Troll Weather, Hurtigruten Review, Wrapping It Up

 

 

11/20 and 11/21:

Not much to report as in our first port of call we found a hidden patch of ice and both took a tumble. Lynn was ok  and I really took a hard hit. 

So I have been ship bound, letting things get back together. 

Now it is 11/22 and I am more mobile, All is ok. 

Getting mo bettah all the time.

 

 

11/22 we were to have docked in Alesund but the weather did not allow. We have sought shelter from storms in Molde. We are staying on the ship doing laps as the skies are grey and it is raining.  

We were shipboard for the next day (day at sea) which helped me recover from the fall. Weather is a bit stormy. 

The night of 11/23 we had to sail into some open water outside the shelter of the fjords and coastal waterways. Well, it did get rather rough.

 

There was a wave that hit during dinner time which almost knocked me out of my chair. My wine glass slid across the table, I MADE A SAVE!!!. 

 

 

 



The ships captain announced we would hit a rough stretch of water at about 0200-0400. BOY DID WE EVER. One wave knocked over the chairs in our cabin, Glasses fell off the shelves and the mini bar opened up and the contents were spread across the room. Should add the table in our cabin moved a good 10 feet, the curtain separating the sitting area and bed came off it’s tracks. We were lucky as no glass ware was broken and all bottles stayed closed. We crawled about the floor and restored the mini fridge contents. Then BOOM another big wave hit emptying the mini bar again. We finally secured the mini bar door with a fallen over chair. We then made it back into bed after getting the bathroom in order. It was quite a ride. 

The next day we did get a Certificate commemorating our rough sea passage. 

Now to my intent of this blog entry: A review of Hurtigruten.

This is our second sailing on Hurtigruten, the first was great and this voyage was just as great. 

On this trip we were upgraded to a Mini Suite. This included many benefits. 
1. A nice size room
2. A mini bar that was always restocked
3. A clothing package to included a wool hat, wool sweater, and jacket. (All very nice Norwegian products) 


4. Dining in Rost the upscale restaurant.
And other benefits. 



The biggest and best element of the above was the dining. Yes there’s a menu but should one choose there is a 5 course chef’s selection paired with various wines. The was outstanding, the food was inspired by the coastal cuisine and all was fresh and locally sourced. For our 12 day on the ship not a single item was repeated. 

The attending to the detail of each course was impeccable. The wine pairings were AMAZING!! Lynn is not a drinker and the head bartender made her special non-alcoholic pairings for the meals. 

I will say this everything we had was delicious. I will also say, many of the courses I would never think about even considering as a menu choice. Once I tried some of those questionable items and enjoyed the flavor, I was hooked. 

These chef’s choice meals are served in a surprise style, meaning you did not know what was coming course to course. 

 

I am now even a greater fan of Hurtigruten. 

To the surprise of many, our Captain was a female and she runs a tight ship. She was totally concerned about our safety and overall voyage. All the staff was AMAZING!!!  They did not give any excellent speach and tipping in not encouraged or expected. 

I did learn the staff are employees and not under a contract. They are paid an annual wage. They work 24 days on and 24 days off. 

 

The expedition staff was always available and made some very enjoyable presentations. 


Needless to say we are looking forward to sailing with Hurtigruten next summer from Dover to Reykjavik. While not in a suite, we will have a larger cabin with room to sit.

Today 11/25 when got off the ship and were on our way to our airport hotel, Lynn realized she had forgotten her jewelry. After checking into our hotel we were able to contact the ship and her jewelry had been located. We jumped on the first train from the airport and return to the ship and retrieved her left items. We were going to return to Oslo anyway but we are thankful this worked out. 

 

                                               Sauna in the Harbor of Oslo

                       Well we know the fancy food would end, but this is also good

                      The train from Oslo Airport is a fast convenient way to go.
 



Lastly one of the most enjoyable highlights of this trip was the making of new friends. Wonderful conversations were had filled with many laughs and sharing of travel stories. 



So tomorrow starts the journey home. 





  


11/19 Tromso

 11/19 TROMSO:

Last night, just as we finished our dessert the call came out the Northern Lights were out. We gather our cameras and coats and up to deck 9 we flew. They were out for a good bit, then the cloud cover came.

Well I am excited to return to Tromso for a couple reasons. First is last time we were here we did not have time to visit the Polar Exploration Museum. Tromso is a great location for such a museum, as it was from Tromso many polar expedition sailed from after the final fitting out of supplies. The Expeditions of Amundsen and Nansen sailed from Tromso. 

The Raketten Bar & Pølse located in the center of town. This is a very small kiosk often billed as the smallest bar in Norway or the world. On our last visit we enjoyed a hot dog there, so a return is in order. They are good for sure.

After breakfast we relaxed a bit as the Arctic Exploration Museum did not open until 1100. Off the ship we went to the visitors center and purchased a couple bus fares. This would be used later to visit the Arctic Cathedral. 

We made our way to the Arctic Exploration Museum. The first part dealt with the commercial hunting and trading in the area. The last part I really liked as it delved into Amundsen and Nansen. 

I could go on and on and on and on about these great explorers, but will save you my lengthy discourse. 

The exhibits were excellent and many tidbits I had filed away were remembered. Hammerfest and Tromso are epicenters of their explorations. The Fram sailed from and returned to Tromso. I’ll stop now. 

 





As we had spent almost 2 hours there, we were ready for lunch. What does one have in Tromso for Lunch, a hot dog of course. 

The smallest bar ever has hot dogs, simply a little kiosk, so we visited here and had a local favorite.

 

 

Next we took a local bus to the Arctic Cathedral. A modern church and has a really nice stained glass. 

 



We then returned by city bus to the center of town and a stroll back to the ship. 

There was only 3-ish hours of daylight and the sun had set by the time we were in city center. 

We did find some stumbling stones, they are a sad and dark reminder of WWII. 

 



Back on board, I had a specialty beer and Lynn and hot chocolate.   

  

A RETURN TO ALTA

 11/18 Off to Alta:

 

 This chap will iniate you as you cross the Arctic Circle.

We departed Hammerfest at 0500 enroute to Alta, Norway. Alta is the Northern Lights Capital and here one finds the Northern Lights Cathedral where there is an excellent exhibit about the study of the Northern Lights.  As today is Saturday it is closed as there are private functions going on. Glad we visited last year. 

There is a shuttle bus which will take us into town. Our plan is to visit a discount sporting goods store and get another pair of hiking pants.

Yes we took the shuttle bus into town as the sun was rising at about 1000. 

We walked over to the Northern Lights Cathedral and got some outside photos.

Then off to the nearby shopping mall. Here we got a thank you card or a Takk Card for our server who will be departing the ship tomorrow. 

The crews here work 24 days on and 24 days off. They receive a paycheck every month. All crew we have talked to say Hurtigruten takes very very good care of them. This was good to hear, it shows in their attitudes. 



We then found a grocery store to get Lynn some Jul (Christmas) Brown Cheese. 

Then to the discount sporting good store for some pants for us. You need to make sure and try them on as the sizes vary no matter what the size tag says. It is a discount store. 



Then we walked about until the shuttle bus arrived. 1245 and the sun has almost set. 



Back on board, we are catching up on various tasks. Then at 1500 we have tea and a Sami Lecture at 1600, then dinner and bed. 

 17/11 HAMMERFEST 

 

 

Skies are grey but may clear. We are here in Hammerfest in lieu of Honningsvag due to weather. We have learned the roads to Honningsvag have also been closed. We are here in port till 0500 tomorrow. This could be good for some stationary Northern Lights photos. 

After breakfast we caught up on some projects and Lynn did a load of laundry. The winds outside are reported to be blowing at about 20 MPH, so we may take a shuttle bus into town rather than walking.

We took the shuttle bus as the wind was ever-present and had a chill off the ocean. 

 

We located City Hall and got direction to the Polar Bear Institute. I am now a member of The Roya and Ancient Polar Bear Institute.  Here is nice little museum highlighting the roll Hammerfest played in Polar Exploration. Adolph Lindstrom was from Hammerfest, There is a statute of him on the waterfront.  He was best known as a cook on many Arctic expeditions. There was a cookbook of his recipes at the Institute, but alas it was only available in Norwegian. 


 

 
After my initiation ceremony we made our way to one of the local churches. 

 

This Lutheran Church is built in the style of the Arctic church in Tromso. 

It was about 1230 and the light was fading. Hours of daytime are rather limited with the sunrise at 0943 and sunset 1239. 

Back to the ship and a nice reindeer soup and beer for lunch, Lynn had the Klipfish. I had Waffles for dessert and Lynn had a celebration cake.

It is almost 1400 and darkness is falling, we will most likely spend the afternoon working on laundry, catching up on email, and preparing for a wonderful 5 course meal this evening.    

 

A heavy snow has started to fall.  

Squalls Ahead and Northern Lights

 11/16 INTERRUPTED BY THE LIGHTS: 

 



As we have started to sail North at about 1800 hours the Green Lady was dancing. We bundled up and got some images. 

Off to another spectacular 5 course meal and before dessert she danced again. More images were created. Tonight we had great dinner companions from the UK and Canada.  Then we returned and had dessert.

Tonight we crossed the Arctic Circle. There is a contest to see who can guess the time we make the crossing. They say there is a prize, I think one really would not want to win, we shall see.

We were up and out for breakfast as the horizon was just starting to get some daylight. We are still sailing North to Lodingen.

The prize was a Hurtigruten Flag. I was off by about 30 min. The winner was also the first to get ice water down their back, to mark their passage across the Arctic Circle. 



We were informed the weather in Honningvag is an Arctic Gale and thus we are canceling that port and going to Hammerfest. We will be there almost 24 hours. 

 



Our weather has turned to Troll Weather, overcast skies and snow is falling. A perfect day for reindeer stew and a crab cake for lunch. 

In Lodingen we were greeted by the local school children.

We bundled up and went for a walk towards town. Snow was falling and the temperature was about 0 degrees C. 

We had made a reservation to have tea today in Rost so we just made it by a few shops. We did stop to take a few cell phone photos.

Tea was GREAT!!!  I had an earl grey blended with Norwegian Sea weed, special for Hurtigruten. Tea started with the Ocean aged sparkling wine. 

We were briefed about our new upcoming port of Hammerfest, sounds interesting.

Then another amazing dinner. 

Leaving Rost we noticed the staff stowing various items. The restaurant manager said we were expecting. 20-30 ft seas and to take items off tables etc, as it will be rough. 



We did a lap about the boar and the secured our cabin and went to bed. About 0230 it got rough and lasted for 2-3 hours.  

Smooth sailing now.