourist attraction at the North Cape. The tunnel was officially opened in 1999. The tunnel is 6.875 km long and reaches a depth of 212 m below the sea level. It has automatic anti-freezing doors which close the mouths of the tunnel in winter to avoid the freezing of any leaking water. These gates open automatically when cars approach and are permanently open in the summer, when traffic is denser.
This tunnel is a real highlight but also very strange and maybe a little scary. Since it went under the sea the first like 3 km led straight down in 9% incline to the maximum depth. It was very strange to know that it was leading deep below sea level! At the bottom it leveled out for a very short section and then the road was climbing up again the same 9% to the opposite exit at the island of Magerøya. Apparently the thickness of the rock between water and tunnel is a minimum of 50 m. It is a 2 lane road. The tunnel is ventilated by huge turbines and it is very loud, especially on the bottom. Quite frankly, by car this is an experience, but thinking about all those cyclist on the way to Nordkapp – and we have seen many – I am not sure they will enjoy those 7 km much! I have no photos of the tunnels because I was gripping the steering wheel so hard and stared into the abyss all the time, I could not even think about taking a photo.
At the island the tunnel passed a small peninsula and shortly after the exit the road crossed a bridge over the Sarnesfjords and followed it around skirting the shoreline again. Not much further the road then reached the Honningsvågtunnelen. The 4,443-metre long tunnel opened in 1999, at the same time as the North Cape Tunnel, as part of a large project to connect the mainland of Norway to North Cape. The tunnel goes through a large mountain called “Honningsvågfjellet” west of the town of Honningsvåg. The tunnel has 2 lanes and it is the northernmost public road tunnel in the entire world, imagine that.
Coming out of the tunnel there was a nice view of the town of Honnigsvåg, but we had again decided to skip a visit there even though there was no cruise ship in sight that day. Here the E 69 turns northwest towards the Nordkapp.
The road was only opened in 1956 and is the world’s ultimate cul-de-sac. It is the northernmost road that is part of a bigger route system, so if we had wanted to, we could have driven here from the southern tip of mainland Spain.
The island of Magerøya is Norway’s northernmost island and the Sami also call it “steep, barren coast”. The road climbed into the barren mountainscape and the island sure lived up to its name as vistas of bare, windswept rock and tundra unfolded at every turn. We stopped a couple times at viewpoints and the views were truly stunning.
About half way up we turned off the main road onto Fv156, a tiny country road which led to Gjesvær. Last night I had made an online booking for a bird safari starting from there this afternoon, because I really wanted to see the Puffins.
It was about 21 km to the end of the road where the old fishing village was situated. Shortly after we left the main road we saw the first herd of reindeer, mostly females with calves. They were grazing just next to the road and everywhere on the surrounding hills.
A few times we had to stop because the reindeer were crossing the road or were just standing in the middle of it looking. There were a few of them that had collars on. Probably they were roaming free here and only every now and then they would be herded together.
Gjesvær is the only place in the county of Finnmark known from the Viking Age. The name comes from the man’s name Geir, which means “spear”. Like most other places in Finnmark, all buildings in the village were burned down in 1944 by the German occupying forces. The village today has approx 130 inhabitants. The main industry here is fishing, but in recent years there has been an increased emphasis on tourism, activities including fishing and bird watching trips to the Gjesværstappan Nature Reserve.
When we reached Gjesvær we followed the signs Bird Safari, even though I was not sure which company I had booked the tour with. It turned out there was only one with a big boat for tourists. We parked the car and went to check. I only had to show the code I had received by e-mail and we received a boat ticket. But there was still plenty time. The boat tour would only start at 15:00.
We went for a walk in search of lunch. I had checked online for a seafood restaurant, because I really really wanted to have king crab while being up here. I had found only one restaurant in the village which was Stappan Sjøprodukter just down the road from the Bird Safari pier. The weather had turned out beautiful. Blue skies and blinding sunshine! We were really warm with all those layers of clothes on, since we were already prepared for the boat trip. The small restaurant was open – it sat on stilts over the water next to the road. Enjoying the nice weather we sat outside on the deck in the sun, it was beautiful. We ordered a seafood platter with king crab, shrimp and smoked salmon plus an extra starter portion of king crab. Since the car was parked and it would be at least 3 hours until I had to drive again, we had a beer with lunch.
The food came quickly and it was delicious! I love king crab. The shrimp were really fresh as well and had a lot of eggs on them. – How do I eat those shrimps? – Mom, just take your fingers and peel off the shell. – Ugh, I do not like them, they have too much eggs on them. – Mom! You cannot throw this shrimp away just because you do not like the eggs which are outside! They are bloody expensive those shrimps. And shrimp eggs are a speciality in some places. In Japan they make sushi with them, for example. If you do not like the eggs, just clean them away with the shell. You can still eat the shrimp. See, no eggs on the shrimp after it is peeled! – OK OK! But I still do not like them!
We went for a walk through the village before we sat by the pier waiting for our boat to leave. Many summer flowers were blooming along the road. The views over the bay were beautiful.
There were a few stockfish hanging in the sun covered by nets so that the birds would not get it. Stockfish is unsalted fish dried by cold air and wind on wooden racks near the sea. Cod is the most common fish used in stockfish production. Over the centuries, several variants of dried fish have evolved. The stockfish – the fresh dried, not salted category – should not be mistaken for the clipfish or salted cod – the category where the fish is salted before drying. After 2–3 weeks in salt the fish has salt-matured, and is transformed from wet salted fish to clipfish through a drying process.
A big Scandinavian tour group arrived for the same boat departure. However, the boat was big enough. First we sat outside in the back, but then I went to scout out the layout of the boat and found that there is also a deck with benches in the front. So I collected Mom and we made our way down the steep stairs inside and out the other side and sat in the less crowded front.
We were lucky we had put all those layers of clothes back on. While in the sun it was nice and warm, the wind was quite fresh and with time it was getting cold. Good thing I had brought my bobcap with me!
The 1.5 hrs boat tour went from Gjesvær to Gjesværstappan Nature Reserve just off the coast and 15 km west of the Nordkapp cliff. Gjesværstappan is a group of high, steep-sided, grass-covered islands of which the 3 main islands are Storstappen, Kjerkestappen, and Bukkstappen.
Storstappan rises to a height of 283 m above sea level. Kjerkestappen reaches an elevation of 166 m and Bukkstappen is 92 m high. The islands contain a large colony of seabirds and have been designated as nature reserve since 1983. It is not allowed to set foot on the islands, but from the boat it was possible to observe one of Norway’s largest groups of puffins, gannets and kittiwakes.
As we neared the islands we could already see thousands of puffins and razorbills in the water. There was a carpet of seabirds as far as we could see.
Puffins have a brightly coloured beak during the breeding season and are therefore easily recognisable.
They are pelagic seabirds that feed primarily by diving in the water. They were all around the boat and would put their funny red feet in the air and dive down when the boat came to close. When they emerged again they had a bunch of little fish in their beak.
Sometimes they also started to fly off and ran across the water to gain speed. That looked very funny as well. Their short wings are adapted for swimming with a flying technique under water as well.
Puffins breed in large colonies on coastal cliffs or offshore islands, nesting in crevices among rocks or in burrows in the soil. We could easily make them out sitting on the cliffs because of their predominantly black and white plumage and large colourful beaks. Seeing the puffins was definitely a highlight of our entire trip!
Amongst all the puffins there were also a lot of razorbills, which are colonial seabirds that come to land only to breed. The razorbill is primarily black with a white underside. They were also hunting like the puffins.
The largest colonies of cliff-breeding seabirds are mainly located on the bird cliffs of the biggest island, Storstappen. The colony is regarded as important because of the large numbers of birds. From the boat we could observe a huge colony of gannets.
Gannets are seabirds closely related to boobies. When I saw them through my zoom lens I did think they looked like Nazca Boobies which I had seen in the Galapagos Islands. Northern gannets are the largest seabirds in the North Atlantic, They hunt fish by diving into the sea from a height and pursuing their prey underwater and can dive from a height of 30 m, achieving speeds of 100 km/h as they strike the water, enabling them to catch fish much deeper than most airborne birds. The gannet’s supposed capacity for eating large quantities of fish has led to “gannet” becoming a description of somebody with a voracious appetite. Unfortunately we did not see them hunting, but we could observe the breeding colony. Thousands of gannets were lined up on the cliffs like beads on a chain. They said there are some 1500 breeding pairs here.
The boat rounded all the 3 islands and we there were so many birds in the sea and in the air and on the islands. It was magnificent! We saw fish eagles flying and sitting on the cliffs as well.
Even a lonely seal we saw, but it was diving down hiding from us quickly. On the other side of the islands we passed a colony of kittiwakes nesting in a cliff crevice. The kittiwakes are of the gull family. The name is derived from its call, a shrill “kittee-wa-aaake, kitte-wa-aaake”. They form large, dense, noisy colonies during the summer reproductive period and they are the only gull species that are exclusively cliff-nesting.
Of course we saw many other sea birds as well. Cormorants were many around as well, same as oystercatchers.
The 1.5 hrs went by very quickly and I took soooooo many photos. It was wonderful. However, we were a little cold in the end.
From Gjesvær it took us about an hour to drive all the way to the northern terminus of the European Highway E 69 at the Nordkapp. We arrived at the gate around 17:30 and paid the NOK 275 entrance fee for 24 hrs. The parking lot was full with motorhomes, but we found an empty spot.
Nordkapp – or North Cape – is technically not the northernmost point of Europe – a lonely peninsula, the Knivskjellodden Cape a few kilometers west, holds that honour, because extends 1450 m further north, both however, are on the island of Magerøya.
The northernmost point of mainland Europe is located at Kinnarodden which lies about 5.7 km further south and about 70 km to the east on the Nordkinn Peninsula. The northernmost point of Europe including islands is hundreds of kilometres further north, either in Russia’s Franz Josef Land or Norway’s Svalbard archipelago, depending on whether Franz Josef Land is considered to be in Europe or in Asia.
The North Cape is the point where the Norwegian Sea of the Atlantic Ocean meets the Barents Sea of the Arctic Ocean. The midnight sun can be seen here from 14 May to 31 July. The sun reaches its lowest point between 00:14 and 00:24 during those days. And I was determined to see the midnight sun here!
The steep cliff of the Nordkapp is located at 71°10′21″N 25°47′04″E, about 2102 km from the North Pole and is a startlingly beautiful location that has been inspirationally embellished to allow everyone to appreciate this experience to fullest.
A huge visitor center sits close to the edge of a 307 m cliff. The earth ends here abruptly, crumbling into the steel blue Barents Sea. The gleaming sun illuminated the massive metal globe on a concrete plinth. Of course we went there first and were lucky that only a few tourists were around. We had brought a favourite brand piccolo Little Red Riding Hood each to celebrate our visit at Nordkapp! No celebration works without our house brand…
The Nordkapp is one of those places that produces a feeling that is hard to describe unless you stand there yourself. We stood at the famous globe sculpture and looked North out over the steel blue Barents sea knowing, there was only the Svalbard Islands between us and the North Pole. I was here sometime in 1996 when I was working on my very first cruise ship. We did not see much of it all because we were standing in the fog. Therefore I was even more happy to be here now in gleaming sunshine! It was breathtaking.
Some motorbikers even took their moterbikes all the way around the visitors center to the monument to celebrate reaching the Nordkapp. There were quite a few of motorbikers and there license plates showed they were come from all corners of Europe.
There even is a secret box hidden near the monument and I had to find it. It became the northernmost geocache I have found so far. And as I could see in the logbook it gets many visitors per day.
We had 5 hrs to pass until midnight – I had come this far and paid that much entrance fee, I would make the most of our visit! First we went inside the Nordkapphallen. This visitor centre was built in 1988 on the plateau. It has a café, restaurant, post office, souvenir shop, a small museum, and video cinema. We bought some postcards and stamps and sat in the café with a beautiful view of the monument, had a Midnattsol Beer and warmed up. It was wonderfully sunny up here, but it was slightly windy and very fresh with around 10°C.
Later we visited the different exhibitions and the chapel. We found the post office and mailed our postcards. They got a special Nordkapp stamp! In the cinemas we watched the 15 min panoramic movie which had stunning images of the region and the northern lights – which we would not see in the summer… Maybe I have to come back in winter to see the Aurora Borealis at Nordkapp….
Hanging out we went for another walk around to the the “Children of the World” sculpture, a collection of tall bronze discs resembling giant medals, located next to the Nordkapphallen. The sculpture was started in 1988 when children from different countries – Tanzania, Brazil, USA, Japan, Thailand, Italy and Russia — stayed with families in the nearby village of Skarsvåg. During their visit they made clay reliefs symbolizing friendship, hope, joy and working together. In 1989 the reliefs were enlarged, cased in bronze and erected in a semi-circle outside the Nordkapphallen. A “Mother and Child“sculpture points also toward the seven disks.
There were even a couple tents pitched in the distance not too far off from the visitor center. Probably some bicyclists who took advantage of the right to roam and slept in this spectacular location. Passing by the car we took some more layers of clothes for later and then walked around some more to find another secret box. I really wanted to find that box! From the parking lot we walk across the barren landscape towards the cost. When my GPS marker pointed 25 m over the cliff edge, I thought I might better read the description of the cache. And there it was – a 4.5 terrain rating! Jeeeezzz ….. But it did say it is easy and even kids can do it… So I eyed the cliff suspiciously and there was a small trail leading down. Obviously more people looking for secret boxes had attempted this before. I parked Mom on top of the cliff and put her in charge of watching my backpack and camera – not that there were any other people around other than at the parking lot in the distance. I carefully made my way down the small path and was once again thankful for my hiking boots. I had read the hints in the description and looked at the spoiler photo, but I had left the mobile phone with Mom and was not sure how far I would have to go, it had said some 25 m down the cliff edge. Therefore I went all the way back up and collected the phone. Once again I climbed down and quickly enough found the huge secret box. Success! It was hidden in a nice spot with a beautiful view towards the Knivskjellodden Cape across the bay.
We walked slowly back to the visitor center and enjoyed the views some more. It was still a couple hours until midnight and we went inside to visit the trolls again. Trolls are actually many different humanoid creatures of Norse mythology. Their looks and attributes vary but they are usually depicted as stupid and dangerous. Trolls usually live in areas far away from humans, in the forest, caves, in the mountains and in lakes. Norway’s fascination with trolls is weird. In a Norwegian gift shop, you there are trolls set up in neatly lines.
We went to the restaurant and had waffles with sour cream and raspberry jam for dinner with the most spectacular view of the globe monument and the sea. And it was warm inside!
At around 23:30 we put all our layers of clothes on and went outside. Many many busloads of tourists had arrived in the meantime. The plateau around the globe monument was crowded now. The wind had settled a bit and it was slightly warmer, but still only 13°C.
Can we go now? – Mom, it is only 23:35 and I want to see the midnight sun! – but it is not going to change much in the next 25 min! – But we waited that long now, so we can wait the last 25 min as well! – But I want to go now. – Good, here take the car key and sit in the car. I stay here and wait for midnight. – But all the people from the busses wait for midnight and then they go all at once and it will be too much traffic on the road. – Mom, are you driving? No, I am driving and I do not care about the traffic. I want to see midnight at the Nordkapp! We came all this way for that! – OK, but I stand here by the fence. I do not walk anymore. – You do not have to. You can also sit over there at the bench. – No, I stand here and watch the sun. – Good, here is a great place, we can see the globe and the sun and the sea! Smile!
The midnight sun is awesome! It is somehow a very special feeling to see it being at the Nordkapp. It seemed everybody was in awe at midnight and nobody started to move soon. Eventually we wandered back to the car and against all odds there was not much traffic at all. We had only a few cars and 2 busses ahead of us. Most cars and one bus turned off towards Skarsvåg only a few kilometers down the road . The drive was pleasant, the light outstanding. The sun was just after midnight at its lowest and it was still bright. Shortly after, we felt the sun rising again. The views a long the road were even more stunning than when driving north. The wind had settled and the lakes and fjord mirrored the coastline and the colourful houses.
The rest of the cars and the other bus turned off in Honnigsvåg and we were basically alone on the road. Very few cars and motorbikes were driving north at this time of night. Alle the bicyclist had obviously retired for the night. It was 150 km to the hotel, but I was not tired. The landscape was stunning and the 24 hrs light kept me up. We saw reindeers again along the road and only stopped once to stretch our legs.
At 02:30 in the morning we arrived at the Skaidi Hotel and they sure enough where still up and awaited us already. I did not even have to say anything. They had the room key in hand already and I just had to give our voucher. Our room was on the same floor and had a huge balcony. I was so hyper from driving, sat on the balcony and had a Vodka & Black Currant. Mom went more or less straight to bed and was asleep within minutes, but I sat until like 04:00, enjoyed the view and reflected on the day.
What a fantastic day it has been!
