Six-Years Ago (07-February-2013) — Norway

Gone to See Norway 2013. Chasing the Northern Lights. Day 10: Southbound Hurtigruten Coastal Voyage.

On the second day of the southbound Hurtigruten voyage, the MS Nordkapp stoped in eight ports: Mehamn (01:00-01:15); Kjøllefjord (03:15-03:30); Honningsvåg (06:00-06:15); Havøsund (08:15-08:30); Hammerfest (11:15-12:45); Øksfjord (15:30-15:45); Skjervøy (19:00-19:45); and Tromsø (23:45-01:30).

After going in and warming up, I went out on deck again early morning hours (just after midnight). One band of the green lights went all the way from horizon to horizon over the top of the ship. I switched to a fisheye lens and went to deck 7 where I could get this image (notice the big dipper). I had all of my cold weather gear on, and it was still cold, especially since the ship was moving at 15 knots. At this point you could tell who the hard-core photographers were, as we were the only ones still out on deck.

Early Morning (00:24 AM) Northern Lights While Sailing North on the Hurtigruten MV Nordkapp. Image taken with a Nikon D800 and 16 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 6400, 16 mm, f/2.8, 4 sec). (David J Mathre)

At the end of the day, I disembarked from the MS Nordkapp in Tromsø. I met up with a photographer friend from France (we both were on a photography trip with Thom Hogan in Patagonia in 2010/2011), and spent the next week in and around Tromsø “Chasing the Northern Lights”.

Twelve-Years Ago (30-January-2007) — Norway

Gone to See Norway 2007 Family Winter Vacation. Day 10: Hurtigruten MS Kong Harald Norwegian Coastal Voyage Southbound (Mehamn to Tromsø).

On the second day of the southbound Hurtigruten voyage, the ship stopped in eight ports: Mehamn (01:00-01:15); Kjøllefjord (03:15-03:30); Honningsvåg (06:00-06:15); Havøsund (08:15-08:30); Hammerfest (11:15-12:45); Øksfjord (15:30-15:45); Skjervøy (19:00-19:45); and Tromsø (23:45-01:30).

At about 01:00 the captain made an announcement that Northern Lights were visible. I put some warm clothes on and went out. It was cold (minus 10 degrees) and windy. But the northern lights were brighter than I ever remember seeing before when growing up in Minnesota. It was hard to stand still for 10 seconds on a moving ship in the cold and heavy wind to take a selfie. I did hear that some of the folks that got off in Kirkenes also saw the Northern Lights that night (but didn’t wake the others up…). It was because of the view that night that I decided to go back to Norway in the middle of the winter in 2013 — and saw even more impressive displays in Tromsø.

Northern Lights Self Portrait. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 10.5 mm f/2.8 fisheye lens (ISO 400, 10.5 mm, f/2.8, 10 sec). (David J Mathre)

Happy Birthday Dad — From Norway.

Two days earlier the family got together to have a birthday celebration for my father before the majority of the group disembarked the Hurtigruten MS Kong Harald in Kirkenes.

Twelve-Years Ago (27-January-2007) — Norway

Gone to See Norway 2007 Family Winter Vacation. Day 7: Northbound Hurtigruten MS Kong Harald Norwegian Coastal Voyage (Stokmarkenes to Skjervøy).

On the fourth day of the northbound Hurtigruten voyage, the ship stops in seven ports: Stokmarkenes (00:45-01:00); Sortland (02:30-03:00); Risøyhamm (04:15-04:30); Harstad (06:45-08:00); Finnsnes (11:15-11:45); Tromsø (14:30-18:30); and Skjervøy (22:30-22:45). As we move farther north, the amount of time that the sun is up keeps decreasing. It was almost 11 AM when I took the first image in this post. By the time we arrived Tromsø later in the afternoon it was already dark. In Tromsø several from our group went dog sledding. After the ride we had coffee in a Sami tent (lavvu). At the end of the day back on the ship I got to play King Neptune for the “Crossing the Arctic Circle” ceremony. The Captain of the Ship and King Neptune baptized those that had crossed the Arctic circle for the first time with ice water. For those that cross the equator for the first time the ceremony requires that they get their head shaved and kiss a fish.

Coffee Warming By a Wood Fire after the Dog Sled Trip Tromsø. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs and 85 mm f/1.4 lens (ISO 200, 85 mm, f/1.4, 1/60 sec). (David J Mathre) — Coffee Warming By a Wood Fire after the Dog Sled Trip Tromsø. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 85 mm f/1.4 lens (ISO 200, 85 mm, f/1.4, 1/60 sec).. (David J Mathre)

alt_title. (David J Mathre) — King Neptune and the Ship Captain Performing a Baptism at the Crossing the Artic Circle Ceremony. Image taken with a Nikon D2xs camera and 12-24 mm f/4 lens (ISO 200, 24 mm, f/6.3, 1/200 sec). (David J Mathre)

Four-Years Ago (11-February-2013) — Norway

Gone to See Norway 2013. Chasing the Northern Lights. Day 14: Tromsø.

Wintertime walkabout in Tromsø, Norway. Part 2: Ships and boats. With its long coastline, Norway is a nautical seafaring nation. I arrived in Tromsø on the MS Nordkapp, a Hurtigruten line ship three days earlier and would leave on a different Hurtigruten ship. On this day there were fishing trawlers, combination passenger ferry/Ro-Ro (roll on, roll off) cargo ships, and a fire/rescue boat named the Wanny Woldstad. Later in the day, the Hurtigruten MS Kong Harald stopped in Tromsø. I had been on that ship the winter of 2007. On the way back to the hotel, we watched a combination passenger ferry/Ro-Ro cargo ship be winched out of the water to into a dry dock shipyard.