Journey: A summer in the Arctic Ocean - from the Arctic Circle to the North Cape
Boote Redaktion
· 09.02.2024
A text by Markus Gehrlein
On 29 May, after the annual Grand Banks Rendezvous in Heiligenhafen, we set off with the aim of reaching the North Cape. For our Labrador Aick, who has been a permanent member of the CHI crew for 15 years and has travelled to well over 20 countries with us, this may be his last big trip. Having already visited the Lofoten Islands in 2013, we are no strangers to the far north.
Today is the 20th of June. Yesterday evening at around 8pm we reached the small harbour of Tonnes to the east of the Arctic Circle monument, the globe sculpture on Vikingen Island. From here, we will be navigating in the Arctic Ocean. 1170 nautical miles lie in our wake. All in all, we have made good progress. We would have wished for better weather conditions in the Kattegat and Skagerrak, but we were able to fulfil our plan every day. Today's destination is Bodø. The route leads mainly through a designated fairway, which offers good protection from the North Atlantic thanks to countless islands. After 65 miles, we reach our destination in the early evening. The guest jetty is full and we find a place with the fishermen again. The lively harbour is a popular place for charterers to change crews. Not only is there a well-connected airport here, but there are also excellent catering facilities and it is a good starting point for the crossing to the Lofoten Islands. The town boasts some new and very modern buildings and was recently honoured for its sustainable urban development. In the harbour itself, however, time seems to have stood still since our last visit ten years ago.
In the sea area north of Bergen, the tides and the associated currents certainly play a navigational role. The tide here is a good 2.5 metres.
About 15 miles south-east of Bodø is the Saltstraumen, a sound with the strongest tidal current in the world."
Under the right conditions, the current there reaches almost 20 knots and develops powerful whirlpools. You should generally expect currents of up to six knots in the hours here in the far north if the weather conditions are right. There are basically two options for our further route to Tromsø: The outer route via Lofoten, Raftsund and Vesterålen or the inner route along the eastern edge of the Vestfjord, a challenging sea area and spawning ground for cod, which finds its way here from the Barents Sea in late summer and is also highly prized here as a delicacy in the form of skrei (migratory fish). We decide in favour of the inner route through the Tjeldsund, past Harstad to Tromsø. From Bodø, we first pass Nordskot, a bay with crystal-clear emerald green water. We pass the Tranøy Fyr lighthouse and call at the harbour on the small island of Hamarøy. As so often on our journey, we are the only guests. There is an old whaler on the pier, which probably houses a pub from time to time, but like everything else it is unfortunately closed at the moment. No problem for us. We are essentially self-catering. We have a spacious freezer with its own battery and an extensive drinks store on board. This makes us independent over long distances. So we can enjoy the most remote bays in a very relaxed way. It is the 21st of June - solstice and there is hardly any wind. It is fantastically beautiful here.
Fog on the Arctic Ocean
Unfortunately, we have to continue our journey the very next morning and leave this beautiful place. The weather forecast predicts 24 hours of sunshine for each of the next few days, and we want to make the most of this to make some distance. Ahead of us lies a stretch of the Vesfjord, which is categorised as a sea area with dangerous swell at times. Today, however, it is very peaceful and we have a relaxed crossing. In the morning, the landscape still has a magical veil and, as has been the case for days, snow-covered mountains line our course. We leave Narvik to the east and pass Tjeldsund, Finnsnes and Gibostad until we reach Tromsø on 23 June after passing through the Rystraumen rapids. Tromsø itself is on our programme for the return journey, so we continue our journey the very next morning.
The water temperature has continued to drop over the past few days. With a daytime temperature of 14 degrees, our water thermometer only reads eight degrees. After we pass the 46 metre high bridge over Tromsø Sound, we are shrouded in thick fog. Monika stands at the helm and switches on the radar and the navigation lights, unimpressed. We have been a well-rehearsed team for many years and can rely on each other blindly in any situation. Nevertheless, we like to keep a lookout together in such situations. There are a lot of fast ferries in the Norwegian sounds, which often come up very quickly at 33 knots. After two hours, the fog lifts and the Arctic Ocean shows its most beautiful side again.
On 25 June, after 27 days and 1565 nautical miles, we reach Hammerfest on schedule at 70°40` north 23°41`east. Until Honningsvåg was given city status in 1998, Hammerfest was considered the northernmost city in the world. A welcoming committee of white-sided dolphins awaits us on the approach. One of the dolphins even touches the side of our boat during his daring jump and looks me in the eye through the open side door of the wheelhouse from a distance of about one metre. Aick immediately disappears under the saloon table and we are too frightened to even take a photo.
E-mobility at the end of the world
A lot is currently being rebuilt in the harbour and we struggle to find a place, even though there is only one other guest yacht here. Our boat has now reached the northernmost point of our journey. We want to drive the remaining 205 kilometres to the North Cape in our electric hire car. Norway has an excellent infrastructure for e-mobility. Many ferries and even large ships now run purely on electricity and you can find charging stations for electric boats in even the smallest harbours. However, this only applies to a limited extent at the northernmost end of the continent. And so our plan for the day is thrown out of kilter when we arrive at our destination with just eleven kilometres of range left on the display. There are supposed to be two charging points for electric cars here. But we realise with horror that they are labelled "Tesla only" in big letters. We try it anyway and after an hour we are shown a range of 30 kilometres. OK. The next fast-charging station is supposed to be in Honningsvåg. That's 33 kilometres and it's more downhill than uphill. We set off and let the car roll wherever we can, just don't brake! And we actually reach Honningsvåg with three kilometres of range left. We are relieved. Now we quickly download the right app and 50 Kwh flow quietly to our battery.
Even if we had imagined our trip to the northernmost point of the European mainland to be different: a journey through beautiful landscapes and breathtaking tunnels, some of which run 200 metres below sea level, lies behind us. At times, reindeer block our onward journey. Simply marvellously beautiful. We are back on board late in the evening. From tomorrow we are heading south again.
