Day 12 - Hammerfest and start of journey south

After a much calmer sea overnight we both slept well.  There were 3 stops in the night but we slept through all of them.  There was no early morning docking to get up for so we took our time getting ready for the day. 

Hammerfest

We had a 2 hour stop in Hammerfest which claims to be the most northerly town in the world (the other places we visited are not classified as towns as they are more villages). It now has to call itself the most northerly town on the European mainland as another Norwegian town has been created at Longyearbyen , Svalbard.   Hammerfest is a lovely town, very small and easy to get around.  It was the first European town to install electric street lighting The town has been wiped out three times.  The first  was due to a hurricane in 1856 after which it was rebuilt but then burnt to the ground in 1890 and again rebuilt.  Then it was almost completely destroyed by the retreating Germany Army in the second world war, as was done to many other Norwegian towns, to remove all means of shelter for the advancing Russian Army.   It was certainly the busiest of the Norwegian towns we have visited with many cars on the roads and people (other than tourists) in the streets and shops.  It is the home of the Royal and Ancient Polar Bear Society created in 1963 to support Arctic conservation and endangered animals programs.   We visited the church which has been designed in the shape of a stockfish drying frame and walked along the main street.  Some of the others walked up to a viewpoint over the town but we could see them struggling against the icy path so we decided not to do this. 

We had a talk and a “point of interest” today about the Norwegian Gas industry.  We passed an island called Melkoya which is a large liquefied natural gas site very near to Hammerfest and providing the town with much employment.   Natural gas is drilled at a site on the seabed about 160 kms north in the Barents sea and piped to Melkoya where it is processed.

Hammerfest Church

Hammerfest Church

Hammerfest Bandstand

Hammerfest - Polar Bear

Hammerfest from ship

Hammerfest - Iced up drainpipe

Northern Lights

The Aurora Borealis made another appearance tonight.  Again we were told during dinner and everyone rushed out.  We finished our meal and then went out and saw some really nice displays but it soon clouded over.  The ship is docking in Tromso for an hour or so at midnight so we will look out for the lights again then.

Aurora Borealis

Aurora Borealis