From our overnight spot in Repvåg, the drive was about an hour and a half to Nordkapp. First, we followed the coast, which was very pretty in the sunshine, then we entered the Nordkapp Tunnel. This is one of the longest under-sea road tunnels in Norway… almost 7 kilometres long and over 200 metres deep! We felt sorry for the cyclists pedalling through it!
After crossing an elegant road bridge and passing through another tunnel, we reached Honningsvåg where a cruise ship dominated the harbour. From here, there were dozens of small groups of cyclists with yellow cruise line bibs pedalling uphill to Nordkapp, and coaches were backwards and forwards transporting those who were less energetic… or who had realised heavy rain was forecast!
The road now wound its way uphill, through hills and past lakes and patches of snow. We parked up before Nordkapp because we’d planned to walk to Knivskjelodden, which is the most northerly point in mainland Europe, but can’t be reached by road. However, it started to rain and we realised that the 10 kilometre route that we’d been looking at was one-way only. We decided we didn’t fancy an 20 kilometre, 5-hour walk in the rain! We’d have to make do with going to the most northerly point accessible by road!
When we set off again, the radar station at Nordkapp soon came into view and we could see the car park full of motorhomes, coaches, cars, motorbikes and bicycles. The globe monument that marks the north cape is on top of a 370 metre high cliff, and was surrounded by people. Wanting to avoid the crowds, after parking, we wandered off to the side to take some photos, looking towards Knivskjelodden and watching a small plane zip forwards and backwards over the cape.
We then decided to bite the bullet and join everyone else… we couldn’t come all this way and not get a photo with the globe! Thankfully, the crowd had thinned out a bit… a couple of coach loads must have left… and we managed a satisfactory selfie.
We also explored the various other monuments on the cliff top. My favourite was the Children of the Earth monument which was created by 7 children from different countries and represents friendship, cooperation and joy.
As we hadn’t hiked and had time to spare, we decided to head back to Alta, retracing our journey through the hills and along the coast. Once again we saw several groups of reindeer, including one with a baby.
The journey took about 3 and a half hours, much of it in a queue of vehicles. The sun had emerged at Nordkapp and we enjoyed its warmth as we followed the coast. It disappeared completely as we climbed to the Sennalandet mountain plateau though.
We completed the drive in heavy rain and parked up at a free motorhome aire in Alta. Tomorrow, we plan to visit the Cathedral of the Northern lights, as well as doing some shopping. Then we start heading to Tromsø, with a couple of stopovers on the way to hike… weather permitting!
Ramblings 
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