Thursday, August 6, 2009

day 60, from Geiranger to Nordkapp in Norway

We are now flying over Norway

.....and we are headed for Geiranger


We are going to take a boat cruise along the famous Geirangerfjord, a 15 km long branch of the Storfjord (Great Fjorda). Wow, what an amazing journey this is......


Did you know that the Geirangerfjord is under constant threat from the mountain Åkerneset which is about to erode into the fjord??

A collapse would produce a tsunami, hitting several nearby towns including Geiranger and Hellesylt in about ten minutes......dont worry Feroz, I dont think that its about to happen right now.....well, I hope not.

This cruise has brought us so close to towering mountains and the abando
ned mountain farms.....and that cascading waterfall is the Seven Sisters .

It consists of seven separate streams, the tallest one has a free fall that measures 250 meters. The legend of the seven sisters is that they dance playfully down the mountain, while the courtier (a single waterfall opposite of the seven sisters) flirts playfully from across the fjord.

Wow, this breathtaking scenery has certainly relaxed us all..........

And now we are headed for what most people call the northernmost point of Europe.........

North Cape (Norwegian: Nordkapp) is a cape on the island of Magerøya in northern Norway, in the municipality of Nordkapp.
Its 307 m high, steep cliff is often referred to as the northernmost point of Europe, located at 71°10′21″N 25°47′40″E / 71.1725°N 25.79444°E / 71.1725; 25.79444, 2102.3 km from the North Pole.

However, the neighbouring point Knivskjellodden is actually 1,457 metres further north.

So why are we going there.....Well hopefully we will be able to see the Midnight sun!
The midnight sun can be seen from 14th of May to the 31s
t of July so we are a few days late.....but let's be optimistic....

What is the midnight sun?? Well it is a natural phenomenon occurring in summer months at latitudes north and nearby to the south of the Arctic Circle, and south and nearby to the north of the Antarctic Circle where the sun remains visible at the local midnight.

OK, we have arrived in Nordkapphallen, an extensive commercial tourist centre that houses a number of exhibits on the Cape's history and we are going on foot to see the midnight sun...........there it is.......

the sun is shining, at midnight......this is totally awesome!

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