Finally: The North Cape

Day 50

To be honest: I never planned to visit the Nordkapp (The North Cape), but when I was in Alta I continued to Hammerfest and after that I travelled to Honningsvåg and from that place it’s only 29 kilometres. So I visited the North Cape yesterday.

The first part is a normal road showing some beautiful views. I also completed 5000 km on this road.

If you go to the North Cape in winter by bus or your own car, you have to drive the last part in convoy. Convoys are starting at 11 and 12 o’clock.

When I came to the convoy place I was an hour too early. Time to try to make a rest on a wooden bench (it was degrees above zero again), but the wood was too wet to stay.

11 o’clock we started. The snow plough came first, then two minibusses, then me and two other cars. The street seemed to be alike as the first part: Snow and mud, partly frozen and some steep passages. The weather changed every single minute and I looked into a rainbow while following the other cars.

When we arrived I parked my car, almost jumped into the building to get an entrance ticket and ran to the famous landmark to make a photo with the rainbow without any other tourists. Even although the rainbow started to vanish I was lucky and I got my pictures. Only my own shadow was unavoidable.

But more than of the landmark I was fascinated by the weather. You could see single rain showers wandering over the sea like extraterrestrial animals and I never saw the weather change so fast and so often than yesterday at the North Cape.

I wandered round and made some photos, both inside and outside. I saw fog and approaching and I saw the many tourists, that came in big busses with the second convoy. I had a look into the tiny chapel in the basement and I ate a waffle with Norwegian cheese, jam and whipped cream.

And of course I made a selfie.

I took the convoy back at 1 o’clock (the earlier one) and I was alone. But so I had time to take the car on another road and drive to Gjesvær, a little fishing village in the northwest part of the island Magerøya. I had to stop again, the light on the far mountains was just breathtaking and the photo is just a poor copy of reality.

There’s apparently no tourism in Gjesvær under the winter but I could see several fishing boats going out and coming in.

After a short strolling I returned back over the fjell until I was at my hostel in Honningsvåg again.

The North Cape – is it worth a visit?

Even if I’m usually not attract by touristic attractions I do like the place somehow.

Yes, it’s neither the northernmost point of mainland Europe (that’s Cape Nordkinn near Mehamn), nor even the northernmost point of the island Magerøya (that’s Knivskjellodden), but it’s a symbol! A symbol for being at the north peak of Europe and as long as you travel by car it is the northermost place you will reach.

I wouldn’t travel far just to reach the North Cape but when you are nearby I think it is worth both the travel and the entrance fee of NOK 255. If you have your own car, take the first convoy and you will get a chance of taking pictures without a zillion other tourists, at least as long it’s not too foggy.

For me this is kind of a peak of my journey Nordkalotten 2015 and now I’ll travel southward again. Probably Karasjok today and Kirkenes tomorrow. What I will do after this depends on the weather. If winter still is much too warm as most of the time I might return to my house in Skelleftehamn and take it easy for two weeks before I drive to Finnland again the last free week. But we’ll see. No plans yet …

5 comments to “Finally: The North Cape”

  1. Annika 2015-03-06 13:42

    Wow! Für Deine Blogleser war es das auf jeden Fall wert!!!!!! Danke für die Bilder.

  2. Ma HB 2015-03-06 19:38

    Olaf, many thanks for so beautiful photos with changing weather at north cup. You can be happy, to see that. ( Ach so sieht das da aus, obwohl ich schon mal da war – aber eben im dichtesten Nebel, der sich auch nicht verzog!)
    Yours Ma HB

  3. Sabine NL 2015-03-07 18:21

    Olaf, you are just blessed somehow! What a lucky moment: ALONE with your own shadow under a rainbow at the Northcape – fantastic!

  4. Elijah 2015-03-09 22:18

    okay, I changed my mind about Nordkapp, if I get nearby, I’ll go for it. Beautiful pics!

  5. way-up-north 2015-03-12 07:15

    Annika. Für mich auch, schon alleine, weil das Blog ja way-up-north heißt.

    Ma HB: You are so welcome. I was lucky with the weather, the fog came later.

    Sabine NL: The first other tourists were already coming, I had to hurry to get this pictures, but it worked.

    Elijah: If you are nearby and the weather seems to be ok, it’s a nice place. But I heard about 70 busses loaded with tourists coming to the North Cape each day in summer and then I guess it’s quite awful.

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