Day 14
Honningsvaag is very close to the North Cape or Nordkapp which is situated at 71 degrees north and is the most northerly point on mainland Europe that can be accessed by car. So we are well into the Arctic Circle but we woke to positively balmy weather - tee shirts and shorts weather. What a pleasant surprise! And at last the shorts we’ve brought with us are being used.
The trip today was a King Crab Rib Safari organised through P&O. But we can only thank Per Lars for strongly recommending that we try king crab. Without his suggestion we would not have booked the trip and it was so good it would have been shame to miss it. We had a wonderful time.
We queued for the first time leaving the boat for all of 2 minutes 😂. The boats for the safari were only a short hop from our ship. So we met up with our guide and went to their base for a safety briefing and to pick up life jackets. There were 2 boats and 24 of us. When we reached the boat everyone headed right so we went left and got the two seats at the front of the boat. Children we may be, but belting through the water at 80km is just brilliant fun. The unremovable smile was back on my face yet again. We very quickly spotted reindeer drinking from a mountain stream running into the sea so stopped for photographs. At the same time we saw eagles flying above us.
After the photo opportunity we set off once more to where the crab pots were. They hauled one up which had been down only since the morning and it was already pretty full. Crabs have very poor eyesight but are attracted to strong smells. So the pots are baited with mackerel. The crabs are plentiful in that area but still sell for €70-80 per kilo. They do have a quota, but slightly further north there isn’t one. Their main market is Asia, particularly Japan, and then of course, the local tourists.
We then landed nearby. Lunch was going to be in the modern equivalent of a Sami tent. But first the crab has to be prepared. We were given a brief talk on the crab whilst it was still alive and then the inevitable. So we walked away and exploded the area. The dead crabs were then put into boiling sea water to cook for about 40 mins. We were to have 11 crabs between the group. They were all prepared in front of us and you could also help preparing if you wished.
Then into the tent for the meal. Oh my goodness, how delicious! They were served with bread, lemon and mayonnaise but they were so plentiful that we both left the bread and just ate the crab. The meat was so sweet and so fresh. I could live off king crab for the rest of my life.
Sadly it was then time to leave and return to the dock. We swapped seats to give others a chance at the front but we were definitely on the best boat. Whilst the other guy hugged the coast at a slow pace, we raced out into the ocean going as fast as we could and spinning round in circles. We got back first so went into the bay to explore further. When I got off the boat I told John our driver and Tim our guide, that it was definitely the best boat.
We then went into the obligatory tourist shop which actually had some fabulous jackets and fleeces but we refrained and I only bought a pair of Norwegian slipper socks.
After that we wandered round the town which was very attractive with loads of cafes and bars and because of the wonderful weather, all had pavement tables.
We bought some more tonic water and headed back to the boat for a beer on the aft deck.
Dinner tonight will be in Alexandria.
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