For the longest time, or I should almost say that since the beginning of my travels, I've had a disdain for tourist traps. Some places I've ended up at are popular for a reason, but others are popular simply because. I set out from Mehamn yesterday; since I arrived a day late I was hoping I could stay an extra night and do a bit more exploring but Luna said I couldn't stay due to her visiting her husband. I told myself I'd be content with not going to Nordkapp but I just had to get to what some other travellers have called "the world's northernmost rip-off." Nordkapp is only slightly higher in latitude than Mehamn but it requires a long loop-around. There's the option of taking the Hurtigruten ferry and whilst it saves some time, it costs a fair bit of money. My thumb was my best option as I slowly made my way toward Nordkapp. Mozzies (mosquitoes) are largely absent in Mehamn but once I started making my way toward Nordkapp they were having their way with me. Foolishly, I didn't pack any long pants for this journey. I would end up pitching my tent at a beautiful bay about an hour from Nordkapp.
This morning I got a lift in less than 10 minutes by a German guy on his way to Nordkapp. He remarked that after years and years of driving on the Autobahn that the 80 kph speed limit in most of Norway comes as a shock. An Arctic blast of wind greeted me upon arrival at Nordkapp as did all manner of travellers including bicyclists, motorcylists, retired couples, families, and milestone travellers. Some travellers have travelled by land all the way from Gibraltar! To go into the visitor centre, or to buy a postcard or a coffee, you're forced to buy a ticket at the cost of approximately US$33. Turnstiles operate, and you can't even go inside to warm up without a ticket. Fortunately, a lady on her way out gave me her ticket (you can go in and out as many times as you want). Nordkapp is probably the only place in the world where you need to buy a ticket just to go into the onsite gift shop and cafe. Sending myself a postcard and having a celebratory glass of wine were appealing as I didn't want to spend too much time outside. When I did go outside I had to put my Barmah hat far, far away. This is, so far, the absolute northernmost I've ever travelled. My Antarctic parka would have been handy here.
My internal compass has guided me as far north as possible; the needle can't direct me any further north at this point. Frustrating as it may be, I'm happy to start making my way south. Very soon, I won't need a jumper as I'll be perfectly comfortable walking around in shorts and a T-shirt. The Thai king, Chulalongkorn, visited Nordkapp in 1907, and that occasion still inspires many Thai pilgrims to visit Nordkapp. A monk dressed in a robe, without a jacket, made me wonder how he wasn't cold.
Nordkapp, although I accomplished getting that far north, is one of my more disappointing travel experiences. Nordkapp is popular simply because it is perceived as the northernmost point in Europe. The actual northernmost point on mainland Europe is Kinnarodden, a couple days' hike from Mehamn. Nordkapp is on the island of Magerøya but the northernmost point is Knivsjelodden, which is a hike of a few hours from the road to Nordkapp. On my way out, I would give my gifted ticket to a French guy, meaning he wouldn't have to pay the entrance fee just to get inside and warm up. Hopefully he turned around and gave his ticket to someone else on his way out. Being picked up straight away in this Arctic cold blast, the only direction from here was south. I was hoping I'd get to Finland today but I thought I'd see where I'd end up. About half hour south of Nordkapp I was picked up by a guy heading towards Vardo and Kirkenes. Vardo is the easternmost town in Norway and is even further east than St. Petersburg and Istanbul. This has been a journey of extremes and, whilst I was tempted to do the journey and add a couple of days to my Norwegian adventure, I opted to have him drop me at Tana where we each continued our respective adventures. Although I don't have a plane ticket out of Europe, my time is limited on this journey and I've spent more time in Norway than I've already planned. It was close to 10 PM and raining, so I called it a day in Tana. It's my final stop in Norway on this journey, but I'm sure to be here in the future as I still have Svalbard to visit. If I had a Russian visa I'd probably do a trip to Murmansk but in that case I'd have to skip Finland since their border with Russia isn't open at the moment. Doing my best to keep rain, wind, and mosquitoes at bay, I was all snug in my tent. Finland is my next stop after more than two weeks thumbing it around Norway.
