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Sailing the Route of the Hurtigruten...
By Ronald Jacobs
Picture yourself on the deck of a ship traveling through high, twisting narrow gorges. Thousands of meters up near the top of gorge, torrents roar from unseen sources and fall in icy crystalline crescendo. The plummeting water noisily explodes in sparkling icy mists as it crashes over rocky outcropping...finally dissipating itself, spreading in slowly dying eddies over the placid surface of the Sognefjord...the longest, deepest fjord in all the world.
Startling white seagulls caw raucously, whirling and dipping against an almost cloudless azure sky...ahead a tiny village clings impossibly to steep grassy slopes leading to the water's edge.
For untold centuries, the people living along Norway's rugged coast and fjords have been totally dependent on coastal vessels for their survival, particularly during the winter months.
Today, the Hurtigruten, or Coastal Steamers, share these ancient routes (and some of this planet's most varied, beautiful and unspoiled vistas) with their passengers. For those seeking a unique travel adventure, there can be no more enchanting place in the world.
Bold Vikings in their long-ships plied these very waters. This is the land of the midnight sun...the place where the Aurora Borealis' mesmerizing displays fill the skies during the months of darkness...where the surrounding plateaus and valleys are home to the mystical Sámi people, still traveling with, and endlessly seeking greener pastures for their reindeer herds
Since before recorded time, the sea has provided Norway's people a means of transport and its great bounty...salmon, sea trout, lobster, cod and more.
Another kind of bounty results from the Gulf Stream's close proximity to Norway's northern coastal regions helping to temper its winters, and produce fabulous crops of summer vegetables.
Norway's' venerable Bergen Line has been operating Coastal Cruises in these waters for more than a century, offering visitors unforgettable voyages aboard their 12 ship fleet.
Bergen Line's 1,250 mile Coastal Voyage operates in both directions from Bergen in the south, and Kirkenes, far north of the Arctic Circle. Travelers have the option of seven-day cruises from south-to-north, or north-to-south. A twelve-day, round-trip voyage is available, as are a variety of 11 to 14 day fly/cruise and shore excursion options. The fleet calls on 34 ports, 365 days per year.
A number of the ports visited by the Coastal Voyage ships beg for more exploration than is possible during the average stop. To accommodate this need, Bergen Line offers numerous "shore excursion" packages giving passengers the opportunity to visit the sights and re-board at the same or next port.
We prefer to leave the ship in selected ports, check into a local inn or hotel, and conduct our own "day-trips" to the surrounding countryside. The frequency with which Coastal Voyage vessels visit every port makes it easy to board another ship and continue ones' journey. All of the Line's new ships can carry cars, so we find it convenient to bring along a rental car to use at the stops of our choice.
This kind of day-tripping takes a bit of planning and coordination, but is very much worth the effort. Norway's roads are well marked and well maintained. As English is mandatory in all Norwegian schools, it's relatively easy to find one's way...even getting lost can be an adventure!
We also prefer traveling in Norway from south to north...there is something calming about leaving the hustle and bustle of Oslo and Bergen for the less populated, unspoiled regions of Northern Norway; Finnmark and Grenseland.
Sailing north from Bergen, our favorite stops include Molde, a charming town known for its roses and jazz festival. During a recent visit, a ceremony honoring Norway's' postal service, drew large crowds to admire the vintage horse drawn carts, skis and other mail delivery paraphernalia.
Norway's second largest glacier, Svartisen is located at the very end of the Holandsfjord, reached by small launch. This formidable sight is worth the trip, particularly when one realizes that glaciers such as this were Mother Nature's principal tools in carving the Holandsfjord, and Norway's other spectacular fjord.
Several years ago, Trondheim, the country's third largest city celebrated its 1,000 the anniversary and Norwegian King Haralds' birthday in one jubilant summer long event. Trondheim is both beautiful and historically important. Norway's' largest medieval church, Nidaros Cathedral, was built on St. Olaf's burial ground. Construction began in 1070 but the church was damaged by fire on several occasions. Today, the oldest remaining portions date from the 12th century.
North of the Arctic Circle lies the town of Troms...part of its appeal is its history as the starting place for so many North Pole and Arctic expeditions. The town is also home to the famous and distinctively designed and built Arctic Cathedral. Known as the "ice cathedral" because it looks like an iceberg. The enormous stained glass window at the front of the church is the largest in all of Europe. Tromsø' also happens to be the home of Macol, one of Norway's fine locally brewed beers.
At latitude 700, 10', 21", North Cape (NordKapp) is Europe's northernmost point. The North Cape visitor's center is a five-story architectural marvel, carved into the face and top of a granite plateau, hundreds of meters above the Arctic Ocean.
The Center holds displays of North Cape's significant maritime history, offers visitors a variety of food and beverage choices, an extensive gift shop, and its own post office . . . and a charming rock grotto chapel that has become an increasingly popular wedding site. Newlyweds can spend the night in a unique honeymoon suite in a dome atop the center.
North Cape shares Magerøya Island with five small fishing villages. The island's main port and largest town, Honningsvag, is where most visitors arrive after a 45-minute ferry trip from Kafsfjord on the mainland. The island's Arctic scenery is fascinating in summer when some 4-to- 5,000 reindeer are brought over for grazing.
The Coastal Voyages' northern terminus is the town of Kirkenes, located just a few dozen miles from Norway's border with Russia. Across the Pasvikelven river, which marks the border, is the town of Boris Gleb, site of a Russian Orthodox chapel which, after perestroika, reopened for use in the summer of 1992. For the more adventuresome, there are cruises from Kirkenes, along the Russian coast to city of Murmasnk, once the site of the Soviet navy's nuclear powered submarines. The sub "pens" are still visible at this vast facility.
We found the food aboard the Coastal Voyage ships to be wonderful...breakfast is the typical Norwegian buffet, myriad cheeses, cereals, eggs, smoked salmon and pickled fish, breads, flatbrods, lots of steaming coffee, tea and hot chocolate...lunches are hot and cold buffets, and three-course dinners are served on crisp white linen. One of the nice things about Hurtigruten fare is that menus are that are so varied...adapting regional culinary styles, selecting produce from the best of the ports visited. Meals may also reflect the season or a festival...
Before or after dinner, comfortable lounges serve not only mixed drinks and wines, but also create just the right setting to meet with other passengers to share highlights of the voyage.
For brochures and all travel information, Norwegian Coastal Voyages, Inc. /Bergen Line Services' New York office can be reached at 800 323-7436...or on the Internet at http://www.coastalvoyage.com/main/
