Andenes to Senja

Well, finally we got our midnight sun, hardly a cloud in the sky last night which made typing the blog rather difficult. I almost needed my sunglasses on as we were pointing straight at it. We took a few photos and hit the sack. I tried to wake the boys up to show them it but they didn’t even stir so we left them. Hopefully we will see it again after a less busy day.

We were up nice and early again today, the weather was back to overcast so it was just aswell we had taken the chance yesterday to pack a fair bit in. We went back to the Whalesafari building as we still wanted to do the guided tour of the museum-it was included in our price of the boat trip. The tour was interesting enough, but a bit less of a museum and more of an informative talk and walk through information rooms with some whale bones and skeletons along the way. Its better to hear someone talk information sometimes rather than try and read it, it was also interesting enough for the boys although Callum was hiding behind his mums leg when in the room with the life sized giant squid-he doesn’t like squids and this fear comes from the film Finding Dory in which there is a scary scene involving a giant squid. Afterwards we had a wander around the souvenir shop again and bought a few bits and bobs and then went back to the van as the rain was coming on. The boat trip may have been a bit calmer today, but the deck onboard would have been much slippier and visibility definitely less than yesterday so we had made the right choice.

We popped round to a shop for a few supplies and then went early to join the ferry queue to get over to Senja, our next destination. We were in plenty of time and I completed the blog, while Joyce made some lunch which we ate in the queue. Some vans take this a step further, they actually park up for the night in the queue for the ferry to ensure a place, if your on a deadline, missing one of these ferries can cost you a fair bit of time. Soon we were onboard the Narvik built vessel called Stetind, she was built in 1977 and was looking rather tired and in need of an overhaul and coat of paint. This is a harsh environment to operate in so its no surprise she was looking tired. There were also nothing on board to eat or drink other than a coffee machine, maybe in the high(er) season they turn on the ice cream freezer and bring on something to eat, just swell we had lunch earlier. I got chatting to a guy from Inverness, he stopped me on hearing my accent, he was part of big group who were cycling from Lofoten to The Nordkapp. They have had some very tough weather to deal with so far on their 10 day journey. Once on Senja today they only had about 11.5km left to cycle which I think they were very happy about. There was also a much more elderly gentleman from Doncaster and he was cycling from Lofoten to Kirkenes on the Russian border and then taking the Hurtigrutten boat back down to Bergen, I am not sure of his timescale but he reckoned his distance was 1000km’s………for him it was a solo cycle trip, we saw him later on Senja with all the gear on and head down into a down pour…….we felt for him.During the crossing we passed a frigate from the Royal Danish Navy, named after Peter Willemoes who was a young but galant sailor killed by the British at the Battle of Zealand Point in 1808, he was aged 24 at his death.

The approach to Senja is pretty spectacular, and a complete contrast to the flat coastal land around Andenes, its a proper steep sided fjord with jaggy peaks and ridges on both sides. I had got chatting to a few more of the cyclists and had to rush to get back down and find Joyce and the boys, her head was a bit fried as the clown had been been playing up yet again, lol. We got off the ferry and headed onto the 86 road and followed the coast road around to Fjordbotn campsite. The scenery was superb, unfortunately some of the tops were in cloud but we were back into spectacular fjords, beaches, bridges and tunnels. And, the best thing is, its quiet!! It's not quite got the drama of Lofoten but is not far short and the really quiet roads and less tourism make it a joy to travel through.

We popped into the Hulder and Troll park, we didn't actually know about it but it looked interesting and something for the boys. There were superb Troll sculptures on the big gate posts and all around the place and a huge big steel framework behind the house so we went to check it out. The Shop and cafe was fantastic and we got chatting to the lady who owned and ran the place with her husband. She asked where we were from and we had a blether, sadly she told us about the metal framework.....over the last 26 years her husband had built the worlds largest Troll, it was in the Guinness book of records, and inside it were caves and grottos and rooms, it was really famous, but 3 months ago an electrical fault caused a fire and the whole construction was raised to the ground, I thought it was really sad, that poor man had put all his life into this place and it was gone, probably never to be rebuilt. To be honest the lady looked really forlorn and sad, like her heart had been ripped out and I am sure that was how they both felt. After leaving here there were a few photo stops along the way and this amuses the boys as they think I take too many pictures, maybe I do? I checked out a hill here that I might like to try and climb, the atlas shows where it is and I found the start but have no map so the exact route (and difficulty) is unknown. Whether time and weather align to allow an ascent remains to be seen.

We found the campsite and got checked in, the young girl on the desk was very helpful and informative and we chatted about the hills, I managed to buy a map and now-fully prepared, instead of passing through Senja we may linger for a day or 2. The forecast is looking much better again so we shall see-I told you this trip would not be long enough!! However for Joyce today, the campsite and bed for the boys could not come early enough, I think yesterdays exertions has left them a little cranky!!. An early night or 2 should recharge the batteries and see us right for a while.. Definitely no midnight sun tonight, the weather is pretty minging but we are cosy in the van.