Day six of the northbound voyage and it's, well, half past five in the morning. Why the
hell am I up a half five in the morning? Well we make a quick stop at this little port in the
province of Finnmark and it's a place that has always fascinated me not only because if its
remoteness not only because this is the most northerly town in the world but also because
of the name Hammerfest- surely it's the best name ever for a town. It sounds like a Viking musical!
Frankly though it's surprising that there's any town here at all - it was occupied by
German forces during the Second World War and it was a very very important u-boat
station - accordingly it was bombed by the Soviet Army and later on when the Germans
retreated they razed the place to the ground. However the folk up here are strong people they
were not to be outdone and the whole place was rebuilt from scratch. Sadly though on
the northbound voyage the boat only stops for 45 minutes, so just time to quickly run around,
take a few photos and dash back on board. Not surprisingly at 5am in the morning nothing is
open, so I'll have to come back another time! The boat is off, we are heading even further
north today. Yesterday there were still trees in the landscape, but today this is a much wilder
place altogether. This is Finnmark, Norway's northernmost County. The very top of Europe!
So we are now at 71 degrees north. This is the little port of Honningsvåg on the island of
Mageroya. Now nearly everybody that gets off here gets off for one reason only and that's to hop on
a bus drive north to Nordkapp, the north cape, now yeah okay you've come this far but the north cape,
evocative though it sounds, isn't even the northernmost part of Norway. It's
a little bit like Lands End in England, it's not actually the furthest west or the furthest south,
but it's where the tourists go, so there are plenty of videos about it. We've decided to have
a look around a proper little Arctic town, to kick things off let's get some coffee and cake!
looking good - amazing!
The town is dotted with these sculptures that look from a distance just like a large piece of
granite, and then as you get closer you find a delicate face looking out towards the harbour,
yet there's no plaque telling us who made them - a mystery!
It's nice to get outdoors and get a bit of exercise after a week on the boat.
Trine, so you grew up in Honningsvåg, what was it like to grow up in such a remote and
cold place? A cold place, no it was good, it's a closed community and everything so like people
like the children are running around not fearing anything and growing up with culture and music and
everything so it's really it's really good. We're used to the winters, even though it's cold. How
long is it dark during the winter here? Until from I think it starts in like November December until
maybe January February, maybe February March. And people don't go crazy because of that? We're
used to it you know, it's like if you have been growing up here for like since a baby then maybe
there is no problem. And of course you do have the long long summer? yeah, a long summer yeah with
one day of summer maybe, so it's a whole other, what's called, season for us, this summer that
everyone is speaking about. Now this is Bamse. Bamse was a famous St Bernard during the second
world war. He was actually an official mascot and he also gained the dogs equivalent of the
George Cross for bravery and for just generally being an incredible dog - he actually spent most
of the war in Montrose in Scotland because his owner captain, who came from Honningsvåg here,
managed to make it over there during the German occupation. There's a long long
story behind Bamse and if you're a dog lover you must read it. Google him and get the book.
Well I'd have loved to spend more time here but sadly the Hurtigruten waits for no man. A
really really friendly little community and the nordkapp museum is highly recommended because
this area has a fascinating history. Anyway, we're off again! This is more obscure food than
obscure travel - stock fish is dried unsalted cod. It's dried on racks and you see them all over in
the northern Norwegian coast. It's been a staple food here for generations, however I've never seen
it in the form of an ice cream but Hurtigruten seem to think that we should try it so let's go!
hmm Serena would you like to try some? No thanks.
In a shelteredbBay miles from anywhere facing the North Pole
this is the tiny settlement of Mehamn population about 800.
I'm pretty sure that was a warning blast to this boat. Yep I've just looked up
at the bridge and I think the captain's giving him the evil eye! For the first
time on this trip the ship is starting to roll around a bit. It's hardly surprising though we
are now out in the open ocean the Barents Sea in fact, although the waiter just now
at dinner said this is nothing - come in the winter and it gets really interesting!
It's coming up to 11 o'clock in the evening and this is our
last port of call for today the tiny remote fishing village of Berlevåg,
which I understand is very famous for its male voice choir.
It's the kind of place that feels cold and desolate even in the middle of July.
What it must be like during the long winter?
The birds seem to love it - it's a symphony of birdsong in the harbour!
It's day seven,
the very final day, and we're just leaving the remote town of Vardø - only two stops left now.
it's 4am.
I'm going back to bed.
It's now 7:00 a.m. in the morning and we're just pulling into the penultimate port of the voyage,
this is Vadsø. This is the county town of the whole of the enormous Finnmark area.
I'm going to really miss the Hurtigruten breakfast.
We're now sailing into the Varanger fjord, the captain pulled a hard right-hand turn, just as
well otherwise would've gone straight into Russian waters which probably would have been a good idea,
and we're almost there, the voyage north is almost over. We're at the port of Kirkenes,
we are400 kilometers north of the Arctic Circle, as far east as St Petersburg and yet it's forecast
21 degrees here today and the sun is coming out! That is one voyage I really want to do again, but
anyway let's see what Kirkenes has to offer! Well this is a great start to the Kirkenes experience,
we've checked into the Thon hotel and we have a wonderful view of the shimmering fjord.
It's definitely coffee time before we go exploring, and we're gonna
try the Amundsen bakery. Well I was not expecting this, I packed a winter raincoat
and expected Kirkenes to be absolutely freezing , and I'm wearing a T shirt.
Fine dining in the middle of nowhere. You've got to love obscure travel, it's full of surprises!
Kirkenes is a port and mining town right up against the Russian border,
and that meant that during world war ii it was on the front line. In fact nowhere else in mainland
Europe was bombed as heavily as Kirkenes. It was completely razed to the ground. In fact,
when the soviet army liberated the town in 1944 they found the townspeople hiding
in the iron ore mines. The Germans had just obliterated the city. These turbulent years
are brought to life in the Borderlands Museum, which is where we're going now.
Now this is a place that I really wanted to come to, this is the Museum of John
Savio. Now Savio was a Sami artist of the early 20th century famous for his
wood cuts and although he had a tragic life and was it was cut short at the age of 36,
and he didn't have much recognition in his lifetime, since then his wood cuts have
become renowned and he's now seen as the finest Sami artist of his generation and
someone whose paintings really portray, unlike any other, the life of the Sami in that period.
There are surely very few monuments in Western Europe to the Soviet Army yet
this one here on a hill in Kirkenes is flanked by the Norwegian flag,
demonstrating that this town will forever be grateful for its liberation by the Red Army.
So seven days ago in Bergen I said that this was billed as the world's
most beautiful voyage. So at the end of it what do I think? Well,
I'm probably biased because I've always had a huge fascination with the North,
but even then I have to say I can't think of many journeys that would combine towering fjords,
mountains that look like they've been conjured up out of fairy tales, rock formations that look
like trolls, impossibly picturesque yet remote villages and ports, not to mention impeccable
delicious food with produce that's fresh that day and that reflects the landscape that you're
passing through. I suppose, in conclusion, I just have to say I would love to do it all over again!