What in the world is a Hurtigruten

Well, the last time I wrote, I think I said I was having reservation troubles. I did have a reservation in Honingsvag, gateway to Nordkap. But they only had a room free for the nite I arrived. It seems all hotels, both of them, were full. I did investigate a room in a pseudo-boarding house dorm, but decided against it. More on that later.

Back to Inari, with no double i, one of the few Finnish words with no double letters. I exaggerate. I think I mentioned a reindeer farm and rain. I decided to go anyway. Might as well do all the exciting things I can, right­. Forgive me, this Norwegian keyboard has me baffled trying to get most punctuation, so no question marks, double quotes, etc. later on, I found that spell-check corrects for me. They used a reindeer mobile phone to call the reindeer for feeding time. Banging a club on a tree. Everyone got the chance to feed them by hand. Yipee..

They gave a pretty good explanation on reindeer herding, how the Sami people use them, etc. They use cuts on the ears to brand them. There are some 20 specific marks, and they are used in combination to make up a tremendous number of different brands. I looked at samples, and I couldn’t tell them apart, but I guess if it’s your reindeer and mark, you’d know. While they wander the country freely, it seems that they all belong to somebody. Every calf gets marks before maturing. They wander freely, though. Autos are listed as reindeer predators.

After returning to Inari, I went to the Siida, a Sámi cultural museum. I think Siida means Sámi community, but I’m not sure. Fair amount on their culture and history, and tribal affiliations. Even better rundown on the seasons up here, and their affect on nature. Seems that, with such a short growing season, things such as tire ruts in the wilderness, anything that disturbs the earth, takes years to correct. There are still remnants of tank and truck tracks from WWII in the far north.

The next day was my last in Inari. I had a choice of bumming around town until 2 PM, then taking a 2 hour cruise, or going to the Wilderness Church, a 15-16 KM hike in the woods. Knowing what happened to Gilligan, and wanting to get back for a lot of reasons, I chose the hike. And hike it was. My waterproof hiking shoes aren’t. Nice trek through the Finnish wilderness. Didn’t meet anyone on the way out, but several hardy souls on the way back. Nice trip, the Wilderness Church was just that, a church with nothing anywhere near it. I don’t know if it’s still in use or not. Linda, can I get you to forge my name on some of the BVS hikes, with the idea of earning a shirt. I’m logging a lot of Ks.

Back in time to catch the bus for Honningsvag, a 5+ hour trip. Really glad I had a room for at least that nite. Not many choices there, let me tell you. And no buses to the next town either.

So the next day, I tried several options for a room, and none worked. I’ll fill you in on the solution later. Took the bus to Nordkap, to see the northern end of the European continent. Nordkap and Honningsvag are actually on an Island, linked to the mainland by a 6700 metre tunnel. How far away does an island have to be before it no longer qualifies as part of the continent? I dint see too much of what Id hoped to see. Tehachapi, you’ve never had fog this thick, at least in my memory. I exaggerate again, but not by much. I couldn’t see down to the ocean. From the visitor center, I couldn’t see the monument, less than 50 metres away. But at least I can say I’ve been there, which in itself pleases me, if no one else.

The bus driver is a tour guide when he’s not driving, and did a really bang up job of filling me in on the area. He spoke such good English, I though maybe he was from the UK. Turns out he was born locally, and loves it there. Lived in Oslo for a time, but couldn’t take the city life and its pressure.

Back to how I solved the problem of where to stay. Ever hear of the Hurtigruten. That’s where I’m at. Look it up on the net, I’m not telling you, but you may get an idea from the following. The only surface transportation out of Honningsvag left before I get back to town. So I caught the Hurtigruten to Kirkenes, Norway. Arrived there today and decided that I’d change my itinerary. I’ll be on the M/S Richard With until July 4th, where I’ll disembark in Trondheim. On the way, I’ll have several stopovers for short periods at places I’d planned on visiting, but will miss a couple.

Figured out what it is yet. Sure you have. It’s the ship that runs from Bergen to Kirkenes and back, over about a two week period, stopping at many of the coastal villages. For years, it was the most reliable means of transportation for many of them, and still is for some. One of the family of ships leaves Bergen heading north every day of the year, so they are constantly covering the run.

So the next few days will be a cruising among the fjords holiday for me. Ill see a lot, as I’m still far enough north to have 24 hours of daylite. More on the Hurtigruten later, and look it up. You may find out something I don’t know about it. I’m sure you will. That’s enough for now.