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| Fjord near Tromso |
Before we begin, today is the 7
th of June, and we
wish to acknowledge the birthdays of both Anne’s brother Tom Gross and Chris
Heithecker (member of our extended travel family and Frank’s longtime friend
& co-worker).
Many more to ya,
gents!
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| Rugged Arctic Landscape |
Our second port was Tromso, the second largest city in all
of Norway and the largest city in the north with a population of just 76,000
people. Tromso is actually an island situated among the many waterways in the
area. The city sits on a network of underground tunnels which makes getting
around easier, especially in the winter. Tunnels even travel under some of the
fjords. Strangely enough, the city owes its tunnel system to the Germans who built
these tunnels as bunkers during WWII when they were preparing for an allied
invasion in Norway.
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| Catching sleet and snowflakes |
We had arranged for a small group Arctic Landscapes tour,
and our guide was a lovely young and knowledgeable Polish woman named Joanna who
was studying marine biology at the University of Tromso. We knew the weather
here could be unpredictable so we were prepared for anything. And we got it. We saw sun, rain, hail, sleet, and snow all in one day!
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| Along the Esjfjord outside of Tromso |
Joanna took us on an excursion to some of her favorite
fjords and overlooks as we island-hopped all over the Tromso area. Our first
stop was the Esjfjord where we savored some of the natural beauty and
surroundings. We got to see strange tundra plants, almost cactus-like with tiny
flowers you could easily miss. And many small houses in the valleys where
hunters stay (usually for free) and hunt the ptarmigan, which is a small game
bird.
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| Our Arctic Beach |
The highlight of our day was lunch on the beach at Sommaroy
Fjord. Beaches in the Arctic seem unlikely, but with clear green water and
white “sand” (actually calcified crustaceans), the beaches looked like
something in the tropics.
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| Ahhh, yummy homemade oat cookies on the beach |
We collected shells and ate a lunch of sandwiches,
oat cookies, and hot chocolate right there on the cold, windy beach in an area
sheltered by granite boulders. We can’t describe how wonderful it was to be on
a beach with sunlight shimmering on the gentle waves of soft green water and
snow-covered peaks in the background. It was like the Caribbean meets the Alps!
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Wooden church where seafarers prayed before
voyages (see model ship hanging from ceiling) |
We continued a circular tour back to Tromso with a stop at a
beautiful wooden church in a tiny hamlet. Joanna said the church was never open
(she had never been inside), but today the custodian was working and allowed us
to go in. The interior smelled of pine wood and a model ship hung from the
rafters as a tribute to the area’s seafaring culture.
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| Arctic sheep |
As we left the church, we
saw a family of cute Arctic sheep.
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| Open Air Museum with homes from times gone by |
And we visited a small open air museum where
we wandered among the old wooden buildings, trying to imagine what it was like
to live in this formidable climate years ago.
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| Herd of reindeer! |
We also saw our first reindeer. Joanna stopped for us to
take a close-up look at a herd of about ten reindeer napping alongside one of
the fjords. Reindeer are bigger and “beefier” than the whitetail deer back home
-- they also have a heavy pelt and big furry antlers. Magnificent creatures.
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| Several moose watched our every move |
Later, we spotted several moose and stepped out of the van to
take a closer look. And, of special interest to Frank, we passed the place in
one of the fjords where the massive German battleship “Tirpitz” was sunk by the
Brits during WWII. There is no special marker where she went down, but locals
know where it happened.
All in all, this was a fabulous day in the
Arctic!
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