Honningsvåg - 'the bay lying beneath the mountain Hornungr’ - is the northernmost town on the mainland of Norway and is situated in a bay on the southeastern side of the large island of Magerøya. The famous North Cape (Nordkapp) and its Visitor Centre is on the northern side of the island.
The ice-free ocean provides rich fisheries and is a popular port of call for cruise ships in the summer months. The Hurtigruten coastal boats have one of their main stops at Honningsvåg enroute to Kirkenes, the last port of call. The Northbound ships to Kirkenes dock in Honningsvåg from 12:15 pm to 03:15 pm every day, allowing just enough time for an excursion to the North Cape Visitor Centre and also my tour destination for today.
Even though Honningsvåg is located at the northernmost extreme of Europe, it has a sub-arctic climate, thanks to the Gulf Stream which means that there is no permafrost because the mean annual temperature is 2 °C (36 °F). The July 24-hour average is just over 10 °C (50 °F) and today for our visit the top temperature was closer to 17 °C although it was a bit blowy on the cliffs of the North Cape.
Our transfer (No local guide, just the FOCL Tour Escort – in our case the Cruise Director) took about 40 minutes with a steady climb up a twisting road constructed to facilitate transport to the North Cape Visitor Centre that was opened in 1988. Prior to that ships had to more in a sheltered bay behind the Cape and tourists had to climb the 300 metres to the cliff top!!!
I have already mentioned in a previous post that we made a short stop at a Sami encampment but then continued through herds of grazing reindeer (See photo) and espying two White Tailed Sea Eagles circling above the cliffs, before reaching the North Cape, where the sheer edge of the cliffs rise to 307 metres above he sea.
The North Cape is the point where the Norwegian Sea, part of the Atlantic Ocean, meets the Barents Sea, part of the Arctic Ocean. From this vantage point the Midnight Sun can be seen from 14 May to the 31st of July where during this period the sun reaches its lowest point from 12:14 - 12:24 a.m.
According to the Wikipedia, the North Cape is often (mistakenly) referred to as the northernmost point of Europe, located at 71°10′21″N 25°47′40″E, about 1,306.3 miles from the North Pole; in the neighbouring Knivskjellodden point, just to the west extends 4,780 ft farther to the north – see I told you stick with me and you learn every day!!!!
The North Cape first became famous when the English explorer Richard Chancellor rounded it in 1553 while attempting to find a sea route through the Northeast Passage; more about this explorer in later postings since he played a big role in establishing Murmansk as an important trading centre.
Some 200,000 tourists visit Nordkapp annually during the two to three months of summer. The photo is of the iconic ‘Globe’ that stands close to the cliff edge – and after a very patient wait to free it from fellow guests having their picture taken with this sculpture in the background.
The panorama from this point is truly spectacular and it was exhilarating to stand on “the roof of the world” on such sunny day.
No comments:
Post a Comment