In the winter of 2017, Steven and I left our big rig, Scoopy, safe and secure at the ranch in Texas and boarded multiple flights to make our way to Europe. Our main destination was Dublin, to visit Steven’s family, but we were staying for a month, so we wanted to travel to another place, too. We chose Norway. We were going to stay in Oslo, then rent a car and drive as far north as we could in the time we had. But the more we planned, the more we realized we weren’t really prepared for a winter destination. We didn’t even own winter coats! We ended up going to both London and Paris, but Norway has been at the top of our travel list ever since.
Fast forward two years later and we had moved to Europe, so of course Norway would be one of the first places we visited! Not so fast. We decided to spend a few weeks in Ireland, again visiting family, but also traveling the fabulous Wild Atlantic Way. Norway was moved to the summer of 2020. LOL, 2020. The year of the global pandemic, as it turned out. Although we did travel, Norway opened its borders too late in the season for us to travel so far north, so we postponed yet again.
This year it seemed iffy, and then we couldn’t get into Denmark to go north. So we changed our route and hoped that after traveling through the Baltics, Finland and Sweden, the borders into Norway would be open and we’d be allowed in. It won’t surprise you to know then, under these circumstances, that we were a tad nervous as we pulled out of our campsite and headed toward the Norwegian border.
Funny thing about borders in the EU, they were dismantled years ago as Free Movement between countries became the norm. COVID has seen many borders reinstated, even in areas where there are few facilities to support an actual border. What this means is that you can actually drive into a country and believe you have made it in, only to be stopped further down the road, or at a rest stop, or truck stop. This is what happened to UK residents Dave and Lesley of Adventures in Margo the Carthago. They recently crossed the border into Norway only to be turned around after traveling a full 26 kilometers into the country! I can only imagine how devastating that would feel, especially after they drove 3,500 kilometers to get to Norway in the first place! They were turned away because even though they are vaccinated, the QR Code issued by the UK’s National Health Service is incompatible with the reader used in the EU. As a result, the guard could not verify their vaccinations and so refused them entry into Norway. How sad is that?
We had our France-issued QR Code safely on our phones. When we rolled up to the border there was one motorhome in front of us with all doors open and a guard asking all kinds of questions. Another guard walked over to us, checked our QR Codes on his reader, then verified our identity by looking at our passports and said, “Enjoy your travels in Norway.” and motioned us to drive around the other motorhome and carry on. That was it, we were in! There was a testing facility at the border for those who are not vax’d. I can’t help but wonder if Dave and Lesley might have gotten in at another border by simply taking a test. Who knows?
In any case Steven and I high-fived our good fortune that we were finally in Norway. It was a long time coming and we were just giddy with excitement. We continued our journey along the east coast, making our way to a designated meet up spot where Frenchy Le Van and Bijou would be reunited. Friends Brad and Oksana had made their way to Scandinavia from Croatia and had entered Norway midway from Sweden, then drove to the west coast to visit the Lofoten Islands and surrounds. We had recently decided to travel north together and were meeting up later that day. Oksana had found us a primo spot for an overnight stay before we made the last push to the top, the most northerly place on earth where we can drive Bijou: Nordkapp!
The next morning we set off on a foggy, gloomy day to reach the top of the world. We left Brad and Oksana behind to deal with a minor issue on their van and carried on north. The sky was filled with drama and we had rain, sun and fog, sometimes all three. It was a beautiful drive on a narrow road that was under construction in some places, but for the most part it was beautiful.
Nordkapp is actually on an island and to reach it we had to travel through the North Cape tunnel under the Magerøysundet Strait between the Norwegian mainland and the large island of Magerøya. The Norwegians do not waste road funds making their tunnels look pretty and this one was no exception. Narrow, dank, and lit with the equivalent of a 40 watt light bulb, it can play tricks on your mind. Especially the long ones. The North Cape tunnel is 6.88 kms (4.27 miles) long and goes down nearly 700 feet below sea level at a 9% grade. It does freak me out just a little when I think of all that water on top and the pressure it’s putting on this tunnel. I am always glad when we pop out the other side!
Apparently Nordkapp isn’t quite the most northerly point where we can drive, but it’s close enough. There is a Visitor’s Center, a cafe, a movie theater, a gift shop, a few displays and plenty of motorhome parking for those of us who want to spend the night at the top of the world. What else would you want? It costs a fortune to get in, around 50 euros, but who cares?? That’s what we came here for, to see the movie, get a photo of ourselves and spend the night at Nordkapp! Mission accomplished!
The weather at Nordkapp was literally freezing when we arrived. Well, it was in the 40s, but with the howling wind it was a “real feel” of 32 degrees. We ran our heater during our stay and stayed very toasty inside Bijou. We had parked up in a very windy spot, so when Brad and Oksana arrived couple of hours after us and found a spot that was somewhat sheltered, we joined them. It was really too windy to do too much exploration, but we got what we came for, stayed the night and were happy to hit the road the next morning. Or not.
When we looked outside we discovered that we were completely enveloped by the heavy fog. We could not see five feet from Bijou. So we sat and waited. And waited. And waited. Brad and Oksana had already left at this point but we waited to see if other motorhomes were on the move. When it cleared a little, we finally decided to eek our way out and hope that as we got through the tunnel it would be better weather on the mainland. We were right.
We drove a few hours and landed at a little marina in Alta, the first large town we came to on our route south. By large I mean a population of over 20,000 people. I think I must be fairly ignorant about life above the Arctic Circle, because I always thought it was just camps and dirt roads with a few inhabitants. But here in Norway, life above the Arctic Circle is no different than below it. There are large cities and big populations. I was really surprised by this!
In Alta we did absolutely nothing other than catch up on stuff, including our blog. After a couple of relaxing days we took off to Tromsø. Along the way we would take not one, but two ferries to get there! Tromsø has been on my bucket list for years, so I was super excited to be heading that way!
And last, but not least, what would a blog post be without one of Steven’s portrait drawings? This time it’s of not only a famous actor but a famous voice: Morgan Freeman. If you would like to keep up with Steven’s artwork, you can follow his Visual Art page on Facebook.
NEXT UP: Fabulous Tromsø!
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If you want a different perspective off the beauty of Norway, consider taking a voyage on the Hurtiguten, the Norwegian coastal ship line. Well worth it, no matter how short your journey.
Hope you visit Trondheim – lovely city. I could go on and on about all the wonderful places to visit in NorwY and in Denmark too.
Love all your photos. They really capture the wild beauty.
Yes, we have seen the Hurtiguten ship at several ports as we’ve made our way down from Nordcapp. I’ll bet the views from offshore are amazing. I’ve taken the Alaska Marine Ferry along the coast of Alaska, which was also gorgeous. We are slowly but surely making our way to Trondheim, looking forward to visiting that city!
Well we are so pleased you made it into Norway, you have journeyed further than us to realise your dream, enjoy. We will now live the same dream vicariously through your wonderful blog. We love your honest ‘tell it the way it is’ writing and (as has also been observed by so many others) Steven’s excellent photography. We love Morgan Freeman, I would have a limited edition copy of the man by S. Dempsey on any wall at home. We’ll be following you and your journey every step of the way.
By the way, we did ask at the border whether we could take a test but were told no. And today from 3pm they are letting vaccinated Brits through.
Dave & Lesley
Thanks for your kind words about our blog. I must say I’ve enjoyed yours, too! I think Lesley and I are kindred spirits in our love of free marina washing facilities! 🙂 So glad you enjoyed Tallinn, the number of vegan and vegetarian restaurants there was amazing! Steven likes to say we are meat-eating vegans, lol, that just means we enjoy it all. 🙂 I am sooo glad you told me that you tried to get tested in order to enter Norway. It has been weighing heavy on my mind! Now we will probably run into a slew of Brits in our travels south! Hardly seems fair, right? Continued safe travels!
Steven here. Thank you very much for your kind words about my portrait and art in general. It’s been amazing rekindling this passion from a quarter century ago. I’m most gratified that the resulting portraits have received such a positive response. Cheers.
Well we are so pleased you made it into Norway, you have journeyed further than us to realise your dream, enjoy. We will now live the same dream vicariously through your wonderful blog. We love your honest ‘tell it the way it is’ writing and (as has also been observed by so many others) Steven’s excellent photography. We love Morgan Freeman, I would have a limited edition copy of the man by S. Dempsey on any wall at home. We’ll be following you and your journey every step of the way.
By the way, we did ask at the border whether we could take a test but were told no. And today from 3pm they are letting vaccinated Brits through.
Wow, that’s quite a way north. When I was in the navy we went to the top of Greenland, to the Thule airforce base to deliver supplies for the winter. One year we got frozen in and they had to send an icebreaker up to get us out. It was quite an adventure, we saw Eskimos and Polar bears and a LOT of ice!
I thought Fairbanks was as far north as we’d ever go, and it seemed way up there to me. But when you see just how far north Nordkapp is, it really is amazing! And that we drove all that way! Pretty exciting stuff for us! Greenland sounds like a fun adventure. 🙂
Hahaha my sisters love sardine and crackers too but not me. I can smell the fish just thinking about it.
And now he has purchased mackerel for goodness sake! Thing is, I’ve never tried either of these. I like fish, but not sure I want it straight out of the tin. And the smell is off-putting, so there’s that. 🙂
Beautiful!
Thank you!
I always love your blog, but this entry was especially interesting. If you follow your Arctic line on the map to the west from Nordkapp across Alaska, you will see that my almost three years at the northernmost point of North America in Barrow is along the same latitude! I drove my full-sized truck north to Prudhoe Bay on the ocean, but the last leg of its journey to my new home was on a barge for 300 miles, being backhauled back to Seattle. I lived beside the Arctic Ocean and drove even further north to Point Barrow many times. I stayed there until I retired in 2004.
I’m thrilled with your adventures on the road!
Kristin in Alaska
Wow, I can’t imagine what it must have been like to work where you did! What an adventure! When I lived in Alaska, my uncle and cousin worked at Prudhoe Bay, but I never got up there to visit. I would have enjoyed it, though. There are many places in Norway that remind me of Alaska, but the far north, above the Arctic Circle is far more civilized in Norway, I think. 🙂 Thanks for sharing your experiences!
I’m so glad you included all the variety of weather in both directions – those skies are dramatic! Oh lord I would have to do a lot of deep breathing to do those dark and deep tunnels. But worth it I see. Your header pic definitely shows you’re on the top of the world! It looks a little like you’re off the planet 🙂 Your smiles show how excited you were to finally be there – I love it. That “same view” pic is just wow!
I can’t imagine taking a big rig through these tunnels, but the big trucks do go through them! We are heading south now and today we went below the Arctic Circle. We are very sad. 🙁
Your header photo is outstanding!! It looks otherworldly. This is a place we likely will never visit, so thanks for taking us there. It’s a stunning landscape, but I would be hating on those dark tunnels lit with only 40 watt bulbs, LOL.
Steven, your portraits are remarkable. How many hours does it take you to create one? (And p.s., we love sardines, too. :-))
Hi Laurel, Steven here. Thanks for the kudos. How long it takes to do a portrait really depends on the level of detail I put into it. Like, the Morgan Freeman portrait took about three and a half hours because it’s a little more gestural while the John Malkovich one from the last blog post took six and a half. I usually do them over a few days. It’s so tempting to noodle them to death too so I have to be aware of stepping away at some point 🙂 As I gain experience, that time is reduced but I’m still in the learning stages.